Electrical: Starter noises.

[52-fan]

The starter on my brothers truck quit. The engine is a 289 with a standard transmission. He had been warned by the repair shop the last time he had the starter worked on that it was not going to be repairable again. We dug into the used ones , but most turned out to be for automatics. He finally found a Delco that spun nicely so he installed it.
The starter works, but makes a noise as it spins the engine. We have had the starter apart twice and everything looks good, but still the noise. It doesn't sound like any starter drive problem I have experienced. Before I pull it again, any ideas?

[TWChamp]

Hard to say without hearing the noise. Is it grinding, clunking, chirping, or exactly what kind of noise, and is the noise for sure coming from the starter?
Are the mounting bolts the correct length and tight?

[Mrs K Corbin]

yeah, got the same issue with my automatic. makes a weird noise, but doesn't grind.

[52-fan]

It is hard to describe. A rough rumble from somewhere. It does not sound like anything I have dealt with. I wonder if the center bushing being bad could cause this.

[jclary]

Could it be that the bushing is spinning with the shaft? It is a common problem with electric motors that use bushings instead of bearings. Fortunately, since a starter is used for short bursts, it can operate longer without self-destructing as a continuous running motor would. However, eventually, if not corrected, it too will fail.

[52-fan]

The bushings seem tight in their places. I haven't found any tips on noisy starters in my shop manuals or generic repair books. Everything seems to diagnose electrical problems only.

[karterfred88]

Noise under load, none without--sounds like a bushing/bearing needs oiling or replacing either in the nose piece end, or the motor ends themselves. Try forcing a little sewing machine oil into them, not enough to get on the armature but some. If it quiets down, then you can either leave it and wait for the eventual failure, or take it apart put new bearings/bushings in it now while the rest is good, or put a rebuilt one in later if you're not up the disassembling it.

[StudeRich]

Here is some info I got a couple days ago, it may not apply to this Starter but is good to know.

I was at my local Auto Electric Shop getting some Starters rebuilt and the part owner shared that if you ever hear a noise from the Starter after the engine starts, it could be a very bad thing because if the Bendix Drive does not put back, the Starter will run constantly ruining it in short order.

[jclary]

On my "retired" V8 Lark, I have a noise that occurs intermittently. It is a whirring sound. I'm thinking it might be the starter gear "wandering" (my term), barely contacting the ring gear on the converter. I'm not sure that would even be possible mechanically, but it is one of only two possible things I can conjure in my feeble imagination. The other is that, perhaps, the parking Pawl, in the transmission is floating around near whatever it engages into to lock the transmission into park.

Honestly, I don't know if either one of my "assumptions" is mechanically possible. It has done this for years, never seems to harm anything, has never been a constant issue. So far, it has not been a big enough problem to cause me to tear into, and motivate me into becoming an "expert" on how these components work together.

Some of you, who make your living as a mechanic, or have had enough trouble to be forced to learn, could clue me in.

[altair]

This is a bit time consuming but remove the starter and put some putty on the ring gear just ahead of where the bendix would be normally sitting, by hand turn the bendix out to the engaged position now reinsert the starter (it should be in the engaged position). Turn the engine by hand so that the gears pass through the putty. Remove the starter and confirm the mesh, it should be a near perfect fit there should be .015 - .017 clearance. I performed this task while the engine was on a stand as I was mixing and matching starters, the putty displayed a perfect mesh.

[52-fan]

I pulled the starter apart that Joe originally had on the truck and found a bit of insulation caught under a brush. I am going to lube it good and reassemble. I figured there shouldn't be much wrong since it had performed fine on the trip to Branson and back. If it spins okay after I test it, I will reinstall it.
BTW I sealed the lose cloth insulation with some liquid insulation I have for wiring. I hope it works.

[52-fan]

Well, the old starter worked with the little repair I did. I still want to know why the other one is noisy.

[52-fan]

Joe just reminded me that he used the starter and flywheel from the 55 model engine he used to have. That makes it 6 volt. Do the 12 volt V-8 starters use a different flywheel?

[mbstude]

Joe just reminded me that he used the starter and flywheel from the 55 model engine he used to have. That makes it 6 volt. Do the 12 volt V-8 starters use a different flywheel?

Yes, they're different. A 6V starter will last a while on 12V. But you can't put a 12V starter on a 6V flywheel.

[52-fan]

Yes, they're different. A 6V starter will last a while on 12V. But you can't put a 12V starter on a 6V flywheel.

That would explain it then. He failed to mention that important bit while we were getting the replacement ready. We probably have no other V8 6 volt starter on the place.
I guess I have a spare for the 60 model engine in my 52.