1-wire Generator

Catalog

 

YES. THANK YOU, this is what I have been trying to tell people for years. Having a charge light that can tell you that you have just lost a belt and are about to cook your motor is a very big advantage to me. This article should be made into a sticky!

 

If you throw a belt and don't know it, you're either having too much or too little fun driving your rig lol

 

I whole heartedly agree with Daryl and the importance of a charge indicator light. This past summer, when returning home on I-5 in heavy traffic, I lost a surpentine belt on my truck. The truck is not exceptionally loud but with road noise and concentrating on the traffic, without the warning lamp I may have missed the failure. Loosing the belt made no noticeable noise.

 

I miss city traffic only mildly more than I miss city crime, which is not at all lol

Let's let the 1v3 die here. Both have perks and we can leave it at that. Again, different strokes for different folks.

I was mostly just interested in an alternator in a generator case to make my HiLo still mount and work like stock lol. I'll prolly end up getting one after plowing season and report back how it goes.

 

I see the overarching point as brighter lights, quicker starts, etc. According to the article, the main problem with a one-wire is that it does not account for or react to voltage drop over the system. The indicator light is a bonus to the three-wire system, not the main point of the system vs. a one-wire.

 

Summary: 3-wires provide a charge light and accomplish a theoretical increase in voltage stability (voltage ref further into the harness) at the cost of a theoretical drop in reliability (additional single point of failure - field wire). Whichever is more important to you, pick which alternator best matches your goals. Choice is good.