regulator question
. actualy the alt. puts out the same VOLTAGE regardless of regulator, a more acurate description of the function of the regulator would be an AMPERAGE regulator..
.....Sorry, but.......
This is ABSOLUTELY INCORRECT. The alternator does NOTHING without the VOLTAGE regulator, and the VOLTAGE regulator has NOTHING to do with "regulating" amperage.
The ONLY thing that determines AMPERAGE in a PROPERLY VOLTAGE REGULATED charging system is........the battery itself. IF the battery is DOWN it "takes" more amperage from the system.
The VOLTAGE regulator's job is EXACTLY what it's name implies. It CONTROLS the alternator field, ramping the voltage UP until the feedback LOOP known as "voltage sensing" "comes back" on the IGN supply buss as a "raised voltage." The regulator (used to be a voltage sensitive RELAY) SENSES this voltage and ADJUSTS the field current up or down so that the VOLTAGE output of the alternator is CONSTANT
The VOLTAGE regulator, then, REGULATES the system VOLTAGE at a CONSTANT level, and that voltage IS a target voltage of about 13.8 VOLTS
IF the alternator has a large enough amperage output rating, and if the wiring is properly sized, the REGULATED VOLTAGE will NEVER CHANGE so long as the alternator is turning at a fast enough RPM to output enough amperage to keep the voltage above the balance point of the system, IE output more amperage that the system would be drawing (in operation) from the battery.
The above condition, of course, does NOT exist in a typical 60s-70s Mopar stocker.