Dynamo reconditioning

[bl**dydrivers]

My original dynamo was rotten, most of the parts required replacing, even questioned the final finish of the body as this was rusted too and I’ve sourced a complete Lucas E3L dynamo.

Would like to send it out to UK to get reconditioned, but most don’t deal with US and or Canadian customers.

Have found this company, they do deal with US customers, wondering if anybody have used them and if any opinions?

http://www.dynamoregulatorconversions.com

[JulianS]

You can do the job yourself - all the parts are available - new armature, new field coil, new brushes , new bearings and fixings.

Saves heavy transatlantic postage costs for the whole instrument 2 ways.

[bl**dydrivers]

Have no doubt I can do it myself, but I want it looking like new being plated, blasted and obviously working.

What metal is used for platting the body?

[JulianS]

The original my A10 was cadmium, use of which is now frowned upon.

[coater87]

 Yup,

 Cadmium is super expensive if you can even find anyone that will do your small order.

 Used mostly now for aviation and military, they are the only ones that can afford it anyway.

 I had my housing nickle plated, and rebulit the whole thing. You dont see much of it anyway when all is said and done, and nickle or chrome is available to us.

 I am sure some places in the far east still do cheap Cadmium, but they dont really mind dumping the used chemicals right in a river. It makes the Tilapia taste better maybe...

 Lee

[Butch (cb)]

They did me a voltage reg carefully fitted into the original box for my Nimbus. Nice job but wasn't cheap.

[trevinoz]

The bodies were nickel plated until about 1951 and cadmium plated thereafter.

I get them done in zinc. The finished product depends on the condition of the body before plating.
Most bodies have some corrosion on them, which we just have to live with.

[bl**dydrivers]

Could get the body cadmium plated here, not sure on price though for such a small item and then send it all out.

[coater87]

Could get the body cadmium plated here, not sure on price though for such a small item and then send it all out.

 I'm in the U.S. too, if you find someone that will do small orders can you post it?

 I looked, but no luck at all. Maybe if I was doing 500 bodies at once, but certainly not one or two.

 Lee

[duTch]

 I haven't done it but from reports am sure that getting the field coil in/out can be challenging, which you need to do if re- coating...

 It's possible to do your own  zinc putt nickel electroplating, I'll dob in GB here..(?)... who if I recall had a go at it or knows more than I do....

[groily]

Field coils can be a pain to fit without the 'right' weapons (mini-jack, wheeldriver, whatever, as per the literature).
However, with an E3L it's not so bad if you use 2 lengths of 5/16th BSF studding and nuts to haul the pole piece up to the yoke in gentle stages, having warmed the coil with a hairdrier beforehand to help it assume the necessary shape. When flush, put in new pole shoe screws, do 'em up good and tight and all should be well. You'll even have unchewed slots in the screw heads if you use a good-fitting scrooge.

For getting the screws out, I and many others use a large centre drill and simply take the c/sunk heads clean off, leaving the dyn body unmarked.  The rest of the screws will come out of the pole piece easily afterwards. A chunky centre drill won't wander  . . . . Far better than hitting things with impact drivers, chisels etc, which risks damage to  and distortion of the yoke.

[Greybeard]

 I haven't done it but from reports am sure that getting the field coil in/out can be challenging, which you need to do if re- coating...

 It's possible to do your own  zinc putt nickel electroplating, I'll dob in GB here..(?)... who if I recall had a go at it or knows more than I do....

Yes, I did manage to zinc plate some bits and bobs. Do a net search to see how. There is probably a YouTube video.

[trevinoz]

Here's some that I recently had plated.
I tried doing it with a home kit but it just wasn't possible.

[bl**dydrivers]

Did you get that plated with cadmium or zinc? Got a nice yellowish color and I’m thinking cadmium.

[trevinoz]

They are not yellowish at all but are a nice silver.
They are plated in bright zinc.
After time they will dull to a greyish colour.