Starter woes

BILLF/TRF

BILLF/TRF

Senior Member
I just got my engine back into the '31 tudor (after re-painting), hooked everything up, pushed the starter button and all I got was a "whirring sound". I rocked the car in third gear, no popping sound. It has a new battery and the starter was rebuilt this past winter. What's the problem?:mad:
 
Yep, either a nick on the helix, or rust, or dirt, or grease will keep it from sliding into engagement. Clean it and make sure it moves back and forth on the helix easily, then I like to give it a coat of very light oil, such as ATF. NO GREASE on the helix.
 
It could also be a broken bolt on the bendix, which could have sheared on the initial start. If the starter locks up in the flywheel, needing to be rocked to be unstuck, it won't make any sound and stepping on the starter button will feel like stepping on a rock.
 
James Rogers said:
It could also be a broken bolt on the bendix, which could have sheared on the initial start. If the starter locks up in the flywheel, needing to be rocked to be unstuck, it won't make any sound and stepping on the starter button will feel like stepping on a rock.
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I removed the starter yesterday and it was not stuck and the bendix looked fine. I took it to the local guy who said he re-built it and I asked if he had tested it before giving it back to me he said no, because he didn't have a 6 volt source to test it. I said let's test it on a 12 volt battery with the result that it barely turned. So something is wrong. He will look at it again. If he can't find the problem I will have to ship it to a reputable vendor.
 
I've got to wonder if the 12 volt battery that it was tested with had a good charge or if the cables were makeing a good connection . You state that you could hear a whirring sound when you tested the starter in the car on 6 volts and then it barely turned when tested off of the car on 12 volts. I find it strange that you could hear it whirring on the car with 6 volts and it only barely turned on 12 volts, off the car. The starter is probably ok and the guy only half azz tested it on 12 volts. My guess is oil on the helix is preventing the bendix gear from engaging. Starters are pretty simple . Electric shops that do starters and alternators usually have no problem with model A starters but cross the brush wires on model A generators. My 52 years with model A's says NO oil of any kind on the drive helix. I wash the helix with lacquer thinner and dry it before installing any model A starter .
 
I've heard of a couple times when the guy didn't have the 4 starter brushes in the correct holders. Also check the fields for shorts or grounds. Don't use jumper cables to test the starter, unless they are short and made of heavy welding cable. If new bushings have been installed they may be tight until the starter has spun for several seconds. Does the armature turn OK by hand?
 
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