<VV> Re: VirtualVairs Digest, Vol 15, Issue 54

[Padgett]

>Gotcha, my squeamishness comes from getting bitten by an alternator on a
>test stand, no battery, 3450 RPM, and it was pumping out over 100 volts! 
>There
>may be no field excitation, but there was enough magnetism in the rotor to 
>zap
>my unsuspecting behind! A clip lead to ground stopped it, and that 16 gage
>wire  didn't even get warm.

I wouldn't. With no field (the small wires), there might be some voltage 
but there will be no current behind it. Worst case for an alternator is 
to  charging a dead battery (high load) and someone pulls the battery, 
voltage can exceed 200 v and will have a punch behind it.

Ran a number of tests while a GMI student with Delco-Remy that lead to the 
SCCA requirement for a dual pole kill switch that disconnects both the 
battery and the alternator.

Padgett