More Generator Questions

[spinelll]

My generator has a rear bushing and not a rear bearing.
Do I put a dollop of grease in the bushing when I re-assemble?

On pic 1, that indentation looks like a spot for a split ring. But nothing goes there, correct?

On pic 2, is there any reason to change those brushes?

[Crankster]

The brushes look like they have some meat on them, so that’s good. Are they oil soaked though? That would be cause for replacement. Basically, if you’ve a set of new ones it would make sense to replace them.

If I were to reuse them I’d want to sand them in using garnet paper, just as if they were new brushes, so they conform closely and present a full clean contact patch with the commutator surface. They would be fresh against a fresh commutator surface. Don’t want to see any chips or burnt areas. Brushes sand easily.

Hard to tell from the pic, but the commutator segments probably need undercutting, and then polishing. I’ve read that the smoother polish the better, the brushes last a lot longer. After installation the generator brushes are “run in” and put under load to complete the process.

[spinelll]

Thanks Crankster

Is this a "long" nose?

[nkaminar]

This might help: https://modelagarage.com/service_bul...-in-generator/

[Crankster]

Well now I have to lay down and take a nap. No idea on that. The basics I described apply to most any generator. I can say having the manual(s) and diagram is a great help in figuring out what’s what. Parts sometimes got left out over the years, or put where they don’t belong.

[spinelll]

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Originally Posted by nkaminar

This might help: https://modelagarage.com/service_bul...-in-generator/

NKAMINAR


If I read that right, I think my armature is the long shaft.

[Patrick L.]

Isn't there an oil cup for the bushing ? I don't use grease, it burns.

[spinelll]

There is an oil cup.

[nkaminar]

It looks like the groove is an aid when grinding the journal surface. Without the groove the grinding wheel would bump into a shoulder and this would round the edge of the wheel. Both the drawings show a ring on the second groove on the pulley end.

[spinelll]

Thanks for that.

So, the bottom pic is a "short" nose?

[nkaminar]

Your photo in post 3 is a little confusing to me because it seems to have the long taper but is made for the sleeve rear bearing. It seems that it can be used with the older pulley in the newer generator. I am not the expert here so I would defer the question to others who know more.

[spinelll]

I wonder if I have mix-and-match.
Perhaps that's what is causing the shaft play?

Original post: https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=308319

[Badpuppy]

[QUOTE=spinelll;2104868]I wonder if I have mix-and-match.
Perhaps that's what is causing the shaft play?

Photo does look different from sketches in post #9. Long nose, (short) bearing; short nose, (long) bushing. Armature could be from a different generator.

[bobbader]

You have the correct armature. The difference between your armature and the one shown in the diagram is that your armature has a long, tapered shaft on the pulley end as opposed to the short, stubby, tapered shaft in the drawing. Although there is no specific documentation of this anywhere, this long, tapered shaft was probably made early in the transition from the "short" armature to the "long" armature and allowed the continued use of the earlier pulley that had a long, tapered nose and took a 1/4 X 28 attaching bolt. No doubt they had an excess of the early pulleys in inventory at the factory when the armature change occurred. Rather than throw these pulleys out, they made the armature shaft with the long, tapered front end. Once it was time to make a new run of pulleys, they changed the design of the pulley and the shaft.

This difference in the front end of the armature is not what is causing the play (movement) in your armature shaft. I would guess that the front of the shaft where the bearing rides might be worn enough so the bearing is not holding the shaft in lateral alignment. As per the diagram somebody else sent earlier in this post, is there a spacer collar in front of the bearing behind the front lock ring? Are the felt washer and wave washer in place in front of this collar? If not, and there is wear on the shaft, there is nothing to keep the shaft from moving forward and aft.

I have lots of experience rebuilding generators. If you'd like to talk by phone, send me a PM (Private Message) with your nighttime phone number and time zone. I'd be happy to try and walk you through the problem.

Good luck. Bob Bader

[spinelll]

Originally Posted by bobbader

Good luck. Bob Bader

Bob

Sent you a PM.

Leo

[spinelll]

Forgive the blurr.

[Badpuppy]

Thanks, Bob. I was wondering about a transition period. Makes good sense.