Pulled the motor on the '66-B this weekend. The ring gear on the flywheel is toast. The housing on the starter is also very loose. Is this normal?
Cheapest starter I could find was Carquest at $129. Is there another starter option? Seemed to work alright until you tried starting in a spot where there were no teeth. It's all going to be replaced since it's out of the car.
Also, how hard is it to replace just the ring gear on the flywheel? I'm assuming lots of heat and press on....
Thanks,
chris

Yes, ring gears take a beating over the years....lots of times it's just a matterof taking it off & flippping it over so the good side is to the starter....if yours is too far gone to reuse, you're right, lots of heat...

Can't do that with the ring gear on the MKI MGBs, the ring gear has a right and wrong side. You can rotate the ring gear 90° so the unused portion is used, but that is as much work (or more) than installing a new one.
Cheers,

That's right...forgot about the early flywheel dofferences.

Thanks for the help. I see there are 2 sizes, 10.75" and 11.5". Is this the ID or the OD?

Anyone ever tried to use the following on their early mgb? Looks like a very reasonable price, however looks a good bit different that what I have currently. Looks like a gear reduction starter. Will that work without doing anything to the ring gear since the starter gear contact will now be in the front? Link is below. Any opinions??

http://www2.partstrain.com/store/details...ITEST16132.html

If thats the actual picture its a deal. The gear reduction starters on ebay go for about $190. I would throw a couple on the shelf if they fit and function at that price. Now i am wondering what car its really off of. If you get one keep us posted. It would also save a ring gear swap since the starter drive enters the ring gear from the opposite side.I have used the ebay starters and I am happy with that product. Bob

Thanks Bob. I will probably order one but not until around spring.
The starter gear making contact from the front looks like it should work then. Sound right?? No need to replace the ring gear then...

That is correct. Even if your starter does not work out there is always the ebay higher priced version. bob

No kidding - I'd even be interested in one!

A modern gear reduction starter is one of the best addtions in my opinion you can do to a pre 1968 MGB, as for the flywheel diameter, if you still have the three syncro tranny (no syncro 1st gear), then you need the smaller of the two ring gears, the flywheel diamters changed (got larger) in 1968-on with the introduction of the 4 syncro tranny.

While the GR starters do work well, keep in mind that you can rebuild your original starter for very little cost. The only real downside to the GR starter other than non-original appearance (if you care about that) is that they sound different. Kinda sounds like a Chevy while it's cranking. Many people aren't bothered by this but I sure am. Just one of those quirks of mine I suppose.