Clamp the starter housing in a vise, and put a pair of vise grips on the shift lever. Pull the gear to its full-forward position against the return spring. Adjust the solenoid so the contact disc makes its connection just as the gear reaches its full-forward travel. An ice pick type test light or an ohmmeter can be used to check the contact. Test the operation electrically by leaving the starter motor connection at the solenoid loose and apply voltage to the "S" terminal. Ground the large terminal that would normally power the starter motor. The pull-in winding will hold the solenoid in the engaged position and a feeler gauge can be used between the gear and the starter nose cone to check for full engagement without hammering the nose cone.

All this is "Starter rebuilding 101" for people who don't rely on rebuilders to do it right the first time. I do the same electrical check on starters with enclosed linkage to check for worn or bent parts before installing a rebuilt starter. The motor spin timing on a starter with enclosed linkage can be delayed in case of premature motor starting by grinding a small amount off the pin that the solenoid plunger hits at the end of its stroke- - - -the one with the copper contactor disc attached to it.
Jerry


"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln
Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt!
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway
Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!