About Dynamo Regulator (Ie Control Box)

[Chris59]

Hello guys,

 

I bet I'm not the only one : one of these c**p repro control box burned a contact on a TR4 yesterday, and the new one (a repro again), straight from the card board box, start to smoke immediatly once charging (controlled at more than 15 V !!).

 

Fortunatly, I had a second hand, original spare Lucas control box, who work perfectly, so problem temporary solved, but, please, who can tell me from who I can buy good quality regulators, instead of the s**t available from the usuals suppliers ?

 

 

I'm more than sick of these bad quality parts !

Edited October 13, 2013 by Chris59

[Alec Pringle]

Durite electrical and electronic components seem to be more reliable than some I could name . . . . . they make regulators too.

 

Cheers

 

Alec

[RogerH]

Hi Chris,

contact RichardTR3a - he has a thread going on the buy/sell/trade forum regarding smoking horns.

He knows all about the control boxes.

 

He agrees with you that the new stuff is junk. He scours the world for old ones and gets them sorted/calibrated properly.

 

Roger

[Andrew Smith]

Chris,

 

Cox Automotive refurbished TuRK's Lucas RB106 Control Box and also the C40 Lucas Dynamo (as recommended by RichardTR3A), see: http://www.coxautomotive.co.uk/

 

Cheers

George

[Richardtr3a]

It is all here on the forum. Why can not the suppliers get this right? It is not only a short life but some do not work at all.

 

Send your original one to Cox Automotive and have it overhauled for £60.00 and the problems disappear. The copper used in the new ones is reclaimed and is not the right grade.

 

Cox will adjust it for you and all you have to do is fit and forget, or at least stop worrying.

 

I have a supply of overhauled ones in case Cox go out of business or the RB106 man retires.

 

Lucas used to say that they made £5.00 every time the owner took the lid off the control box.

 

This definitely the right answer.

 

I also have an answer to my hot starting problem on the way back from Le Mans last time.

[Chris59]

Thanks guys,

 

I'll follow your advice, and send them a couple of old 'boxes for rebuilt/calibration to these guys.

 

Alec, never heard about "Durite" (except that a "durite", in French, is how is called a hose -cooling, fuel..-), I'll goggle this to find what it is !

[RogerH]

Hi Chris,

'Durite' - is the brand name of a company that makes good quality auto electrical item.

 

Roger

[Alec Pringle]

Hi Chris,

 

like this - http://www.thetoolboxshop.com/0-833-06-mechanical-regulator-for-12v-25a-generator-2542.html

 

Cheers

 

Alec

[AlanT]

This is all about manufacturing in small quantities being very hard to get right.

You can do it but the cost is then astronomic.

 

Every time for me its a recon original part for a thing like these control-boxes.

[Chris59]

Hi Roger and Alec,

Thanks for the explanations and link.

Sorry to ask, but are you sure it isn't the same usual c**p repro, with their name print on the cover ?

If you did you experienced their products and are satisfied, it may be worth a try.

 

Hi Alan, thanks for sharing your experience

[Alec Pringle]

Hi Chris,

 

Durite is a commissioning rather than a manufacturing concern, as far as I'm aware.

 

I've used a number of their products (not however the voltage regulator), with no problems. My son has used a fair few products from their range - working in the luxury marine cruiser market, reliability is of greater concern than cost, and the Durite stuff is fairly well regarded in this respect. By no means the cheapest, but of generally decent performance.

 

Cheers

 

Alec

[AlanT]

There are few manufacturers left like Lucas.

 

They did the development, owned the design, manfactured it, supported it, refined it and innovated stuff that they then offered to car makers. They probably made every spring, wire, clip etc themselves. They had the volume to tool up and do this.

 

Now the actual manufacturing operations tend to be carried out in any one of many small shops in the far-east. Most of the class of stuff like repro parts will originate in India.

It suits their degree of mechanisation.

 

There will be a whole network of smaller guys supplying the really little bits.

 

You can now see why the control of product quality is so difficult for this class of thing.

Every time you get a new batch it will be different. Perhaps fatally so and you won't know until the field returns hit you.

 

So dont just run for the nearest repro-part. Try to recover what you have. It may not take much.

Edited October 15, 2013 by AlanT

[Chris59]

Considering that the price of a Durite regulator is nearly the same as one rebuilt by Cox, the big problem will be to find "old cores" : as explained, on this perticular TR4, the regulator is already one of these poor repro, no old Lucas unit here, unfortunatly !

[AlanT]

These come up on ebay for a few quid or appeal to someone who has gone to an alternator.

[2long]

I had Cox do my dynamo and the control box at the same time, and it has been trouble free. Plus, since the Lucas parts have the date code, its nice to have the original item on the car.

 

Dan

 

P.S. Unfortunately, Cox tried to rebuild my original starting solenoid but were not successful.

[Badfrog]

Hi Chris, I have a TR4 regulator in working order (in fact I think I have 2-3). Interested?

Say your price.

 

Badfrog

[ctc77965o]

All,

 

I am resurrecting this old thread as I have developed some charging/control box issues this last few weeks.

 

I recommend this article: http://www.worldphaco.net/uploads/REPAIRING_THE_STANDARD_RB106.pdf

 

it is providing some interesting insight into how these things should work...the last 2 Para especially are real-world things that we can all check/adjust. I will dig into mine tomorrow.