Starter motor grating

[daverclasper]

Hi. Has done this occasionally for a while. Now getting quite frequent.  Grates and then seems like the pinion slides back. Will now do this for sometimes 3 attempts before pinion will engage with flywheel.  Worn starter pinion/ring gear, or something else please anyone?.

Thanks Dave

   

[Pete Lewis]

I would start with the simple.  Remove starter and wash the bendix drive with brake cleaner or petrol do not oil or grease this drive it only attracts clutch dust and goo's it up

When its off you can study any pinion wear etc, 

Pete

[Clive]

As Pete says, start there. It must move freely/smoothly.

I had an "odd" on on a spitfire. Starter didn't like engaging. But when it did was very healthy. Took it out, all looked/felt OK. But it carried on. In teh end I bought a NOS bendix assembly for under a tenner off fleabay, with the correct number of teeth.

When I swapped (borrowed a bendix spring tool, friend has owned it 40+ years and first time used!) it became obvious the old pinnion gear had the wrong number of teeth! There was also a shard of metal jammed right in there too, only obvious once apart, which must have been the issue.

I think originally the starters were supplied for specific cars, with a few variations in teeth count. But they probably all work, but not as well as the correct type. 

(and no, I can't remember the correct tooth count for a Triumph, but the info was easy enough to find)

[daverclasper]

Thanks a lot. Will put on my "never ending" to do list. Bit cold to work on car outside at the mo. Didn't bother me much when I was a "young un".

Just out of interest, are there alternative ways of removing pinion without the tool please. I imagine there hard to come by now, as well.

cheers, Dave

Edited January 24, 2019 by daverclasper

[Colin Lindsay]

1 hour ago, daverclasper said:

Thanks a lot. Will put on my "never ending" to do list. Bit cold to work on car outside at the mo. Didn't bother me much when I was a "young un".

Just out of interest, are there alternative ways of removing pinion without the tool please. I imagine there hard to come by now, as well.

cheers, Dave

I bought one a while back on eBay for £1 so they still turn up; it's just like  a miniature suspension spring compressor and makes the job so easy. I suppose a pair of mole grips - one each side - might do the same job.

With regards to the Bendix itself I think (think!) our cars use 9 teeth, and while there are plenty of new ones out there, many are 10 teeth - does it make any difference? I've read that you can use both, but have also heard that using the 10 causes greater wear and possibly damage.

[JohnD]

It'll turn the engine over a bit more slowly.

How many teeth ona Spitfire starter ring?   117 on a six cylinder, so it would be 117/10 instead of 117/9;  11.7:1 instead of 13:1

John

[68vitesse]

Have used a couple of open ended spanners block of wood and vice, block of wood one end pinion the other vice in middle.

Your fingers, your decision your risk correct tool always best.

Regards

Paul