New Starter Bendix Installation

shew01

shew01

Well-known member
I’m reading through “Model A Ford Mechanics Handbook, Vol. 1,” page 1-288, to install a new Bendix on a rebuilt starter. I don’t see any mention of oiling or greasing it. The Bendix should not be installed dry, should it?


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From what I've read, it should be installed dry to prevent any oil or lubricant from attracting dirt and grime on the shaft which could affect its ability to return to its place out of the way of the flywheel. There may be other reasons as well. Stay tuned for more opinions.
 
Also, how tight does the bolt in the bottom of the picture need to be?

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As tight as you can, making sure you can still bend the tabs squarely against the flats of the bolt heads. One of the tabs bends down and the other bends up just like you have done on one of the bolts already.
 
The other bolt came from the manufacturer alright tightened and “bent over;” so, I don’t have a reference point for how tight is tight.


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It wants to be dry, the bolts very snug and also use permatex blue on the threads, in addition to the tabs.
 
With the Bendix off, the rebuilt starter shaft turns freely. When I tighten down the Bendix, it appears that the Bendix moves into slight contact with the starter body, and it doesn’t turn quite as freely. Should I ”dress” end of the Bendix slightly? Or, will normal use take care of that?


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If the bendix is properly made to specs and the pin hole at the tip of the armature is correctly placed, the bendix assembly should make no hard contact with the armature shaft bushing boss on the starter housing cover. It should rotate with no hard contact there. If it just barely rubs then it will likely bed in over time.

There are small bolt bendix types and large bolt types. I prefer the large bolt ones that are made in the US.
 
I dressed the Bendix a bit, but it still snugged up against the starter housing a bit as I tightened the Bendix bolt. So, I decided to test it by applying thread lock, tightening the bolt, bending the keeper over the bolts, and installing it temporarily. (This is going to be my spare starter.)

The first start was a little slow, but the next starts seemed fairly normal. When I removed the starter for storage, it spun freely like before.


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I use a little " Singer sowing machine oil " on the bendix . It is a very thin oil and never cause any hangups . Protects as well .

John in sunny morning Suffolk County England .
 
Oil on the bendix, in cold weather, will cause the bendix to not engage, or as john charlton says: "hang up"
 
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