starter question.

Just bolted up my starter to my motor yesterday. Everything went well. Have a question though. What is the acceptable distance between the starter gear and the flex plate when the starter is NOT engaged. I have about an 1/8" or so. The gear hangs out about 3/4" from the starter. When I pull it out with a pliers it engages the flex plate well. This is the same motor and started I used previously with good results, I guess i just never noticed how close the gear actually is to the flexplate. Will the gear retract farther in to the starter when I have power hooked up to it giving me more room. I just can't remember if it does or not. Thanks