Changing my 1 Wire Alternator to a 3 Wire Alternator! How and why?

Yes! It's possible to change most modern 1 wire alternators to 3 wire. But, most importantly we need to discuss why you NEED a 3 wire alternator for your classic car. I need it because I want my Alternator Idiot light to tell me when my alternator is not charging. Is it not charging, or maybe I threw a belt! Not good, either way. Remember? I broke down because of that exact issue. Here's the One wire Alternator Diagnosis, and install. • How to diagnose an Alt...
In this video, "Changing my 1 Wire Alternator to a 3 Wire Alternator! How and why?" we discuss the differences between a one wire and a three wire alternator. Then we get to go through the process of making sure my idiot light in the gauge cluster works with my Painless Performance wire harness. A very CRITICAL step, especially if you have a 68 through 72 Pontiac! Subscribe to follow along with the process, and for other project ideas for your ride!
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PARTS USED IN THIS VIDEO SERIES:
Tuff Stuff Alternator for March Serpentine Kits; www.amazon.com/dp/B01MSHCH7Q?...
Painless Performance High Amp Alternator Wire Kit;
www.amazon.com/dp/B004RZS6F0?...
Accel Motorcyle Battery Cable Set, 6 Gauge
www.amazon.com/dp/B001OMKFZ8?...
Painless Performance 1/2" Wire Loom
www.amazon.com/dp/B000N8K8GU?...
Painless Performance Full Loom Kit
www.amazon.com/dp/B001AVXRF8?...
This channel is all about how to's and what to watch out for, when working on your own car. Mike is at the tail end of rebuilding his Pontiac 400, which is now a Butler Performance 467, because a Roller Lifter Broke! (see link below). Also fresh off of installing a New TREMEC TKO 600 from Silver Sport Transmissions. Subscribe to watch more projects on this built, not bought, 1969 Pontiac GTO.
Here's the latest Walk Around of the GTO, filmed by RestoMods.com • A Walk Around of my "B...
#DIY #musclecar #tipsandtricks

[@FastMonty]

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[@jordanrodriguez3406]

Bro thank you so much for these videos did not know how much I would need them till now. 428 is toast and got to start fresh.

[@FastMonty]

Welcome! Sorry to hear about your 428.. .and glad I could help!

[@tonedeafist]

You deserve a daytime Emmy for all you do, except all you do isn't fiction.

[@FastMonty]

Ha! Thanks Brother!

[@thestonedhedge77]

I love how honest the video is, bro. because every single one of us has run into problems like this while doing jobs. Like how you didn't crop out the difficulties we run into. Thanks for the original cuts. Great video 👍🏼

[@FastMonty]

Thanks! Just me trying to keep it real. Thanks for the comment!

[@thestonedhedge77]

@@FastMonty should of proof read... lol. I corrected talk to text miss Types... ty

[@FastMonty]

Ha! That's exactly how I deciphered your original message... talk to text is ALMOST there. ha, ha... thanks again for the comment, and edit. @@thestonedhedge77

[@joshkjohnson]

Nice Star Wars reference!

[@FastMonty]

Must've been my inner Jedi, cuz I don't remember intentionally quoting anything Star Wars. Good to know I still have it... May the Force be With You.

[@RoddyDa]

Hey Monty, I had to pause your video @ 7min in just to say your content is on another level 👏 ……now back to the video!

[@FastMonty]

Ha! Thanks Brother! Much appreciated!

[@thisisyourcaptainspeaking2259]

Great choice, 3-wire is the way to go!

[@FastMonty]

Thanks! I'm so happy it worked.

[@patrickmazzone9066]

EXcellent diagnostics ah the good old days

[@FastMonty]

Ha! For sure. Thanks!

[@thomasdavidson2421]

This is a wonderful video thank you

[@FastMonty]

Welcome! Have fun!

[@65chevelleboys91]

Tommy Boy great video as always

[@FastMonty]

Ha, ha, yup! and Thanks!

[@juggernautxtr]

started a restore on my 1988 d150, man not looking forward to rewiring this old goat, you would think it would have a more modern alternator......nope external regulator and a whole whopping 60 amps. upgrading is going to be a priority cause man tunes are a must for me. plus upgrading the fuel system to a more modern TBI. gonna be work but hopefully will pay off in the end.

[@FastMonty]

Yeah, that is crazy... take it one step at a time, totally worth it! Thanks for the comment!

[@Se7enthsonSS]

Decided to go back to 3 wire. Don’t blame you. You wouldn’t believe the last two weeks annoyance I’ve had with march over the alternator…

[@FastMonty]

Good decision... sorry to hear about March. Thanks for the comment!

