Alternator Chewing Up Belt

[RPO]

Looks like battery ground is on the alternator tension bolt? If so, not a very good engine ground source. I would move it to the engine block or head.

[mx71]

My 79 came with a/c and it has the original alternator, single pulley.

[REDONE]

Your power steering pump should be on the outer most pulley grooves.
Your alternator is not in the position it would be in if the car had AC. I don't know if they placed it in a different position without AC.
Did you Jeep originally have AC?

On my jeeps the adjuster bracket is on the bottom of the alternator, not the top.

Hey this needs bumped for this reason, and will e needs some props for being the first to point it out. That slidy bracket belongs on the bottom regardless of AC or not, I'm sure of it!

[rocklaurence]

Your power steering pump should be on the outer most pulley grooves.
Your alternator is not in the position it would be in if the car had AC. I don't know if they placed it in a different position without AC.
Did you Jeep originally have AC?

On my jeeps the adjuster bracket is on the bottom of the alternator, not the top.

Hey this needs bumped for this reason, and will e needs some props for being the first to point it out. That slidy bracket belongs on the bottom regardless of AC or not, I'm sure of it!

Yes, I believe your right. Normally, there is that triangle bracket that mounts to the inside of the alternator [3 points of suport] and the slider is undernieth with a rear bracket for support. Without that triangle, tightening the belt will tilt the pulley --mis-aligning it. Causing the belt wear. Maybe???

[will e]

Hey this needs bumped for this reason, and will e needs some props for being the first to point it out. That slidy bracket belongs on the bottom regardless of AC or not, I'm sure of it!

WILL E for the win!

[RPO]

Yes, I believe your right. Normally, there is that triangle bracket that mounts to the inside of the alternator [3 points of suport] and the slider is undernieth with a rear bracket for support. Without that triangle, tightening the belt will tilt the pulley --mis-aligning it. Causing the belt wear. Maybe???

THIS!!!

This is what I was thinking when I was tightening the alternator the other day...it seemed to be lacking in support and twisting while I was putting tension on it to crank down the adjustment bolt.

I just picked up a spare engine and box o' parts from the previous owner, I think I remember seeing a triangle-ish bracket floating around in there. I'll investigate and see what I come up with.

Only had the truck for a couple months and this is my first foray into Jeep anything, so I have ZERO pre-existing knowledge about how things should be. Really digging the friendly and knowledgeable support I've been receiving here...thanks guys!

[RPO]

This is the bracket I was referring to...not quite as triangle-ish as I thought

[REDONE]

That looks like half of the power steering bracket. I'll run out to the garage and snap you a pic of the alternator brackets. They are steel and I think it's the same for AC rigs.

EDIT to add an old pic of that aluminum bracket you got, it is part of the power steering mount:


You can also see that there's a tube type thing between the engine head and alternator upper ear, and the "triangle" bracket to the water pump bolts.

The AC version only appears different in that the "triangle" has an extra hole above the alternator ear hole to support the end of the AC compressor plate. Either version of the triangle should work for you.

[RPO]

Welp, looks like I'll be on the hunt for the correct alternator bracket.

Thanks for snapping the pics REDONE, at least now I know kinda what I'm looking for!

[REDONE]

Full disclosure, I dug up an old pic from a mock up. There's a bunch of stuff piled on the inside Jeep and I'd have to put on shoes and find a flashlight for the outside Jeep.

[will e]

That looks like half of the power steering bracket. I'll run out to the garage and snap you a pic of the alternator brackets. They are steel and I think it's the same for AC rigs.

EDIT to add an old pic of that aluminum bracket you got, it is part of the power steering mount:


You can also see that there's a tube type thing between the engine head and alternator upper ear, and the "triangle" bracket to the water pump bolts.

The AC version only appears different in that the "triangle" has an extra hole above the alternator ear hole to support the end of the AC compressor plate. Either version of the triangle should work for you.

Redone, you are quite the 'stud muffin'.

[RPO]

Full disclosure, I dug up an old pic from a mock up. There's a bunch of stuff piled on the inside Jeep and I'd have to put on shoes and find a flashlight for the outside Jeep.

Ha! I'll take what I can get!

Any of that "stuff" piled on the inside Jeep an extra alternator bracket you'd be willing to part with?

[toothofwar]

So we are supposed to have that triangle bracket? This is the first I have seen of it! Lol, learn something new every day. So the op has first dibs, but if someone has 2 of these floating around I'd like to be second in line.

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[toothofwar]

Is this it?

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[REDONE]

Yep! Looks like it!

[toothofwar]

Redone you are a true hero!

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[RPO]

I need to learn to fabricate...inflation is a mother!

[REDONE]

Redone, you are quite the 'stud muffin'.

Haha! saw this last night on my phone and forgot until I just saw it again now! That was the mock up I was doing. A couple of AMC engines I've had over the years had issues with the block threads for the timing cover so I wanted to get ahead of it on this one. I installed all the tin with those studs peened into the block and then marked them. Dissassembled it all, cut the studs. Figured it'd make installing the timing gasket and stuff easier too.

RPO, that bracket would be a PITA to fabricate. Those bends being so close together means it was probably stamped/punched/cut in a single die, so it's not something you could pump out with a brake. The bends are crucial too, the heater hose just barely fits behind it.

[RPO]

So, I should be receiving a new bracket from ebay tomorrow similar to the one shown above by toothofwar.

My question now is whether this bracket will work if I do the CS-144 conversion. I've only been driving the Jeep occasionally since I bought it a couple months back and all the while I've had charging issues. Replaced the alternator and belt and then the other day after driving it for about an hour or so it died on me in a parking lot. Had to jump it to get it back up and running. Pretty sure the current alternator is no match for the electric fans that are on it.

Now, I could pull them off and find a clutch type fan...but I eventually plan on adding more electrical accessories so an alternator upgrade is probably something I should look into sooner rather than later. Some of the threads I've read on the conversion say that '78 and later brackets will work...just looking for some verification on whether that's true and if the above pictured bracket fits that bill.

[1979bettywhite]

Are the electric fans running all the time, or are they on some sort of binary switch, or just a standard switch you have in the cab?

What are you planning to do with the jeep? If not rock crawling etc, then it might be best just to switch back to the clutch fan. I have an extra I pulled off a J20 earlier this year. Have not tested the clutch functionality, but you can always replace that clutch pretty easily.