trouble starting

[Nicholas Rayer Jr <nrayer@domain.elided>]

Hope somebody can help me before it gets to cold. My 80 traveler w/345
is acting up when starting. If  I crank it for more than a few seconds
the starter begins to chatter like the battery is low. If it catches
right away I don't notice it, but now that it is cold it has to crank
awhile when cold. Stop and try again, same thing. If I turn the key on
and jump the contacts on the solenoid it will crank over nice and smooth
for as long as I dare hold a wrench on it. I have replaced starter and
solenoid, battery, auto trans relay, and jumped terminals on neutral
safety switch. Even ran a temporary ground from batt to starter. Seems
as though something is drawing way too many amps. The only part I
haven't checked is the ignition switch, because I can't figure out how
to get at it without pulling the column. Could this cause my trouble? I
am running out of ideas.  

thanks, nick