Hi, Ive been reading through these messages for days now hoping to find the solution to my problem. Unfortunatly, I have not been able to solve it..
So here goes, it seems like there are a lot of wonderful people here!!
Hopefully someone can help me...
I have a 1986, volvo 240, wagon...I recently realized I had a charging problem, by breaking down on a back dirt road of Vermont at 1am(at no point in time, did my idiot light come on to give me a heads up)...After hours of waiting, someone finally drove by and jumped me...(Only to break down about 10 minutes later, leaving myself in the same predicament..)
Fortunatly, by the time the next car came by, it was morning, and I was able to jump my car and with no accessories on, get myself home..
I started by pulling the alternator and replacing the Voltage Regulator..And not being mechanically inclined, I was pround of myself, thinking that it would solve the problem(my brushes were worn down to nothing...) While putting the alternator back in the car, I noticed that 2 wires coming out of the harness were bare(no insulation)..I grabbed some electrical tape and "covered them" and reconnected everything...
I jumped back in my car and for about a day or so, I had no problems..Only to find myself and my dog, sitting on the side of dirt road again, in desperate need of help...Luckily, my friend came by and we charged my battery with his truck for about a 1/2 hour, and once again I got home...At this point, I cleaned my terminals and checked my battery cables, all seem fine...I decided to take an alternator out of my friends 240 volvo, which I was told worked fine, and replaced the one in my car...Once again, as my car idled in my driveway, with headlights and blower on for 45 minutes, I was convinced I was fine...(I never charged the battery again)
So, needless to say, once again, I ended up stranded in the middle of nowhere...After hours of praying for help, I made it home...(Only to avoid my car for 2 days..everytime I got near it, I found myself kicking the door..)
Now, at this point, I have put the original alternator back in the car, with the new voltage regulator(and brushes)...Once again..for a day, my car was fine...only to end up breaking down again...(and at NO POINT in time did my idiot light come on..)
Yesterday, I got my hands on a voltage meter and checked my car battery...With the car running, I was getting almost 15.5 volts..and I had no drain when I turned EVERYTHING on...I let the car sit, running in my driveway, with everything on..for almost an hour..and when I checked the voltage, I was still reading 15v+...
On my way to work, with nothing on in my car, I ended up dying out again..At this point, I said screw it, and got a new battery...(The parts store I got the battery at, said there was no doubt my alternator was sending a charge..and convinced me my battery was bad..)With the car running and the new battery in, I was reading 22 volts...with no drain as the car ran with the lights on...
Once again, happy that the problem was fixed, I made it home...
This afternoon, I decided to start my car and see what was going on...Only to find it dead in the driveway after 1/2 hour of letting it run...(Had 8.4v in the battery...) At this point I have given up, I bought a battery charger, and as I type, my battery is being charged, so I can get to work tomorrow, without feeling the need to kick my car!
After reading these messages for awhile..I can say this...
All my lights come on fine(when I dont have a dead battery) when I turn the key...and they all go off, when the car starts... I dont know what to do!!

sorry for babbling for so long...but Ive had plenty of time to think of what to type as I sit helplessly in a car!! :)

any suggestions!?!?!? and thanks for the help