My High Amp Alternator, how I did it, and you can too Options

[McMark]

My original thread with real pictures

I won't be making/adapting these anymore, so I wanted to share all the info I found.

I used the MechMan Alternators 150amp (Part Number: 7771150) but it's been discontinued. It's listed for a 1991 Ford F-150 5.0L motors. There are two different alternators with the same body (pictured below), the wrong one has the connector at 2:00 and the RIGHT one has the connector at 10:00. There are other options, but if I were doing another one, I would order the Bosch AL562X which is a 75A unit. There are aftermarket builders who make these up to 220A. Adaptation should be similar for all.

The image below should hit most of the major points, but here's a few extra details:

*If I were doing more of these, I would look into just making an alternate version of the upper and lower brackets to work with an unmodified Ford alternator. That way if you need one while away from home, it's possible.
*The unit I bought had an internal fan, the stock Ford units use a front mounted fan. If anyone tries this they'll have to confirm that the fan + pulley still line up with the fan pulley. Visually, it appears that the internal or external fan setup occupies the same space (compared to each other) but the internal just has extra material in the case to encapsulate the fan. So I suspect the fan will be a non-issue.
*These Ford alternators also use a ribbed belt, so a V-Groove belt would need to be sourced. I looked quickly on eBay and it appears that they should be pretty easy to come by.
*Offset drilling the upper hole is almost impossible to do freehand. You'd need to take it to a machine shop. I built a drill jig to keep my drill bit in the right place. The difficulty of this step is another reason why I'd recommend someone design new brackets -- you wouldn't need to drill this out and could simply loosen/tighten the upper bold 'from the back'. I'd be happy to loan out my drill jig. It worked for me and it should work on these, but I can't guarantee the location is perfect on all variations of this alternator.

And finally, when grinding/milling/cutting on the alternator body make sure to tape off any holes where bits of metal could enter the alternator.

[malcolm2]

Thanks filling us in on your previous work. I do appreciate you restarting this Topic. I am going to dig deeper and see what might be out there with less mods. Might even take your advice and see what I can do about the bracket.

Here is what I found so far. Mechman has a 170amp model that looks a lot like the Bosch. This site has a nice dimensional drawing. I plan on comparing to my removed bosch this evening.... Fingers are crossed on that part.

One of Mechman's vendors has info too. https://ceautoelectricsupply.com/product/me...ent-alternator/

Before Mark mentioned the 91 ford model, I thought someone said something about a GM Alternator, so here I am with it. Mark mentioned the 10:00 connection and this one has that. the dimension of 143mm from the pulley groove to the back case is the smallest I found today.



Questions for anyone that knows more about ALT than me.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/popcorn[1].gif) 1 wire vs. 3 wire. Differences...? Benefits...? Can either be installed on the 914...? where do the wires connect on the car..???

I did read that the 3 wire will NOT un-excite at idle. That is a benefit.

[ejm]

Questions for anyone that knows more about ALT than me.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/popcorn[1].gif) 1 wire vs. 3 wire. Differences...? Benefits...? Can either be installed on the 914...? where do the wires connect on the car..???

I did read that the 3 wire will NOT un-excite at idle. That is a benefit.

An alternator with one wire has an internal voltage regulator while the 3 wire models require an external regulator. When rpms drop below some point the voltage regulator will stop the alternator from charging. Doesn't matter if it's one wire or three.