can anyone tell me if this is a gear reduction starter

[JohnFire]

This is the starter that I put in my M1009 about 2 years ago but at the time didn't know about gear reduction starters. The parts site doesn't tell me if it is gear reduction or not. I do know that it cranks slower than the old 24V one did, but I have no other problems. I just am thinking about changing over to gear reduction to reduce the load for cranking. I have looked at some on Ebay the say high torque and are for the 6.5L but also cross list for a 6.2L. Looking for some advice in this. Oh and yes the truck is converted to 12V cause of going through over 3 24v starters. I have lots of cranking amps with 2 group 31 yellow tops at 1125CA and 950CCA each plus I have a couple of older redtops in the rear that I turn on when it is cold which adds about 1500CA to start from.

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductDetail.aspx?MfrCode=PLD&MfrPartNumber=96100

I called advanced and they say it is but she even said it doesn't tell them if it is or isn't on their end, she just asked another one of the workers who said it is.

 

[mangus580]

It appears to be, if the picture is correct.

 

[JohnFire]

this thing struggles when it is fairly cold outside to crank. I know with that much amperage it should be able to start an engine twice it's size.

 

[mangus580]

What are you running for oil?

 

[JohnFire]

30W

 

[mangus580]

straight 30w?

 

[JohnFire]

I follow the visor recommendations for temp ranges depending on what part of the year it is, though i have been kicking around going to 15 W40 diesel oil.

 

[devilman96]

I can get the 12V for the same cost as my 24V if you need it...

I will say that had you bought the 24V i sell you would have never of had another starter issue as they out last the truck they are installed in. Not to mention... It will crank a 6.2 without glow plugs!!! The 12V will draw more amps and be slower but G/R is the ONLY way to go on a 6.2 or 6.5.

http://www.odiron.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=17_39&products_id=87

 

[Jones]

Couldn't bring up a picture of said starter. As a rule though; if the starter armature shaft is on the same plane as the bendix shaft it's direct drive. If the two are offset then it's gear reduction. I 've never seen an offset that's still direct drive.
If a starter drags I look for a brush that's not contacting the commutator completely or marks inside where the armature is rubbing against the field coils or core.
Mike has a good point on oil; a multi-grade is a good consideration in colder areas.

 

[JohnFire]

I had problems with the 24V ones cracking the nose cups, dying, one that melted down from the rebuild, and my dad was having to deal with it while I was overseas, and the best he could find around here at the time was costing over $300 each. Plus i had a consistant draw with the 24V system that every 3 - 4 days the truck would be dead. Those problems went away when I converted to 12V but it just doesn't seem to crank as fast. But you would think no matter what temp, over 3000CCA should crank more than enough, but on colder days it doesn't. I have had all the batteries checked and they are all good. From new it has never cranked as fast as the 24V on my other truck. It is so long ago and so many bad starters I can't remember what the other one was like.

 

[dependable]

I see no picture. If you ask for a starter for the later civilian 6.2, late 80s & up you should get the gear reduction. It should bolt rite up, always try to use new starter mountung bolts with each installation, unless you like playing with Helicoils or worse.

 

[WillWagner]

I had a reduction starter on my 454. Worked good 'till I took too many trips thru mud and water. It gets inside and ruins ti reduction gears

 

[dependable]

There are two starter noses available for the 6.2. one is listed for 4x4s and has very little gap between the starter drive gear and the housing. Both starters work on all engines, as far as I know, but the 4x4 one lets less debris though.

 

[kennyw]

15W40 would be better to run in all climates. If you really want to help it out (and your motor isn't leaking a lot) I'd even go synthetic if you can afford it.

What you have is the gear reduction starter, however it may be possible you picked up a defective one too. Also, what size battery cables? Bigger is always better there.

 

[kennyw]

I have lots of cranking amps with 2 group 31 yellow tops at 1125CA and 950CCA each plus I have a couple of older redtops in the rear that I turn on when it is cold which adds about 1500CA to start from.

This may be your problem actually... you should have matching batteries or they will actually drain each other. Never mix used batteries with new batteries either. Two brand new batteries of the same size and rating will probably make a big difference for you.

 

[JohnFire]

RE: Re: can anyone tell me if this is a gear reduction start

Well I have two brand new group 31 optima batteries that are 1125CA (cranking amps) each should be more than enough. I had also listed their cold cranking amps which was the 950CCA. The battery cables for those 2 are 2/0 welding wire. The two old red tops are in the back of the truck and are there for when it is really cold out and the truck cannot be plugged in due to location. The are on a battery 1/2/both switch and are used kinda like giving yourself a jump start. They are normally off unless I am making sure they are charged up while driving. The reason they are there is cause when it was 3 degrees out in missouri and the truck sounded like it had dead batteries with a real slow crank and then it kept cranking when I took the key out. Which from all the research I have ever done is that this happens with low power. When I came back later in the day and had friends jump start me I had no probelm. That is when I added the other two so I could boost it myself. If the first ones would have cranked the truck I would have never bothered putting the other ones on with the switch. I haven't had the truck go dead since I converted to 12V. The times when it was really cold is the only times it seems to be low. This truck never sits for more than a couple days so I couldn't tell you if there is really a draw still like there had been when it was 24V and kept dying after 3 days. I have even take the cable off to check for draw and there is only ever the couple miliamps from your normal things like the radio memory. All of my fire radios are on a relay which isolates their power as well.

 

[1956_4x4]

Re: RE: can anyone tell me if this is a gear reduction start

15W40 would be better to run in all climates. If you really want to help it out (and your motor isn't leaking a lot) I'd even go synthetic if you can afford it.

What you have is the gear reduction starter, however it may be possible you picked up a defective one too. Also, what size battery cables? Bigger is always better there.

I'd have to agree with the multi-weight oil. I had a friend running 30wt oil in a car way back when I was stationed in N. Dakota. During the winter he couldn't get his car started. The starter just couldn't turn the crank. We went back to the parking lot at lunch, put a drain pan under it and pulled the drain plug. At first I thought that there wasn't any oil, because nothing came out. Then it slowly started coming out, so we let it drain while we went back to work. It was still draining out when we got off work and we decided to let it drain the rest of the night. I think we put 10w30 in it and it started right up the next day. It was -20 or so when this happened.

I had never been in a place that really got cold until I went in the service. That first winter in N. Dakota was different. Now I live in Florida, so you can guess my thoughts on the cold...

Smitty