I'll get a picture as soon as I can get out to the garage (hopefully tomorrow) and post it up here for ya.

--Ryan

Did you reinstall the spacer plate that goes between the trans and engine? .

yessir I did indeed.

It took an extra day but here's the pictures. I never thought i'd say this but PLEASE GOD let there by something hooked up wrong. :angel:

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PLEASE HELP!!!! :lol:

--Ryan

Does Toyz or anybody else have any suggestions?

Man, everything looks good. All where it needs to be. There is one frame ground on the harness to the starter. Is that connected? Can't see it in your pics. Should be on the starter harness, part way down it splits off and grounds to the top of the frame just inside the fender area.

Is this the ground you're describing? If so, then yes, its on, and it was never removed when I pulled the engine.

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So, if the solenoids are tripping, the starter is good, the flexplate is good, as well as the wiring. What's left? I'm starting to get that sinking feeling. :help:

This might be a dumb azz idea but that would'nt be anything new coming from me. What if you loosened the three bolts that hold the strarter in its place just a little bit so you could just allow it to move a hair and then try to start it? It might make up for a little bit of misalignment.

Dont know what else to suggest, I'm grasping at straws here. :confused:

I have actually thought of that and wanna try it, but i'm worried it might damage something. I remember back in high school, I was working on my truck and I didn't get all the starter bolts tight, and when I started the truck, it ended up breaking a ear off the starter.

Do you think there's a great chance of damaging something if I try this? say, if it catches the flexplate. That would be a GREAT deal of pressure put on the loose starter, ya know? and say it works, then what? tighten the starter back up and hope everything is fine?

I was thinking to loosen it just enough that it rocks side to side just a little. If it does engage then I'm thinking that the starter isnt machined to spec causing a misalignment. If it works like that you would have to try another starter I guess.
There's is a chance that you could damage something, how much of a chance I dont know but it looks like you are running out of options to try.
Do you know if that starter is a Ford or aftermarket starter?

Good luck.

Its an OEM replacement starter made by Visteon... but this is the EXACT same starter that was on the truck and working before I pulled the motor out. and I have put a "New" Replacement starter in to make sure and it did the same thing. So I know that its not a manufacturing issue b/c it worked just fine for about 8 months before I pulled the motor. I'll try and loosen it a tad tomorrow and see what happens though. Like you said, I'm running out of options to try. :beers:

ok, update. I got home from work and I got back into "never ending project" mode. i loosened all the bolts up on the starter just enough to let the starter have a little bit 'o' wiggle..... tested, and..... it didn't work.... still milling. so i went back to my wiring to do some detective work and I am now, 97.365% sure that its not an issue with the wiring. I can to this realization b/c...

I ran an independent wire from the "+" terminal on the battery to the "+" terminal on the starter solenoid. I then ran an independent wire from the "S" terminal on the starter solenoid up to the battery, which I would touch to ground to "simulate" a key start condition.... I left the grounds the same from the starter harness, but disco'd the power and trigger from the harness..... I tested it and the starter is STILL milling the flexplate.

So.... I'm now on to the culprit being the positioning of something on the vehicle (starter, flexplate, bellhousing, trans, engine, the gravitational forces of the earth, etc.) :bandito:

Thoughts?

--Ryan

I'm thinking the easiest thing to try is the starter at this point .... :confused:

Was the transmission left in the truck? If so, how much of a struggle ensued lining up the TC bolts to the flex plate? Did it go in the first try, with some force maybe?

Have you bench tested the starter? Maybe bolt it down to the bench or a rig, ground it and hit it with power. See what it is doing. Just seems odd both old and new starters would mill the flex plate. In your pics it looks as if you have the bell housing bolted tight to the block. I see you have your spacer. Only thing left is the position of the flex plate. Bit stumped.

The trans WAS left in the truck. When hooking the trans back to the motor, it was a pain, but it lined up halfway easily (I did fully seat the converter before trying to hook the trans to the engine). The TC bolts lined up with the flexplate easily after I had the trans sitting straight between the frame rails. I have bench tested the starter (at the local parts store). it is kicking out and spinning as it should. I do have the trans fully mated to the block and I do have the block plate in place.

IS there a crank space that is supposed to go between the block and the flexplate. I'm 99.9% sure there isn't one b/c the bolts had no length issues. just thought i'd ask though.

--Ryan