Generator ID / Mfg Code?

[caserider]

I'm in the process of rebuilding a 29AA truck and ready to have a look inside the generator/cutout.

Before I take it apart, can anyone help with a definitive ID for this generator? It came off my 29AA, but looks like it might be from a later Model B. The code stamped on the generator housing tube indicates "Ford 11-R-P 0-6". The cutout has the stamped Ford script with the letter "A". Are there any other important identifiers that would be of use?

 

[columbiA]

Looks like the typical mid 30-31 generator.The earlier 29 mid 30 gen used a ball brg on the back end.

 

[ctlikon0712]

Yes and the model B rear plate looked the same as the 30-31 but was aluminum.

 

[Bob C]

Looks like it has the two wires coming out like the B .

Bob

 

[Charlie Stephens]

Yes and the model B rear plate looked the same as the 30-31 but was aluminum.

I always thought the rear plate on a Model B was the same as a '31 and they went to aluminum in '33. I am restoring a Model B and would like to know the basis of your statement so I can be sure mine is correct.

Charlie Stephens

 

[jerry of whidbey]

check the ford AA web site

 

[Tom Wesenberg]

The square drive pole shoes look like the later type, but I'm not sure when they started. All the Model A's had slotted screws for the pole shoes.

The two wires coming out of the case indicate a Model B, as does the beveled rear edge of the case.

 

[caserider]

Yup, two wires coming out. That's why I was thinking Model B generator. But I also remember reading something about rebuilders frequently removing the terminal post from Model A generators and implementing the two-wire configuration.

 

[caserider]

I always thought the rear plate on a Model B was the same as a '31 and they went to aluminum in '33. I am restoring a Model B and would like to know the basis of your statement so I can be sure mine is correct.

Charlie Stephens

The rear cover plate has some rust, but it might just be tenacious layers of dust/chaff/etc. I don't remember it having the 'feel' of aluminum during the preliminary cleaning.

 

[caserider]

Darn. I just finished a short dissertation on why I think the generator could be a 1930 type 2 tube style and tried to post it, but the page must have timed out while I was typing. I was able to get back to the compose page, but most of the text was gone.

If anyone is interested, I'll re-type using another program, then cut and paste... Otherwise, take a look at "The Model A Generator" by the McRee brothers. It was very helpful.

Anyway, here is a picture I was going to include...

 

[Farrell In Vancouver]

Interesting! Pole screws look like our Canadian genny's. are they Robertson or just mangled Phillips head screws?

 

[barnstuf]

Lets discuss the cutout. If the mounting feet are round and not slotted, and with the Ford script plus the letter "A" it is an original cutout used from approximately July 1934 thru April 1936. At that time the cutouts carried the letter B through 1938.

 

[ctlikon0712]

Hmm, I am always learning. I was told by a seemingly knowledgeable fella at the MARC show last year in Saint Augustine that the Aluminum plate backed Genny's were 32-34, I purchased a cast iron back version because that was a 31...? Not sure now if it had the taper or not. But it did only have one wire! Sorry If I was mistaken and misled someone, I thought I knew the facts. Is there a more precise month/day cut off for the transitions? Also through the years Ive heard that some A genny's were rebuilt useing 2 wires to the Cutout. Thoughts?

 

[caserider]

Disclaimer: I’m new to the Model A, but have had many adventures locating parts for other uncommon farm equipment. Also, I don’t have any literature related to aftermarket parts or parts for later Ford on-road vehicles with generators...yet. Mostly I am trying to learn about the truck, and to be able to identify the equipment I have so I know what to look and ask for when ordering replacement parts.

A post earlier today by Tom W. provided some insight:
http://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=70067

My generator case has a notched weld seam and a hole closer to the rear end plate than the front end plate. This is the only hole through which a terminal bolt (or output wire) could be routed. The notches and one field coil shoe mounting screw hole are located on the weld seam. According to the book “The Model A Generator” by P.H. and W. H. McRee (page 4), the terminal post location is consistent with what they refer to as a ‘type 2, tube type’ generator which they indicate was used from mid-1930 until the end of the four cylinder engine production. This suggests the generator could be mid-1930 or later vintage. Deciphering the stamped code (Ford 11-R-P 0-6) would allow manufacturing date identification.

My field coil shoe mounting screws have the square indent head (also known as Robertson head) rather than the slotted head. According to McRee (page 4) and other posts form knowledgeable participants in this forum, Model A generators probably didn’t come off the assembly line with Robertson style screws. McRee also outlines 1933-34 generator restoration on page 28, where it states that 1933-34 generators with the square indent screws usually had the wire instead of the terminal post/screw configuration. On page 4 they imply that the square and slotted screws are interchangeable. I can’t convince myself that the screws can be used to date a generator since fasteners are so easily interchangeable. (Anyone ever mangled a set of slotted screws because they were so tight that you had to use a hammer and punch to get them out? What did you used for replacement parts?)

Incidentally, on page 28 the McRee book notes that the 1933-34 case, front end plate (aluminum with a curved surface for 33-34 generators), and brush holder plate will not interchange with earlier Model A generators. Neither of my end plates is aluminum so the probability of it being 1933-34 vintage is low. They also mention on page 4 that the two wire configuration (like mine) could be found on 1933 and later generators. Hmmm…could be a later generator...

Rear endplate appearance is nearly identical to the 1930-31 style shown on page 5 of McRee and the 30-31 style shown on page 2-2 of the Judging Standards, 1st ed. (I don’t have the current JS.) My rear endplate also has the non-integral oiler wick housing located at the side of the bushing rather than the top. McRee (page 4) indicates the side configuration like mine was used in 1930. For 1931 models, they indicate that the oiler wick housing was an integral part of the bushing housing (McRee page 4). According to this information, my rear cover plate could be 1930 vintage. However, the rear endplate has some casting numbers that I am not able to decipher: GBF-96 2 4 61. (The 4 could also be the letter A.) Can anyone help with this?

Cutout: McRee page 4 indicates that late 1930 cutouts had the Ford script. JS indicate 1928 cutouts had Ford script, 1929 cutouts had no Ford script, and late 1930 cutouts had Ford script. I am pretty sure my cutout isn’t 1928 based on the mounting flange appearance. However, I don’t know anything about later model cutouts and stamped Ford scripts, or what the stamped letter ‘A’ indicates. (Is it a reminder to parts houses that it should go on a Model ‘A’ generator?) The output wire configuration like I have would lend itself well to replacement or aftermarket cutouts.

I am pretty sure the generator and cutout are not 1929 vintage, but it is a Ford generator and the external pieces look strikingly similar to the mid-late-1930 parts shown in the literature I’ve seen so far. The two-wire configuration on my generator is still a bit perplexing. I can imagine losing or breaking a terminal post insulator…for whatever reason. What do you do when a replacement insulator is not available? Installing a rubber grommet and routing a wire out the terminal post hole is an easy fix. And what about the ground wire? Why route that outside the case if it was originally grounded internally? I need to learn more about internal parts and rebuild kits...

Anyway, that’s the condensed version of what I had typed earlier. For now I will go with the assumption that it is a mid-late-1930 vintage generator with a later cutout. But I am still open to other interpretations.

Jason