ONE wire alternator GM

[HonkyTonker]

Can someone give me a car and year that i can give to a parts store to get one? I've had enough with this bull shit wiring problem i'm having. Hopefully something that
will be semi the same size as my FORD alternator.

Neal0o

[du$ty]

heres what ya do... get a alternator thats hooked to a v8 and put the whole damn thing in there and stop being gay. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

[flip7262]

Or, you could go to any place on the web that sells hot rod stuff and order one. Even JC Whitney sells them.
Mike http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[HonkyTonker]

[ QUOTE ]
Or, you could go to any place on the web that sells hot rod stuff and order one. Even JC Whitney sells them.
Mike http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

wouldn't that be nice! This is my only transportation so i need it ASAP!

[HonkyTonker]

[ QUOTE ]
heres what ya do... get a alternator thats hooked to a v8 and put the whole damn thing in there and stop being gay. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

FAG! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[Model A Vette]

As far as I know no car came with a one wire. They were originally used on fork lifts and other simple machinery. There may have been some on HD trucks. The street rod industry seized on them to simplify wiring.
IMO it is better to wire a three (really two) wire alt. They are easy to wire: Big wire from battery to stud. Jump a wire from stud to terminal farthest from stud. Last (middle) terminal goes to ign switch terminal which is only on when the car is running.
A couple of things to think about: If you wire it as one wire you have to rev the engine to turn on the alt. A one wire regulator is tough to find if you break down in the back woods!

[mikeyboy]

13-4011sw...at your friendly local napa store....most of 'em carry one. Usually for industrial applications, and built to 63 amp spec.

[manyolcars]

tell'em 76 Monte Carlo, then go to a starter rebuild shop and get a self exciting regulator about $6. That the way I do it. $35 for the alternator plus $6 for the regulator sure beats those high prices in the magazines, on the web and JC Whitney. Plus you dont have to order it. One wire is GREAT!

[Chuck Fish]

Boat supply stores. Mercruser uses 1-wire alt on their V-8 engines. If you gotta have it now,but be prepared to get your wallet abused. if I were you i'ed go get a junkyard alt from the early 70's (GM) and get it rebuilt to a 1 wire configuration. it should cost you about $75.00 and you'll get a warranty.

Chuck Fish

[Elrusto]

7127-1W is the Lester number for one.
OR
PM Dirty2, he owns a starter and alternator shop in Royse City.

[Bass]

I do it the way manyolcars does it.

All you have to do is go to your local starter/alternator repair shop and ask them for the "self-exciting regulator" for a GM regulator. Take the four bolts that hold the two case halves together out, and pry the front side of the 'windings' loose from the front case so that it remains with the bottom case when they come apart.

You'll see the part (the regulator) that looks like the one you just bought, and that's what needs to be replaced. Replace that, and push the brushes back into their housings retaining them through the holes in the housing with a piece of wire. Put all that back together on the rear case half, with the wire sticking through the outside face of the rear case half.

There is also a a resistor that you have to leave out when you convert to one-wire. For lack of a better description, it's a little spiral covered tubular thing that'll be clipped to two places on the inside of the alternator. It'll be pretty obvious when you see it...anyway, it has to be removed.

After all that is done, you're ready to slip the two case halves back together...clock them if necessary while you have them apart. Put your four bolts back in, pull the wire that was holding the brushes in out through the back of the case, give it a couple of spins to make sure it turns like it should, and you're done.

It's actually a lot easier than it sounds.

[pigpen]

What kind of wiring problem are you having? An alternator may not fix it. Speedway Motors carries chrome ones for every application, one wire or not. Their shipping time to where you are is two days. I've had good luck with them. Their customer service is excellent. No, I don't work there.Do you play in a band with the dog house bass? Check my bio.

Regards, pigpen

[BELLM]

Get regulator part #, add SE (self exciting)to the front of it & ask your local friendly parts store for that part #.
Self exciting. Sounds kinda lonely to me. Poor alternator.

[JK]

When I buy them from NAPA, I usually get one for a tractor. If that helps.

[Pist-n-Broke]

No mater how you do it or what one you use the spacing for belt alignment will be off. I PM'D ya. Sorry about the confuision.
The Wizzard

[willowbilly3]

I have installed dozens of one wire delcos but I wouldn't take off an autolite to put on a delco. The autolite is a much more reliable alternator in and of itself. When I ran auto repair shops I replaced 50 delcos for every ford. The main problem with the Ford system is using after market regulators. They are a crap shoot and in general are junk. I went through 5 different brands (NAPA, Standard Ign., Blue streak) on my 72 pickup. Finally I got an oem Motorcraft part. 17 years and 120,000 miles later and not another problem.
I will go to the extra trouble to wire in a Ford alternator on my rod, but that's just me. It also helps if you use a really good battery ( I prefer Interstate megatron). A crappy walmart Never start battery puts a higher work load on the alternator after start up.

[Fat Hack]

Willowbilly3 brings up a good point...about shit batteries. My old Monte Carlo had a factory voltmeter, so I got to WATCH the cheap-ass battery work my $100 alternator to an early demise! Replaced the alternator, and the gauge still jumped all over...ditched the battery for a good Delco, and the gauge stayed right at 14 volts...no more worries!

NOW...

I need a definative FINAL answer here...

On wiring your standard mid 70s GM internal regulator alternator (not a one wire)...

I have seen SEVERAL people jump a wire from the exciter side of the two prong plug directly to the output stud on the alternator. I've always wired the exciter wire to keyed power...the way GM did it.

(The smaller, white wire in the two prong plug is for your "CHG" or "ALT" light)

In my mind...jumping the exciter wire to 12v hot all the time is WRONG, yet I've seen many cars done this way. If GM thought that would have worked right, they would have done it themselves...it HAS to be wrong, but I encounter people all the time who insist it works just fine...

...what gives????

(No disecting the alternator to change regulators...I just want mine wired RIGHT the way it comes!)

[Bass]

I'm no expert, but...Yes you are correct, those people are wrong.

They either are going to have charging problems in the future, and just don't drive the car enough to know it...or they have already had problems.

Wiring that way will work for a temporary fix, but will eventually burn up the regulator.

The only way to properly use only one wire is to use a self-exciting regulator. And if you're worried about being stranded in the middle of nowhere because of your 1-wire alternator, then carry a spare regulator in your toolbox. They really do only cost $6-7...and a chimp could learn how to change one with a 5/16 nutdriver and a piece of wire. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[bigron]

and a chimp could learn how to change one with a 5/16 nutdriver and a piece of wire.


you sure?

[Bass]

Well....maybe not a chimp. A great ape?

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Big Ron...you and Chuck should come to Texas for the Day of the Drags...you'd enjoy it.

-Brian

[HonkyTonker]

Finally got my 3 wire alternator wired in "hopefully correctly" anyways when i was considering the ONE wire
I came up on this website link.

This is the first time i've had to clean up someone else's
hack jobs with wiring. I realize prolly not the last http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Neal0o

[du$ty]

thats good ya got it fixed...too bad your still gay. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif