[cwmcobra]

Byron,

After discussing with several starter specialists, I can't agree with you more. When I had my engine out of the car, I was able to do a lot of fitment tests. As luck would have it, I have a stock "block plate" for a 460 that I bolted up with the Lakewood block plate. Doing this, I confirmed that the registration diameter for for the starter in the Lakewood block plate is precisely in the same position as the one in the stock plate. The stock starter has the pinion centrally located in the registration diameter, as does the starter I bought from RobbMc. Any starter that has an offset pinion is likely to have problems. Both the Summit and Ford Racing starters had some offset. The stock starter also has 9 pinion teeth, as does Robb's starter. The pinion on the Summit Protorque starter has 11 teeth. And, surprisingly, the mini starter I bought from Ford Racing has 10 teeth. Seems that nothing matches the stock alignment geometry except a stock starter or the RobbMc starter. I agree with your suggestion for an easily adjustable starter with a viewing window in the bellhousing. But, since no one has marketed this yet, my best approach was to confirm that what I have is geometrically correctly aligned. And, for those who can fit a stock Ford truck starter in their applications, an even lower cost option is available.

No question, trying to improve the alignment of the starter by relocating the mounting holes is a non-functional, unreliable solution.

Chuck