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I've had excellent luck with a Tilton starter, and "The Wheel" flexplate. No mods required. ..on the other hand, I'm not running 13:1 compression! :eek2: ElectraJim
you may not have 13:1 but it sure can move that one of my favorite cars in BG actually didnt see it this year
Sorry, a Delco-Remy type starter would break on my motor. 13.3:1 with a tunnel-ram is just asking for trouble. I would split the head or strip the gears. We do have one of your starters on 'Leaver' which is a 10.8:1 stage2 motor. It works just fine on this combo which is well over 600hp. I just feel that motors beyond this level, which are gauranteed to lean backfire on cold start (Tunnel-Ram), is just asking too much.
I am sure most of you guys have done all I am going to mention, but here you go. In my years of people bringing by motors with starter porblems to my shop, they generally have one or more of these problems: First, if you can avoid putting your batteries in the trunk, then that can help. I run mine behind the passenger seat, and yes I run two. Second, use the thickest wire you can get. I run 2 gauge that I get from a welding shop and solder my connections. Third, check your cranking pressure. Compression is not what causes the strain on the starter, it's cranking pressure. You might not be able to do anything about it, but it might help you for your next build. There is no reason for a 11:1 motor to have 250 lbs cranking pressure. Fourth, shim your starter and use knurled bolts. The clearance between the flywheel and the armeture shaft needs to be .120 to .125. Use a pin gauge to check this. Those mini starters do not have the armeture that extends out, so you cannot check the clearance which isn't worth a damn in my book. Fifth, AC Delco starters have always worked the best for me and you can get them locally which always helps if there is a problem. This is what I run on my Buick (which has 245 cranking pressure, 12.8:1 compression, 22 degrees initial timing) and one time I ran one on a blown Chevy 540 which was equipped with a cannot turn by hand Mooneyham 14-71. This starter did have a thrid bolt hole that I welded on it. Sixth, If you are running a locked out distributor a start retard box is mandantory for most applications. Blair
I used the same starter off the V6 when I switched over to the V8. Its a mini starter I got from Jig a Watt on TurboBuicks.com. Its fours years old and spins the 455 with 11.5 to 1 compression like it has no pistons... Can't beat that for $100.00...
This is an old thread but I can tell everyone what I ended up doing. I put on a '96 corvette starter (LT4). Not the inline planetary gear type like the LT1 starters which also work. Corvette had the better starter because its high compression. Looks like this one: http://www.ecklers.com/product.asp?pf_id=37636&dept_id=1314 Perfect fit! Turns over my 13:1 tunnel ram motor like it was stock. Very very quit with no flywheel noise. Added bonus is the fit around my 2 1/8" TA stage2 headers and where the battery/start terminals are located. Couldn't ask for easier routing. I would get a rebuilt Remy starter and not the cheap chinese knock off. $129 plus core at advanced auto.
