borrowed a part measured it. made a die. MADE IT BEEEEEP!
What have you done to your Land Cruiser this week?
- Thread starter IH8MUD
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
Yes, you got it. For others to better understand, the lights dim because at idle, a particular alternator produces less than battery voltage, so your lights at idle are running on ~12.6v. Once the rpm increases, the voltage goes up and is regulated between 13.9v to 14.5v and lights go brighter.
All very good upgrade measures. I will note, however, current is dependent on the load and not what the source can supply. So, your first sentence is true of all electrical sources.
Exactly that. You can draw too many amps right out of the battery with no alternator present and smoke the system. Now if you have a bunch of demand and the wire from the alternator to the battery (and anything in the path e.g. the ammeter) are not up to the task then you can smoke all of that too. This is also why modern cars have some kind of fusible link in that mix to keep your vehicle from catching on fire. There was one of these fires featuring a modified jeep down the road from me. Burned the house down.
True.
When I began driving, my cars and bikes all had generators, not alternators. When I did a lot of highway miles, the battery would boil off the water in the cells over time from too much voltage; it was hard (especially on motorcycles, where the rpm varied a lot) to adjust the voltage regulator to a range where it would charge the battery around town but not boil it off on the highway. When alternators became more prevalent, they were a godsend.
A generator can be regulated in the same way an alternator can, by controlling the field voltage. The chief advantage of an alternator is that the output is generated in the stator not the rotor.
John in Utah
SILVER Star
Noticed a read stain on the back of the block ... coolant seeping out the back of the head 
. Pulled everything apart today and the old fiber head gasket is torn at the back. Of course the precups are all cracked and the head has classic 3B cracks between the valves at every cylinder too
Funny thing is I just got back from 500+ miles of driving to Colorado and back and the truck did great up the mountain passes, and never even tried to get hot. The 3B is tough.
Thinking I will just throw new precups in it and an MLS gasket and see how it does
. Pulled everything apart today and the old fiber head gasket is torn at the back. Of course the precups are all cracked and the head has classic 3B cracks between the valves at every cylinder tooFunny thing is I just got back from 500+ miles of driving to Colorado and back and the truck did great up the mountain passes, and never even tried to get hot. The 3B is tough.
Thinking I will just throw new precups in it and an MLS gasket and see how it does
Is that a crack between the intake and exhaust valve or just the casting?Noticed a read stain on the back of the block ... coolant seeping out the back of the head
View attachment 3072494
View attachment 3072495
View attachment 3072493
Funny thing is I just got back from 500+ miles of driving to Colorado and back and the truck did great up the mountain passes, and never even tried to get hot. The 3B is tough.
Thinking I will just throw new precups in it and an MLS gasket and see how it does
John in Utah
SILVER Star
Definitely cracked. Pretty common with these
Stuff.
Where did you find that glass? Very nice.
Man, these are really tough for sure.
Possibly the technology for controlling the field voltage was primitive in the 1940's - 1950's? All I'm saying (from personal experience) is that generators from that vintage were a PITA in everyday real-world use.
Closing in on the replacement of rear sill and rear quarters. It feels like we're making pretty steady progress, with 1 - 2 sessions in the shop a week. Getting fired up to drive the truck again soon, and will never get tired of seeing my dad smiling and getting fired up about the project.
It's the little things. New gauge cluster screws. Added a cup holder. Washed it. Pretty productive day.
The amperage is the issue combined to some extent with RPMs. Then add in modern expectations and accessories. I have a m37 generator that puts out plenty of juice so you can run the truck and a military radio. I also have an old Austin Healey and you don't want to run the wipers, lights, and heater at the same time. You will run the battery down and be stuck on the side of the road. The only other thing you *could* turn on assuming you have one is the optional radio. Note the Healey also came equipped with 2 fuses worth of protection for the circuits. Alternators put out plenty of amps at low rpms unless you have a high rpm motor and then you need to step down the pulley to keep from over-revving the alternator with the result of less amps at idle.
I really wish your pictures weren’t so bad and blurry. Looks like beautiful scenery up there.
Added a sliding alternator tension kit from Vintage TEQ.
I feel your pain with British cars; when I was younger I had a Sunbeam Alpine and a BSA motorcycle.
HaHa, yeah - I had a Triumph GT6 and a Spitfire! Cool cars, but not too durable.
Roger THAT……. ‘76 Triumph Spitfire I drove in college (when it wasn’t in the shop). My dad was most definitely ready to veto that as he had a late 60’s Dodge Dart picked out but gave in and helped me anyway - He sorta brings that up occasionally