Shibaura ST318, Workshop Manual

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8) Care in Handling Charging System.
(1) Pay attention to battery polarity and absolutely refrain from making a wrong connection. If it is wrongly connected, the
battery will be short-circuited by the diode where it admits and enormously large current which will destroy the diode
and regulator and burn the wiring harness out.
(2) Do not ground the alternator B terminal as it is charged with a battery voltage at all times.
(3) Do not run the engine at high speed while the B terminals of alternator is open.
This will raise the generated voltage of the alternator to nearly 200 V and cause the regulator coil to burn lead to diode
destruction and is dangerous.
(4) When the battery on the vehicle is charged quickly with a quick charger, the battery terminal should be disconnected.
Semiconductor equipment (tachometer, emission control computer, etc.) can be destroyed by abnormal pulse voltage
and, therefore, this should be done by removing the battery from the vehicle, or disengaging the cable from the battery.
(5) The alternator and regulator should be properly grounded.
Improper grounding causes overcharging, light flickering, unstable movement of the ammeter needle, etc.
(6) Belt shall be set at the proper tension at all times.
Adjust it to the proper value as suggested by the manufacturer using a belt tension gauge.
As a guide, the proper tension is established when the belt is deflected 10 to 15 mm with a light push of the finger.
A slackened belt can cause lack of charging and excessive tension can cause the belt to prematurely snap, or lead to
partial wear of the bearing.
(7) Keep the water from getting on the alternator and other electrical equipment when the vehicle is washed.
(8) Since the potential of the IC regulator case is ground, it should be securely bolted to the alternator and its potential
should be rechecked.