[guccieng]

success! i cleaned up the alt innards/case and reassembled it. added a gound strap to the bottom mounting hole after sanding down to bare aluminum and ran it to the engine/frame mount and sanded it to bare steel. started like a champ, thanks to the new battery, and gave 14.56 volts with the headlights on bright. the fan kicked on at 195 degrees and it stayed at 14.32 (w/brights on). what do they say? 90% of all electrical issues are grounds? lesson learned: paint and powdercoat might be pretty, but can hurt your electrical performance. thanks to all who replied!