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Greg's 50 Build

ccharr said:
Your idea is great; using a grade 8 bolt the length of your all thread will help the life of the shaft as designed and the shaft a snug fit in the alt. fastening hole. However if you had some 5/16ths or larger flat steel the same width as you have there, or try that gauge, cut a piece longer where you can slide the bracket out so the Alt. will sit inside the bracket and the pulleys line up, then washer and double nut the inside.
The all thread will not with stand the forces cantilevered out as it is and the hole in the alt. not a snug fit.


Charles
Click to expand...

Ok. If I understand what you are saying then I may have had similar thoughts last night. So you are saying that if I replace the all thread with a grade 8 bolt I should be able to run it like this for a while but it's ideal to flip the bracket to so the alternator is on the inside?
 
[Quote:
Originally Posted by ccharr View Post
Your idea is great; using a grade 8 bolt the length of your all thread will help the life of the shaft as designed and the shaft a snug fit in the alt. fastening hole. However if you had some 5/16ths or larger flat steel the same width as you have there, or try that gauge, cut a piece longer where you can slide the bracket out so the Alt. will sit inside the bracket and the pulleys line up, then washer and double nut the inside.
The all thread will not with stand the forces cantilevered out as it is and the hole in the alt. not a snug fit.
Charles Quote]

Root2812 said:
Ok. If I understand what you are saying then I may have had similar thoughts last night. So you are saying that if I replace the all thread with a grade 8 bolt I should be able to run it like this for a while but it's ideal to flip the bracket to so the alternator is on the inside?
Click to expand...

Mount the alternator inside the bracket up against one side then move the bracket on the flat steel where it lines the pulleys, if possible use thicker flat steel. Doing it this way there is no need to cantilever the alternator at all. You may have to cut a longer piece of flat steel to get it out there but it looks like from the photos you may have enough room on the flat steel to mount the bracket and maybe drilling two new holes where it goes onto the block. If you over tighten the belt and bend the flat steel plate use thicker next.
Hope this makes sense,
Charles
 
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The fabricated bracket has to fit the mounting part of the alternator, and has holes to mount to the engine. Perhaps my crude drawing will help. The new bracket is the u-shapped piece of the same thickness as the original bracket. Fasten a strip of the same thickness (welded on edge sounds better to me) to the new bracket. Drill mounting holes as needed.

bracket.jpg
 
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The Alternator rear housing can be rotated as needed... Remove the 4 thru bolts and gently separate the rear housing from the center windings. If you're careful and don't back it off much you can rotate the housing as needed and bolt it back together. If you pull the rear housing back too far, the brushes "fall off" of the slip rings, and to re-install the rear housing you need to take it off, place the brushes back into the sockets where they live. Push them in far enough to enable you to put the plastic spray extender from a WD40 can, (the red spray extension) through the holes in the housing in front of the brushes and it will hold them in place 'till you install the rear housing. Leave most of the plastic extension outside of the housing. Once installed, pull the plastic extension out and release the brushes. Hope this isn't confusing... If you take the rear housing off, you'll probably see what I mean.
 
No progress has been made on the alternator/electrical work lately but I did make some progress on the seat.

I originally just had the van seat sitting in the truck but since I am getting closer to the road its time to make it more stable. I took the van seat uprights off so I can trim them later. I didn't have an original seat but I did have the tubular frame. I put the frame in the truck and have been using wood blocks to get the seat where I wanted it to be. I'll trim the uprights later and get it all welded together. It will all bolt in to the truck using the factory seat frame. I did have to cut the top crossbar off the frame to get the seat back far enough.

I'm not sure if I like how it looks on the sides. What do you all think? Oh and I scored a Mexican blanket for $2 at the thrift shop, I think it makes the van seat look more in place.





 
and the blanket is a nice touch! Does this seat have all the seat belt installed, or do you still need to do the retractable part?
 
Zig said:
and the blanket is a nice touch! Does this seat have all the seat belt installed, or do you still need to do the retractable part?
Click to expand...

I actually had to remove them. The retractable part of the seat belt were large boxes on the bottom rear corners. I had to remove them to be able to get the seat back far enough. The extra 3-4 inches made a huge difference. I will add different seat belts later.
 
Alternator Service

A word about " clocking " (rotating the alternator halves to align / clear the wiring / plugs) :

This really is as simple as he mentions plus : 99 % of the time when an alternator stops charging , it just needs new brushes , under $5.00 in most FLAPS ~ YOU can change them at home and even if you manage to screw it all up , just re assemble and exchange it , no harm no foul .

Any time you have the alternator open , take a moment to hand polish the two copper slip rings where the brushes ride , use only metal polish ! no sand paper , wire brush etc. !! .

I'd not suggest using the red plastic snorkel from a Foo - Foo can as it'll almost certainly have oil in it that'll weep out and mess up the slip rings .

I use tooth picks .
 
vwnate1 said:
A word about " clocking " (rotating the alternator halves to align / clear the wiring / plugs) :

This really is as simple as he mentions plus : 99 % of the time when an alternator stops charging , it just needs new brushes , under $5.00 in most FLAPS ~ YOU can change them at home and even if you manage to screw it all up , just re assemble and exchange it , no harm no foul .

Any time you have the alternator open , take a moment to hand polish the two copper slip rings where the brushes ride , use only metal polish ! no sand paper , wire brush etc. !! .

