Some of you may have read this before on another form but it also fits here so.......
[FONT=arial,helvetica,verdana] I have seen this several times. Usually, after a backwoods rebuild job. The source of the problem is the front bearing and its' associated shims. The bearing rides on a shaft that should be "staked"(ie: centered punched) under the bearing. This prevents bearing movement on the shaft.
The second culprit are the washers in front of the bearing and behind it that act as shims and dust seals. Things are a little crowded but there are two felt washers and four thin washers, Two with a large holes and two with smaller holes. Everything is held in place with a snap ring. However, the sequencing is important. If any of the washers are left out or the snap ring is missing or things are mis-assembled you will have shaft movement with observable fan movement.
Is it a dangerous situation? I don't think it is or lets say, I haven't seen any problems. When running, the belt usually keeps things in somewhat of an alignment. However, shaft wear is greatly accelerated and will chew-up the brushes quickly.
But first, before I started to tear down things I would check the mechanical condition of the pulley assembly is its' attachment to the generator.
Hope this helps.
Tom
[/FONT]
