new starter drives

oldskool

oldskool

Well-known member
i bought a new modern bendix drive from mac's and intalled it on a rebuilt starter it will not pass the flywheel ring gear,i have grinded some on the drive like they said but don't want to weaken it,has anyone else had this problem with modern drives?and did it work with grinding ,
this is an 8BA and im running 12v and they recommend these when using 12v...
 
We have new replacement "Standard" brand starter drives. I don't think we've had anyone complain on these. I also have a VERY limited supply of original FOrd and older aftermarket starter drives if needed.
 
It sounds like you have the wrong flywheel there is about 1/4 inch diff. in ring gear location between 59 and 8BA flywheels. John
 
john this engine came out of a running 1950 pu is it possible theres a 59ab flywheel in it ? i put the old starter drive back and it fit no problem,i think someone has replaced the ring gear in the past ,how can i tell if the flywheel is an 8ba or 59ab:confused: thank al
 
The 59 flywheel has a relief in the back,the 8ba flywheel is almost flat,the 59 ring gear is about 1 3/4" the 8ba is about 3/4".I will try to send some pictures. John
 
I'm using a brand new 12v starter from Sacramento. It has the new type bendix and it works perfect with my 59A.
 
If you have a 8ba flywheel on a 59 the new starter drive won't retract far enough to clear the fly wheel,the older drives if the bendix spring is tight will work sometimes.you can use a die grinder and grind the teeth back enough to clear.
It took three or four starters to find one that worked,I have an 8ba flywheel in My 33 when it lost a starter it took a lot of playing to find the problem of the starter hanging up. John
 
I just put one in my stock 49 8ba. It is tight and the starter needed to be angled up slightly to go in. I really needed to play around a little to get it.
 
As long as I had to buy a new starter, I got a gear drive one.
I don't have to worry about all the Bendix problems now.
The BIG thing I like about them is they engage BEFORE they start turning.
Much easier on all the teeth.
Besides all that, they sound kewl.
 
I just ordered the new improved drive for my 53 F-100 with an 8ba. I have a mini starter and have had nothing but trouble with it. The first problem was that it wouldnt engage when the motor was hot. I installed a relay kit for a VW. That fixed one problem and created a new problem. Now every 4th or 5th start it just grinds against the flywheel. I have to be quick on the button every start just in case it does this. Im going to re-install my original starter with this new bendix. Some new brushes and a coat of paint should solve the problem. The mini starter will live the rest of its life on the shelf, or unless someone wants it on craig's list.
 
I know for a first hand fact that the “new” drives will not go past the ring gear with the stamped ’50 Merc bell housings. I thought all the pickups were cast bell housings, but if yours is stamped that is your problem. (I thought it was true of all stamped bell housings, but there was a post above about getting one to clear in a ’49 passenger car.) The “old” drive took advantage of the fact that it that it wasn’t round the whole length (when it wasn’t spinning!).

I finally put my new drive on a length of dowel to convince myself that there was no way you could get it in.
Dave(Smith)
 
Yep, my bellhousing is cast iron. I read in the Mac's catalog about having to grind some off for clearance issues. The parts were sent out today, so this weekend weather permitting I will see what I will get myself into. Thanks again for the heads up!
 
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