OK, for those of you didn't see my other post "Truck Won't Start", I'm having trouble getting my truck started. Yesterday I got nothing all day. Just a click from the solenoid. I checked all my connections and made sure they were all clean, and then pulled the starter to sand it down and clean it off. I also sanded down where it meets the bellhousing so I know I have a good ground. This morning I went out and she started right up. I let it run for about 30 min. and turned it off. I turned the key right away to see if it would start again and it did. The next time I waited 30 seconds and it wouldn't start again. So today I was playing around with it and it looked like the power wasn't making it to the starter for some reason. So I hooked up my jumper cables and put one side on the positive battery terminal and one one the side of the solenoid that goes directly to the starter. I got nothing, only a spark. My father told me you could test a starter by pulling it out, setting it on the ground and hooking it directly to the battery with the cables. So I pulled the starter, and hooked the cables up to the battery, then on the other end, I put the black cable onto where the starter grounds to the solenoid, and the positive end to where the wire connects. I still got nothing. Which would tell me that the starter is not engaging and is bad. But a guy at my local parts store told me a while ago that you cannot test a Ford starter this way because the cables do not give the starter enough juice. Does anyone know if this is true? And if so, is there another "driveway method" of testing the starter? I plan on taking the starter to the parts store first thing Monday morning to have them test it. Any help in the meantime is appreciated. Thanks.

Brendan
1977 F-250 4X4
351M / 4-Speed
33" BFG Tires
www.angelfire.com/ma4/1977fordf250

GO PATS!!!!!!!

 

If you hook the jumper cables directly to the starter as you said and it doesnt turn......dead starter. As long as you had good connections on both ends
Whoever told you that there isnt enough "juice" this way is a little confused. Unless of course your jumper cables are very small guage wire then maybe.

Sparky

 

There is enough juice in a battery to have it jump all over the floor when you test it this way.
I usually attach the power cable first then touch the case with the
ground.
Sometimes if I don't feel like bending over ,I clamp it in a vice.

If it doesn't engage in this way of testing , The Starter is usually Toast.

Dennis

Oh....Please Don't Ask Me Any Tough Questions As:
"I'm Saving Up MY Memory For When I Develop Alzheimer's"






78 F-150 429CJ C6 ,Silver w/Explorer Pkge
641/2 Mustang,Pre-World's Fair Car #8092
64 Fairlane S/C waiting for a 390-4spd.
68-Mustang.Sunlit Gold 80,000 miles