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2.9 charging system upgrade wiring question


94xlt4.0

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i have a quick question regarding upgrading my alternator to a 130 amp unit from an f250 4.9. the rectifier has the 3 terminal plug on my 2.9 but the 4.9 f250 rectifier is the type with the screw on post. my question is can i just leave the 2.9 factory rectifier plug unplugged and run a new cable from the f250's post to my battery? heres pics to help:

the 3 wires in the red square are the ones in question on the 2.9


and heres the alternator i would like to use with the post for the rectifier
 


Twister

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I did a 3g alt swap on my 87 B2. What I did was, run a big power wire from the charge post to a large fuse, then to the battery side of the starter solinoid. Then cut the white wire from the square plug and splice in a single wire connector for the stator wire. Last I cut the yellow wire from the D shape plug, crimp a eye terminal and attach that to the charge post as well and plug in the D connector into the alt, making sure the wires correspond correctly with the plug on the alt.

I hope that makes sense.

Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 2
 

94xlt4.0

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you wouldnt happen to have any pics would you? i think i get it but a pic would definitely confirm it
 

kimcrwbr1

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It wouldn`t hurt to upgrade all the battery cable sizes also use military style battery clamps and add a ground wire from the alternator housing to battery neg. It makes it easier to add appliances from the battery using relays switched from the ignition circuit and yes fuse everything.
 

Twister

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you wouldnt happen to have any pics would you? i think i get it but a pic would definitely confirm it
All this info i am giving was used on a 3g alt swap on my 87 B2 with a 2.9L.

Ok, so i took the plug in the pic below. Cut the yellow wire from it a good ways from the plug, crimp a nice ring terminal on it on the plug side (so the wires comes off the plug and go on the back of the alt) and attach it to the post on the back. The white wire on the same plug travels over to the square plug. Cut it about an inch from the square plug, solder on a single plug (you can get them from the junkyard) and plug it in the small single terminal on the alt. The green stays untouched. Take a large diameter wire, run it from the post on the back to a big fuse, then to the battery side of the starter solenoid. Make sure you use some kind of holder for the fuse , or make sure it is bolted down somewhere.




The white wire mentioned above, gets cut from this plug



Here is also a pic i found google, might be helpful:


It wouldn`t hurt to upgrade all the battery cable sizes also use military style battery clamps and add a ground wire from the alternator housing to battery neg. It makes it easier to add appliances from the battery using relays switched from the ignition circuit and yes fuse everything.
Good call on the ground, wonder if that's why mine doesn't work as well as i hoped it would.
 

94xlt4.0

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thanks for the pics, the google pic helps a ton as well. i ordered the alternator so as soon as it get here im doing the install. i got the 130a version so double what my factory alternator SHOULD put out but triple what it is putting out
 

94xlt4.0

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4WD
well i completed the conversion today and could not be happier. if i put the headlights on and the heater together the lights would dim drastically. now i can put on the headlights, two pairs of auxiliary lights and my heater on full blast and there is no dimming whatsoever. look for a write up in the next few days on the complete swap.
 

Twister

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well i completed the conversion today and could not be happier. if i put the headlights on and the heater together the lights would dim drastically. now i can put on the headlights, two pairs of auxiliary lights and my heater on full blast and there is no dimming whatsoever. look for a write up in the next few days on the complete swap.
Does yours dim when you turn on your turn signals? Mine does and i don't know why. Glad we could be of help. When i did mine i was happy with the results, but i am not chasing down a bug that is killing my batteries.
 

DisturbedMXer8

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Really glad I could find this post. I have the same issues with my Ranger's charging system, but what's bothering me is that if I have my headlights on and I'm at idle, when everything dims (like it always has with this alt), my music actually distorts a bit at high volume. Been wanting to do this alt swap for EVER, but haven't been able to find good info on it. I have a few questions for you guys:

- Does the 3g alt bolt right up to the 2.9 mounts ok? Does anything have to be modified, or does the "offset-ear" mount work just fine the way it is?
- Are there any over-charging or wire melting issues with the 130 alternator (since that's 3 times what we currently have with our little 45 amp 2g's)? Or does it just take what it needs and isn't affected otherwise?
- Would anyone who has this done be willing to take a few pics of how everything is set up on the finished product? Just to get a good idea, if it isn't asking too much. There really should be an article on this in the tech library =P.

Any and all help would be appreciated. I feel like I'm kinda thread-jacking here, but I didn't want to start a new one while you guys were already on the subject.

94xlt4.0, if you are indeed planning on a write up, please excuse the rambling... I look forward to reading what you have done =].
 

94xlt4.0

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338
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Location
san diego, ca
Vehicle Year
94,90,02
Make / Model
ford
Engine Size
4.0, 2.9, 4.0
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Does yours dim when you turn on your turn signals? Mine does and i don't know why. Glad we could be of help. When i did mine i was happy with the results, but i am not chasing down a bug that is killing my batteries.
I have turned on everything that could possibly draw any current all at the same time and haven't got any dimming at all. The voltage gauge did drop a little but no dimming. I love the swap and looking back I'm kicking myslef for dealing with the dimming for almost 3 years before i did this.

Really glad I could find this post. I have the same issues with my Ranger's charging system, but what's bothering me is that if I have my headlights on and I'm at idle, when everything dims (like it always has with this alt), my music actually distorts a bit at high volume. Been wanting to do this alt swap for EVER, but haven't been able to find good info on it. I have a few questions for you guys:

- Does the 3g alt bolt right up to the 2.9 mounts ok? Does anything have to be modified, or does the "offset-ear" mount work just fine the way it is?
- Are there any over-charging or wire melting issues with the 130 alternator (since that's 3 times what we currently have with our little 45 amp 2g's)? Or does it just take what it needs and isn't affected otherwise?
- Would anyone who has this done be willing to take a few pics of how everything is set up on the finished product? Just to get a good idea, if it isn't asking too much. There really should be an article on this in the tech library =P.

Any and all help would be appreciated. I feel like I'm kinda thread-jacking here, but I didn't want to start a new one while you guys were already on the subject.

94xlt4.0, if you are indeed planning on a write up, please excuse the rambling... I look forward to reading what you have done =].
I finished the write up, here's the link:
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1347803#post1347803
 

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