Mini Starters
 

I know there are tons of posts on these and I've spent a bit of time reading them but I find that it's kind of like "Googling your symptoms".
I was leaning towards the IMI but it seems some folks have had problems with pinion to flywheel spacing. Was that a short run of problem starters or what?
I read that the IMI has the lugs on the block side and the Powermaster has them near the manifold?
Any advice welcome.

IMI for me. Never had a problem with them and I've installed probably 7 or more on customers cars.

I've used 3 of the cheaper Summit brands. Never had a problem. Maybe I'm just lucky. Don't know.

Just curious. Have you guys had problems with them and/or know of others who have had problems ? :confused:

I have actually never heard of any.

Obviously, you'd expect some of the much higher priced models to be better.

If I really wanted to find the best, I'd probably contact some Pontiac class racers & see what their experience is.

Norman Warling races, along with his brother. And he's neighbors with Scott Burton. Norman is a member here, who posts occasionally. I'd probably PM him & find out what those guys have used on their high compression Stock & SS engines.

I love my RobbMc. One reason is that you can clock it so the solenoid is underneath keeping it away from the heat of the headers. And they have great customer service after the sale.

My Summit starter didn't last but a few years. The IMI has been on there ever since. Close to 20 years now.

IMI. It's the only thing that came off my old engine and is going on the new one.

IMI on mine. Don`t even remember how old it is. No problems ever. Even on an 11 to 1 455.

My brother has had a Powermaster XS on his ~500hp 461ci for 5 or so years now, and he LOVES it. Not only has it been rock-solid reliable, but it eliminated the hot start issues he had been having for many years. I bought one for my car, too, but haven't used it yet.

Another vote for the Powermaster XS 9510. We just installed one on a 467 we just built, works excellent. The stroker 467 was built using a 1979 W72 400/4 Speed block, and it required NO Shims at all. We used the Ram 1557 billet steel flywheel along with it.

very happy with powermaster, both starter and alternator are great. and great customer service too.

can’t overstate the convenience of a ford solenoid too. i don’t like the idea of a massive always-hot wire running from the battery all the way down to the starter.

X2 on the summits, pretty sure they are just reboxed powermasters from what ive read. i have one in use for 6 years on a 10.75:1 E-head stroker with big 2" supercomp headers & never have hot start issues but i do use a cheap heat bag around it. for the price they are hard to beat.

if/when it needs replaced i will consider another one or go with a robbmc.

I have the Powermaster 9510 Can't comment on reliability since I haven't had it long. But the performance is great.

I've had Power master XS with good success. They too have proved to have good customer service.

Powermaster products are made in the U.S., too. From what I've read, they are good people. Here is a Motor Trend article about a visit to their factory in West Chicago: https://www.motortrend.com/features/...ance-facility/

Been using a CVR starter for over 20 years now. Rebuilt it a couple years ago. Still going strong.

Well, from your comments I would say that it seems that all of them are satisfactory at least. During my search I found a few threads where people had to have part of the IMI machined away in order to get the pinion clearance closed up.
One further question - which ones have the lugs away from the exhaust? One of the comments I read was that the Powermaster placed the wires very near the exhaust manifold and that the IMI had them on the opposite side.
I'm leaning towards the IMI at this point. Cost is relevant for me. I'm not racing nor do I have a high compression engine. It's probably about 9.5 to 1.

Been using PowerMaster for as long as I can remember. Used it on my stock 455, and continued using it with my modified 455. Originally swapped out after too many hard starts with my OEM and long branch headers. Did shields, wraps etc. Not needed with my PowerMaster. Only had to change it once, after getting filled with oil from a bit of a engine issue (LOL). Fact is, it seems in general these days that several brands are good. I'd stick with a brand name, but that's just an opinion.

My Summit mini starer has been in my car for 12 years with no issues. I also drive my car about 1800 miles a year.

I've had several Robb Mc mini starters....no issues and excellent customer service if you have questions.

Powermaster XS for years...... Never an issue

Great customer service