which starter?

[bleucrew6.2]

So... I'm wondering which repacement starter I should go with. The gear reduction ones look interesting, but do the smaller motors on these units last? I never had any trouble with my old stock starter until recently- see previous post- and just want to put in something reasonably priced and reliable. Compared to the prices that NAPA is quoting me, the gear reduction starters are CHEAP.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

[DmaxMaverick]

At best, the gear reduction starters are OK. The AC direct drive starter is better in a few ways. They crank the engine faster, are less of a hassle during cold starts, and they have fewer parts to fail. The downfalls are heavy, bulky, more difficult to R/R, more expensive, and did I say heavy? Also, anything other than an AC Delco reman will be a crap shoot, with either starter type. Lifetime warranties are nice, but is that really what you want to do with your lifetime? And, the parts stores will find a way to get out of the lifetime replacement warranty once you replace a couple times. Heard it too many times.

Rather than buying a replacement, have yours rebuilt locally. Many times, it will be less expensive than a GR replacement, and you can be sure it is built correctly to last a long time. Also, replace the solenoid with a GM AC Delco. The aftermarkets just don't seem to be of near the quality. Doesn't matter how good the starter is if the solenoid is junk. Money well spent, here.

[bleucrew6.2]

Thank you. Just the sort of advice I like. The gear reduction units looked interesting, but considering the replacement hassle factor involved, I appreciate the points you make. I don't remember ever having so much trouble dropping a starter. Incidentally, the support bracket WAS there, ("was" being the operative word). I guess it must come with the famous two part warrenty. "If it breaks, you can keep both parts".... I haven't decided whether to weld the two pieces back together, or to take my wallet to the Chevy dealer and let them have their way with it. I'm sure that little piece of strap steel is considered a collector's item, and therefore priceless.
Out of the truck, the starter wouldn't budge when hooked to jumper cables until I rotated the gear a bit with a screwdriver. It ran like a champ then. But I don't think I'll trust it to do that once its back in the truck. Maybe it was just a chunk of crud- maybe not. The solenoid didn't cooperate with the jumper cable at all. Who knows where the blame lies....

Thanks much!

[DmaxMaverick]

The bracket is a cheap item, even at dealer markup. Nothing wrong with welding it, but probably better to spend a couple bucks on new. It's a PITA to replace, so make sure you get it right the first time.

If your starter won't run unless you manually turn it, the commutator is damaged, brushes are too short (or parted) and/or you have a broken brush spring. Any of which is an easy fix for a local electric motor shop. Most of the internals are industry standard cheap parts. DON'T put it back in, it's toast. What you have is a common failure....It's just worn out.

And.....While you at the dealer, get a set of new starter bolts. Again, money well spent. Be sure to torque them properly and check at each oil change service. It's like taking aspirin before you get a headache.