[ihc] Glessie's no-start

["Jim Grammer" <jgrammer@xxxxxxxxxx>]

From: "Bill Fowler" <bill_fowler@domain.elided>
Subject: [ihc] Intermittent Starter

So.after getting truck good and warm, shut down, come back after 5 to 10
minutes, the dreaded click. Click. Click.  Once after letting it sit for
about 20 minutes it turned over.  The other time I couldnt wait, but it
started up maybe two or three hours later.

Seems like the starter (duh), but no clue on how to make it respond.  I
tried banging on it (read that somewhere),  tried putting truck in gear and
rocking it back and forth (no luck).   Any tricks to get it to go?  Should I
just replace it?  Whats happening?

Bill Fowler

69 1100 Travelall Glessie

Bill -

What you describe certainly sounds like classic starter 'heat soak'. I don't
recall changing the starter while I had the truck, so it's entirely possible
it's tired. Heat soak usually effects the solenoid portion of the unit,
rather than the motor itself. You can check this when the problem is present
by jumping the battery lead to the S terminal at the starter. If it cranks,
it's the solenoid. In any case, it's best to get a quality remanufactured
unit as suggested by others.

BTW, this pre-supposes that the battery's still in good shape, and all the
cable connections are clean/tight. Any voltage drop between battery and
starter will exacerbate the condition, whether in the direct run to the
starter, the battery ground, or the start circuit that goes through the key
switch. Lots of folks choose to install a Ford style external
solenoid(pretty sure Glessie doesn't have one), primarily to take the
current load off the wiring from battery to keyswitch to starter and the
attendant resistance out of the start circuit.

If the 'click' you hear is coming from the starter, that eliminates another
possibility. Some IH's(SII's, notably) have an under-dash relay that
switches the start circuit in response to the neutral safety switch. These
are notorious for going intermittent, IME mostly when warm. Reminder to
self - replace the relay in the Traveler before summer! :)

Jim