Battery isolator, front speakers

R

ron preston

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Nov 29, 2016
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Hi all,
I need a new battery isolator for my 76 Glenbrook any suggestions?
Also wondering of anyone has a replacement for the driver and passenger
speaker / light assemblies/ grills.
Mine are falling apart as I'm sure many others are.
Thanks,
Ron Preston
 
> Hi all,
> I need a new battery isolator for my 76 Glenbrook any suggestions?
> Also wondering of anyone has a replacement for the driver and passenger speaker / light assemblies/ grills.
> Mine are falling apart as I'm sure many others are.
> Thanks,
> Ron Preston
Isolator: http://www.appliedgmc.com/prod.itml/icOid/986
Speakers and grills: http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/search.php?searchid=289994
--
73 23' Sequoia 4 Sale
73 23' CanyonLands Parts Unit 4 Sale
Upper Alabama
"Highest price does not guarantee highest quality."
 
Ron,

The OEM-style diode isolator allows the chassis and house batteries to be
charged simultaneously by the engine driven alternator and prevents house
loads from discharging the chassis battery when the engine's not running.
That's an important job.

BUT, the 120vac converter can only charge the house battery -- not the
chassis battery (unless you manually connect the two batteries together --
a PITA). A combiner, on the other hand, performs the same functions as the
isolator with the added benefit that the converter will charge the chassis
battery from the converter, automatically.

The combiner also conserves a little bit of wasted energy since there's an
inherent 0.7VDC drop across the isolator's diodes. Since the combiner is
merely a mechanical relay driven by a voltage detecting circuit, there's no
power loss across it. The detection circuit closes the relay only when one
of the battery banks reaches charge voltage -- either from the alternator
or the converter.

My choice is the Yandina 160 (I upgraded after two warranty covered
failures of 100's. Here's a link: http://yandina.com/c160Info.htm

There are other manufacturers, but Yandina invented it and I've had no
experience with any of the others.

Ken H.
Americus, GA
'76 X-Birchaven w/Cad500/Howell EFI & EBL,
Manny Brakes & 1-Ton, etc., etc., etc.
www.gmcwipersetc.com

> Hi all,
> I need a new battery isolator for my 76 Glenbrook any suggestions?
> Also wondering of anyone has a replacement for the driver and passenger
> speaker / light assemblies/ grills.
> Mine are falling apart as I'm sure many others are.
> Thanks,
> Ron Preston
 
I wonder whether you could jack the output of the DC converter battery supply and feed it to the alternator post on the isolator, thereby charging
both batteries in the same way the alternator does.

--johnny
--
'76 23' transmode Norris upfit, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
"The road goes on forever, and the party never ends" --Robert Earl Keen
 
Johnny,

Since the converter does not have a remote voltage sense line, connecting
to the alternator input would leave the batteries undercharged. But
connecting the house and chassis batteries directly together, as the
combiner does, does allow the converter to charge both.

Ken H.

> I wonder whether you could jack the output of the DC converter battery
> supply and feed it to the alternator post on the isolator, thereby charging
> both batteries in the same way the alternator does.
>
> --johnny
> --
> '76 23' transmode Norris upfit, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and
> add - ons.
> Braselton, Ga.
> "The road goes on forever, and the party never ends" --Robert Earl Keen
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
> Hi all,
> I need a new battery isolator for my 76 Glenbrook any suggestions?
> Also wondering of anyone has a replacement for the driver and passenger
> speaker / light assemblies/ grills.
> Mine are falling apart as I'm sure many others are.
> Thanks,
> Ron Preston
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org

Walt Halley and I are working on a cockpit speaker cover cad drawing. Maybe could be printed or machined.
http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/showfull.php?photo=62079
--
Wally Anderson
Omaha NE
75 Glenbrook
Megasquirt III injection
Bob Stone hydroBOOOOST
Manny reaction arm system
Branscombe Kelsey Hayes park brake
http://wallyandsue.blogspot.com/
 
> Hi all,
> I need a new battery isolator for my 76 Glenbrook any suggestions?
> Also wondering of anyone has a replacement for the driver and passenger
> speaker / light assemblies/ grills.
> Mine are falling apart as I'm sure many others are.
> Thanks,
> Ron Preston

Ron,

Isolators are not a high failure item. I did tons of work on other people's people's boats before the depression and replaced lots of isolators and
combiners. If you look on Ebay, you can usually find them inexpensively. If you want service after the sale - JimK. Yandina Combiner are good, but
many die from being over taxed and the contacts can go bad (remember I was working on boats - performance cruisers for the larger part). Things
corrode there.
Either is a good fix.

If you go with an isolator but want to charge the main engine battery every once and a while, get a jumper to put on the screws. Yes, there is a 0.6V
loss because of the diode junction, but the remote sense feature of the alternator makes that a non-issue.

The only downside of a combiner - other than outright failure as noted - is that if the main engine battery degrades, it can pull down the system
voltage enough to keep the house bank from reaching full density. That has been a rare issue.

As to speakers. I may not hear well, but I still hear stereo. Early in our GMC experience, I needed light in the cab. I fixed both like this.
Unfortunately, those really good 4X6 triaxial are no longer available. I made my own plates. That center light is great, but the red bulb (for use
during night driving) has died again and I want to replace it with LED this next time.
http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/speakers/p35249-where-i-put-new-speakers.html
This allows us to both listen to traveling music and still have a discussion.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - '73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Still Loving OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
Or you can buy a "smart" converter that has outputs to charge more than one battery bank but leave them isolated. My
Starpower TruCharge 40 has 3 outputs but I am only using two. One for the engine battery and one for the house battery bank. I can leave it plugged in all the time when in storage as it will not overcharge nor boil out the water.

Emery Stora
77 Kingsley
Frederick, CO

>
> I wonder whether you could jack the output of the DC converter battery supply and feed it to the alternator post on the isolator, thereby charging
> both batteries in the same way the alternator does.
>
> --johnny
> --
> '76 23' transmode Norris upfit, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
> Braselton, Ga.
> "The road goes on forever, and the party never ends" --Robert Earl Keen
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
 
Reproduction of the speaker grills would be an excellent test of a 3D scanner and printer. I think Jay Leno has access to one that is big enough :)
There was a forum topic discussing this a few months ago. I think someone made them out of walnut.

Get your location built in to your email or forum postings and there might be someone close with some originals.
--
Terry Kelpien

ASE Master Technician

73 Glacier 260

Smithfield, Va.
 
why do you need to charge the engine battery when parked? If it is a long duration parking (3 months or more) then maybe you would like to top it
off. But for normal use why bother?

The simple solution to a long term parked situation is to install a $1.00 combiner between the top and bottom terminals of the isolator. Use a thin
gauge wire in case you get a shorted battery on one side or the other. If that were to happen it would just burn the wire in half like a fusible
link. I have two of these made up and kept near the isolator but disconnected. I have never needed to use either one of them.

Actually this one is a $.48 combiner.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10pcs-20-Double-ended-Crocodile-Clip-Alligator-Test-Jumper-Probe-Lead-Wire-USA-/111813013958


--
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
 
Ken, note the phrase 'jack the output'. You'd need to t6run it up enough to overcome the loss across the isolator diode to each battery. ~~ half a
volt, depends on diode type, but it's measurable.

--johnny
--
'76 23' transmode Norris upfit, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
"The road goes on forever, and the party never ends" --Robert Earl Keen
 
Greetings !

I have the walnut replacement cockpit lights/speakers from Justin at thegmcrv.com.

They look fantastic.

The light is pretty bright though... I intend to get a dimmer on them.

Hope this helps,

Steve W
1973 23'
Southern California
 
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