I am working on a 1960 f100 w/ 223. The engine looks as though it hasn't been cleaned since it was new. I have removed a 5 gallon bucket worth of old grease and used more brakleen than I would like to mention. Now that I have uncovered the starter I have removed it to clean it up and paint it. My question is, is there anything I should look for to prevent future problems besides chipped teeth? The area around the fly wheel is also filled with quite a bit of old grease. Should I s****e this out? Are there any parts of a starter that need lubrication? Basically I'm asking for schooling on restoring a starter. Thanks!
Call Rusty Wood, Wood Generator and Starter Service, Richmond, VA. He's an old-school rebuild man, very good, honest, knows what he is talking about. He'll tell you what to do here, and he's a heck of a nice guy. Great modified racecar driver, too. He likes all this old stuff we hold dear. Here's his telephone number: (804) 271-6797
Find an old time auto electric shop in your area, and they should be able to supply you with new brushes and bushings. Take it apart, clean everything up, polish the commutator with some emery cloth, put in the new brushes and bushings and you'll probably be set to go. If you have a factory shop manual for the truck, or even an old Motors manual, it will have instructions on how to do it but they aren't that complicated.
Go ahead and clean it up man. Ford starters are a little tough to do but if you don't take it apart, oil the front bushing a little before you put it back on.
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