destroying starters

[mattdirocz]

ok i have only gotten to drive my car 4 times now. and in those four times i have went thru 2 starters. of course it went the second time tonight the day before i wanted to take it to my first show. i have no idea what is causing this any help would be great. as far as i know its a 305 out of a 3rdgen camaro. doesn't look like i am making this year guess i got a year to get this figured out. Should have know something like this was going on. When you buy a car and its got an extra starter in the trunk.

[DroptopJ]

Is it grinding? Stock starter? Have you shimmer it?

[DroptopJ]

I meant shimmed

[mattdirocz]

yea it sounds like it was grinding at first so i shimmed. i put a complete stack of shims in and it sounded the same. So took it to the shop and they took one of my shims out and said thats just the way it sounds.

[mattdirocz]

and the first ine was a stock style second a mini starter

[mattdirocz]

currently now that i cant take it to the show i am trying to get my wife on board with just buying a 383 so next year there will be no problems at all

[SS PUNISHER]

You are probably using the wrong tooth starter, you shouldn't have to shim it....

[anthonys 69]

Ok to shim the starter correctly bolt the starter in place and you should be able to put a 1/8 inch drill bit between the teeth of the flex plate and the starter main shaft. If too tight add shims to make gap larger if too lose add half shim to the outer starter bolt to make gap smaller. Yes in a perfect world you should be able to just bolt it and go. Next if the car is fuel injected you might want to check fuel pressure not enough fuel on cold starts can make the engine kick back against the starter. And you’ll also want to make sure the ignition timing is not to far advanced. Good luck

[ssealeycpa]

If you are running an auto trans, there is a good chance your flywheel (flexplate) is cracked. I have had a cracked one before that did just as you described (cracked close to the bolt circle where it bolts to the crank). Also I ALWAYS by a NEW starter for any small or big block chevy and with a new starter, you should not have to shim at all. Good Luck

[mattdirocz]

yea i have never had to shim one on any of my cars or trucks i have had. Yes i will check my fly wheel sunday or tonight after the show. I still going just cant take my car.

[TT302Z28]

Is it possible the one in the trunk was already bad from not shimming?

Eliminate the unknown.

[mattdirocz]

the one in the trunk i have never installed. still sitting in the box well i am having so many problems i am going to replace the fly wheel. Also i will be putting on a new starter and just taking all the guess work out of it. if everything is new it should all work right. correct me if i am wrong

[TT302Z28]

That is really the best bet. Be sure to check the tooth engage mention like Anthonys 69 said with a drill bit.

[ssealeycpa]

A quick note on replacing the flywheel you can do without removing the transmission. Take the bellhousing bolts out and cut some 3/8" threaded rod ~ 4" and thread into the bottom holes in the engine block and then loosen the trans mount and you can slide the trans back far enough to do it. Still a pain but I have done that back in the day before I had a lift and transmission jack etc. One other note worth mentioning, I have never used the straight inline bolt type starter on a chevy. I have always used the "staggered" bolt type and with using all new parts, you should not have to shim although I would still check the clearance

[mattdirocz]

i might try that so i dont have to pull the whole trans. I only work with floor jacks thats high as i can get my car in the air. My attempt on this wont be able to happen till tues that my next day off. Between work and my kid everthing is always full tilll my weekends. (tuesday and Wens)

[JEFFTATE]

Check to see if your flexplate is cracked , or the teeth are worn in the spot where the starter engages them .
Worn teeth are the most likely culprit .

[mattdirocz]

yea i looked into it a little bit yesterday before i took off for the day the flywheel has a couple missing teeth and some look pretty worn. Thats just from the part i could see.

[mattdirocz]

I was told by some people around here that my flex plate may have been old and brittle so when i put on the high torque starter on it just tore up the teeth. Could that be possible, never heard of that happening but i still young and have plenty of stuff to learn. i pulled the trans and flex plate and teeth look really worn. Currently i am weighing the options on swapping in a t56 which is what i really want to do or put it back togther with the TH400.

[TT302Z28]

It only takes a little time to replace the flex plate and reinstall. Drive the car while you save for the T56. I always hate myself for taking my car apart before I have the parts and waiting to drive.

[mattdirocz]

Yea after getting some quotes on parts i would need its going back together for now. It might be more in the budget this winter and still wondering if i need to spend the extra money for the t56 over a 5 speed