Hey guys,


I'm asking here because my experience in the '73-'79 forum with my truck has been that you guys are way more knowledgeable than anywhere elese I've found.

This is not a truck, I'll be honest up front about that, but it is a '63 Ford with a 390 and a generator, and I've had all kinds of problems with it.

Replaced the brushes a couple years back when the Gen light would come on at low revs and it worked fine for a while, but after a period of storage, the gen light won't go out at all. Replaced and polarized the regulator, but that didn't help. If I push the cutout relay closed, the light goes out, so I'm figuring it has something to do with the gen.

First off, any suggestions for troubleshooting the gen? A search turned up a couple posts about a stuck brush or brushes. IIRC, those unscrew from the casing, right? Can I get to those without dropping the massive gen? I do remember that was a real pain last time I did it, and I don't have ramps any more.
Should I just replace them again, or can I pull them and spray some WD40 on them or something?

Next idea is replacing the gen altogether. Anybody have a source for rebuilds? The normal parts places I buy from - Dearborn Classics, Mac's, just seem to have pulleys and brackets and so forth, and if there were any decent junk yards around here any more, they don't have anything this old.

Or, I could go with an alternator. I'm not real good with auto electricals, and the 3G writeups I've seen look more complex than I want to try. I did a one-wire on another old vehicle I had once, and it charged the battery, but is there a way to make the Gen light work as well? I'm lookng for as easy a solution as I can find.
I'm on my own with this, I don't have any knowledgeable car buddies nearby, so it's up to what I can make work.

Thanks in advance for any tips, pointers, sources, etc.

Sean

 

To replace the brush's, you have to pull the end off the Gen. I just did this on my 64 Galaxie, one of the brush springs was loose and only one of the brush's was bad. I did get new brush's at a local parts house here in Oregon. To check out the rest of the gen., see if you have a local shop that rebuilds alternators and see if they do generators. They use a Growler to check the armacher.

 

That's what I was afraid of. I kind of remember that now. Looks like I need to figure out a way back under that beast...

If I gotta pull it though, I'm definitely interested in exploring replacement, as well.

Last time I checked with the local car electrical shop, they no longer had anybody who knew anything about gens.

Thanks,

Sean

 

If it's a Galaxie, you should be able to get it out though the top. There is not much that can go wrong with a generator, pull it off and take a look at the brush's. Try looking in to a electrical shop that rebuilds electric motors like for well pumps. A generator is basically a electric motor.

 

Hmm. Maybe I did it the hard way before. Not too hard to believe. I'll take a look after work and see what I've got. I'd like to pull the thing and take a look at the very least, I just remember it being an ordeal last time. We'll see. Thanks again.

Sean

 

The alternator replacement would be the best solution... With a one wire, you can get a low voltage sensor here to get the idiot light to work with it.

 

Thanks, the alternator is plan B if I can't get the generator working right again. I'm actually planning to sell the Galaxie this year to fund another old truck if possible, so I'm most interested in getting it back in shape in the short term.
Does anybody know which one-wire I'd be looking for? Particular applications, or if I go to Auto Zone and say, "Gimme a one wire alternator", they'll know what I want?

Sean

 

pssshhht my autozone would be a one wire what lol wouldn't know nothing be lucky if they knew what a alternator is hahaha

 

Over the years I've owned 30 1962/64 Galaxies, so I've been there, done that.

The brushes don't get stuck, they wear down to a nub. The armature gets coated with road grime, spray it with carb cleaner. WD-40 isn't a good cleaner, cuz it attracts dust.

Look at the cover of the generator regulator, does it have any dents in it? The regulator has points inside, have a nasty habit of getting stuck. When this occurres, the GEN lamp comes on...and stays on.

Peeps rapped on the cover with their knuckles or screw driver handles to unstick the points. Remove the cover, spray the guts with carb cleaner.

Check the fan belt, if it's loose, the GEN lamp will flicker. If it were mine, I'd take the generator apart, spray everything with carb cleaner, replace all the following parts, then it would be trouble free for the next decade.

1960/64 F100/350 & Passenger Cars / 1965 Mustang w/a generator.

C3AZ-10050-A .. Plate & Brush Assy Generator Rear End (Motorcraft GH-18) / G/S = 9.

C1VF-10057-A .. Generator Brush Spring (Motorcraft MS-454) / G/S = 18.

C1AZ-10069-A .. Generator Brush Set (Motorcraft GB-11) / G/S = 11.

C9ZZ-10094-A (replaced A8AZ-10094-B) .. Generator End Plate Bearing (Motorcraft GE-21) / G/S = 7.

B6A-10095-B .. Generator Rear Bearing (Motorcraft GE-4) / G/S = 11.

C3TZ-10505-B .. Generator Regulator (Motorcraft GR-268) / G/S = 23.

GREEN SALES CO. in Cincinnati OH (800-543-4959/513-731-3304) has the largest stock of Ford obsolete parts on the planet. G/S has all these parts.

At one time, authorized Ford rebuilders sold remanufactured generators, Green might have some.

The 1960/64 Ford Passenger Car Parts Catalog is available on a CD from hipoparts.com

 

Thanks, NumberDummy! Would the end plate and brush assembly have the springs, or is that a separate deal?

Thanks,

Sean

 

Parts catalog pic has an * (asterisk) next to all the parts that mount to the plate.

* Also supplied in rear plate assembly.

 

So the springs are supplied with the assembly? I can't see the pic.

Thanks,

Sean

 

Hey, wanted to drop back in and let everybody know, it was a stuck brush on the generator. Got it out, popped off the back plate, and there it was. One of the brushes was stuck in the track.
Just because I wasn't sure how strong the springs were, or how unstuck I could keep the brushes in those tracks, I ordered a backplate assembly, put it back together - four words that sound sooo easy, but it was a real pain trying to hold it with one hand and line up the bolt holes.

Fired it up, and instant gratification.

Thanks again for all the help.

Sean

 

I really recommend upgrading to an alternator. They are sooooo much better and are not hard at all to install. The one wire alternators are literally just one wire that you hook up and you are done. The hard part is figuring out how to make a bracket for it.

 

Well, if I end up keeping it, I will likely go that way. I'm not running anything but the lights, and those not very often, but I hate having to wrestle with it.

Thanks again,

Sean