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Posted by D Sherman [72.47.153.24] on Friday, March 02, 2012 at 17:29:02 :
In Reply to: Generator and Starter Rebuilding posted by dave horvath [12.130.9.139] on Friday, March 02, 2012 at 16:59:03 :
What do you consider to be a "rebuild"? Most of the time a good cleaning, plus new bearings and brushes are all they need and, I suspect, all that the rebuilders do. If you want to get into it the old-fashioned way you need a "growler" to find shorted coils, and you need to be able to turn a badly-pitted commutator down to a nice smooth finish and then cut the mica down between the segments. Every old starter and generator I've had just needed new a new drive (if it was a starter), a good cleaning and new bearings, and not always even brushes. Sometimes an alternator needs diodes replaced.
Think of it like "overhauling" an engine. A regular guy with ordinary tools can freshen up a tired engine with new rings, a valve grind, and new rod and main bearings. If the engine wasn't all that bad to begin with, this is plenty enough rebuild. You don't need to bore the cylinder, grind the cam, and replace the valves and guides every time. Same with the electrical stuff. Most of the time it's just the mechanical parts of the starter and generator that wear out and anybody with basic mechanical skills and tools can replace them. I can't imagine any auto electric shop even attempting to rewind or even turn the commutator on a light-vehicle starter or generator these day. If there's any electrical problem, it's just not worth fixing.
It's a bit of a challenge finding drives, brushes, and bearings for these old units sometimes, but they're out there if you look. A really good auto electric shop will be helpful and will sell you parts (not particularly cheaply, though), but some of the others are pretty rude about not wanting to sell you anything less than a complete rebuilt unit.
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