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I had a 350 engine put into a 1949 Chevy 3100 a few years back. Since then, I have gone through several starters. It seems the starter keeps moving and after 10-15 cranks, it misaligns and has to be reset.
I have done this several times. I have tried a starter bracket and get more cranks, but eventually the misalignment reoccurs, eventually tearing up the starter. I’m beginning to wonder if the problem lies in the motor mounts and if I need to have the engine pulled and reset.
Any tips or tricks would be appreciated or just to hear from someone who has gone through this same frustrating process and how to handle it would be great.
Thank you for your time and expertise.

CurtE
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I worked in a shop about 10 years ago and we saw quite a few of the chevy motors with the same problem. It was due to poor machining on the bellhousings. We took a big file to the starter mounting holes to level them out and, bingo problem solved.

Thank you!

Does the starter bolt to the engine block, or the bellhousing? On the block-mounted starters, there are a special set of mounting bolts with knurled spots that are supposed to create a very close fit between ther starter and the bolts. If someone has installed the starter using regular 3/8" standard bolts, there's too much room for movement. Also, be sure the back end of the starter housing has the reinforcement bracket attached to it from one of the through-bolts to a bolt hole just below the cylinder head. Another approach would be to get one of the lightweight gear-reduction starters we used on round track race cars.
Jerry

Thanks, Jerry. I'll pass this info along. I had the truck done for my Dad and he has it now. I am trying to help him find a solution to this and I will have him look into how it's bolted.
Thanks for your time. I sincerely appreciate it.

Curt

We are in the process of checking these things out but I wanted to ask what seems to me, a very logical question as I have zero experience in this type of work.

If the engine in my Dad's '49 was pulled from a 1976 Chevy pickup truck, shouldn't the starter and flywheel also be from a '76 350 pickup truck?
I believe the originals were replaced.

This just makes sense to me, so thought I'd ask.


Thanks for your time.

Depends on what trans. it has. If it's an auto they used the 76 starter. It is bolted up to the engine. If it is manual they may have used the old style cast iron bell housing & the starter bolts up to the bell housing.

It's an automatic transmission. But I believe the original starter was trashed and that may be part of the problem.
So it should be bolted up to the engine, correct?

Does your starter match the flywheel? All the starters that bolt to the bell housing are for the 168T flywheel. If the starter bolts to the block with two bolts in a line 90 degrees to the crankshaft, the matching flywheel is 153T. If the two bolts are in a line 45 degrees to the crankshaft, the flywheel should be 168T. I have had to shim starters away from the flywheel with some 168T flywheels.

best wishes,

Les

That's good information. Thank you, Les.
I'll pass that along to Dad. I sincerely appreciate your time.

Curt

One quick way to check for starter position is to spray-paint the teeth on the starter gear, then start the engine a few times. The paint wears away and shows exactly where the teeth are meshing. They SHOULD NOT bottom out- - - -there needs to be a small area at the bottom of the tooth with paint remaining on the pinion gear. Adding shims moves the starter housing down, increasing the clearance at the tooth root. Ideally, there should be about 1/16" of clearance at the bottom of the teeth.
Jerry

That's a great tip, Jerry. I talked to Dad this weekend and he has found a starter and flywheel from a '76 van and we are planning on using the spray paint.
Thanks!