Johnald Mnemonic, part 2: Startering to Finish

Before I get into wrapping up the starter repair, I wanted to share something I thought of a little bit ago.

I was draw filing some steel stock so that I could get a 45° bevel to use for a sheet brake, when I started thinking about how keeping "bevel" and "chamfer" straight can be tricky for some folks (I know it was for me for a while).  Then I remembered a trick a friend taught me to remember "port" from "starboard" ("Port" is "left", because both words have four letters").  I wondered if there was some similar letter counting trick that I could come up with.

What I came up with was, "There are two "e"s and two faces with a bevel.".  I was kinda on the fence about how useful that was, so I just summed it up as, "Bevel is simple.  Complex chamfer."  Either or both may only make sense to me, but whatever.  I'm not a teacher.

Anyway, here's the Earth-shattering conclusion to the starter repair!

As you recall, we last left off with the starter torn apart and stuffed away in a box to await it's new drive assembly.  Here's a picture of the old and new, side by side.

Having the new drive gear right next to the old did a lot to justify spending the time and effort to replace this.  So did my inspection of the other parts of the motor, all of which
looked a-okay, minus a little bit of rust that had collected inside the case.  Note that I haven't had any concerns about the electrical integrity of the motor, so I didn't pull the meter out to verify coil values and such.  Since the drive gear was the only concern, I was satisfied with giving everything else a visual inspection.

While looking things over, I cleaned up the parts that needed it with a nylon brush (instead of one with brass or steel bristles).  This was to make sure I didn't damage any insulation or leave any conductive material/broken bristles behind, since they could cause shorts or other problems.

I wiped the dirt and a good portion of the grease from the armature shaft, so needed to get the splines slick.  The service manual says to use Dow Corning 33 silicone grease or equivalent when lubricating the armature shaft splines, though I didn't have either.  What I ended up using was STP moly EP grease, which seemed an okay "close enough'.  Between that grease being designed to stay put, and the small amount needed, I felt safe under the assumption that it won't cause the car to blow up.

Assembly was the reverse, but there were a few things I noticed:

• The washer that fits over the retaining ring was very motivated to get away at any opportunity.  Keep an eye on it until you have the armature shaft fully seated in the bellhouse and the yoke arm pin in place.
• Don't forget the yoke return spring, which is surprisingly well-behaved as far as springs go when assembling a thing.
• The ground brush is a little tricky to get seated.  I'd wait to do it last, once the other brushes are seated and retained.  Just make sure to check it regularly while arranging the insulator and seating the other brushes so that you don't fray the braided conductor.

And here's our buddy, all fixed up and back together:

At this point, you'll have to decide how much you feel like gambling.  If your luck is good enough to rely on, just go ahead and get the starter back in and you're done.  If you're like me, at least in the sense that you make every effort not to waste your short supply of good fortune, then you'll probably want to test your work before going through with reinstalling the motor.

Even though I'm sure you know or could figure out a good testing procedure, I'll include mine for the sake of completeness.

1. Forcibly restrain your starter.  I used ratchet straps to keep it from escaping.
2. Car battery.
3. Connect car battery positive terminal to the copper terminal tab at the rear of the case.
4. Connect battery negative terminal to any exposed spot on the case.  The starter gets its ground from the mounting bolts to the block, so ear's a good place.

Remember at all times, but especially while testing, that no part of you is harder than ring gear teeth, and that clothing is a direct express route to injury if it meets a drive gear.  This is why I test my starter while nude, with the exception of a piece of composite armor I've fashioned from scrap metal, cardboard, and an old flexplate to guard my nether regions.  Fool me once, starter. . .