Rosbif Posted January 3, 2017 Share Posted January 3, 2017 Hi everyoneLast season the dynamo in my 13/60 stopped charging and I replaced it with another, putting the failed unit to one side as a winter investigation/ repair job. Well winter is here.I have opened the unit and the brushes are well past their best one could say, so I will replace them.The rest of the unit on a first quick inspection looks to be fine, a closer inspection is to follow in a few days time.My question for the bright sparks amongst you (dynamo, electricity, sparks, OK not very original sorry (oh)) what can I clean the insides with to get rid of the old carbon dust, grease, crud etc? Would brake cleaner be ok, it seems to be the thing for lots of other jobs, or maybe just put in the dish washer when Mrs Me isn’t looking? (wink)Just as a point of interest the unit is stamped Lucas C40 and 22715H (which I thought to be the serial number but on investigation seems to be a model number as well). It also has 6 68 which I assume to be the date of manufacture. The car was first registered at the beginning of august ’68. If 6 68 is the manufactured date then this unit could be the original item although surely it must have been rebuilt or had brushes changed in the last 47 years.Anyway, what to use for cleaning? Thanks to all and happy Triumphing in 2017 (think) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferny Posted January 3, 2017 Share Posted January 3, 2017 Can of contact cleaner? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted January 3, 2017 Share Posted January 3, 2017 Brake cleaner should be good.http://landcrabforum.co.uk/thread/22/lucas-c40-dynamo-re-buildNick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herald948 Posted January 3, 2017 Share Posted January 3, 2017 Yes to that likely being the original dynamo; hang onto it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piman Posted January 3, 2017 Share Posted January 3, 2017 Hello Rosbif, a quick bench test for a dynamo is to connect the armature and field connections together then apply 12v between the two terminals and the body and it should motor.Alec Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosbif Posted January 4, 2017 Author Share Posted January 4, 2017 Quoted from herald948 Yes to that likely being the original dynamo; hang onto it! My intention was simply to repair/refurbish the unit as an indoor winter job but as it looks to be the original it is now a point of honour to get it running and keep it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosbif Posted January 4, 2017 Author Share Posted January 4, 2017 Quoted from piman Hello Rosbif, a quick bench test for a dynamo is to connect the armature and field connections together then apply 12v between the two terminals and the body and it should motor.Alec I remember from my school physics lessons, way back when the apple tree Newton sat under was still an apple, that generators and motors were basically the same thing. Mechanical energy in electrical energy out for one and electrical energy in mechanical out for the other. So good tip. I had thought of connecting the dynamo when rebuilt to the electric drill and putting a volt meter across the terminals. I'll do both just for the fun of it (drool) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 It was Charles Kettering, the genius who invented the contact breaker ignition system, the electric cash register and much else, who provided the first electric starter for Cadillac, that doubled as a dynamo!And in 1911!So the idea that a generator was a motor and vice versa was known then.His invention needed a overrun clutch and other parts to achieve both tasks, so later they were separated, until now, full-circle, we begin to have vehicles that use motor-generators to reclaim kinetic energy rather than wasting it as brake heat, store it and then use it to accelerate again. Little is new, everything that goes around, comes around, like energy!John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosbif Posted January 29, 2017 Author Share Posted January 29, 2017 At long last I got round to replacing the brushes and cleaning up the dynamo. You can see in the Before photo the state of the old brush (don't need to point out which is the old one and which the new (wink) and the general state of the plate etc. The rest of the dynamo was in a similar condition.The After photo shows it with the brushes replaced and everything cleaned, I also gave the rest a bit of a clean. The done photo shows the reassembled unit with a lick of paint. I didn't want it to look brand new as it would show the rest of the engine bay up I wanted it to look acceptable.I used brake cleaner and a toothbrush to get the crud off and an old screwdriver to remove old paint from a previous tidy up. The toothbrush - before anyone asks- wasn't my daily one, I borrowed one from She How Must Be Obeyed (shhh)I tested it using the method mentioned in earlier posts and it works, thanks for the advice. (clap)Before[img][/img]After[img][/img]Done[img][/img] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.thumb.jpeg.b15b81ef10abeea1c3039ae03c4a9f3a.jpeg)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.