[DeTomaso] And Here's Another Question for the Forum....

[Chris Difani]

Jack:

I've got a 10 rib serpentine belt driving my alternator, ac compressor, and 
supercharger (and the electric water pump). Had it designed by the Gates 
engineers. The belt's about an inch and a quarter in width, and is usually 
used on the big Cat diesels that are in Freightliners... so I've probably 
got enough "belt" for my needs...

The shunt idea is also very good. But I'm going with the volt meter, and 
that will take care of that particular problem.

I wonder how much of the "attraction" of an ammeter is due to their use in 
cars from the 20's? All current production cars have voltmeters, and no 
ammeters. My Mercedes has a voltmeter, my mother's MB CLK320 has a 
voltmeter. My Ford F-350 diesel dually has a voltmeter. These are all 1990 
or newer.

I think the last production vehicles from Detroit that came with an ammeter 
were the Dodge pickups in the late 70's....

But then again, I wonder if the change to a voltmeter was due to efficiency, 
or due to the problem of running the power thru the ammeter, and the cost of 
the copper, and the cost of installing all that copper....

Chris

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <JDeRyke at aol.com>
To: <cdifani at pacbell.net>; <detomaso at realbig.com>
Sent: Tuesday, September 12, 2006 2:18 PM
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] And Here's Another Question for the Forum....


> In a message dated 9/11/06 9:08:26 PM, cdifani at pacbell.net writes:
>
> << The Veglia ammeter isn't "heavy" enough to handle the increased 
> amperage
> (so I'm told), >>
>
> Possibly, but in any case an ammeter shunt is a real good idea for any
> Pantera driver who's allergic to electrical fires. And a shunt reduces the 
> load on
> the ammeter to anything you choose. As far as loads go, I'd look at 
> doubling up
> the fan belts to handle 3X the strain from stock with a 150-amp alt. FWIW- 
> J
> DeRyke (happy with a 75 amp unit)
> _______________________________________________
>
> Detomaso Forum Managed by POCA
>
> Archive Search Engine Now Available at http://www.realbig.com/detomaso/
>
> DeTomaso mailing list
> DeTomaso at realbig.com
> http://ftl.realbig.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso