Question for Ford Kent block racers

[jonners]

Right then - I know some of you racer guys out there give your engines a much more severe rogering than we'll ever do in our refined and very low key hillclimber...so you might be able to help.

Not for the first time our dyno to block bracket has cracked. We've also had an adjusting bracket break recently.

My Dad went through all this 'first time round' on his Marcos in the sixties and he tells me this bracket has been a problem since day one on these engines. We've tried all the usual things to stop the bolts coming undone which have worked but brackets cracking is a different matter. We had a huge supply from various scrapped cars over the years but we're gonna run out soon and donor cars are thin on the ground these days...

Red line is 8000rpm. We use a Cosworth pully to slow things down. We have to run a charging circuit as we don't have a trailer. We're considering a lighter alternator.

Anyone got a proven solution to this problem? Or have you all very sensibly got rid of the charging system altogether??

Thanks in advance etc..

[terence]

Get a bracket machined from a decent nylon==End of Problem.

[GORDON STREETER]

Use the bracket of the later crossflow block, the big one held on by 3 bolts.
I don't use any charging system but often broke exhaust manifolds. I tried various ways of curing this, and in the end I fitted an engine mount off a Mexico between the manifold and bell housing to damp out the resonance.
When I started to read this I thought you was on about a bracket to hold your engine to a dyno ! I presume you meant dynamo.

[zefarelly]

dynamos are so passe !

I've run an alternator on a short 2 bolt 711 type bracket for 4 years with no problems, I use a large pulley to slow it down, max revs are 8000RPM too . . .when its working properly.

some LC racers rubber mount the alternator, bolts do come loose occaisionally but I've had more problems with vibrating road cars than the race car where everythings well balanced.

[jonners]

Love the nylon suggestion - thank you - always happy to get my hands on that stuff....

Seriously though any recommendations as to type/grade or source?

Sorry Gordon - I did mean dynamo - not sure where the third bolt hole is on the bracket you mention - we're using an AX block so maybe there's a third bolt hole already there? Also not sure if an alternator bracket will fit the dynamo lookalike alternator we're planning to use. But then again, using a dynamo bracket brings us back to square one unless we try the nylon suggestion

Zef - yep, you're right - but me and my Dad are a bit passe generally ...It'll be a shame to get rid of the regulator box and the ammeter - they're about the only original bits left on the car these days...

As for vibration - I think our problem is probably road mileage. As you know the dynamo weighs a ton and the stiffer suspension doesn't help. When you say rubeermount the alternator do you mean bracket to block or alternator to bracket? Or maybe both??

Cheers

[zefarelly]

I've seen both, but something like mini exhaust mounts on the alt/dyn and a modified bracket is most common

the 3rd bolt is towards the top of the block and the mounting bracket carries an extra 5kg of 1/4" thick steel! I've never used one on the race car, all the later blocks have the tapped lug on already

an alkternator on a 711 bracket with proper bolts etc should be fine I'd have thought

[jonners]

Originally Posted by zefarelly

an extra 5kg of 1/4" thick steel!

FIVE KG's!!!!

She won't like that...