alternator change brushes or?

[mxsurf]

Checkers(now O'reilly) gave lifetime warranty and NAPA was only 1 yr warranty. 18 months ago I bought an alternator from O'reilly (only because of the warranty) now its bad.They say bring it in and they will test it. After their confusion with part # on receipt and my alternator not matching... as well as their in stock alternator being different; then he says that he can't bench check it cause the short wire lead (pig tail ?) is no good and instead of giving me another alternator, he convinces me to drive to another O'Reilly store which has the part and can check my alt.....guarranteed he says. So i drive and wait in line and guess what ?.... can't bench test cause pigtail no good. Then upon my request I get a rebuilt alternator which, after driving to my daughters stranded Corolla, turns out to be the wrong part.Wide (bolt) part too wide and small wire mount screw will be up against the engine block. So now more driving and waiting and probably shoulder shrugging and arguing(me)....I had a feeling this would happen. As for my 2 camry's - should I try to replace the brushes when the time comes ? is it hard to do ?....Can you recommend a good brand ? are rebuilds just a real gamble ?....Mike

[simple monkey]

I would suggest getting a re-manufactured one from the dealership. the diode pack and the brushes go bad after a certain amount of time. The diode pack is very pricey, the brushes are $15 or so; but neither of those will guarantee that the alternator will be good once more. Most if not all dealerships will cut the price down if you bring in a core alternator as well. I just bought a remanufactured alternator for my corolla, it was $230 something dollars, but I also don't plan on buying one anytime soon.
hope I was of some help.