Starter Problems!
Thread Starter
Staging Lane
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 50
Likes: 0
From: Midland. Texas
Starter Problems! Ok i also have a 73 chevy its has a 350 sb and no matter what i do the starter will work for a day or 2 then starts hitting the flywheel or missing it totally no matter how i shim it. Iam trying this with a newer staggered bolt starter my only option that i know of would be to try the old style that has a bolt pattern like the mini starters etc. Thanks for you alls help ahead of time thanks. Also the flywheel doesnt appear to be turning in a circle it seems off center could this be caused by the crank being ground out of shape when they rebuilt the motor they machined the crank 20 on mains and rods.
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 271
Likes: 0
From: Wilmington DE
Don't know if you got anywhere with this yet.
First thing you need to figure out is the flywheel. It should be turning in a smooth circle, if it is turning and appears to be more in an oblong circle, something is wrong. This could cause the flywheel to be too close to the starter at one point, and too far at another. You can check by turning the motor over by hand while under it and measure from the teeth of the flywheel to the snout of the starter or something.
Another thing you can do is disconnect the starter and apply 12 volts to the SOLENOID ONLY to make it pop the gear out to engage the flywheel. DON'T connect the actual main starter motor wire or it will try to turn the motor over. You can measure your contact at various points doing that. When you check with the gear engaged, take a small size paper clip and stick it in the teeth where they mesh. You should be able to get the clip in, but not have a lot of extra room.
Also make sure you have the correct, right lenght starter bolts. The knurled part needs to engage the starter body by the block to help keep the bolt to motor fitment tight. If you put washers under the heads of the bolts, the knurled part may not fully make it into the starter body allowing a little movement.
Finally, I had luck on my starter by just shimming the outside bolt. I had to cut a shim in half and just put it under one bolt.
Good luck with everything. Hopefully this helps you some.
First thing you need to figure out is the flywheel. It should be turning in a smooth circle, if it is turning and appears to be more in an oblong circle, something is wrong. This could cause the flywheel to be too close to the starter at one point, and too far at another. You can check by turning the motor over by hand while under it and measure from the teeth of the flywheel to the snout of the starter or something.
Another thing you can do is disconnect the starter and apply 12 volts to the SOLENOID ONLY to make it pop the gear out to engage the flywheel. DON'T connect the actual main starter motor wire or it will try to turn the motor over. You can measure your contact at various points doing that. When you check with the gear engaged, take a small size paper clip and stick it in the teeth where they mesh. You should be able to get the clip in, but not have a lot of extra room.
Also make sure you have the correct, right lenght starter bolts. The knurled part needs to engage the starter body by the block to help keep the bolt to motor fitment tight. If you put washers under the heads of the bolts, the knurled part may not fully make it into the starter body allowing a little movement.
Finally, I had luck on my starter by just shimming the outside bolt. I had to cut a shim in half and just put it under one bolt.
Good luck with everything. Hopefully this helps you some.
Thread Starter
Staging Lane
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 50
Likes: 0
From: Midland. Texas
I dont have the truck here yet iam hoping to pick it up from my hometown this week if my boss is nice. Then i will be able to spend more time, to me it looks like the flywheel is moving in a oblong circle could it just be the flywheel, it is fairly new but the last fly did the same thing. Could the crank be ground of center just an idea.
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 271
Likes: 0
From: Wilmington DE
Don't know why the flywheel would be wobbling on the crank. If it was ground wrong causing the flywheel to wobble that much, I wouldn't think the motor would even run since it would be so far off balance. Hate to say it but it looks like you are going to need to slide the tranny back a bit and see if you can get to the bolts to make sure the flywheel is fully seated onto the crank. The last one I did I had to sand some of the paint off the flywheel to get it to fit over the hub on the crank. Maybe yours just wasn't on all the way from the beginning.
