Ford Alternator 172

F

Florida Flyer

Pre-takeoff checklist
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Sep 7, 2021
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Mike
My QAA DOFF10300J is long in tooth and has 1500hrs on it installed 9/2013 with no issues. Now that we are flying with a surefly electronic mag I am thinking about a replacement.

Any PIREP on either of the following choices? or send mine out for overhaul?

AEROTECH?

FALCON?
 
I have used Aerotech of Louisville Ky 3 times now for my ford alternator. We drive down there and pick one up that is already rebuilt and give them our core. They are good people and friendly.
IMO you have been on borrowed time for a while now.
 
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Gary, not so sure that you have had good results if you replaced your alternator 3 times ;)
 
Cessna call for 500-hour brush inspections on those alternators. I did those on the flight-school airplanes and normally found the brushes at least 1/3 gone at 500, more than 2/3 gone at 1000 hours, and at that point they got new brushes. The airplanes did considerable night flying; day-only, no lights, would let the brushes last a bit longer.

At 1500 hours they're about to pop out of their holder, and the brush springs will chew up the slip rings. Now you need a new alternator instead of a pair of brushes. It's false economy, and risky safety-wise, to run an alternator to failure.
 
We have decided to go with a plane power since it has a 3 year / 1000 hour warranty
 
Florida Flyer said:
We have decided to go with a plane power since it has a 3 year / 1000 hour warranty
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There is nothing magic about Plane Power alternators. They still have brushes that wear and fail. From a Plane Power aircraft alternator owner's manual:

1745947316215.png

That warranty is no good if the alternator is not maintained in accordance with such instructions. From their warranty statement regarding what is NOT covered:

1745947698556.png

Brush failure due to wear is the biggest cause of alternator failures, and the lack of periodic inspections and brush replacement is the root cause of that, no matter what alternator you have unless it's one of those small brushless standby alternators. Rare, they are.
 

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I put 4000 hours on a Ford alternator, replacing brushes regularly, with genuine Ford brushes. No in service failures.

As Dan says, the brushes are the wear item, and failure to monitor and replace in a timely manner produces inconvenient and expensive failures.
 
Florida Flyer said:
Genuine Ford brushes lol.....
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There are Ford alternators on many light aircraft. Made by Ford. You can get genuine Ford parts for them, or aftermarket stuff from Hartzell.
What does it say on the bottom of this decal?

1745959292379.png

What is your maintenance experience with aircraft alternators?
 
Gary Ward said:
How much does a plane power alternator cost?
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Gary the PP Alternator cost is about $1300. Rebuild quote for my ford is $750. PP has a 3 year warranty and the bushes and service parts are readily available from ACS and others. This is a no brainer as far as I am concerned.
 
Dan Thomas said:
There is nothing magic about Plane Power alternators. They still have brushes that wear and fail. From a Plane Power aircraft alternator owner's manual:

View attachment 140499

That warranty is no good if the alternator is not maintained in accordance with such instructions. From their warranty statement regarding what is NOT covered:

View attachment 140503

Brush failure due to wear is the biggest cause of alternator failures, and the lack of periodic inspections and brush replacement is the root cause of that, no matter what alternator you have unless it's one of those small brushless standby alternators. Rare, they are.
Click to expand...
Can the brushes be inspected/replaced with the alternator mounted in place (an ES-4001 direct drive, no pulley)?
 
1746065892459.png

See item B(2) above? They'll want that alternator off for drive inspection. A failing alternator drive on a direct-drive alternator is asking for an engine failure as the broken bits go through the gear train.

Aside from that, the job is tricky enough on the bench, never mind trying to take the aft end of the alternator apart on the engine.
 
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