49 hudson commodore 8 starter

Kasane

hello  all,
i picked up a 49 commodore recently and im trying to get it started. the starter kicks out after a cylinder fires so it will not start. i cant afford $200 for a new starter right now, are there any tricks i can do to keep it engaged longer? or maybe a cheaper starter that i can swap or modify the brackets to make fit?

Thanks

Jon B

It is possible that the problem does not lie in the starter at all.

If just one cylinder fires, that's enough to kick out the starter drive (from engaging with the flywheel teeth).  But if the other cylinders don't chime in, then the engine just stalls.

Have you checked out your ignition and timing?  Possibly the problem lies in bad points or condenser, or a lack of spark from the coil.  Or somehow the timing has gotten out of adjustment.

Was the engine starting just fine, then all of a sudden you encountered the  kick-out problem?  Did you recently replace or re-adjust some component of your engine?

Kasane

the car was sitting not running for about 12 years before i got it. i just replaced the points and condenser and i checked the coil and i am getting spark to the plugs. the starter turns the engine slowly but im not sure if it is normal how slow it turns since this is my first 6 volt car. after reading i am thinking maybe the starter went bad from sitting but i am hoping that isnt the case.

Kasane

i havent touched the timing but it was running when parked 

Jon B

If it's six volts, are you sure you have the correct battery cables?  These should be much thicker than the cables on your modern car -- about 3/4" in diameter.  Then too, the ground strap from your positive battery post should have a good ground on the engine or body, well sanded to insure conductivity.  And there should be another ground strap between the engine and the body or frame; again, the connecting surfaces should be sanded bright.  (You can go from the pos. batt. post either to the engine or to the body, but be sure to have that second ground strap that connects engine and body.)  It is true that Hudson starters turned the engines over somewhat slowly (in comparison to nowadays) but -- if the battery, ignition wiring, timing and components are good, plus you have gasoline moving to the carb, the car should start with just a couple rotations of the flywheel.  (Six volts work fine when everything else is okay, but it is much less forgiving of conditions like corrosion than 12 volts is.)

Geoff

Starters don't generally "go bad" sitting.   Connections do.   Clean the battery, solenoid, and starter terminals. 

Kasane

ive got it working now. i couldnt find any problems so i tossed in a 12v battery to get it spinning faster and disconnected everything but the starter and coil and got it running. after it ran for a bit i switched back to the 6v battery and it starts just fine now.

Kasane

ive got to rewire the whole car anyway because the previous owner rewired it very poorly so i wasnt too bothered if i melted any wires