External vs internal voltage regulator alternator.

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darwink1

darwink1

10 Year 15 Year
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Jul 24, 2007
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Location
Sudbury Ontario Canada
First off, im pretty much a dummy when it comes to wiring so bear with me.

My alternator has an external regulator (76 2f) and the guy whos wiring it mentioned that an internal reg would be more reliable? Is there a real difference? Should I bother getting the alt rebuilt and modded, is this even an option? I guess I could find a newer alternator to put in there....

Thanks in advance.

D
 
Going from the 76 external reg to an FJ60 solid state internal reg is in my opinion, a good idea. The internal regulator has no points to burn, and much simpler wiring. You also go from 40 amps to 60 amps capacity.
 
Cool, thanks.

D
 
When you do this swap (from ext. to internal regulation), do you leave the original voltage regulator in place? If not, how do you wire around it? Thanks!
 
Just a word of advice: The external regulated alternator is 30Amps, the suggested 60 series alternator is 60Amps.
Unfortunately the Ammeter in your cluster and the wiring to and from can only deal with 30Amps, maybe a bit more but that's it.
So if you go for the 60 Amp alternator you have to modify the wiring to the alternator but also upgrade the wiring from the alternator to the battery and everything in between. Or you can skip the last part and wait for smoke signals ;).

Rudi
 
I am running an FJ60 alt through a stock 76 FJ40 Ammeter. It's fine. THe wiring from the alt to the ammeter is 10ga and from the ammeter to the battery is 10ga. It works really well. It keeps a stock appearance/function with an upgraded electrical system.

BTW-A stock '76 alternator makes 36 or 40 amps. Earlier ones made less.
 
Cruiserdrew said:
I am running an FJ60 alt through a stock 76 FJ40 Ammeter. It's fine. THe wiring from the alt to the ammeter is 10ga and from the ammeter to the battery is 10ga. It works really well. It keeps a stock appearance/function with an upgraded electrical system.

BTW-A stock '76 alternator makes 36 or 40 amps. Earlier ones made less.
Click to expand...

I don't doubt that your set up works fine. My response was only an advice. Often people don't realize what they're doing. Bigger battery, fog lights, hunting lights, cooler and so on, all under the motto..... I have a big alternator.

Rudi
 
I agree with bj40green. Keep it stock and keep it simple. If you use a higher output capacity alternator, without upgrading the wiring to support the additional current capability, you will have problems. I have a 76 and have not had any problems with the stock configuration.
 
I agree that 60 amps is not much. But anything much bigger than that I would hesitate to run through the '76 ammeter, because all the current runs through it, not shunted around it like '78 and later.

Anyway, the original question was; Is an internally regulated alternator better? and basically, yes it is. If you upgrade the power output, you may need to upgrade the wire size. I used an FJ60 alternator because I had it on hand and it's a clean/easy install.
 
Im not worried about existing wiring since there is none. The wiring is being totally redone by my buddy as we speak, not one part of the old harness is being reused.

That being said all of the lights on my 40 are led with the exception of the bib markers, cluster and 3rd brake light all of which will be upgraded to led bulbs eventually. I do have a warn 9000 lb winch on there that will eat some juice.

Planning to call the local alternator rebuild place to see of they can m9d my current alternator to have an internal regulator. I have found an fj60 alt locally but its crusty and would probably need a rebuild anyways so why not see if they can work with the alt I have now... Supposedly these guys are known for being able to up the amps when they rebuild a given alternator so im gonna go see them and see whats what.

BTW two of the larger parts stores in the area cant get 60 series alternators anymore....


D
 
I doubt you'll be able to put an internal regulator on an alternator that was not built with that in mind. Look at the case of the 60 alternaator-the VR fits in that square recess in the side, the FJ40 alternator won't have that.

Also, increasing the power output by adding more windings is also frowned upon because you just increase the heat generated by alternator without increasing the cooling capacity of the alternator.

The FJ60 alternator even if it needs a rebuild, will be preferable and I would use that.
 
bj40green said:
I don't doubt that your set up works fine. My response was only an advice. Often people don't realize what they're doing. Bigger battery, fog lights, hunting lights, cooler and so on, all under the motto..... I have a big alternator.

Rudi, I hope you are still monitoring the forum(s). I bought another Land Cruiser, a 1979 FJ40. While it ran okay, I noticed a whine that I will attribute to the alternator. Probably a bad bearing. Regardless, I am combining my 1970 with the 1979 to take advantage of the many new parts on the old rig and acquire a heater, 4 spd with the later model rig. When I put the 1983 2F engine into my '70 last May I kept my alternator and starter. The fellow included a gear reduction starter and an alternator along with the motor, safely stored in a box in the shop. I looked at the back of the two alternators and see that while there is a 90* rotation difference in the location of the plug, the pattern, size, etc. of the plug-in is the same. Of course my '70 has an external VR. When I switch the "new" wiring harness from the '70 over to the '79, can I run an internal VR alternator through an external VR?
Click to expand...
 
You can use any alternator you want but you have to do some rewiring from external to external regulated.
Please post pics and part number of the alternator you want to use. Connectors can look the same but..... Murphy's Law #258.
BTW..... the cluster ('79 and later) is also different. You have to change the Ammeter circuit.

Rudi
 
Hi Rudi, glad you are still helping us all out.
This problem appears to have solved itself. Limited to five pictures at a time this will be in two posts. These first pictures are of the supposedly 1983 FJ60 that my "new" engine came out of. I see no integrated VR on this alternator.

DSCN4593.webp


DSCN4594.webp


DSCN4595.webp
 
These pictures are of the alternator that was on the vehicle when I bought it three years ago. This was an "F" engine with external VR. So I guess I am going to use my VR and have two alternators.

DSCN4596.webp


DSCN4597.webp


DSCN4598.webp
 
Tell me if I'm wrong..... top = E, bottom left =F and bottom right = N
The F terminal tells us that you need and external VR.

Rudi
 
Hi Rudi, I was mowing the lawn this morning. But here are the pictures. The unit on the left is the "'83" alternator, not likely. The one on the right, or middle, is the unit that came on my '70 with external VR. So the E, F, N, & B are the same orientation, put positioned differently relative to the pivot bolt. The second picture is the alternator I took off the '79 Cruiser that I suspect has a bad bearing. Clearly it has the internal regulator. So from what I gather from your other posts, although I don't know for sure, is that an alternator with internal regulator CANNOT be wired through an external regulator. Don't know why, am guessing it must "confuse" the circuits.

DSCN4599.webp


DSCN4600.webp
 
The pic's are a bit vague (I can't read the letters on the tape markings) but I'll clear something up. It's OR!
OR you have an alternator that is external regulated OR you have an alternator that is internal regulated.
When you see a terminal marked F on an alternator it's always an external regulated alternator.
The two in the first picture are external regulated.
The one in the second picture is internal regulated. The VR is in the box above the connector.
2wire_alternator_text.webp


Rudi
 
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