Here's a question for our experts:

On a Waukesha Enginator, do you have to have the auxiliary control panel that is designed for charging Edison batteries in order to use Edison batteries? If it is possible to charge Edison batteries, will they fully charge? (or at least enough to run 32v d.c. lights and a motor alternator that runs 32v d.c. to 110v a.c.; not quite sure of what all the motor alternator powers)

Electrical load on the car is sporadic, rarely is the car touched more than 1-2 weekends a month. Maximum load handled by the previous batteries (golf cart batteries) was lights on the car and 3 cars trailing (connected by 32v jumpers). The Enginator simply does not like the golf cart batteries, the current level comes up on the batteries, but they aren't charging because they won't hold in the low current relay long enough to actually charge (unless under "heavy" load, such as lighting 4 cars)

Do you mean that the golf cart batteries get a "surface charge" that is enough to fool the charging relays?

That's my understanding of the problem. I'm not a professional electrician.

Do you know if it is a model B or C control system?

Bruce Backus

Not entirely sure; does this help?

(ignore the yellow arrow, only photo I could find of the control panel)

Looks to be a Model C. I have some drawings and documents I'll get scanned Monday and upload. I'd say the unit was not currently setup for Edison batteries as the voltage would be 43 volts and would cook the batteries you were using pretty quick. 38 volts would be the level for lead acid batteries for this unit. It's low current cutoff is 45 amps, so less than 45 amps charging the batteries, it will stop. Could be why you're never really charging the somewhat small batteries you are using. All things are possible by trimming some resistors, you are past the hard part, it runs.

Bruce Backus

The generator output settings are 35.4 volts at 39 amps (which we are achieving according to our measuring instruments). I'm not sure if this is spec or what we set it at to avoid frying the golf cart batteries.

We have been looking for four locomotive batteries to use (which the car did carry in its later years, we actually have a dead battery in the battery box that needs gone)

However, locomotive batteries are not cheap, and we have usable Edison batteries available (Which the car may have carried in it's earlier years, before it got the Waukesha)

What golf cart batteries are you using, five 6 volt or three 12 volt?

Bruce Backus

Four 8 volt golf cart batteries

That would be why you are not charging the batteries much. 32 volts worth of batteries and only 35.4 volts out of the unit. You need to look at the specs of the batteries you have and see what the charging voltage (and current) they expect. I would think it would be up at the 9.5 volt level. Originally the car most likely had only 30 volts worth of batteries. Raising the voltage output is pretty easy, the prints I'll scan Monday will show you how.

Bruce Backus

We have a manual for adjusting the carbon pile regulator; when we started it was stuck at full on, 44 volts at 168 amps. It was adjusted down to what we have it at now after work freeing up the linkages of the carbon pile.

The problem is even if the golf cart batteries start holding a charge, they don't have enough power to run the motor alternator which is the last remaining sub-system we can't seem to make progress on.

For lead-acid battery's figure the charging rate on a per cell biases. 2.34 volts X 16 cells will give you 37.44 volts which is a pretty standard 32 volt bank charging voltage. 2.25 gives 36 volts(a good float charge) anything lower than that and your not charging the bank. As always with a properly set 32 volt system keep a close eye on the battery electrolyte.

A question from the back of the class over by the windows: what is an enginator and where is one used? Thanks!

Wesp, the Enginator was the brand name for an engine - electric generator made by Waukesha to supply power to passenger cars that either have high usage or will be stationary for long periods away from "shore" power. Typical passenger cars before HEP used axle-driven generators and batteries. In this case it's on a dynometer car used to measure locomotive performance.

It is driven by a propane engine, similar if not the same as Waukesha's more famous product, the Waukesha Ice Engine, a passenger car air conditioner. By propane engine we mean an engine pretty much the same as a gasoline engine with pistons, cylinders, and spark plugs but arranged to burn propane gas via a mixing valve arrangement instead of gasoline via carburetor. Propane was typically carried in multiple replaceable steel tanks ("bottles") with regulators adjusted so that one emptied completely before the next one was drawn down. I'm not aware of any cars being fitted with large permanent tanks refilled in place.

Steve