The age-old generator vs. alternator thing has cropped up again: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=734530 Just like elecrtic fans, disc brakes, and radials, they all look like **** on an old hot rod. What about the early Mopar alternators? Did they work better(by what ever deffinition of "better") than the generators of the time? And more importantly, did hot rodders use them?
I've got one on my Model A! Same through 1969 I believe when they went dual field or to an electric voltage regulator.... I did it mainly because the GM alternators are giant ugly things, the "could have been period correct" thing was an added bonus.
Alternators did not become popular until the 70s in my area. The Mopar alternator was the first to show up because it was the first but like anything new it was not an overnight thing. The aftermarket industry was no where near what we have today. All hotrodding was local back then. When something new came out from the factory you had to find a line mechanic for that factory with the schooling to know how it worked or how it was wired. State of the art hodrodding circa 1963. Alternators for hotrods came later. I remember buying aftermarket chrome alternator housings that you put your own junkyard guts into. This was in the early 70s. I remember the little jumper wire between the 2 terminals on it to make it work on a hotrod with out an idiot light. That was a big deal back then. We'd been wiring generators for years and now they come along with the newfangled alternator.
My Model A pickup: 57 283 no side mounts vintage hurst front mount Delco dual point dist Speed Gems adapter bellhousing 39 trans Modded F1 trans cr mem and pedals 4" 40 Ford wheels in front 5" 41 Mercury wheels in back Firestone Dlx Champions Banjo out back Dropped Model A up front 40 juice brakes F1 Box Period Offenhauser intake 6 "all big logo 97's 32 truck grill out front The list goes on and on After all that dedicated parts searching, to run an alternator just doesnt make sense for me. You see I said "for me". Just depends what you are trying to accomplish I guess. My truck was a late 50's hot rod that I saved. I have a delco generator. But thats just me. I will say I hate the look of an alternator and often walk away from a car when I see one but again, thats just me. Sent from my Droid powered Samsung Galaxy S
Had a '64 Dodge pickup with an alternator on it. It didn't like boosting tractors, blew diodes several times. We finally learned to use another truck to boost 6V systems!
I don't know about popularity or even common use. I do know that we used stock GM alternators on tri 5s and up all the time. I also know that I like the appearance of the MOPAR alt better than the GM. But the GM alts were easy to find in the wrecking yard and with the external regulater it was nothing to wire one up. In '68 I had a '50s build '33 with a '60s update roll into my yard with an SBC and early GM alt. Granted it wasn't a real street rod becaue the grey beard drove it every day to and from work and it didn't have a real honest to goodness crate motor in it. It was just your everyday hot rod.
I'm not a generator snob...I've got a 1964 GM 37 amp alternator I found at a swap meet for $5 and it works...but that's just me...
I don't think that the alternators were much better then the generators in the beginning just different then the generators. I personally haven't run a generator in a long time, I have nothing against them I am just not willing to go out of my way to run one. I think it is funny, I have a 110 amp alt that I built from a 65 amp stocker back in the '90s. I originally built it for a tech article and then I just started using it. I run almost nothing major on my cars, my fuel pump uses 3 amps max and my ingition uses 1 amp per thousand RPM. No bumpin stereo and once in a while an electric fan. I don't need 110amps, but I don't have to invest in a smaller alt or a genny as long as my home built 110 holds together. Now on my Willys Overland I have an electric fan, and some pretty potent lights. I use a stock 65 amp because that is what was lieing on the bench in the box when I put it together, it keeps up just fine. I am not sure that a genny would have kept up but I sure would have tried if that was what was lieing on the bench.
Mopar alternator? late 50s? I guess they were available for a few months of the 50s in the new 1960 Valiant model, but that's about it.
Delco and Leece Neville had truck alternators in the late 50's maybe earlier.They were bulky units that had an industrial look. 77-81 I was a suspension and ****** guy at a large school bus garage.Mopar based buses had way more problems with alternators and starters than Ford. And the Fords were more troublesome than Chevys with Delco stuff.The IHC with Leece Neville fell between Ford and GM. To be fair buses run the **** out of their charging systems,but it was what I experienced.
I've never seen one of these. My guess is that it was for emergency vehicles. I bought it just for bar bets.
Yes,but the short buses based on one ton vans had typical car type alternators and starters.There was about 30 short buses and 70 big ones,a good sampling.Simply put,the car Mopar alternator was not as reliable under constant load. Average car here has very little electrical load of course
^ ^ ^ This is one of the prettiest uses of this type of clunky alternator I've ever seen. This really fits the scheme. But back to the topic at hand..... If you want a good alternator with plenty of power in a small package look into a Nippondenso alternator. They are compact and easy to find in junkyards.
Well, anytime I look at a hot rod and am looking for things that are not period correct; an alternator fits because my field of reference is mid 60's which was my learning period. I do like the look of the mopar unit though!
My, (almost) period correct, at least in spirit, rpu runs an alternator on the 260. I actually think it's not as ugly because I was able to tuck it up in front of the head instead of the huge old generator that had to hang way on the outside of the engine. Period correct is kind of hard to nail down as things changed yearly. What period is it correct for? 48-53 would be a lot different than 54-60. There's nothing easier to look at than a 50s style rod with a full dress flatty, drum brakes, bias ply tires and generator, but do you suppose they would have done it that way back then if those parts were as relatively rare or expensive as they are today? They used what was plentiful, cheap and gave the best results, then modified it to fit if need be. Not lay down the credit card for the "correct" parts at almost any price. Not that there's anything wrong with being a purist. It's just that sometimes we get more caught up in the exact correct parts than the actual spirit in which those cars were built, using what was plentiful in the junk yards at the time.
Or if you want to keep it all Ford, the small frame 3G. I happen to be running a large frame because it's what I had (as in free). They are a great alternator, capable of 95 amps at idle. Yeah, I know that's overkill but with my (ACK!) hidden electric fan pulling 18 amps, it is nice to know.
What makes a car traditional, is using what was available at the junk yard back then. Not what's available at the junkyard now. Big difference, I guess some guys don't get it. But that's ok...if everyone was a purist, a lot of cars wouldn't get built.
Can't you use one of those new fangled alternators that look like generators??? http://www.powermastermotorsports.com/powergen.html
I agree and as I said, I love the 50s style rods. I was just pointing out the "sprit" of the conditions the cars were built under.
I think you hit the nail on the head. Doesn't look like many guys were pulling alternators off new wrecked cars and using them. I wouldn't use an alternator out of the junkyard on a modern car either.
Use whatever ya wanna.... Your car, your $$ to buy things for it..... Enjoy !!! I agree with willowbilly,.... Use what's handy,....because it only has to work ! 4TTRUK
Late '50's aternators...? When DID they actually appear? I'd say without research GM 1963, Ford '63 or 4, Mopar 1962. I am NOT counting the Leece-Neville ambulance ones, which were not only scarce but huge, bulky, insanely heavy, and looked like a component that escaped from an early Soviet hydroelectric plant. Anyone sane would have gone to carbide lamps before using one of those...
The Jalopy Journal
