44 Diesel starter question

[54robbie]

The starter drive assembly blew up in my 44 diesel. They seem to be impossible to find. It is an Autolite MCK 4001 starter. Does anyone know of a supplier or a replacement part number?

 

[DWF]

I have a working 12volt starter for a 44 diesel in Western Wisconsin.

DWF

 

[DanielW]

On old tractors (and many engines in general) there's a lot more interchangeability in starter bolt/mount patterns and pinion sizes than you might think. I think both the 44 diesel and gas use the same spigot diameter and SAE #1 pad dimensions, with the difference probably being in the length and the diesel having a heavier bendix-end. I know there's a gear reduction starter from a 1980's Toyota pickup that's a perfect, drop-in upgrade for the 44 starter, and at one point I even found out details, but I can't find where I wrote the details down. A good auto-electric rebuilder shop should be able to match the spigot diameter, pinion size, and mounting bolt circle to an equivalent starter that will drop in. When the starter blew apart on my 55 diesel I thought it was going to be a nightmare to find one, but the auto-electric shop I go to measured it up and happened to have a starter on their shelf that fit (I think it was officially from something like an 8.2 Detroit, but I could be misremembering). It was a little larger than the original and came a little closer to contacting the frame, but it fit, and it sure cranked a lot stronger than the original.

Mind you, finding a 'good' auto-electric shop that knows how to measure, reference, and interchange starter mount patterns is probably not too easy anymore.