30s generator upgrade?

Unknown

so has anyone upgraded the charging system on an essex? my generator took a crap, and i had it repaired, i put it back on started it up and it didnt do any thing from the second i started it. i took it back and all they tell me is the arm is no good and they cant find one to put in it. so i basically threw away 200 bucks. the guy stopped me after i told him to stick it where the sun dont shine and walked out. he wants to help me, but i am very doubtful. it wasnt even the right piece for the car but it did work so i figured why get rid of it. i didnt expect to put that kind of cash into it but what could i say when it was done and they handed me the bill. he wants to give me a delcotron 1 wire alternator converted to 6v. i dont want that, if im going to put a alternator on it ill just convert it to 12v since it wont look right anyway. i might have an original one, but i dont know if its any good, and dont know what kind of regulator it uses.

Unknown

The armature can be rebuilt completely. There are shops that do this one at a time for instances such as yours. Enter armature rewinding in your browser and try to find one close to you. I know there is one in Addison Ill. Be sure to ask about replaceing the comutator brass. If you have another one most parts houses will check it for free.

Jon B

Actually, original armatures do turn up from time to time, both on Ebay and at Hudson flea markets. But of course you need to match the right armature to the right generator. We can know what generator you SHOULD have, for your car...but didn't you say that what you had was some mystery generator? Or was that someone else on the Hudson Forum?

Unknown

yeah i had the mystery piece. the guy says its a mismosh of parts. he told me he was trying to find another that would fit but the generator i had uses an arm that is 1 1/2" longer than most, and it was setup with a 2 wire voltage regulator.

Jon B

Just for grins, you might want to talk to some fellow Essex owners to see what THEY might have upgraded to -- or to find out what the correct generator is for your year. Then, you can go up to Hershey and see if you can find one there. The Hudson flea market is on Sunday, the day after Hershey ends, at the Carlisle motel, and you might even find a good used (and cheap) generator there that will bolt right in. Stranger things have happened...

Jon B

"This just in", as they say:



I just spoke to Carl Weber, a long-time Hudsonite who owned a '31 Essex coach for over 40 years. His opinion was that a 1930-31-32 Essex generator would interchange, and PROBABLY a '30, 31 or 32 Hudson one as well (they're slightly different but should work). ALSO, a 1928-29 Essex LARGE generator would probably work, and there are a LOT more of these years around than the 30-32. Unfortunately, he does not have any of these in stock, at present. (Carl has a lot of Hudson stuff for sale for the older Hudsons).



1928-29 Essex -- AutoLite GAM-4101 (not sure if this is the 'large' one)

1930-31 Essex, 1930-31 Hudson -- AutoLite GAM-4102

1932 Essex & Hudson -- AutoLite GAL-4344

(Thanks to Alex Burr's Hudson Handbook for these numbers)



Of course, you may be looking for something more modern such as an alternator, in which case this information will be of no use!



Carl said he'd be happy to answer any questions you might have about the '31 Essex (being as he's owned one for so long). Just drop him a line at HEThudson654@aol.com (delete the HET before sending).

Unknown

When I got my 29 Hudson running about 18 years ago it also was not charging. I found someone that worked for a restoration place that did work on the side and he rebuild my original and it still works great now with just the original style cutout. I think the place that did yours and took your money owes you and you should collect or take your car to him and make him make it work. He could have told you he could not make it work but he took your money. Good luck, Ron P

Unknown

I did'nt know you could put parts in a gen that did'nt belong there, it ain't no RAT ROD, gotta show me this trick. ANY repair shop checks the arm and feilds before they start on one,they know then if it's good or not, not after they take your $200 HMMM The shop I use takes the gen or starter to the bench when I bring it in and in a couple minutes tell me what it needs and the cost, and I've NEVER spent $200 on a gen ! Never had one but is'nt the 2 wire reg a CUTOUT that they used on the early cars , where it shuts the flow off instead of reduceing it ? Think I'd take that thing to another shop before I did anything else and check it out

Unknown

Check with Lester Harris in Minden, Nv. 1-775-267-2559

Unknown

well 2 of the guys there both said the same thing, it is an bunch of different parts. like anything else, if you can make it fit, you can make it work, it doesnt have to be a RAT ROD. it is a reputable shop, i have used them in the past, i dont know what to say. it was setup with a delco regulator, with bat, gen, and field terminals. it seemd to work really good, that was why i opted to repair it. they had to resolder the arm, said it got to hot and melted it all out, they did a basic rebuild and cleanup on it while it was apart. it looked like it had some sort of gm arm in it, it had a drive on the back of it for something like a power steering pump, it was a bosch case though. had a delco tag on it, it looked like no delco ive ever seen though. i also had a few guys run the numbers on the tag, and they matched nothing. last night i went diggin through the garage attic as a guy gave me a lot of stuff. i found a generator and an autolite regulator, which is what u guys are calling a cut out. 1 wire in 1 wire out. i got souped. slapped it on the car and it works. it doesnt work great but it does work. this one also looks to me like some one played with it. it has a threaded shaft for like say a pulley, but they drilled a hole in it for the rubber coupler. it is a 3 brush unit. its running on the high side of 6 volts, maybe 6.8. you hit the gas and the ammeter goes up. it seems to work, but the other setup worked much better, when it worked. i might go to hershey, but im not staying there, so it will be a 1 day deal. probably miss the hudson swap meet.