Coming home from cruise night last Friday, the alternator light in my 62 came on just as I pulled in the driveway. Checked it Saturday and the alternator was bad. This is a 12SI that I swapped in about three years ago - I had pulled it from a parts car.

Since a rebuild was in order, I got on line to see what the parts were going for.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that NO auto parts store within an hour's drive had any 12SI parts in stock.

Sure, I could have bought a complete rebuilt alternator, but I prefer to rebuild my own (especially given the questionable quality I've seen in rebuilds). I checked Advance, Auto Zone, and NAPA. The closest store with the parts was in Baltimore. Geeze, wiper refills were bad enough, now alternator parts? It's not like this is a rare item - there must be 30 million 12SIs used on vehicles from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s.

I ordered the parts from RockAuto. Then I realized that I had a rebuilt CS130 in the barn that I'd picked up at Carlisle a couple of years ago. Some minor rewiring (I also had the correct connector pigtail), a pulley swap, and now I've got a smaller, lighter, 105 amp alternator. I'll rebuild the 12SI and keep it for future use.

 

rebuild kits here are virtually unheard of. I've tried for starters, brake calipers, alternators and even steering boxes. All I get is either blank stares or that puppy dog head tilt.

 

It's getting harder to rebuild accessories anymore. It seems most folks now buy rebuilt parts because it's easier. They believe that lifetime warranties are worth the extra cost, if it fails take it back and get a new one.

 

And as I found out with my truck, if it fails 90 miles from home, the warranty doesn't pay for a tow.

 

Joe: That's why they call it "Limited Lifetime Warranty", of course. LOL! Having been a factory representative for some major manufacturers in my career (that basically quit in 1991, not due to my "age", of course; they called it territory realignment - still EXTREMELY PO'd about that illogical definition by the micro-managers) there USED TO BE excellent parts in the Aftermarket manufactured in the good ol' U. S of America. Checked any boxes as to where the parts inside were manufactured, lately? Not just the Aftermarket, across the board.

 

Unless you can find a rebuild shop nearby that will sell you the parts, thats how it has gone for generators, starter and alternators. Lucky to find bearings. Real shame. Most auto repair shops just pass the cost of a replacement to the customer. I hate to buy a replacement solenoid when all I need are contacts, even when I can find a solenoid.
I bought a old rusty Standard cabinet at an auction, had a parts list and brushes from the thirties, forties when local shops rebuilt everything.

 

Last time I tried, I couldn't buy a solenoid without a starter attached to it.

 

If you are going to pay a decent wage to whoever will rebuild your alternator/wiper motor/brake calliper etc, you will most likely find it's cheaper to buy a new one, probably made by some one who works for $5 a day in the far east.

The foreman in the first shop I worked in served his apprenticeship in the late 1920s, he learned how to dismantle and repair spark plugs, set up a differential, make white metal big end bearings, pack water pump glands, reline clutches and brakes, all stuff of history now.
Mechanics were paid so little it was worth having them spend a long time repairing things rather than just replacing them. Most repair shops did their own reboring, larger ones would have their own crankshaft grinders.
Call ourselves mechanics?, I've got to admit I couldn't do most of the above, I spent a couple of days been shown how to, but never had occasion to put it into practice.

That's where we have a problem like Joes, it's hard to find overhaul parts for obsolete units such as an alternator, So we have to resort to our own ingenuity and do it the old fashioned way.

Roger.

 

A lot of other things are hard to get rebuild parts for. I have a Craftsmen floorjack that has started to leak down. Figured ok, I know how to rebuild hyd. pumps, just order a seal kit. Not available, have to order whole assembly. Same for a Ryobi log splitter.

 

no rebuilt kits...its just another sign of the disposable world were living in

 

I have stock. I have been rebuilding for over 38 years professionally. What do you need? The problem I have is I only use Quality parts. In todays world everyone wants cheap and fast. The parts store supply that. In Joe's case I suspect he will be getting the el cheapo parts. Everyone competes over price especially online. Very few are left that compete on quality. For example the rectifier (diode assembly) can be quite different degrees of quality and price. Will the diodes in the assembly be 25 amp - 35 amp- or 50 amp? I prefer to use the 50 amp. The diode trios I use are twice the cost of the cheaper ones I can buy. The difference is the quality. I doubt if Joe or his supplier know who manufactured the parts or the quality of them. I suspect he will have no problem when he assembles the alternator with these parts, and they should work, but the reliability won't be there. It is like lifting a 100 pound block with a chain rated at 100 pounds. Sure it will do the job, but I would feel safer using a chain rated at 200 pounds. I know what he means when he says he has seen some poor rebuilt alternators. I see them also. I also see some pretty shabby new alternators (usually not OEM) too. Just like everything else there are quality rebuilders and there are poor quality rebuilders. As a rebuilder we used to be able to talk directly to the manufacturers of the components and tell them the weak spots of the OE parts and how to improve the aftermarket product to be better than OE. They listened and we could make a rebuilt unit superior to a new OE unit. Nowadays it is getting harder to talk to the manufacturers as my understanding of the Chineese language is minimal. The cs130 alternator Joe is using is a prime example. The OE rectifiers were a serious weak spot. The aftermarket ones using press fit diodes were a huge improvement. Not all rebuilds are of questionable quality. I applaud Joe for doing it himself (and I know He is extremley capable). I admire him for wanting a quality job done right. Sorry for the rant guys, but I needed to get it off my chest. Rant over.

