WC Starter not engaging

[Anonymous-0]

Just picked up a 1940 WC that has been sitting a while. The starter spins, but won't engage on the flywheel. I did get it to engage twice, but that's it. I checked in the archives, and it seems that I need to pull the starter and check the condition of the bendix gear and ring gear. Does this sound correct? Also, how can I determine if it's been converted to 12 volts? The PO said it had, but I can't trust him completely. I read somewhere to pull a light bulb and check. Any others? Thanks

 

[Texas Denny]

Matt, this starter drive gear is on a large acme or a square thread. When the starter starts to turn, the inertia in the gear causes it to turn on the shaft and push into the flywheel. When the engine starts and the starter slows down, the gear automatically rotates out of position. For it to work properly, the gear and the shaft must be bright and shiny. It may have a little light oil on the thread but no heavy oil and no grease. They work best, I believe, when they are dry and very clean. If your drive is rusty, you may need a new one which costs about $40 + $10 shipping. It is worth spending some time cleaning it up.

 

[fence row]

Matt, you can tell if your tractor is 6 volt or 12 volt by looking at the gen, if it has one, that would be most likly 6 volt, an alt, is 12 volt and you can tell if your battery is 6 or 12 volt by how many cells in the battery, 2 volts per cell, 3 cells is 6 volt 6 cells 12 volt, and checking battery voltage with a meter, hopes this helps