O.K. I was just going through some of the old threads about this problem (Slow turning over when warm) And the concencus is the starter is fried. My truck is a '69 SWB with a 302 automatic and headers, truck has been starting real good for about 4 years (cold or hot) but all of a sudden in the last week I have noticed once I have been driving it for a while, stop then go to restart it within a few minutes it's realy slow turning over, if it cools down for 10 minutes it will fire right up without hesitation. Checked the battery, cables and timing all are right. Would just like some feedback as to if the stater is the culprit. Thanks

 

Recheck the cables for corrosion. If not, then I believe it's time to replace your starter. Had a similar problem, but, after replacing the starter, still was slow. After taking off the starter with intentions of taking it back I found a severely corroded ground cable. Replaced cable and problem solved. Hope this helps you.

 

This truck has not seen any kind of moisture since rebuilding all the undercarriage, no rain no snow.

 

with headers heating up that starter that long ill bet its the starter!! starters dont like headers trust me i put 1 a year in mine

 

moisture is in the air, it doesnt take droplets to make corrosion just humidity, all of us that live in the south can attest to that, also if you put a bigger starter cable on it it willl help out alot too, what about timing, have you advanced it lately, what about hte battry, how old is that damn thing

 

ya bigger cables help also, i use OO welding cable for all my battery conections. this seems to help a bunch

 

Cables, solenoid, starter and battery, isn't much else to look at except the overlooked grounding circuit. Cab, chassis and engine block all need a good ground to function well. Once the body/frame is bonded to one another, the electrical potential on the entire vehicle is equalized and all should be well.

 

I had a 1979 E-150 van that did this same thing to me and the bond from the engine to the body was bad. Make sure your engine-to-firewall ground cable from the back of the motor is connected to the firewall well.

The negative battery cable on almost all Ford 289s and 302s that I have worked on connects to the hole in the passenger side of the block with a short 5/8" bolt AND a large star washer, The cable goes on the front lower part of the motor, along with the grounds from the alternator, in a hole that faces the right hand front tire. Make sure the area is clean of grease, grime and other foreign matter. The star washer goes between the cable(s) and the block (if I remember correctly)(I don't believe it went between the bolt and the cable. The star washer assists in making a good connection to the block by biting into the cable end and the block.

With headers you may wind up causing premature failure of your starter from the excessive heat the headers create IF the headers sit real close to the side of the starter. There are stainless steel (I believe) shields you can get at some auto parts stores to wrap the starter housing in to help displace all of that heat on the main body of the starter to help prolong the starter's life. You might be able to fabricate your own shield to place between the headers and the starter and fasten it to existing bolts on your motor somewhere but the starter shield might be cheaper, and / or easier.

 

Alright guys I found the problem, it was not the starter it was the battery, when I checked the battery with my tester all the readings were good (I guess my tester is defective) I had to get a new battery for my Fairlane and decided to hook it up to the truck first and see if that was the problem, hey no more slow starting once warm. Cheap Ford batteries, 34 Months old and its no good, thank god it has a 36 month free replacement so I am off first thing to the dealer and get another one.