parasitic battery drain

[rpfeiffer]

i am new to the board but have had my '73 bronco 25 years. it has sat the last 13 and after several thousand dollars and 3 months it is up and running. however, i continue to have battery drain. when i connect a meter between the negative cable and post i have 13ish volts. if i unplug the voltage regulator or disconnect the alternator, it is gone. i have a new vr, new alternator, solonoid, ignition switch, headlight switch, battery (motor, trans, rears, etc). the wiring harness is original, although i made some new connections here and there. i have double and triple checked the wiring, and replaced the voltage regulator three times and the alternator twice. all the alternators have bench tested ok, and i am getting full charge while the engine is running (meter on the battery 14.5ish volts). look forward to your suggestions. thanks i will post pics and more info when i figure out how. thanks

 

[patterdale]

Pull fuses one by one till the drain goes away and you should find the problem.

 

[rpfeiffer]

already havedone that. not on any of the five fused circuits.

 

[john74]

make sure all ground wires are clean and tight.

 

[70_Steve]

Welcome to CB.com!

When you disconnected the alternator, did you just unplug the three-wire connector, or did you remove the wires from the back of the alternator?

If you just disconnected at the connector, you may want to try removing one wire at a time from the alternator, possibly starting with the Field connection.

You may also want to ohm out the short wiring harness that connects to the alternator. The output of the alternator runs through there, and you wouldn't be the first to be the victim of melted insulation.

 

[VB1975Bronco]

rpfeiffer....I too am having the same problem...have you figured out what was draining your battery?