This is my second year with a T, today I drove it to work and home let it set in driveway for about 3 hours went to put it away and it would not turn tried the crank engine set up run fine when I parked it, got neighbor over and with one guy on starter and one on crank it broke free, started right up run a smooth as a watch no smoke seems fine, what could do this? Is it safe to take out?
John,
Sounds like your bendix jammed.
If it happens again try rocking the car in high gear back and forth.
Larry
The starter turns the engine forward. The bendix is made to release when the engine starts. Try pushing backward in high it will usually break loose. If it does not work backward, try forward.
Norm
I never thought of a starter problem I thought my engine was done maybe crank or stuck piston, if it is the bendix can it be cleaned and lubed?
This may help:
http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/80257/84319.html
Just curious John, as you running 12 volts?
Running 6 volt
do a compression check quick also
The usual cause of that problem is the ring gear on the flywheel has a worn place on it. You can see that gear by removing the bendix cover. Slowly rotate the hand crank while looking at the gear. The teeth on the gear were originally beveled so that the bendix gear can slide between the teeth. Over time, the bevel wears off and the teeth become flat on the surface toward the bendix. Also the teeth on the bendix become flat, and when you hit the starter instead of the teeth meshing, the bendix hits the flat area and stops. It just makes a "clunk" when that happens. Then the hand crank won't work either.
You starter might work fine for a long time, or it could happen again at any time. Replacement of the bendix gear if it is worn, could be a temporary fix, but eventually the ring gear needs to be replaced. That would be a good job for the next time you have the engine out of the car.
Unfortunately, the way the engine was made, the usual place for the engine to stop when you turn it off will be one of two places opposite each other, so the starter almost always hits the same place on the flywheel gear and that's why it wears out.
If your thrust surface on the main bearings is worn or the clearance wasn't set properly between the mag plate and flywheel, the flywheel magnets pole face may be coming in contact with the mag ring pole faces. Your could be locking up on the pole faces as they get in between on another. I had this happen when I first put my engine together. Rocking back and forth will shift the crank enough to allow the pole faces to pass one another.
I pulled the starter to check bendix and see a large piece of bright metal all wadded up and wedeged behind the mag, I decided to pull the engine and found that the oil pipe that comes from the front to the back of engine somehow came loose and got caught in magnets it is destroyed, my mag never worked so last year I Hooked a 12 volt battery to the mag wire. And it runs great this way so I'm removing the mag, will it cause any problems if I also remove the magnets?
No, but fit an oil slinger kit to the fly wheel.
Be sure to put in the bolts which hold the magneto ring or oil will go out through the holes.
Norm
It should be obvious, but no one's mentioned yet...that oil line MUST be replaced when you do this work.