Lister vs. Witte diesels

[bandmiller2]

Do you guys consider the Witte diesel to be the full equal of a Lister diesel in reliability and longevity.I looked at two Wittes yesterday and was impressed with their build.Years ago the owner called the factory,they told him the design life is 150 years.Are Wittes generators considered good by todays standards.?? Thanks Frank C.

[dieselgman]

Witte is an American classic... very strong designs, run forever. Every bit the equal to a Lister.

The Lister claim to fame is in massive worldwide distribution - thanks to the British Empire. This fact translates into relative ease of parts sourcing and commonly copied in India and the Middle East.

Now days I believe that Witte support is available through Arrow in Tulsa OK. Expect to pay a fortune though. We see very few being serviced any longer although they used to be in common operation in the Alaska bush 40 years ago.

dieselgman

[LowGear]

Where'd you get to look at two of them?  Which models?

Casey

[bandmiller2]

Casey,didn't read the model one is a 6 hp the outher 12hp boath are gen sets.Boath are free but need work,haven't run for many years.I'am trying to work a deal suggested by the owner fix one for one. Frank C.

[mobile_bob]

if you get one with an original generator, i would not use it until i took it off, had it professionally
cleaned, dipped, baked, fully inspected and made ready for service.

if a generator has been sitting around for years, it probably has moisture in the windings, or worse... mouse urine, either of which is hard on the insulation.

in my opinion going the extra mile to assure it is ready for service will probably pay off big time.

something akin to buying a 50 year old radio that has been sitting in someones barn for the last 25 years, you never want to power them up without a thorough inspection, maybe then with a variac to ease the voltage back up gradually, and generally replacement of all the capacitors,,, or else you run the risk of serious and expensive to repair damage.

same goes with old generators in my opinion.

bob g

[bandmiller2]

Mobile Bob,or anyone,if a vacume bag was placed around an old generator head and a slow vacume pulled would that be a good way to remove moisture from the windings.? Frank C.

[dieselgman]

I have not heard of that method before... they are typically cleaned & heated, winding insulation tested with a megger, and baked & resealed during a recondition service.

dieselgman

[LowGear]

How about baked in the oven at 225F over night?  Or put in a helium bag for a day or two.

Casey

[millman56]

One  method I`ve read of  for larger alternators is to  short the output terminals and run up the alternator with the AVR disconnected and apply 12 volts dc to the exciter windings.   My preferred method is to loosen off the frame ends and blow hot air from a fan heater at the thing until the resistance comes up to an acceptable level, don`t be fooled by the initial resistance rise after an hour or two, as pretty soon after this it drops and then slowly rises again.

Mark.

[millman56]

Just an addendum to drying out a motor/generator, most alternators are open frame and through ventilated so do not need the ends opening up to allow the moisture to leave, modern TEFC motors do need the ends opening a crack for this to occur.
Mark.