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I seem to be on here on a regular basis with one issue or another. Hopefully I will get to a point where I have the answers for others but right now I have starter issues. When I got the truck three years ago the starter would occasionally grind when I turned the key but usually the next time it would work. Very recently it has started grinding every time I try to start it when cold. It grinds the first couple of times I turn the key then it starts usually like nothing was wrong. If the engine is warm it starts beautifully. From some reading it sounds like it might need the starter rebuilt. My questions are does that sound right and if so where can you get this done these days? I would much rather spend $50-100 to get it rebuilt than buy what I assume will be a $300 chinese starter.
If it is indeed grinding, it could be the flywheel ring gear. It could have some broken/badly worn teeth that only occasionally grind. Good starts with a warm engine could be coincidence.
Not sure about these trucks, but some cars need shimming to get the proper mesh between starter and flywheel.
Having said all that, it could be just a poorly operating starter. If the plunger(w/e it's called) doesn't engage with enough force, the starter gear won't mesh with the flywheel and it can grind a bit. A couple of attempts might free it up enough to work correctly. Are your electrical connections(ground included) good at the starter?
Are your electrical connections(ground included) good at the starter?
They should be good though I did recently install a permanent cutoff switch and had to use 4 ga wire in one run as I could not find anything thicker. What I took out was 1ga but I assume it was that thick from the 6V days.
I know it has been a while since I last posted to this thread but I finally got a few minutes to take out the starter (a counter-intuitive procedure). This is what I found when I got it out. I have looked at the visible flywheel teeth and they "look" OK but I have not rotated the engine to look at all of them. Clearly the teeth on the starter are badly damaged and there are metal filings stuck all over the bendix. Can I assume this calls for a new starter? or can you buy just the gear and clean everything else.
You should be able to get a new bendix, but it looks like the starter was setup with the clearance too tight between the drive gear and the ring gear. Things were most likely better when hot because of heat expansion giving more clearance.
I'd bet that with the front edge of the teeth worn away like that, the starter has picked up enough RPM by the time the teeth get up to the flywheel that they aren't engaging. No question, need a new drive.
Being 12v, you have the option of going to a mini-starter. Minor re-wiring involved. They push into the (undamaged?) front side of the flywheel ring gear, instead of the rear. They also draw less than 1/2 the current of the stock starters.
I have been looking for a place to buy just the bendix but so far no luck. Can anyone comment on the advantages/disadvantaged of bendix style starters vs newer mini starters.
ALBUQ F-1 already mentioned the mini starter require minor rewiring but only need half the current. Are either of them easier on the starter or flywheel teeth?
The starter circuit is kind of a package deal when servicing. To avoid trouble in the future you want everything "just so". For that matter a well tuned engine means easy starts in cold or hot weather, and saves on unnecessary wear and tear of both the battery and starter. An engine that won't start at all or grinds will just roast batteries and cables and starters too - they have a duty cycle (that nobody ever follows).
It may not fail the very next day after a crank marathon but the damage has been done. I sort of like the sound an old FORD starter system makes when setup right and wouldn't change it, but then I'm strange.
Best to use NEW heavy gauge cables, NOS (not modern junk) Solenoid, NOS bendix or starter drive, and new/rebuilt starter. Voltage drop testing during crank will show the extent corrosion and rust (or paint) will affect starter performance.
Inspect ring gear carefully. No shims should be required on a FORD. Can buy all the parts for rebuilding a FORD starter yourself for about $40 - new armature, brushes, bearings , hardware, everything. Need to find a good part # for the Bendix (starter drive); that particular was probably used for many years and fairly common, should get plenty of hits on the net from the usual suspects? May have even been used on tractors, not sure but it looks the same.
I have been looking for a place to buy just the bendix but so far no luck. Can anyone comment on the advantages/disadvantaged of bendix style starters vs newer mini starters.
ALBUQ F-1 already mentioned the mini starter require minor rewiring but only need half the current. Are either of them easier on the starter or flywheel teeth?
I bought brushes and bushings at NAPA for about 15 bucks I think. Told them I had an old 8N.They couldn't find any starter parts for the F4. Go figure.
