Screaming belt after switching out the alternator

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SkaggsMan

SkaggsMan

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Greeting A-bodies,

So yesterday my new alternator came in. After switching it out I put on a belt I got at a junk yard "it seemed to be in better condition."
I fired her up, and wham it was screaming like no tomorrow. The engine was running, the fan was spinning, but the belt just stayed in place screaming and smelling like burning rubber.

Ok "wrong belt" I thought. So i put my old one back on, and of course she started right up :tonqe:
She was running but the fan was "hit and miss" it would spin like normal, then slow down or stop completely.

Any help?
 
I would buy a new belt. The one you have must be hard or the wrong size. Also make sure you have it adjusted right, maybe it was adjusted too loose causing the belt to slip?
 
Depends on what belts turn what but.. If the water pumps bearing goes bad enough, one belts tension would allow it to turn intermitently where another belt tension would force the impeller into enough bind to lock it up completely.
Again I'm just guessing.
 
..are you pegging the ammeter?
..a poor or open grd will full field your alternater..then it will squeal.
 
briankaplan said:
Spin the new alt by hand. Is it hard to turn? .
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66340SEDAN said:
I would buy a new belt.
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RedFish said:
My guess is you have a bad water pump.
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69MOPE said:
Used junk yard belt. Come on, now.
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ir3333 said:
..are you pegging the ammeter?
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ALL OF the above

With the belt on and what you thing is "tight" can you slip the fan pulley or the alternator pulley by hand? If so, the belt is slipping. Maybe you are at the end of the adjustment slot and just THINK the belt is tight

If you have something wrong in the charging system it might be overcharging, or maybe the battery is simply just that dead

There is not much there to get excited about. You just have to go through everything logically and eliminate one at a time.
 
Sounds like you may have a couple issues going on here. You may have a bad water pump and it sounds to me like your belt is way too long. If we are talking about a '65 Dart, you only have one belt for the fan/water pump and alternator. If you're lucky you have power steering but that will be on a separate belt.

Take off your current belt. If the water pump pulley is as easy to turn by hand as the alternator, you need a new belt. If the water pump pulley does not turn freely, you need a new water pump.

To find the proper belt length, set the adjustment on the alternator tension in the middle of its range with the belt off and the bolts snugged down. Run a piece of string, parachute cord, det cord, etc. around all the pullies like you would a belt. Pull the string tight and tie it together with a knot. Cut the string and stick it in your pocket. When you get to the parts store pull the string out of your pocket and tell the counter guy you need a v belt that long. Over 50 some years catalog listings get garbled but if you know how long the belt is that you need, a competent counter man can fix you up.

Thanks for putting up with Ft. Jackson for us. It really sucked 42 years ago and I doubt it's much better now.
 
:mumum:
O.k. this burns me,

I bought this alternator from Auto-zone, yesterday took it out of the box and it spun just fine. hooked it up and it screamed "like mentioned earlier" now I'm home from work, checked everything like suggested and my damn alternator is locked up. It wont move for anything
:mumum:
 
.................It's..................a..................uuuuhhhhhh.................."rebuilt."

The factory:

third-world-usa-1.png
 
SkaggsMan said:
:mumum:
O.k. this burns me,

I bought this alternator from Auto-zone, yesterday took it out of the box and it spun just fine. hooked it up and it screamed "like mentioned earlier" now I'm home from work, checked everything like suggested and my damn alternator is locked up. It wont move for anything
:mumum:
Click to expand...

Auto Zone Remanufactured Electrial Parts = TRASH, JUNK, GARBAGE.........
 
SkaggsMan said:
:mumum:
O.k. this burns me,

I bought this alternator from Auto-zone, yesterday took it out of the box and it spun just fine. hooked it up and it screamed "like mentioned earlier" now I'm home from work, checked everything like suggested and my damn alternator is locked up. It wont move for anything
:mumum:
Click to expand...

Exactly the same thing happened tome a week ago. Bought a new alternator from Autozone, put it on, screaming, smoking belts, etc. Took the belt off, alt was frozen solid. Took it back the next day...it spun fine. Put it on the tester, it spun for two minutes, but read FAIL. Replaced under warranty, unit is fine.

Autozone = hit or miss.
 
Ive seen 5 alternators fail in a row from autozone. Dont go there for anything electrical.

Curtis

PS Have them check it before you even walk out the door!!!!!!!
 
I agree, don't buy electrical anything from Auto Zone. I have had terrible experiences with everything from lights to batteries. We(Me and my grandfather) tried replacing an alternator from a 69 Road Runner with one from Auto Zone, which was crap, so we replaced it with the original, that failed, so we went to Advance Auto. NO problems at all with them.
 
What store gets what from whom? I was under the impression most of the rebuilt stuff came from the same suppliers, even if they were just rebranded.
 
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