starter ?

so since i put the alternator and 12v battery in my 6v starter worked intermittently. picked up a 12v starter from a local rebuild shop today. got it home, bolted it up, wired, etc. go to start the car and nothing, acts like battery is dead, no horn or lights. battery does have juice thou, i think, i dont have anything to test it with but gives spark with some jumper cables.
any ideas?

 

Take a 12 volt light bulb and a pc of wire and make a test light. JC

 

ok, if the battery is good then what? not grounded properly?

 

A stock 55 up 12V starter will not work with a 54 back 6 V style flywheel.

 

yeah at the starter shop they swapped the gear from the original starter to the 12v starter. my problem now is when i turn the key, nothing...doesnt turn over, no lights, no horn, nothing. i am at a loss, any oklahoma city hambers feel like coming over to help me figure this out, let me know

 

did lights and accesories work before ,while using 12volt battery with 6 volt starter?

 

Electric problems are a pain, but if you start at the battery with your test light and work your way down the line you should be able to find the spot ware the power stops. I would be looking at the solenoid. JC

 

Yes, lights, horn all worked. It started almost every time but the 12v battery was causing the starter to spin and grind, which is why I got a new one. So I thought it would be an easy r-n-r

 

If NOTHING electrical works at all I'd look for a main fuse/fusible link/circuit breaker. Probably already tried that.

 

well i dont think 6volt lights and accesories are supposed to work very long on a 12 volt battery unless u install some kind of resistor [ i think thats what its called] to keep from blowing everything.

 

How would r-n-r a starter cause these issues....

 

Oh, just FYI, I replaced all the bulbs.....like I said it was all working with tue exception of the starter sometimes

 

JC.... You think maybe I got a bad starter solenoid? I guess I just assumed buying it rebuilt it would be good. Also would that cause me these problems?

 

I'm outta ideas. you'll have to get a test light or multimeter. oh yea, i like your 54, i just bought a 54 150 2door up by tulsa. looks just like yours without trim.

 

you need to get a test light and a multimeter so you can see whats going on. sounds like a main breaker. did you cause any big sparks when you installed the starter? double check all connections.

 

does the horn work when the car is not keyed up? if it does you may have a huge draw at the starter

 

I did hit the old starter and it sparked when I was taking it off. The horn only works or worked when the key was on.
Thanks ACP....., my hurry for this fix is because I'm setup at a shop to finally get my new floor pans in

 

so obs zach, the main breaker....this is a 54 chevy, is that going to be the voltage regulator?
like i said when i went to take off the old starter i hadnt removed the battery cable and got a spark, maybe that fried something out

 

I had the same problem years ago changing a starter, I didn't take off the battery lead and got some nasty sparks!!! Go get a test light and multi-meter and start chasing wires from the battery to the starter to the key-you either fried something or blew a fuse.

 

dimebag, this is basically the original elec system, ive just used a 12v battery and alternator. i dont recall seeing any fuses

 

Use a jumper lead from the starter body to the neg side of the battery.
sometimes the engine isn't earthed [ grounded ] properly.
Also use a wire with aligator clips from the starter solenoid to the battery to test the starter
This bypasses the whole electrical system [ car thieves used this method years ago, it works ]
Also [ if it's auto ] bypass the inhibitor switch, make sure it is in park though.
Handy Tip:
When hunting for short circuits, disconnect the battery to earth cable .
Then connect the earth via a headlight bulb with two alligator clips
If you find the short circuit or accidentally short circuit it out yourself, the bulb will glow [ instead of frying the whole circuit ]

 

i was able to verify battery is good, alternator is good.

 

ended up being a bridge between the two wires on the solenoid that go to the ignition

 

another question on this starter....went to leave the store last night, turn the ignition on and the starter engages and turns over the motor.....but it doesnt stop, the starter just kept going without getting the car to start. i had to remove the battery cable to get the starter to quit. is this going to be the solenoid ?

 

Quite possible the contacts in the solenoid spot welded themselves, I think it happens from low voltage
If it's the std Delco solenoid there's a contact "washer" inside that can be flipped if the pitting's too bad

 

so the contact washer is inside the solenoid? low voltage...this a problem with my battery?

 

Maybe not, dirty connections, broken wire strands could also be a culprit

 

Sometimes a solenoid might stick just once or twice for unknown reasons, sometimes they are a pos (read cheap offshore) that simply needs replaced.

Delco solenoids are just better IME.

 

So should I just replace the solenoid? Maybe one of the solenoid repair?

 

Are you saying that all you have to do is turn the switch on without going to start position (or pushing the starter button)?