I have a 74 Charger with a charging system issue. I have replaced every component on this car with no luck. I ohmed the red battery to the post on the alternator and have continuity across both wires through the dash and bulkhead . I put new plastic clips on the bulkhead plug ins and cleaned the contacte. When I initially start it ,it shows charging between 14 and 13 v but after a few seconds it drops to 11 and stays there. Anybody seen this before?

at idle right?

what about at around 2k rpm?

are you measuring at the battery or at the alternator?

how is your amp meter? did you bypass it or still running it?

did you clean off just the main power going in and out or did you clean up the sensing line pins?

I have measured the voltage at low and high rpm at the battery and alt and theyre the same. I did a continuity across the positive battery post and the alt post with positive results. I ran a separate wire from the alt post to the starter relay battery post to bypass the dash and still no charge. I cleaned the bulkhead installed plastic plug ins and put dielectric grease in the female part of the plug . Ive never heard of sensing line pins ??

how about a ground directly to the voltage reg?

what was your ground when checking the alt?

sensing line to the vr has to pass through the bulkhead 2 times.
you know you have voltage or your car wouldn't run, question is how much.
I wasn't sure what plastic you are talking about, so I thought you were saying you replaced the specific connectors in the bulkhead connector associated with charging. I called them pins.

most people do the main, but forget the sensing line to the vr.
dual field taps off the same line for the second, wire to the alternator. so both of those being less than 12 volts might throw it off, but typically that causes an over charge. no charge would happen with no voltage of course, but this line also powers the ballast to coil. so it wouldn't run. unless you have some other starting system wired up.

if your VR to body ground is not good enough, it will cause problems.
I run a ground from the engine to one of the holes on the vr where it bolts to the body.

bad ground here would cause the under charge most likely.

Okay it all makes sense . I put the ground wire from the harness t the firewall on the reg and cleaned the main ground from the motor to the firewall .Should I run another ground wire from the reg to the motor. Also , can I have continuity thru toe ammeter and still have it not be able to carry a load? I believe its workong prperly as it dropps on the discharge when I turn lights on. And this is an optioned car power windows and such, is there another regulator in the system or a relay shorted?
Thanks Jim

continuity doesn't prove load ablitlty. a single wire would show electrical path.

the fact that you bypassed it tells me it isn't the bulkhead.

I would run a seperate ground. the only thing grouding it right now is the threads on that bolt through sheet metal. very little contact.

I would also unplug the vr when you are in a no charge state and verify what the wires you have read coming in and out of it.
then I would check the field wire voltages as well.