Transfer Case Shift Motor Brush Replacement

[cloaked_chaos]

One of the brushes inside my transfer case shift motor had the copper braided wire fall off of it. My temporary workaround was to wind the wire through the spring that pushes the brush against the actuator. This worked for a long time but I knew it wasn't a reliable fix. Inevitably, it failed again yesterday. I just took it apart and reseated the wire in the spring. I could see carbon buildup from where (I'm assuming) it was arcing.

Has anyone ever just replaced the brushes before? They are soldered onto the contacts inside the motor, but that wouldn't be an issue for me to unsolder. I just need to find replacements for them. I didn't take any measurements while I had it apart, but it says "M4" on the back of each brush.

Is there anyone who is knowledgeable about brushes in electric motors that can provide advice on where to get a replacement set?

 

[Anime]

The shift motor is just sold as an assembly, so direct replacement parts wouldn't be available. Even if they had been, they are long gone, Ford doesn't even sell the parts for the starter or alternator for first gens anymore (although of course parts from later Explorers that are actually the same thing are available)

You might need to take measurements or get a few photos to reference, and just scour ebay or look through websites that sell parts for electric motors.

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/mo...ushes&ef_id=tjVP@iKvShQAAEKG:20120717141507:s

It's likely the brushes were an off-the-shelf part, or at least at one time they were. Just keep an open mind and you may find brushes for a starter or window motor that work.

 

[arco777]

I went through the same issue on a 91 Mustang, with the brushes for the electric motor that ran the hydraulics for the convertible top.

You might be able to find something that will work at a hobby shop; a good old school one will have RC car motor brushes but those may be too small. Check Dremel and Foredom rotary tool parts for brushes.

What I did was started tearing apart electric motors at the junkyard. Windshield wiper motor brushes would almost work, but I ended up yanking the best set out of a Chrysler Sebring convertible top motor and those worked great. Check a junkyard (although you could probably have just as much luck there finding another shift motor).

 

[Anime]

Yeah, you might also just go for the straightforward approach and get a used transfer case motor. There are several people parting out first gens on the site, and you can usually get one for cheap. Even less if it's not working.

You could either re-solder one of the brushes onto the contacts, or just swap out the assembly with the brushes onto the rest of the motor.

 

[Ricky B]

Or just buy one of these?....

http://www.theshiftster.com/

 

[Anime]

Good idea as a last-resort backup, not quite as nice as an electric motor for regular use.

 

[Ricky B]

Good idea as a last-resort backup, not quite as nice as an electric motor for regular use.

I agree, which is why we've sold a lot of them to folks for their 'trail repair kits.' But after two-plus years and around 230 units sold world wide, we've also come to the conclusion that 90% of any non-Ford replacement shift motor are pieces of crap. Which leaves us with just four choices;

1). Try and rebuild your existing shift motor. Or spend hours tracking down the electrical problem, starting at the dash buttons/dial, and ending up at the t-case.

2). Find a friend who works at Ford and try for a discount on their new $225.00-plus shift motor.

3). Do a manual t-case swap for.......how many hundreds of dollars?

4). Buy a Shiftster for $65.00 and call it a day.


Trust me, it's no big thing to reach under your seat to operate this goody----especially if you plan ahead a bit. And hell, even my daughter could change gears/position in less than 10 seconds on her Bronco. Not only have we sold these all across America, we've sold them to fellow off roaders in Canada, Puerto Rico, Australia, India, Bulgaria, New Zealand and even Russia. And our advertising budget is all of like a hundred bucks a year.....

Regardless, good luck on the fix. Please report back with your results....