OK, I got a unique one for ya. I just put on Zoops brackets on the front of my 351W and had to change to a GM alt. The Fords have battery, field, and stator posts. The GMs have battery, r, and f posts. Any ideas on the comparison? I think that the r post on the GM goes to the regulator and the f is optional and not required (same as stator on the Ford). And, what does stator mean anyway and how is this lead used?

Slik

 

Unlike generators, alternators use a rotating field - the thing that turns and is connected to the pulley. The physics of electricity is such that if a coil of wire is rotated in a magnetic field a current will be generated. In an alternator the coil is actually fixed around the case i.e., "stationary" from which the term "stator" is derived. The stator is actually three seperate coils connected together at one end. This end is wired to the stator post on the back of the unit. When a current is produced in the stator it exits out the other three ends of the stator to the rectifier to change AC to DC. Current will also flow out the stator post if anything is connected to it. There are only two applications for using the stator post. 1) if a vehicle uses an idiot light rather than an ammeter, the stator post current will energize the battery-power-to-field disconnect relay in the regulator since the alternator power will excite the field rather than the battery once the engine starts. 2) some vehicles run stator post current to the electric choke since it is a source of current only available when the engine is actually running.
Did not mean to tell you how to build a watch when you only asked for the time !! HTH
Fl Panhandle

 

Hey Steve,I thought from a previous post the GM alt. would have been a 1 wire,self energizing unit,supplied with the kit? Please double check the packaging or directions.If not,then if you have "R" & "F" on the back,you are dealing with the original version of GM's alt. w/external regulator.Do you have a wire schematic for your FORD or simular{mine is at home now}? Study it a while,taking note which terminals were "F" and "A or S".Naturally,the "F" goes to "F",and the other will go to "R" on the GM. Be careful as you attach the wires,observing for a severe spark which would indicate something wrong.Also,it is of upmost importance that the alt. case and regulator case be commonly grounded with the battery.If needed,I could get my wire schematics from the house for further investigation.Boy, that self energizing unit would've been the ticket,but I don't see why you couldn't retain your original alternator!Good Luck!
Phillip

 

The GM alt can either be hooked up standard with three wires or with a single wire. From the instructions, it looks like I would have had to run a wire from the bat side of the solenoid to the ignition, and, not wanting to think too hard as it was getting dark, I decided to take matters into my own hands. But, the wire that indicated "field" on the Ford runs back to the regulator, while the "stator" wire ran to a plug that wasn't plugged to anything. Anyway, I wired everything up with the bat disconnected, ran the "field" wire to the "R" post on the GM and ran the "stator" wire to the "F" post on the GM. From my schematics, it looks like both wires on the Ford alt would go back to the regulator before heading any where else. I started her up this morning and drove for several miles, the gauge looked like it was charging, and I did not see any smoke or feel any hot wires. I think I could just leave the "R" post empty also as the regulator is actually built into the GM alt and I would bet that the "R" post just bypasses the internal alt regulator.

The Ford alt is larger and doesn't quite fit the mechanism that is used for tightening the belt. It's wierd setup but it works nice and looks great! I'll send a pic sometime.

Oh, and thanks for the info on the stator stuff. That's what I was curious about. I ran my electric choke back to the fuse box and power it off the power window bay.

Slik

 

Wow,it actually worked right the first time! After reading your last post,I thought you would have had trouble with the engine still running after turning the key off,but because you purposely "reversed " the connections at the back of the alt.,it worked out good!In the past when I converted my 6volt tractor to 12volt w/GM alt.,I too had to "reverse" the wires to get it to stop with the key switch. Wierd huh!!!
Phillip
p.s. Double check the voltage at the battery with a meter or load checker to verify.