[@Blustone60]

I did the one wire alternator and I regret it. My 70 firebird has problems not starting all the time. It charges at 12 to 13 v but it needs 14.7. I put a mini starter in and that helped but it's not enough. Thank you for this video. Beautiful GTO. I'm saving your channel. ✌️👍🪽

[@FastMonty]

Thanks! Yeah, I've been dragging my feet too long to get this 3 wire set up done. Welcome to the FMG family! Ask questions, and have fun. See ya!

[@HartsuffMotors]

Yeah, according to Painless' electrical engineer's the alternator regulator will get burned out if there is not some form of resistance present. Painless as well as Holley sell pigtails with a resistor already wired in. The fact that Holley sells this kit is also an indication that they acknowledge this is an issue. For the cost of a resistor, it's worth adding and not risking burning out your regulator. Great video with a lot of solid information.

[@FastMonty]

Much Appreciated! I totally agree about adding a resistor on old alternators... I'm still curious how a new one behaves. Still waiting to hear back from Tough Stuff. Thanks for the comment!

[@thisisyourcaptainspeaking2259]

Yep, it depends on the regulator because some already have an internal resistor but since we don't always know the details a resistor isn't a bad idea.

[@FastMonty]

Agreed! Thanks! @@thisisyourcaptainspeaking2259

[@rogjackson]

Tuff Stuff manual says 400 ohm resistor or dummy light creating resistance; thus resistor in parallel to ensure resistance in event of bulb failure.

[@FastMonty]

Thanks Roger! This is why I love you guys... you get to fact check me by actually reading the manual, which I don't know how to do. ha, ha... thanks for the comment!@@rogjackson

[@bobeaseshop9389]

I have been down this road a few times with all the forks that are here. Years ago a muscle car parts guys talked me into one wire alternators. Mostly I replaced generators on my 1950's and 60's British cars to get rid of the weight and complex voltage control boxes but I did go to one wire on the 1964 Bonneville & the 1978 305ci in the 1957 GMC. The 64' Pontiac uses an amp meter (no lamp) like old British cars but British cars use a little red warning OE lamp. Anyway I wanted to get away from the one wire system as like you said... no lamp. I am now in the middle of fitting fuses on the main battery cable and on all of the alternators. I am wiring in diodes and resistors in all 6 cars that have this system. I saw UTG (Uncle Tonys Garage) had a wire fire in an old Dodge from the main alternator wire and could have lost the car. I have done all of this work on the 64 Bonneville & the GMC and having the peace of mind of having fuses on both the battery and alternator is sweet. The 1957 Austin Healey from the factory, like MGB's, have the batter(ies) in the back of the car so a hot battery cable runs the distance of the car - under the car. When I got the Healey I found where the cable shorted to the axle and it was a mess and just happy the cars wasn't lost. It's funny too that the 64 Bonnie still has the OEM alternator control box on the firewall. So in short all of my old cars now have 3 wire alternators, voltage gauges, warning lamps, diodes, resistors and fuses on the batts & alts. The voltage gauge for the Healey is next to the alternator inside the bay as there is no drilling of the dash in that car, but it has one. I made a wood under dash on the tranny tunnel for the Bonneville but that was the only way... ugly but it works and holds the alt warning lamp, fuel gauge, A/F mix gauge, oil pressure, some switches and the volt meter is mounted directly under the dash. It is ugly but had to be done. All of this is worth doing and just get rid of all the fears of breakdowns, running on alt feedback and FIRE! Thanks for bring this up and every system will be a little different so going to an expert is the only way here. I know I may be on the side of overkill on this but I grew up on water and had aircraft mechanic friends so I try to treat every system like life depends on it. This is a good weekend safety upgrade and is not too costly. A good time to learn the system, how to solder, how the system works and overall just have fun and make it safe. Nice job on your part as always. Bobby

[@FastMonty]

Thanks Bobby! Yeah, we're thinking alike... thanks for sharing your story for others to learn from. See ya!

[@bobeaseshop9389]

I forgot to say that it is a bad idea to not run either a 194 bulb (not LED) or a 470+-Ω resister on the "excite" wire on the 3 wire. The alternator is designed to have this load. If one runs this wire with no resistance it can burn the alternator regulator out. Some cats have these fancy dash mods and don't want to have a bulb and don't know the resistance is a must. Then the question of resister first or diode first? From the alternator I fit the resister first then the diode upstream. I think the diode needs full power to work properly. So from #2 on the AC Delco 3 wire I run a short hunka wire, then the resistor, then the diode and then up to the ACC on the ignition switch. As always other will differ and it should be checked and fully understood. I ran an Ω check on a 194 incan bulb and it measured around 470Ω, and it looks to be common on most wiring diagrams, but if you have a different alternator it would be best to check the resistance of the OEM bulb or check in other ways. I don't like to be so wordy but I can't find another way! I will make a video on this in a few day - like we all do! Thanks again. Bobby

[@FastMonty]

Good stuff! Thanks Bobby!@@bobeaseshop9389

[@classified70]

Great video Mike! My 70 GTO also has the 3 wire except my problem is that my GEN light stays on and both battery and alternator are new. Can't seem to figure that one out.

