Please note: When flashing the field, it's a good idea to disconnect the field from the rectifier before applying battery current.
There are two reasons for this:
-- The rectifier is spared having to bear the large voltage spike which will occur when you disconnect the battery from the field.
-- You will not risk damaging the rectifier if you happen to get the battery polarity backwards.
You only need to disconnect one of the two field wires.
Correction 2/6/2007:
I realized today that I got it wrong in my suggestion above. I have since discovered that there is no risk to the rectifier when flashing the field provided you connect your power source to the field coil with the correct polarity. You must connect + to + and - to -. If you get this backwards, you will destroy the recitifier.
Also, you do not want to disconnect the rectifier from the field because if you do, you will experience a nasty spark when you disconnect your power source from the field coil.
By the way, I ran this through "peer review" so, even if you doubt my credibility, you should still believe this.
My apologies for for the error.
Best regards,
Andy Hall
"Crow's a dish best eaten warm..."