 

interesting. about 5 years ago when I needed to rebuild the original alternator in my 70 I went to CarQuest and they were able to get the individual parts I needed for the rebuild. It's been working fine for those 5 years.

 

I would suspect Joe and a lot of us on here, would know exactly the quality of parts he is buying. I think the complaint he was making was not that the parts were not available at all, just that they were not in stock at the store at the time he needed them and would have to be brought in from an outside source. I have a pretty good relationship with my local parts stores and I can usually get stuff from their warehouse by the afternoon or next day at the latest.

 

http://www.natauto.com/

go get the catalog
every damn one of you.
now.

 

I remember back in the late 90's I had a 94 Suburban and the alternator went out. I strolled into AutoZone and asked for a brush set and bearings for an alternator. The woman behind the counter looked at me like I was from outer space. I remember years ago rebuilding the alternator on my 65 Pontiac on the side of the road. I would have thought maybe NAPA would have had them but apparently not. It is a shame.

 

EXACTLY!

This was a Saturday afternoon and I wanted to get the alternator rebuilt and have the car driveable again as soon as possible to take advantage of some really nice weather. As I said in my first post, no auto parts store had the parts for a 12SI in stock within an hour's drive (the AutoZone store in Baltimore that claimed to have them on the shelf is about 90 minutes each way). Any of the local stores would have been happy to order them for me, but I just went to RockAuto and the parts have already been delivered.

My surprise is that there must have been 30 million 12SI alternators made, with a large number of them still on the road (since many 1980s Chevy pickups are still in use in this area). It's not like I was looking for parts for the original generator from my 62.

Frankly, this is also why I rarely go to a local auto parts store anymore. Whatever I need is never in stock, so it takes TWO trips (and two or more days) to get an item. Now I got to RockAuto first and the parts are usually on my doorstep in two or three days.

 

well, the parts were in stock the day I went in there 5 years ago. Granted this was 5 years ago, so things may have changed. but I do get where you are coming from and I too use Rock Auto quite a bit.

 

Yeah, things have changed. I've been able to walk into an auto parts store and buy brushed, bearing, and voltage regulator as recently as a couple of years ago. Apparently not anymore, at least not in the Metro DC market. As recently as three years ago I was able to find a GM starter solenoid (but NOT a starter drive) on the shelf at the local NAPA.

 

No demand anymore, not many people rebuild alternaters or starters,heck most of this generation doesn't know what a carburater is.

 

Years ago, a buddy of mine was the "New Parts Man" for Standard Automotive Products in Long Island City, and that's just the sort of stuff he did.

- Eric

 

I have a 2 ton sears floor jack that quit on me. (30 years old) Parts, forget it. Turned down a urethane hockey puck from a jeep lift kit I had, and installed it on a bench grinder motor and turned it to size with a sharp chisel. Been working great for the last 3 years. This was the inner seal on the piston.

 

Never would have thought about using a bench grinder as a lathe.
Excellant

 

We live in a disposable throwaway society. Its a sign of the times I'm afraid. Nobody wants to fool with rebuilding a part, its just easier to install a new one. Who care if it fails in 6 months? It has a "lifetime" warranty! I have a supply of junk regulators, diode trios, rectifiers, starter drives, etc, when I have to turn in a starter or alternator as a core they will be getting a junk core! I haven't had to rebuild a 12SI alternator in a long time, none of my family or personal vehicle run those.

 

Not an Olds, but a 1969 Cadillac ambulance 130 amp alternator. Mine was killed while being transported by a driver that didn't understand how the battery cut off switch worked, and you have to shut the engine down before switching the batteries off. Took the alternator to a local repair shop, and got the wide eyed stare, along with the words.. What did that come off of?. They told me that they could figure out what was wrong, but there were no parts available. I said, take it apart, and let me know what parts you will need. I found all NOS parts with just a few phone calls, and a week later it was repaired. Sometimes you get lucky..

 

Was this a Leece Neville alternator?

 

I bought a remanufactured vacuum booster and master cylinder for my 71 from Auto Zone a few years ago. I got the "lifetime warranty" part and had to replace it a second time last summer. Unfortunately, the master cylinder is leaking again and I should replace it again. I'm not sure if they have anymore in their warehouse. I might have to bring the part back to the store and just get my money back (that is going to be a challenge).

 

I don't think they will give you any problem getting your money back. I think the "lifetime warranty" is actually a "limited lifetime warranty". This allows them to refund your money instead of issuing a replacement part anytime after the first replacement. This way they can wash their hands of it.

Yesterday, an alternator rebuilder friend of mine called for some help. He had an 08 Ford E250 van in his shop. Poop Boys had it for a bad alternator. They put in THREE replacement alternators, all with the same symptoms (overcharging -22+volts and the dash and pannel going crazy and just shutting off at anything over 2000 RPM. (not the original problem when they had it for initial repair) Poop boys gave up so he got the job. In short order, I had the van back in service. A little over an hour. Since this was a work van for a business the customer was happy, the shop owner was happy and Poop boys is happy to refund the money to get out from under it. The sad part is Poop boys had no idea what the problem was or how to find it thus they just kept throwing parts on it. The problem was it was the wrong alternator. (Not compatable with the vehicle computer) Although the 2 alternators appear identical they function differently. Don't worry you will get the cash back.

 

I hope so. Luckily I still have the receipt.