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Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Damian Mills
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:28 pm
Location: Keighley England

Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Damian Mills »

Just bought a 1957 Century with the rare Borg Warner auto box.

I've just submitted my application to join DLOC today.

Dynamo is dead. Want to replace it with an alternator.

I am no mechanic. Found a highly competent guy locally who will order and fit a suitable alternator, but he doesn't have time to do the research.

Can somebody recommend a suitable alternator part make/number?

I need to get this sorted out quickly and get back to my other home abroad.

I have a number of other issues and concerns, but will deal with one thing at once. Trying to heed the advice to keep posts simple.

Norfolk Lad
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Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Norfolk Lad »

First it may just need the contacts cleaning in the regulator Box also known as control box, Dynamo may need a clean and new brushes .The alternator will not be just bolt on will need brackets to fit which is your choice , and a belt to fit which may mean another item to source.

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John-B
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Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by John-B »

If you are in a real hurry it's probably quicker to get an exchange dynamo or get it re-commissioned temporarily.

If you get an alternator, have you got positive earth? Most wiring, lights, etc. can work either way but air horns usually need power from only one direction and also satnav sockets. The battery connections will need changing. Starter motor may need wiring reversed but I'm not sure about that.

When I got an exchange dynamo which was correct for my car it was too short and the rear flange didn't fit so the bracket had to be altered, so check dynamo or alternator before buying.

Damian Mills
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:28 pm
Location: Keighley England

Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Damian Mills »

Thanks very much for the advice, but trying to breathe life into the old dynamo isn't a solution in these circumstances.

Will eventually run her in Hungary, where the lights must be on all the time on the open road. A dynamo would always struggle with this.

Anyway, the existing dynamo does not look at all healthy, and was not charging at all. It looks like it's been on the car since the car was new, and a mechanic reckoned that when it's taken off it will probably disintegrate. If it comes off the car in not too many pieces then I will be happy to gift it to any DLOC member or forum user who would like to play with it.

Would be very grateful to hear from somebody who has done an alternator conversion on a Conquest about which one to use, what brackets and belts are needed, etc.

Damian Mills
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:28 pm
Location: Keighley England

Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Damian Mills »

Thanks John

The car is positive earthed. I understand that I will need to get her converted to negative earth when I get an alternator fitted.

As I said to NorfolkLad, I think the existing dynamo is beyond re-commissioning and I really don't believe that a dynamo can meet my needs.

The only after=market electrical additions appear to be 1) a period radio; 2) a Ford windscreen washer system with chromed nozzles and a period switch on the dash.

The guy who will fit the alternator for me knows what he's doing. He's a proper old school mechanic and auto electrician, but is very time limited.

If someone who has fitted an alternator on a Conquest is kind enough to tell me what parts they used I am sure that my guy will quickly get them ordered, get them fitted in and make it work.

grahamemmett
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Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by grahamemmett »

Damian, there’s an alternative - an alternator within a dynamo body. There’s loads on the internet or I personally use the Green Spark Plug company. Gsparkplug.com. Not cheap - much cheaper oneson eBay.
You need only the old dynamo model (stamped on the side) and they supply one that just fits in its place. It greatly simplifies things as you no longer need the regulator control box.
Graham Emmett ¦ DLOC Chairman ¦ chair@dloc.co.uk ¦ 07967 109160
Northwich, Cheshire
DB18 1949 LCV522 (Yes that one with the P100s)

Damian Mills
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:28 pm
Location: Keighley England

Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Damian Mills »

Many thanks Graham

I never knew that people make alternators in dynamo bodies. That is indeed an excellent and simple solution.

The fact that a simple and reliable solution will look like an old dynamo is a bonus for me. First thing in the morning I will get the dynamo number off the car and try to source one.

Fossil
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Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Fossil »

Damian

You will find at least two dummy 'dynamo alternators' on the market. 1) the Dynalite and 2) the Dynamator. the first is £several hundred, the second rather less. I opted for the second option. It has been fine in use so far, about 2 years but only a few hundred miles. You need to measure the distance between the front and rear mounting lugs and ensure that you get one with the same dimension.

I won't go into the issue of converting the Century to negative earth here just now, but that is something that you clearly need to do. Another issue is choosing a suitable fan belt. You can retain the original arrangement by transferring the steel pulley and fan from your dynamo direct to the alternator. The downside of this is that the alternator will not rotate any faster than the dynamo, and it will therefore not supply as much charge as it could/should, for example when the engine is idling.

To ensure that the alternator rotates faster you need to choose a smaller pulley. This will need a narrower fan belt than the standard century one. A B type modern belt is wide enough to be driven by the Century crankshaft pulley (the A type is too narrow). So you need to locate a B belt dynamo alternator pulley. I can get the required belt reference number. I started with a Dynalite alloy B belt pulley but, believe it or not, it distorted in use and had to be discarded. I was then fortunate to find in my parts box a steel B belt pulley from a V8 250 saloon 11AC alternator, which is ideal. Although it is not as small as later type alternator pulleys, it is smaller than the Century dynamo pulley, so the unit generates sufficient charge at idle to keep the ignition warning light off. But of course you need to locate one, or another type of steel B type alternator pulley. You will need a fan also.

I'll pause here. Say if you need more information, about changing polarity in a Century for example.

If you wish I can provide the ref no for the required B fan belt.

Good luck

Geoff

Damian Mills
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:28 pm
Location: Keighley England

Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Damian Mills »

Geoff

Thank you very much for your advice.

With help from my new DLOC friends, I established that the dynamo is a Lucas C39. I could not find a Type Number stamped on it though.

I have ordered a Negative Earth Dynamator C39, and I am expecting delivery on Monday. I got it from Powerspark for £140 delivered. It is the Type 2, which comes with a tacho facility, which I've been advised I can just ignore, and was the last Negative Earth C39 that they had in stock. The Dynamators seem to be in demand, so I think they must be good.

I'd picked up, from information on the internet about Dynamators, that in many cases it is necessary to change the pulley for a smaller one to get a good charge. I will not be doing the work myself, as it is above the level of my technical abilities. I think I have somebody in Keighley who can handle the negative earth conversion. If there are questions then I will ask for your help through this forum.

Please forgive me if I am being thick, but when you say "You will need a fan also", do you mean that it will be necessary to replace the original cooling fan?

I would be very grateful if you could post the reference number for the required B fan belt.

Cheers

Damian

Damian Mills
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:28 pm
Location: Keighley England

Re: Need urgent advice regarding newly acquired 1957 Century

Post by Damian Mills »

Has anybody got a steel B type alternator pulley that I can buy?

I need a smaller one than the original to charge a new Dynamator.

I've been reliably informed that a steel B type pulley from a V8 250 saloon 11AC alternator would be ideal, but something similar would also be fine.

I am in Keighley West Yorkshire. My friend in Cheshire is helping me. I could collect if the mileage is not too big and if the pulley is in the Yorkshire, Lancashire or Cheshire areas. Really could do with one quickly.

Damian

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