I am having an issue with my foot pedal starter the bendix engages and cranks the engine for about 1.5 seconds then the bendix seems to disengage and the starter motor revvs up......It seems that this problem just started because I performed a compression test on the engine a few days ago without a problem. It wouldnt bother me too much but im trying to set the ignition dwell and cant get enough cranking to get it done I got it done by adjusting the points, replacing the cap and starting it up..Thank goodness it fires right up..it took a good 4 times to get it right..what a pain I was thinking that if there is no solenoid and the starter motor runs fine so it must be the bendix...I should rebuild the starter ??...change the brushes,lube the bushings, and replace the bendix ??....Any recommendations will be appreciated...... Thanks Leon
Do the easy stuff first! Check to see if you still have a good electrical contact on the starter. Check to see if the starter switch is still making good contact. Try turning the ignition on and manually engaging the starter switch by "hand". If that doesn't seem to help, wait for more advise!
On my 55 if you manually press the starter switch[located on the starter] all you do is run the starter motor. Its mechanical action that moves the starter gear to mesh the flywheel to start or rotate the engine. Have someone step down on the starter pedal while yopu watch the mechanical action.HTH Bob
It's The Sprag Clutch.... ...In the Bendix so yes , find a new one and service your old starter~ DO NOT let any old boob touch it , you can prolly do a better job . What has happened is : there are four rollers & springs inside the Bendix and they allow the gear to turn one way free of the armature but not the other ~ this is so when the engine starts and you rev. it to 3,000 RPMs , the starter isn't driven to 10,000 RPMs where the armature's windings will explode . For some odd reason they made these springs rectangular in shape so naturally after time they break right in the corners.. just like a 'Z' spring in any 60's or 70's vintage automobile seat ~ there's _no_ reason for this design except to fail after a specific amount of flexes ~ this is called " Planned Obsolecence " . After you've repaired your starter , you can carefully uncrimp the sheet metal body of the old Bendix and see how it's made . Some 30 + years ago my buddy made up some nylon blocks to use in lieu of these springs , we fitted a set to my '65 Harley's Bendix (I was doing parade duty with the Victor Mc Laglen Stunt & Drill Team then) , it never gave me any troubles after that...
Thanks Nate I guess im going to jack the truck up and pull the starter, there might be a bendix for that starter hangin around in the garage new in the box. While im down there i'll fix the exhaust leak...the previous owner broke off one of the ears for the exhaust manifold to tailpipe flange. I thought about a good way to repair this and came up with a solution to save the poor old manifold. Seeing that this is a workin class truck im not too worried if its not original looking. Went out and bought a stamped steel 2 pc. split catalytic converter repair flange for any G.M. vehicle that has the 2 1/2 outlet pipe.... it will wrap around the exhaust manifold right above the old ears just perfectly......I HOPE.....well maybe grind the inside diameter just a bit because the exhaust manifold is kind of squared. Ok i'm goin out to the garage again to get some stuff done Thanks for the advice Leon
OK guys..enlighten me a little..in my previous post I mentioned mechanical action with a foot actuated starter switch ,what am I missing with your problem?
i use to rebuild those starters and it sounds like the bendx to me as well the test is to put it on the bench... engaguge the starter with a battery and shove a 2x4 in to the gear. push hard and you will see your one gear slipping and stoping. we did this test with every starter we built... it use to be easy to replace the gear but it's been 20 years since i've seen one... GT
Bendix Test I've always used an old hammer handle ~ the hardwood handle stands up better than a 2X4 does but that's the correct way to do it .
Sprag clutch repair I carefully removed the sheet metal cover around the guts of the sprag assembly......inside there was 4 rollers about 5/16 diameter by 3/8 tall and they were in a almost squared pocket....there were 4 springs in there very similar to the ones you would find on those clicky ink pens but just a bit stiffer......3 out of 4 of the springs were just plain worn out to the point where they were about 1/4 inch shorter than the one good spring.....so I cleaned everything, made up some new springs that were slightly heavier than the stock ones, oiled the assembly with some 30 weight and reassembled everything. The job was very simple but time consuming because the sheet metal cover had to be worked carefully to get it opened up. It works awesome now....I replaced the bushings,brushes, turned the armature and scraped the mica inbetween about .030 below the surface of the copper and installed a new switch.....goes to show that with a little time and patience there is money to be saved and you know its done correctly. Again thanks for all the advice, Leon
Oops Leaon ; Electric motors you never , ever undercut the mica ~ that's for generators only . oh well .
oops So now that I did the oops what will it do to the starter if I use it......Its not too late.....i can take it apart and turn it down again because i havent bolted it in yet. Thanks for the heads up..... Leon
Well ; The armature can only be turned so many times so I'd let it go , if / when there's a problem (HINT : keep the engine in sharp tune and it'll always light right off , not much cranking) , it may well be 20 year from now..... Just stick it in and every time it zips to a quick start , think " I did that ! "
don't worry omega you'll just go thru brushes faster.... the thing to watch on the armatures is if the solder has melted out... if you run any starter too long the armature heats up and throws the solder that holds it together...
all fixed again !!! Took the starter back to the shop and turned the armature again but didnt groove it out this time......I only had to remove .010 on the diameter to correct my mishap.....I'm no electrical expert by any means......I guess I didnt groove it out all that much.....I checked it all out with the meter on the ohms setting and everything looked good..........overall there was only .020 removed from the armature so hopefully i'll be safe......I will know tomorrow after I go to the antique parts store to get a new starter switch and try to start it.....if it dont work i'll go back to sticking with what i know... Thanks again Leon
if you cant find what you need i have a friend in oregon that still works with the older starters i could hook you 2 up... GT
Starter update Hi guys and gals, I feel like a goof because I keep dragging on about my starter......most people would of just bought a new one......but I am the type of guy that will attempt to fix a piece of junk part with a dozen attempts before i'd pay for a new one or to have someone do it........ call me frugal but I do it just so I can say I fixed that thing..... It cost 4 bucks for brushes, 3 bucks for the bushings,15 bucks for the new starter switch, and glass beaded the nose cone,the end cover and hardware,some lathe work, and a little black paint. Installed it today and got it all hooked up and it had a nice quiet consistent whurr sound to it and cranked like hell.... I am very happy with the results and it cost me about $25.00 all said and done......and a couple hours of my time. I need to give credit to all the fine gentlemen that gave me advice and sent me in the right direction on this science project. I owe ya all Cant thank u guys enough, Leon