I'd not suggest using the red plastic snorkel from a Foo - Foo can as it'll almost certainly have oil in it that'll weep out and mess up the slip rings .

I use tooth picks .
Click to expand...

I actually just rebuilt that alternator a few weeks ago with new brushes, bushings, regulator, etc. It was easy. Rotating the case was easy too. It just hadn't dawned on me to rotate it when I posted my displeasure about the wire location. I have been very frustrated with this project.

I redesigned the bracket so the alternator was inside the original generator bracket and now the bolt head is in the way of the belt. Will the generator mount off of a 235 fit the 216? I drilled the threads out of mine to put the rod through so now I can't remount a generator or a purchased alternator conversion bracket. If one from a 235 fits I know where I can get one along with another 12v generator that I know works or I'll get the bracket and just buy the alternator bracket.
 
216/235/261 Generator Brackets

Yes , they all interchange .

No , they're not all identical but simple to adapt .

For a while I had a whole pile of them but they'd all been hammered on, had multiple holes drilled and so on so no one wanted them , not even free .

I'd not pay over $1.00 for one used .

I wonder if an old brand 'F' I6 generator bracket would work ? .

It's been over a decade since I did this simple conversion .

I bet Joe has the really sweet 1962 one year only , 216/235/261 alternator bracket that'll fit right and look correct......
 
This time I know I have success. I redesigned my bracket for the second time and it didn't work. But the 3rd idea I had was more promising. I decided to look at brackets people were selling and I found one that matched my idea. It looked like this.


The guy wanted something like $70-80 for it. I knew I could make it. I cut my original bracket in half so I could use a short grade 8 bolt and welded it all up. I also left some room for adjustment by using washers as shims. I know my welding sucks but this was the first time I ever welded anything. It looks bad but its pretty strong. I welded most of the parameter of the bracket and welded inside the factory hole. The front bolt hole is slotted incase I needed more adjustment.


Using a hammer I flattened out the other bracket and added just enough bend to meet my needs.


Its all installed and works great. There is no wiggle anymore and the belt lines up. I just need to swap the bulbs and wire up the alternator.
 
Woooo!

All done with the conversion. The bracket was the hardest part but today was bulbs and finishing the wiring. I finished swapping all the bulbs except the headlights. The headlights don't work because of the wires. If I wiggle some wires they will come on. This weeks project will be to fix that and put in the new headlights.


Pretty much everything is temporary until I do the major build and swap out all the wiring but I still tried to keep things clean looking. I went to radio shack and got a red LED to serve as an idiot light. When the alternator isn't charging it lights up bright. Hopefully this will save me from being stranded again with a dead battery.




I only have to bleed the brakes and swap a tire and its back on the road!
 
Well I sold the Impala seats for $300 to a guy. I'm pretty happy about that. I then turned around and bought this complete take out 5.3L engine out of a 2000 Silverado for $300. A good trade :)




I've got my work cut out for me now. I am excited though. The plan is to clean the engine up and check the compression. Once I determine the engine is good I'll start getting parts. I plan on going to the LS6 intake with fuel rail covers, F-body exhaust manifolds, and the F-body oil pan. I'm also going to paint the engine and accessories to match the paint scheme of the truck.
 
Its been a while since I posted on my progress. This weekend I finally finished my suspension. I got a fatman fabrication mustang II IFS and a TCI rear leaf spring kit. I also have the 3.73 limited slip 8.8 rear end.






Keep in mind that my rake will change. Right now with no weight in the front the frame is level. I should have a slight rake when finished.

I should begin my engine and tranny install this month. I have my 5.3, a LS 6 intake, and a 4l60e tranny. It will be fun when done.

While I've been tinkering away on this chassis I've still been driving my stock truck and its still fun. I'll probably swap its body to this frame I'm building some time next winter. I'm glad I built one original frame while leaving the truck in one piece. The old girl has been saving me some cash. Just the other day it was 20 degrees out and I bought new couches from a store 1 mile away. The store wanted $100 for delivery so I grabbed the 50' and hauled them myself. The guy at the store that helped me load the sofas look kinda shocked with I pulled up. He said he doesn't see people bring in trucks like that. :)

I'll try and log in a little more often. I've been distracted. I found out in December that I'll be a dad soon. Looks like now I'm building a truck to take my daughter to get ice cream on hot summer days. :cool:

Hey quick question for you guys who have been here before. What pinion angle did you use? The TCI kit called for 5 degrees and I ended up at 4. Close enough I think but since its all tacked together and it could be change I figure I'd ask what others have had. Of course that was 4 degrees up from level.
 
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The other day I was in my Grand father in law's 53 chevy dump truck and noticed his choke and throttle knobs didn't look like the plain chrome ones in every other AD I've seen. Any one seen this before?


They look kinda cool.
 
Man, I wondered what happened to you. Project is looking good.
The pinion angle (up) should match the (down) angle on your transmission yoke. So, whenever you get your engine/transmission mounted, you should be able to make final adjustments. Do you like the TCI rear leaf spring kit your using?
Congrats on becoming a father, kids change everything. I miss having little ones at home.
 
Welcome back, good to see you posting again! The progress looks fantastic, you're really moving along. Congrats on becoming an expecting dad!

Damon
 
Thanks guys.

Yeah I liked the TCI kit so far. It was pretty easy to install and everything looked to be high quality. I can't wait to see how it performs. :D
 
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