jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

i recently purchased a new starter, it required no shims. it fired up around 8 times, great powerfull starts, and no grinding like befor. flex plates in excellent condition. now it goes grrrrrrrind vrroom.. its quite embarrasing. any ideas?

camaronewbie

I've never installed a starter that didn't need shimmed in some way. I'd recheck clearances again.

Chevynut46

see if your bolts came loose

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

yeah chevy, i did the first time befor i got the new starter, they were in there good, took a while to break free. you would think since it fired right up the first times it wouldnt need shimming. weird thing is it didnt do that when i got the car, i did the head gaskets, not touching the starter then after we did the head gaskets it seemed to start. its strange. ill check shimming when i get a day off.

rough

Recently replaced my flywheel as some of the teeth were chewn off, Replaced the starter before hand, and now it does the crank crank "vrrrrrrrm like the starter came off the fly wheel " Sometimes a few times in a row, then it will start.

I did not shim my starter, as it had none when I took the old one out but the new one came with some.

Is there a proper way to check tolerances, and how would a shim effect it not grabbing the fly wheel, you think it would put more distance from the starter and flywheel.

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

yeah exactly man.. except my flywheel still looks in great condition. it seems to "grind" so to speak around 3 times in a row, then wait a second, grinds for a second then fires right up

rough

Identical issue. I'm gonna remove the tc plastic later today and see if I can flm what's going on as I have no spare hands to start the car and visualy look lol , its very embarrasing thou specialy when a hottieis walking by :-( cuz u know they looking hehe

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

yeah i was thinking about doing the same thing monday, if you beat me to it show me the vid, im willing to learn and help each other out on this one.

88sporty

this could be stupid question, but did you check to see if the nose on your started cracked? i went through three starters with the same issue, i ended up putting a 68 starter on my 83 sb

Dark Ember

I had a similar issue on my L69 Monte SS. Sometimes when I tried to start it, I just heard a high pitched, loud, grinding/whining noise. After I replaced the starter some time later, it went away and never came back. I figured it was the teeth not meshing properly with the teeth on the flexplate. If your problem sounds like mine, and your problem persisted, then I would suspect it was a poor quality starter gear?? Hope this helps.

Chevynut46

yea i had a similar issue at one point..it turned out that the spring inside the starter that pushes the gear out to contact the fly wheel was bad/weak and wouldnt always make good contact causing my issue.

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

well, when i first installed the new starter fired up around 8 times, then grinded. took it off and put it back on, fired up great around 10 times, now grinding yet again. flexplate is in excellent condition

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

I'll warranty this out out or another and see if the problem occurs again. when I have time. weird it starts find after I in bolt and re bolt it. maybe starter bolts come loose after a few cranks? who knows

Curious_George

I just swapped out my 305 for a 350 (355 now) and bought a new Summit brand high-torque mini starter. After getting everything all together and attempting to start the motor for the first time... it turned the motor over once, then it started to grind.

Upon closer inspection, the pinion gear was not extending out far enough to engage the flex plate (700R4 tranny). It turned the motor over initially because there was just enough metal to grab ONCE. I looked at the geometry from all different angles and came to the conclusion that the front plate (big block of aluminum) on this particular starter was not machined correctly. I called Summit and went through it with them and they refunded my money.

Went to AZ and got an standard OE replacement starter and installed it and it has been perfect ever since (1.5 months now).

CG

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

yeah, it sometimes trys to crank, and most of the time sounds like it's not extending all the way. well see

Damon

Look at the teeth of the flexplate on the ENGINE side. The teeth will always look fine on the transmission side since most starters don't fully engage the entire width of the tooth.

I only mention because I just got tripped up by this on the big block in my 454SS 2 days ago. Doh!

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

ya it's fine all the way around.. I'm confused on it

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

sounds stupid, but could it be a drained battery, my car isnt completly complete. so i go and out start it and let it run a few times a week, possibly not enough time for it to recharge my battery? its a long shot. once i put the new battery in it fired right up few weeks back

oamhmad

iTrader: (1)

I installed AZ's dura crap starter without using any of the shims provided. Never had any problems, not even once. I've probably got 100 or starts on it so far. Knock on wood.

Do you have the brace hooked up that attaches the rear of the starter to the block?

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

yeah i work at oreilly, our newer line ultima starters and alternators are way better then the previous shucks inventory, as far as a bracket, i dont see one on this motor, just the two mounting bolts. the old starter wasnt shimmed, nor was the new one. ive heard frmo some on the 305tpi lb9 u shouldnt have to either. ill rip it apart tomorrow. rain or shine. keep ya posted man.

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

well a 1/64th shim fixed it, it does from time to time grind a little bit, may need another shim sooner or later.

jeff_blake

iTrader: (1)

well, the starter was toast, installed a new one. now it engages. but doesnt engage to the flywheel. u just hear it go out and spin. kinda lost..