[@FastMonty]

Thanks! That's crazy! Welp, good news, at least that GEN light bulb works. Ha, ha... If it's a new dash/cluster, or new harness, you might have to change a couple pins around, like I had to. If you figure it out, please let us know what you fixed!

[@robertmccully2792]

Mark does not sell to public, all items say, see local dealer.

[@FastMonty]

I don't think so... you have to call him, because he's going to ask what you're trying to do, to sell you the correct parts. (I spent over an hour on the phone with him) Thanks.

[@Se7enthsonSS]

Hey Monte. I decided to keep the 1-wire set up and just get over the fact I don’t have the idiot light. HOWEVER. I still have that red wire hanging loose from the original plug in. Where can I disconnect that red wire so it’s not randomly grounding on stuff.

[@FastMonty]

If I'm not mistaken, you can remove that wire and pin, from the plug. That's the best way to get rid of it.

[@mikemassey780]

Wiring a 3 wire myself

[@FastMonty]

Awesome! Can you give us some more details? ... car, type of alternator, anything special you had to do, etc... thanks!

[@tomsettles6873]

Monty - I just came across your channel with your nice Goat. I'm getting ready to start restoration of a 68 GTO and was hoping you could do a video on race-ported 280 cfm iron D port heads vs edelbrocks. I was subscriber to High Performance Pontiac for 20 years and never saw them do anything with fully-ported iron heads. I would like to have my engine look "all-stock" if the iron heads can come close to Edelbrocks in hp below 6,000 rpm. Thanks!

[@FastMonty]

Thanks Tom, and congrats on your Goat project. I wish I had race ported Iron D heads to test, or talk about. I don't, and honestly don't know the difference between Edelbrock and Stock. All I know is, I love my Butler Ported Edelbrock D heads, ha, ha... I'd contact both Butler Performance, and Kaufman ... they'll know the differences and help you out. Have fun, and welcome to the FMG family!

[@tomsettles6873]

Monty - Thanks. I have spoken with Butler, Kauffman, Bisschop, the late Jim Taylor and their opinions have changed over the years. Jim Taylor & Jim Hand told me they tested and Edelbrocks only better than race ported d-ports above 5,500 rpm on 455. I'm probably going ahead and ordering race ported iron heads from Kauffman in a few months. I have a proven 455 street/strip recipe and dyno test with Edelbrocks to compare against. If the d-ports drastically underperform I'll sell them and get Edelbrock or Kauffman D-ports.@@FastMonty

[@cdk68]

You can support 600 hp stroked with ported iron heads, stout compression and proper cam selection so they can move the air but will be expensive vs aluminum KRE or Edelbrock

[@tomsettles6873]

Yes. @@cdk68

[@FastMonty]

You definitely did your homework... Looks like you get to do the review video for us to watch, ha, ha... have fun, and can't wait to hear how it goes! @@tomsettles6873

[@arthurporrata8882]

Does your Gen light go on when you put your ignition on accessories ?

[@FastMonty]

Great Question! I just tested it... and no it doesn't. I tried one click forward, as well as the one click backward from when you put your key in. I also don't know if it's "Supposed" to light up in either of those positions. Please let us know otherwise. Thanks for the comment!

[@SidewaysTA]

Man Mike, I have been looking to do this on my 67 Firebird but PowerMaster tells me my CS130 can't be wired for 3 wire, only 1 wire. 😞

[@FastMonty]

Thanks! And, sorry to hear about PowerMaster... bummer they don't support three wire. Apparently I got lucky with Tough Stuff. Keep at it!

[@kq2799]

20:22 Mount that tube to a selfie stick so you can aim that A/C wherever you want!!!

[@FastMonty]

Ha! Still mounted to my workbench... it may never end up back in the car. ha, ha... thanks!

[@mikemassey780]

Tommy Boy.

[@FastMonty]

Yes, sir! Good job making that far in... ha, ha... thanks Mike!

[@yafois988]

I've Always use the gauges over OEM equipment. Especially volt meter & mechanical oil gauge.

[@FastMonty]

Totally agree. In addition to yours, I also have a Mechanical Water Temp gauge. Which I think is the MOST important gauge of all of them. The idiot light is awesome, cuz it clearly notifies you there's an immediate issue, versus always looking at your volt gauge. Just in case you tossed a belt. Thanks for the comment!