I was running a 4 speed and recently went to a th350 and my starter worked fine before the swap and I wasn't running any shims on it. Once I did the swap the starter makes a clanking noise and won't turn over, so I ended up with 4 shims on the starter and its still doing the same thing. If you keep trying it will eventually turn over and start.
My new motor came with auto tranny flywheel and a starter he was using with it. When I put the new motor in with new flywheel and clutch, I also used the starter he gave me. It did the same thing your describing. I switched to the old starter that was on the manual tranny to begin with and it worked fine. Starters looked the same to me, but maybe they are slightly different depending on flywheel used?
A flywheel is used with a manual transmission and has 156 teeth, a flexplate is used with automatics and has 168 teeth, it's also a different diameter.
They sell 153 and 168 tooth flex plates for Chevrolet depending on the application just as they sell flywheels for stick setups with 153 and 168 tooth ring gears. Examples for Gen 1 small blocks: http://www.summitracing.com/search/part-type/flexplates/make/chevrolet/engine-size/5-7l-350/engine-family/chevy-small- If your starter is in real good shape you can get by a bit cheaper by swapping end frames on the starter to match the tooth number on the flex plate.
if the flywheel is an inch or more different diameter, and you have the wrong starter for it, it will be off by a long ways. Both sizes of ring gears were used for manual and automatics. It's not either/or. First thing I would do is measure the clearance between the ring gear teeth, and the starter shaft. It should be exactly 1/8" you can check with an allen wrench, if it fits but you can't turn it, then it's perfect. If it won't fit, its too tight, and you need to install one or more full shims. If it fits but it's loose, you need to install half a shim in the outboard hole, etc. guessing at the shims is not a good plan.
I am just starting to tinker with a 350 sbc and tried a flywheel my buddy gave me but it was too wide to mesh with the starter. I put on a 153 tooth flexplate and it looks like it should work (I have the starter off). If my assumption that it will work is correct, what am I to think about the fact that the flywheel that was too wide does not look like it would ever come in contact with the starter?
staggered starter mounting bolts, 168 tooth flywheel/flex plate. straight acros starter mounting bolts, 153 tooth flywheel/flex plate.
I remember by big flywheels take starters with two long bolts, small flywheels take starters with one short bolt. 153 teeth = 12 3/4 " diameter 168 teeth = 14" diameter
One thing I would like to mention is that GM makes heavy duty starters. You tell them from standard starters because the H-D ones will have a 3/4" to an inch long copper tube that fits between the case coil pigtail and the back of the bendix. This is because the field coils inside the h-d starter's case are longer so they produce more torque. My '67 350 SS Camaro engine came stock with one on it and when I had to replace it, I found out that it is also used on the 427 and 454 engines. Like an L-88 or an LS-6. And a V-8 starter on a 194/230/250, 6-banger will really turn her over!!! pdq67
So all starters with staggered holes are for 168 tooth? I looked up the part # on my flexplate to confirm its a 168 teeth. My old starter has staggered holes and I just bought a new starter with staggered holes neither work. I ended up putting 6 shims on both and still are too close to the flexplate.
How much too close is it, without shims? I wonder if the flexplate is made wrong...or the starter holes in the block are made wrong? Did it have the same diameter flywheel when it had the manual transmission?
no. But I would still like to know, did you leave the same starter on it when you changed from flywheel to flexplate? or did you also change starters?
Not sure, it was a cheap $20 flexplate. I'm not sure what diameter the flywheel was, sold it with the 4speed. I did run this same motor in my old 85 c10 with a 700r4.
Yes I left the same starter on when I switched from flywheel to flexplate. I bought a new starter and looked it up under an 80 c10 and that same vehicle list the same flexplate I bought and I'm having the same issue. I have a 1/8'' drill bit and can't fit it in with 6 shims
I have a few different starters laying out in the bone yard as well as flywheels. All are sbc 305's and 350's, yes they are all slightly different, I just don't know where each one originated from. I had a similar problem, but I just switched starters and its fine.
Some of the 305s came with a lighter duty starter, but the mounting holes in the block are in the same places. I would suspect the flexplate....but it's a bitch to change it.
That makes good since, I looked at my starters and the bolt holes are all same, main difference is just in the body itself. Gears all same diameter on what I have. Signs pointing to the flexplate
Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. I have a TCI converter and the flexplate has two different bolt hole sizes and the bolts wouldn't go through the smaller holes and there was no correct pattern for the large holes, it would always end up with two large holes and one small hole, so I had to drill one hole larger. I'm thinking that flexplate was made wrong or boxed wrong.
I doubt it was boxed wrong, there isn't a Chevy 14.08" diameter flexplate that I know of. Most of this stuff that you buy for $20 comes from offshore, some of it is made well, some isn't...and they dont have any old cars over there to try it out on.