R1 Alternator question

[Paul Parker]

The '63 R1 I inherited from my dad, an electrical engineer for NASA who bought it new, no longer charges the battery.   What should be my first step?  

A tiny bit of background;  when I got the car 8 years ago, it ran great.  AC blows cold, everything works as  it should.   Then it sat too long.    The horn and interior lights quit working.   Otherwise, it still runs beautifully until the battery dies.    Now the lack of charging.      Could something other than the alternator be the issue?   

Dad moved the battery to the trunk and put a fake up front. 

Do people still rebuild alternators, as I saw my dad do for countless other cars and maybe even this one?   I'm curious about that Wilson sticker...

Paul in Sarasota, FL

[mfg]

The alternator looks to be rebuilt… Trouble could be in the voltage regulator.

[IdahoBen]

There is a local place here in Idaho that still rebuilds them.  They put in new bearings checked it and the voltage regulator

[Paul Parker]

11 hours ago, IdahoBen said:

There is a local place here in Idaho that still rebuilds them.  They put in new bearings checked it and the voltage regulator

Did you take them off the car and take them to the place?

[mfg]

Could be a weak battery…. Try a multi meter across the battery terminals with engine running… You should see around 14 volts if alternator is charging.

[Dwight FitzSimons]

A couple thoughts:

1) Even back in the day those electromagnet voltage regulators were problematic.  The VR in my Avanti was converted to modern electronics by Dave Thibeault in Mass.  Highly skilled fellow and very helpful.  If your VR turns out to be the problem you might give Dave a call (late AM or late PM).

2) There is a modern alternator that looks more or less like the original, with the VR built into it.  And, It bolts right on.  The conversion is written up in studebaker-info.com (IIRC).  This modern (Japanese) alt. should be much more reliable than the original alt. & VR.

--Dwight

Edited 9 hours ago by Dwight FitzSimons

[IdahoBen]

4 hours ago, Paul Parker said:

Did you take them off the car and take them to the place?

yes I did take them to the repair shop

[Paul Parker]

4 hours ago, mfg said:

Could be a weak battery…. Try a multi meter across the battery terminals with engine running… You should see around 14 volts if alternator is charging.

Did that.  Battery is good.  Took it to be checked, too.

 

[Paul Parker]

2 hours ago, Dwight FitzSimons said:

A couple thoughts:

1) Even back in the day those electromagnet voltage regulators were problematic.  The VR in my Avanti was converted to modern electronics by Dave Thibeault in Mass.  Highly skilled fellow and very helpful.  If your VR turns out to be the problem you might give Dave a call (late AM or late PM).

2) There is a modern alternator that looks more or less like the original and includes the VR.  It also bolts right on.  The conversion is written up in studebaker-info.com (IIRC).  This modern (Japanese) alt. should be much more reliable than the original alt. & VR.

--Dwight

I read his article;  I think that's what I'll do.  I'll keep the original of course so my nephew can decide what to do in the future. 

 

[stewd]

I had one rebuilt by Studebaker International a few years ago (2024). Hopefully, they still do that service.