i rebuilt my 77 vw bus alternator twice and it now has 212000 miles on it.....
i replace the brushes, clean things up, and then reinstall the alternator..
however, this last time the brushes wore out too quickly.. it is only
25,000 miles since the last rebuild... there are worn grooves in the copper slip rings which the brushes keep in contact with. it appears that the brushes got bound up in these grooves and becasme distorted in shape, no longer making good contact with the copper, causing the alternator warning light to come on.it seems a contributing factor to this binding is worn bearing housings/seating areas which wore out when old bearings decided to spin their outer races in their seats.... i can feel a slight lip at the edge of the rear bearing seating area, and there is radial (?) play along the rotor axis (casued by belt tension over time...)
so my question is: how can i restore these bearing seat areas if they are worn, or must i just give up on rebuilding this unit? . as far as the copper slip ring/brush grooves, i filed them down so the slip rings now are "grooveless" (or "not groovy"!)
i am afraid to buy a cheap no name rebuild as i think thye just reuse old junk housings from returned cores probably similar in conditon ot mine.... am afraid they won't last any longer than my own rebuilds..
any suggestions? maybe it is time for a brand new alternator...
thanks
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