460 Ford Forum banner

Will this bellhousing cause my 460 to keep chewing up starters?

4K views 13 replies 4 participants last post by  natejones75 
#1 ·
New guy to this forum. My 70 cobra (460 4speed) keeps messing starters up. I know i have the wrong flywheel, i have an 184T FE one on it, although some people have no problems with those. I have slotted the lower starter bolt hole for some blind adjustment trial and error with no luck. My starter clangs as it turns, and i can only start the car a handful of times before i get the high speed whirring sound out of my starter. Then i pull it out, reinstall it, and it works again.
BUT, would.my bellhousi g be a problem? It is cast iron, with i believe either a D5 or D9 part number. I assumed it was a 460 part, but the more i think of ita 351M/400 bellhousing from a truck is much more common. If this is what i have would it cause a problem? I have a few questions i guess;
1) is a 351m/400 iron bellhousing any different than a 460 piece?
2) if it is , would a 351m starter work better?
3) is there any difference between a 351M starter and a 460 starter?

I should say that when i do get it started, i have no troubles shifting or anything, no clutch fittment problems. Just the starter
Nathan
 
#2 ·
with a 351m or 400 bell you have to use a 390 184 tooth flywheel, 351m,400,429,and 460 starters all work with this from same era


if you have a 429 bell you have to use a 176 tooth wheel
 
#3 ·
I think i am using a 351m bellhousing and a 184 FE flywheel. I will double check, but think that is it. So why am i having problems? It is a lifetime duralast 3152. Problem i am having now is i hear a clanging when starting and you can only.start it a handful of times.before the starter just "whirrs" and doesnt spin the motor. Then if.you.remove.it.and immediately.reinstall it, it will work for handful of times again
 
#5 ·
make sure the starter is for a 78 or 79 351m, or 460
 
#8 ·
The spacer does not change the distance from the starter to the ring gear it only changes the depth of the bell housing relative to the starter and engine.
 
#7 ·
Yes. I have the stock plate between the block and bell. My starter shows at the same part number for a 78 and 79 351m or 460.
The way it doesnt contact after a few tries and i jave to remove it, then reinstall.ir.do.you.think it is too far away, or.to.closely.messhed in, or out?? Looking at the teeth wear on the starter it looks like.it has contact on the front half.of the gear, which is a good 1/2"
 
#10 ·
Thanks. As soon as i can get a break from work, i am going to get a breaker bar, turn the flywheel, and verify how many teeth are on it for sure. I will get back with you all.

Anyone have an answer for my other question. Is there any difference in a 70s truck 351M iron bellhousing and a same era 460 iron bellhousing?
 
#11 · (Edited)
Nathan,I don't know if Ford ever offered the 460 with a stick trans. in 70's trucks every one I ever saw was an auto. the 1'st 460/stick trucks I saw from Ford were 80's and they had switched to the aluminum bells by then. The only cast iron bells that were specific to the 429-460 that I know of were the C9AA car bells for the boss429,429cj&scj and the odd 429 N-code stick cars.This bell will require the use of the short input big block toploader.I have seen plenty 70's trucks with 460/ stick but have all been 351m/400 trucks with 460 swapped in,or 460/auto trucks with a stick swapped in.
 
#13 ·
Nathan,I assume the toploader you have in the car is a small block long input shaft version which should work fine with a cast iron pickup truck bellhousing,the 351m/400 to 460 swap has been done in pickup trucks for years and it sounds like you are using the parts that are standard for this swap,the early and late 390 flywheels look the same the only real difference is the ring gear tooth count,if it turns out you do have a 184 tooth flywheel the only other thing I can think of is the starter,if you sourced the starter as a reman from an auto parts store by 351m application it wouldn't be the first time that the wrong starter was selected or put in the wrong box or that they used the wrong nose piece when building the starter.For some reason the 351m/400,and 429/460's seem to have the most trouble getting the right starter for them even when not dealing with a swap situation.
 
#14 ·
John Saxon thank you for that info. I am using that toploader. I work on the road so i javent had a chance to count my flywheel tweth yet, but will give you an update when i do. Have a question though.
You said they keep confusing 351m/400 starters with 460 starters. How do i tell which mine is? I bought a lifetime 460 starter from autozone, and it is p/n 3152. Out of curiosity, i looked up a starter for a 78 f250 with a 351M and it shows the same 3152 starter.. also summit and ebay list starters for a 351M/400/429/460 how do i tell what i got?
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top