Starter Options

A local shop can rebuild your starter.

Take it apart, see what's wrong, and fix it. New bushings, brushes, and a new style drive (without the big spring) and it will be like new. New starter $300+. Rebuild starter at a shop $150. Rebuild yourself $75-100.

Edited by Phil48ACWC - 02 Nov 2021 at 9:54am

idiot question...... why the multiple shutdowns? 

corbinstein wrote: idiot question...... why the multiple shutdowns?

Grandson is 11 years old, he loses tractor privileges if not shut down. My tractor, my rules. Period. End of discussion.

Tractor already has 12 volt Delco alternator. It has a recent upgrade to a distributor ignition. A previous owner installed a hydraulic pump drive on the front crank pulley so no hand start capability.

I am fully capable of tearing down the starter and rebuilding it, just wanted something sooner than later, also would like a spare on hand since this probably won't be the last time as per my operating rules.

Apparently there are no modern units available. I work at the voting polls today so will try the pinion gear swap with the WD starter  tomorrow.

Thanks for the input :-)

Grandson is 11 years old, he loses tractor privileges if not shut down. My tractor, my rules. Period. End of discussion.

https://tractorstarters.com/products/details/286/79004821-Starter-Reman

You said it has a 12 volt Delco alternator, so a 12 volt conversion.  Is the starter still 6 volts?  Many 6 volt starters last a long time on 12 volts but can be a bit harsh.  Given the number of starts per day you mentioned, you might want to contact Steve at B&B and see about getting a 12 volt starter built for it.  Also use small cables like 4 gauge.

safety is often a pain local school system in Ohio requires busses to set parking brake when letting off kids. Shop has a PALLET of new pancakes in the corner. I would rather walk around a PTO shaft even when the tractor is parked and turned off.

darrel in ND wrote: corbinstein wrote: idiot question...... why the multiple shutdowns?  You can lock the brakes and clutch.... and even chock it.  Does it have a Magneto? If so it can be hand-cranked. Of course dismounted, and done properly.  B/C starters are essentially the same. Take yours apart and see what burned up. Hopefully it just needs brushes or the button on top.  Please don't refer to anyone on here as an idiot.

I think I may still have a couple around, I'll look

HoughMade wrote: Were it me, I would rewire the whole thing if there is any doubt.  What are there, 5 or 6 wires?  Rebuild the starter, rewire, get good heavy cables, have a strong battery. However, the most important of all is to make sure it starts immediately.  Make sure the distributor (I'm assuming, or mag if applicable) is perfect and the carb is clean and properly adjusted.   I have a B with original 6 volt and it starts in about 1.5 revolutions, under 2 seconds of cranking.  Less stress on the starter if it doesn't have to crank very much.

I did a major carb overhaul and upgraded the ignition from the worn-out magneto to a distributor with a kit I purchased from Steve in NJ; this made that little Model C into one of the best-starting engines I have ever owned, usually less than 2 revolutions.

Another update:

When I did this conversion I also changed the starter back to the original foot-pushrod setup, thereby eliminating the pushbutton  starter relay.

This was not very successful.

The contacts in the the starter switch (the one mounted directly on the starter) keep burning out.

The contacts inside the currently available switches are definitely made of a different material than the OLD contacts in the junk switches I have in my treasure box. The old ones are very coppery appearing, while the new stuff looks more like brass.

The fact that I am running 12 volts probably is a factor as well, but these new switches certainly don't get the job done for me. After going through three brand new switches I gave up and converted back to a pushbutton relay setup.

This wasn't quite as straightforward as it should have been. When I installed the new 12 volt field coils I had used the copper terminal button as supplied in the conversion kit. I now needed to attach a bolt to the starter terminal; I had fortunately saved the old button with the attached bolt, all I needed to do was to de-solder the bolt and solder it on to the new button.

My first concern was to not affect the solder joint inside the starter where the field coils attach to the button. I have some scrap Micarta material, so I cut a big wedge of it to jam inside the starter (the armature is removed, of course) and hold the coil lugs firmly against the inside of the button to prevent movement if the solder gets up to melting temperature (it probably did).

The next step was to de-solder the copper bolt from the old button. My REALLY BIG old copper soldering tool didn't phase it; bring on the propane torch. Nope. At this point I really should have disassembled the starter and installed this old button/copper bolt. But did I do the 'right' thing? Ha!

The 00 tip on my acetylene torch finally did the trick. Whoever did this modification previously knew his stuff, because this was silver solder in the joint. I was a saw filer for 27  years here in the big Idaho sawmills; I have installed well over one million carbide saw tips with silver solder, so I know it when I see it.

For the technically persnickety folks out there, silver soldering is actually a brazing process due to the higher temperatures involved. This is a desirable quality for this application, because the connection inside the starter can then be made using soft solder without any danger of melting the outer joint. Silver solder is also stronger.

As mentioned above, did I do the 'right' thing? Nope. I don't have any silver solder, so I just cleaned it all up and used soft solder; I just need to be careful when tightening or loosening the starter cable.

As The Starter Turns, the saga of Little Alice continues, there is no telling where this adventure may lead from here.




Edited by Les Kerf - 20 Aug 2022 at 10:03am