My starter is acting funny - need an expert

[orlowted]

Ok guys. I have a very interesting problem and need your expertise. Last month I burned out my clutch and just got around to replacing it this past weekend. It is something that I have done before and was familiar with the routine. Everything went as planned from start to finish. Once all done – I went to start the car and the started would not engage the flywheel. It just hit the wheel for a few seconds and then would spin at a very high rev not engaging the gears. It almost seemed as if the starter was not going out far enough. I figured it was just bad so I took it to trade in on a new one. While there – they tested it and it passed all the tests. I traded it in anyway and got a new one, put it in and I am still having the same problem – it just spins and does not engage the flywheel. I checked the following – Bellhousing position – it is on tight and correct. Starter is bolted tight and snug against the bellhousing. Flywheel – teeth are fine – they look good. Clutch – it works fine – I can jump start the car in second gear and it runs fine. Battery – seems to have a good charge. I am at a total loss on why this worked before I replaced the clutch and now it doesn’t. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
65 Coupe – 289, 4-speed toploader – everything works except the starter.

Could this be a solenoid problem?

[Dark Knight]

Did you check the nose length agaisnt the old one? They're different lengths for auto and stick cars.

[orlowted]

It is the same as the previous one that had worked for over a year. I am still thinking that it is an electrical problem. You thought does describe exactly what is happening except sometimes it does catch the gear for a few seconds but not long enough to start the car.

[Dark Knight]

If the solenoid was bad, it wouldnt kick the starter over...
When it catches, does it spin the engine, then the starter just spins?
If I remember, my starter came with shims to make sure it lined up right...

[okiedragster]

i was thinking at first it might be the starter bendix but i dont think it would be doin the same thing with a totally different starter, unless it too is bad.....dunno

http://www.ctci.org/membership/Gilsg...rterBendix.htm

[orlowted]

I guess there is a chance that the starter is bad, but the puzzling part is that the first one worked fine before the clutch swap. No shims - bolted directly to the bellhousing. I did replace the battery at the same time - I wonder if there is not enough amps - although I did get the same battery as before. When it does catch the engine - it cranks it over for about 2-3 seconds and then just starts spinning. At other times when I turn the key - it will not engage at all and just spin. It is random. I am going to try bypassing the solenoid and putting a direct connection to the starter and see if that makes any different. I am also going to try it with my truck battery instead of the one I bought. I know it is a longshot, but I am running out of ideas. I will let you know how it goes. Thanks for all the advise - this is a tricky one (arent they all with a 41 year old mustang)

[Dark Knight]

Stock bellhousing? Some have 2 sets of holes...
I still bet it's the wrong starter. Need to figure out if it's going past the flywheel, to short, or to far away. Try cutting a couple washer in half, put the bolts in and then slide the washers in and tighten it down and see what happens.
I'll look in the garage and see if I have my old starter and I'll measure the snout length.