Congrats on repair. I am surprised how unprofessional Advance Auto was.
Greed explains all. It is everywhere, great part of the society is chasing
money. People are chasing each other - it isn't a sport, it is much worse.
What is even worse is that drive to educate people, to self-education runs
to the dogs.
Ark
----- Original Message -----
From: "John Rodgers" <inua@CHARTER.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Wednesday, January 06, 2010 8:06 AM
Subject: Alternator Repairs

> I've been plagued by alternator problems and having three vans - and
> being the frugal (read "tightwad") type that I am, I was doing the
> swappy-swappy thing with them to keep my daily driver roadworthy.
> Finally, the last  unit quit. I took it - a  Beck-Arnely - and had it
> tested at Advance Auto. It was dead.  I thought "enough of this - buy a
> replacement"! Well, the cheaper replacements for the Bosch alternators -
> exchange - around here are priced about $125.00. Other places - even
> with list vendors - it varies. I wanted a Beck-Arnley rebuilt because
> they seemed to last a lot longer, but when I checked them out - exchange
> they were $245. Ouch!!
>
> Well, I was holding onto my buffalo/Indian head  nickel so hard that you
> could hear the Indian grunt and the buffalo squeal over those prices,
> when it occurred to me - these alternators are simple, the shaft has two
> brush rings, and two brushes, and this alternator has no shaft looseness
> of any kind, so it should be in good mechanical shape.  Besides
> bearings, there is not much else that can go wrong but for the brushes
> and the rectifiers. Close examination showed that there is a one-piece
> rectifier/brush-holder that mounts to the back of the alternator, and I
> figured,  "how simple is that to replace". I ordered one up on E-bay for
> 12 bucks, and it was in hand in 3 days. When it arrived, I removed the
> two screws on the back of the alternator holding the piece in place.
> Inspection showed one brush was worn completely out, and was stuck in
> the older, not making contact with the commutator ring o the shaft. I
> looked a the rings on the shaft and saw they were oxidized. I whipped
> out a little piece of 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper and dry - pressed it to
> the commutator rings while turning the shaft. In a few turns the rings
> were nice and shiny. A blast of compressed air cleared any dust and
> debris. In inserted the new brush-holder/rectifier with the new brushes,
> buttoned it up, and hauled it away to Advance Auto. This time, the bench
> check showed maximum power output. The thing worked perfect. It is now
> ready to re-install.
>
> My point - if your alternator has seemingly failed - no output, or
> minimal output - remove from the vehicle, rotate by hand and see if the
> shaft and bearings are OK. If so, remove the rectifier/brush holder and
> inspet the brushes, and also check the commutation rings. If oxidized,
> polish with the 600 grit paper, and install a new brush holder with
> brushes and rectifier. Your cost - a little time and a $12 part.
>
> $12 bucks vs $125 or $245 is hard to beat.
>
> --
> John Rodgers
> Clayartist and Moldmaker
> 88'GL VW Bus Driver
> Chelsea, AL
> Http://www.moldhaus.com