CHARGE! Too much?

[sethkestenbaum]

At my powerhouse three-brush generator's lowest setting my ammeter is reading +12 amps. I suspect that this should be closer to +2 amps. Why is this happening and what should I do?

So far I have:

1) cleaned/retightened/checked for resistance all the connections between the battery and the starter (excepting removing the generator bolt to sand down the bolt hole and removing the instrument panel to get to the back of the ammeter),

2) put the battery on my slow charger after checking the cells for water (once the battery is fully charged I will hydrometer and load test it).

I am still getting a +12 charge at the lowest setting. If I increase the setting the charge gets higher.

Thoughts? Suggestions?