Bought a GM mini-starter for my 454 (not in car yet) and after bolting it up I popped the gear out of the starter to check for proper clearance and I'm having trouble getting it to mesh with the flex plate teeth (168 tooth). If I turn the starter gear a little then they will mesh but when I let go of the starter gear it does not go all the way back into the starter housing, it gets hung up on the flex plate about half way back. If I loosen the starter slightly it will then retract all the way. I played with several shims and found that a 1/32 on the inner bolt gives me the best amount of clearance but the starter gear still has trouble moving in and out without getting hung up on the flex plate. I'm assuming that when the flex plate is moving and you let go of the starter switch the gear in the starter will retract back in the housing but I want to make sure before I try to crank this thing up in a few weeks. I would hate to ruin a brand new starter and flex plate graemlins/angry.gif ! Thanks guys.

Don't know if this link might help or not - starter.htm (http://macc.chevelles.net/starter.htm)

Thanks for the reply but once the gears mesh I do have proper clearance. I guess I'm making a big deal over nothing redface.gif . I'll find out in a few weeks when I finally fire this thing up!