Starter? Battery?

[1930Bug]

Drove my roadster down to the grocery store, picked up a sub, and tried to start 'er up . . . nothing! At first I thought, stuck starter because it's happened before. I rocked her back in 2nd trying to pop the starter gear, but didn't hear anything, and that didn't do the trick. I checked the battery, and it seemed ok . . . lights on, horn worked. So, now what? Got towed home. I was thinking maybe I could start it with a hand crank? Would that work? Any thoughts out there? Thanks!!

[Gary WA]

Originally Posted by 1930Bug

Drove my roadster down to the grocery store, picked up a sub, and tried to start 'er up . . . nothing! At first I thought, stuck starter because it's happened before. I rocked her back in 2nd trying to pop the starter gear, but didn't hear anything, and that didn't do the trick. I checked the battery, and it seemed ok . . . lights on, horn worked. So, now what? Got towed home. I was thinking maybe I could start it with a hand crank? Would that work? Any thoughts out there? Thanks!!

Yes with hand crank! Even tho your lights horn etc work your Battery may show good but not. Take battery for a load test at your automotive parts store. How old is battery?Do the easy things first.

[JayJay]

I think “nothing” is the key here. If the horn and lights work that means there is at least some charge. Trying to start even on a partially discharged battery, if the starter is good you should hear at the least a hum and a click as the Bendix tries to engage. Hearing “nothing” would indicate to me a starter, or maybe starter switch (although those are pretty simple and reliable, unlike a modern solenoid) issue.

Having said that, checking the battery as Gary suggests is a lot easier than pulling the starter motor. At least if the battery checks out OK then you will have eliminated a possibility.

Do check all the terminals - battery x 2, frame connection, starter switch connection. You may have a high resistance causing this. Low amps will flow but high amps won’t.

[nkaminar]

Buy a multimeter from the local hardware or automotive parts store and learn how to use it. Measure the voltage at the starter switch with and without trying to run the starter motor, ignition off. Take the starter switch off and measure the resistance at the nub on top of the starter that the switch contacts with respect to ground at one of the starter bolts. Get a copy of the trouble shooting guide. https://www.snydersantiqueauto.com/p...0032&cat=41621

[Bruce of MN]

When I was having trouble starting, I eventually discovered that based strictly on copper diameter my ground cable was about 4.5 AWG, not 0 or 1. I got a new cable!

[Keith]

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I once had a dead spot on the starter armature which presented a similar problem,

[Wick]

Give the starter a little tap with a hammer,wrench.

[w.michael]

Let’s back up. Are you sure the starter isn’t jammed? You said you didn’t hear anything like the starter breaking loose, but did the engine turn back and forth a little bit? You should see your fan move back and forth when you rock the car if the starter is free. Or you should be able to turn the engine with the crank if the starter is free.

I use high gear, not second; and it usually pops loose on the backward push.

W. Michael

[Bob Bidonde]

Use jumper cables to connect a known good 6V or 12V battery directly to the starter switch terminal and a ground. If the starter turns the engine, you can rule out the starter motor & switch.
If starter does not run, take the switch off of the starter & connect the jumper directly to the starter terminal. If the starter runs, the switch is bad. If the starter does not run, it is the cause of the problem.

So the remaining culprit is the battery and its connections in your Model A. Connect a jumper cable to the ground terminal of the battery & the engine or transmission. If the starter works, then you need a ground connection.

[nkaminar]

Most all the tests that Bob described can be done with the DC volt scale on your multimeter. Assuming you have a 6 volt system, the battery voltage should be about 6.3 or 6.4 volts without any load on it. The voltage at the switch should be about 5.5 volts with the starter running and ignition off. If it is low, such as 3 volts, then the battery is bad or there is a loose connection or the cables are too small. If it remains high, then you have a bad switch or starter. To test the switch, do as Bob suggested and connect the battery cable directly to the starter nub. To see if the battery is the fault, measure the battery voltage with the starter running. If that is good, 5.5 volts or so, try to find where you are loosing voltage. Measure the voltage between the ground terminal of the battery and a good ground on the engine while running the starter motor with ignition off. If you measure any voltage at all you have a bad ground connection or small cable. Start by cleaning the connection at the ground terminal at the battery. If there is still some voltage then clean the location where the cable mounts to ground and if it is still on the frame, add a second cable to connect to a bolt on the transmission. Continue to measure voltage at various places to see where you are loosing voltage when the starter is running.

By methodically going through the electrical system with the multimeter, you can find where problems are. The starter can be tested with the ohm setting. There should be very little resistance between the nub on top and ground. If the starter has high resistance to ground then you can put it on the bench and use to ohm setting to find out why. I once had the wires come off a brush in my starter and this was really easy to find with the ohm setting.

The multimeter is your friend. Learn how to use it to find problems.

[eagle]

Keep a crank in the car. A model A starts very easily with hand cranking. Learn how to operate a crank, if done improperly it'll give you a good whack!

[Harrisonmanny87]

an auto scan will help