Can My Chevy Alternator Run My Bicycle's Cigarette Lighter?

[5-7HEAVEN]

Hi. Has anyone tried to run a car alternator to satisfy their bike's electrical needs?

I think it can be done in a way that the belt can be connected/disconnected "on the fly".

Any ideas?

[andyinchville1]

Car Alternator...wow....interesting idea...should be able to provide plenty of power if you can get the alternator RPMs figured out. I think you would need to use the 1 wire alternator to make things easier.

Good luck and let us know how it works!

Andrew

[eleseur96020]

that's probably gonna give you a LOT of drag. I woudl recommend a drill motor or some other type of motor that is a little smaller.

[5-7HEAVEN]

eleseur, can you explain your drill motor application?

Andrew, at 1800rpm cruising speed, a car's alternator MIGHT be spinning twice as fast, depending on pulley sizes. I KNOW the pulley shouldn't be hung on a shaft with 18.75:1 gear reduction. Right now Staton has a gearbox with an additional 5:1 reduction shaft, which is a step in the right direction. A 1:1 ratio with back-to-back output shafts would be a much better start, which is what Staton is looking to offer in the near future.

Until then, what I'm looking for is a simple, cheap way to fire up a second-hand alternator. I'd like to run a REAL 12-volt headlight, tailight and brake light to brighten up the night.

How about friction drive with a 1.5" roller and a gravity clutch, like an oversized bicycle dynamo?

Weight is not a problem. At one point, my electric bicycle weighed over 135 pounds.

[eleseur96020]

i don't really have any plans or anything, i'm fine with battery operated. I just know how hard it is to get one of those large alternators spinning, and i think it will cause a lot of drag (i may be wrong) i suggested a drill motor because it takes a lot less to get one of those puppies up to an acceptable rpm. good luck-

[HoughMade]

On the drag issue- it is variable. I will take a bit more tha 1hp to produce 50 amps....but that's a lot of electricity. More than you would use. However, that's the figure I found. the hp required would be reduced for less of a load, but not in direct proportion because some of the friction and drag is not related to the electricity being produced, but simply due to spinning the alternator itself. However, if you only lose 1/2 hp- that is a pretty high percentage. That would be a 20% loss on the GXH50 at peak output.

[5-7HEAVEN]

eleseur, from what I've experienced, an electric drill has a lot more drag and my alternator was almost freewheeling when spun by hand.

HoughMade, I have power to spare on my bike "Mr. Hyde". Dual 2.2hp Mitsubishi engines. I can live with a 1 hp loss on either engine, especially if I have "on the fly" disconnect feature for those times when I really need all the horsepower(less than 5% of the time).

My eyes are 62 years old. I need to run a 35watt/55 watt REAL 12-volt tractor headlight to light up the night Wayyy in front of me. A tail light/brake light would be nice too.

[HoughMade]

In that case- go for it. Absolutely no reason it would not work. Make sure whatever alternator you use has a voltage regulator and rectifier.

[Gungatim]

Here's a link to a gokart site with instructions for wiring a 10si on a go kart, you could easily do the same on a bike with some ingenuity. maybe a friction drive on the back tire with the frame mounted HT engines, just change to a proper sized pulley to give the proper rpm. I recommend against one wire alternators, it is really easy to hook up a regular one, you will need a batter to excite it though.
http://www.diygokarts.com/vb/showthread.php?t=451

[tinman]

Well I have been planning on an alternator set up also. I'm still waiting for staton to send the rest of my parts so I can get rolling. But anyways....

I searched for some other options then a car alternater for space and weight issues and I think I have found one.

It's a bit more pricey then a scrap alternator but seems to be what im leaning towards. Its a VERY small dynamo generator with an external regulator. It seems to be a very versitle set-up because you can use it with a batery or without. It does not need a battery to excite it to begin charging like most alternators do.

Check it out n let me know what you guys think. This link shows the dynamo, regulator and wiring diagram of how a guy used it on his small airplane.

http://home.hiwaay.net/~langford/corvair/dynamo.html

o0o n BTW while in the middle of typing this Dave staton calleed and my parts are otw today. Maybee I will try it before you.