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NutmegCT

NutmegCT

Great Pumpkin
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An update on my starter saga.

I measured just about every possible point-to-point on my original starter (the one with the broken nose), and compared to my replacement starter. Exactly the same. Even the amount the pinion gear screws/thrusts out to engage. Only difference is that the replacement doesn't have those two weld spots that the original has. (see previous starter thread)

Also measured distance from face of ring gear to face of bellhousing. One inch exactly. There is no discernible difference (to me) in how the original starter would mesh, and how the replacement starter would mesh, with the ring gear.

If the starter thrusts its full possible distance, it meshes with the ring gear all the way to the base of the teeth. You can see the "wear" at the base of the teeth on the original starter.

Adding a shim will pull the pinion back about an eighth of an inch, but there's enough thrust distance to still allow the ring gear to fully mesh and press right on the base of the pinion gear teeth.

Still can't for the life of me figure out why that pinion gear housing "nose" broke off.

Or what adding the shim would really accomplish.

And I sure don't want to break another starter housing!

Puzzled in Connecticut. And antsy to get 'er done.

Tom
 
Tom,
I don't think I would be overly concerned why the nose of your starter broke. I had the exact same thing happen to me with my first car. The starter nose broke off and made a heck of a racket when ground by the ring gear. I got a replacement starter, cleaned all of the broken bits out, installed the new one and didn't have a problem with it for the remaining 3 years I owned that car.
A possible reason for this situation is that there was a small defect in the starter's nosepiece that was present from the time it was cast and only now did the defect propagate to the point of catastrophic failure.
Just make sure everything lines up as it should and the flywheel is in decent shape and all looks right.
 
It could have been dropped at one point and a small crack developed, which later stress cracked completely, or plain old metal fatigue after all of these years.

After all of your measuring and the determination that all will fit properly, there's only one thing left to do and that's install it and start it up.

In other words, go for it!
 
Tom, you're overthinking it. It's not the Space Shuttle, it's an old car!

Leave the side of the woodstove, put the starter in and try it.

I left the stove and made it to the mailbox and back. If I can do it, you certainly can!
 
Well ... possibly overthinking it ... but getting this spiffy new-to-me roadster and within a week hearing the racket of a slow and agonizing death does make me a tad squeamish to rush into things! (I'm also thinking replacement bullet nose starters aren't growing on maple trees around here.)

Off to do the bench test.

T.
 
Put the starter in a vice or otherwise hold it down while you test it.
 
That's your problem! The starters are all on the OAK trees.

It's the generators that will be found on the Maple trees.
 
There was no shim on the starter assembly when I pulled the starter off.

The nose of the pinion gear at rest is 1/8 inch from the face of the ring gear.

At full thrust, the pinion gear tooth base rests flat against the ring gear - in other words, the pinion gear teeth are fully "engaged" in the ring gear teeth.

So ... is one of the shims even needed? The gospel according to Moss says most starters were originally fitted with one shim, which usually disappeared if the starter was later pulled and replaced.

Inquiring kinds want to mow.
T.
 
I would put the shim in. The bottom of the pinion gear shouldn't be jammed up against the ring gear when it extends out. Also, since that is an inertia type drive, it may come out a bit more then you are seeing when the starter is actually cranking into the ring gear.

Put the shim in. You'll have more then enough engagement.

Edit: Just make sure that when you put the shim in, the back section of the nose clears the flywheel. If it does, then leave it there.
 
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