TC33 Starter Problem

[MTGreen]

Did you remove the flywheel? If so, it's possible that the flywheel isn't seated fully against the crank and the ring gear is out of range of the starter throw.
To check this you could measure from the starter block mount face to ring gear distance and compare that with the starter mount face on the starter unit to where the gear is located with the solenoid actuated.
This could also happen if you changed the rear main seal and it didn't get seated fully and subsequently the flywheel didn't tuck in completely to the crank face. Alternatively if you heated on a new ring gear depending on the design sometimes they can be installed backwards which would also put them out of reach of the starter gear solenoid throw

 

[Noytheyah]

Honestly, I was hoping this wouldn’t be a consideration. Yes I did remove the flywheel to replace the pilot bearing. I thought I was deliberate enough to install it the same way it came off. I’m going to have to measure it now.

Is there a way to measure the bendix extension without it spinning?

 

[MTGreen]

Honestly, I was hoping this wouldn’t be a consideration. Yes I did remove the flywheel to replace the pilot bearing. I thought I was deliberate enough to install it the same way it came off. I’m going to have to measure it now.

Is there a way to measure the bendix extension without it spinning?

Yes usually there is a provision for electrically disconnecting the solenoid unit from the motor portion. Disconnect it and apply power only to the solenoid.

 

[LittleBill21]

Honestly, I was hoping this wouldn’t be a consideration. Yes I did remove the flywheel to replace the pilot bearing. I thought I was deliberate enough to install it the same way it came off. I’m going to have to measure it now.

Is there a way to measure the bendix extension without it spinning?

I think you could have gave us this up front.... so now the question is, did the starter work fine before you removed the flywheel?

 

[Noytheyah]

I think you could have gave us this up front.... so now the question is, did the starter work fine before you removed the flywheel?

Yes however, there was a “grinding” noise randomly when starting so that’s the reason I chose to replace the starter. When bench testing, I didn’t notice any grinding noise but the old starter was louder than the new.

 

[MTGreen]

Did you look closely at the ring gear? Grinding sounds likely ring gear to starter gear engagement. I've seen some abused ring gears, especially when folks start the tractor in gear because the clutch was non functional

 

[Noytheyah]

Yes, it looks fine to me although I’m not an expert. I spun the engine looking for better or worse areas but the wear looked the same. I also turned the engine a few times in between start attempts.

 

[Noytheyah]

I measured from the mating surface to the front and back of the ring gear, 13/16 and 1 5/16. I measured the bendix fully extended from the old starter and it’s at 1 1/4. So I’m pretty sure the flywheel is on correctly. I attached some pics of the ring gear and both starter gears. The old one is worn pretty bad, looks like that’s the reason for the grinding I was hearing before.

 

[MTGreen]

Tooth profile on the new one looks quite a bit different than the old one. Have you tried bolting back in the old starter and seeing if that works?

 

[Noytheyah]

Tooth profile on the new one looks quite a bit different than the old one. Have you tried bolting back in the old starter and seeing if that works?

Yes and it’s does the same thing now which is beyond puzzling. When the starters are connected to the battery they spin fast. When they’re on the tractor they seem to be just barely spinning along. You can even hear what sounds like it speeding up and slowing down. I sanded down the metal that makes contact with the starter frame, I changed batteries, I even hooked up the battery directly to the starter and jumped it nothing works it’s as if somehow being mounted on the tractor is robbing power from the tractor. There’s no way I can visually confirm that the bendix is even extending. Sooo puzzled.