You have a great engine already. A 6 volt starter fed by 12 volts is not only fully acceptable, it is awesome to have. It turns the engine much faster which makes a cold engine start right up.
You probably had an old starter which lived past its life expectancy. I new/rebuilt one will serve you very well.
Figure out if the stomp starter linkage parts were actually the cause of the stuck starter. Take a look at all of the moving parts for excess wear and replace the worn parts if necessary. You should have no trouble finding a serviceable used one by posting in the Parts Wanted Forum on this site. Just about everyone has a good one laying around.
Carl
