My "new" starter arrived today.  BENDIX EXTENDED-OUT  (toward flywheel).  Called factory, a new starter is on the way to me.  Factory said starters are shipped BENDIX RETRACTED-IN.  They said it could be difficult to install if extended.  NOW I've read many articles and IN-OR-OUT makes no difference.  Geeze Louise!  I'm inclined to believe retracted is the way to go.      Another question   A video shows a Folo-Thru Bendix that is assembled on a starter.  It is battery spun to the extended position.  He then hand turns it back to the retracted position.  He repeats this process a couple of times.  My spare starter will spin it out to the extended position but I cant hand turn it back to the retracted position.  Is my Bendix  broken? 

The flywheel has a little more force than your hand to retract the bendix. Can you retract it with a tool? 

Didn't try a tool.  I was trying it like I saw it on the you tube video called   "test starter 292".  He uses no tools. 

If the guy in the video can retract his bendix by hand, then I think his bendix is the one that is broken.  There are spring loaded dogs which hold the bendix in the extended position.  When the engine starts, the flywheel spins the bendix fast enough to overcome the springs by centrifugal force and the bendix retracts.  When I need to retract one, I hold the bendix teeth against the wire wheel on my bench grinder and spin it to retract it.  Spin it in the direction where you can hear the bendix make a ratcheting sound.  I have heard of guys spinning them against the tire of a jacked up rear wheel of a car in gear and idling also.

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"

Didn't we go through this already in an earlier thread? You can use a piece of broken off pencil lead I'm told, though I've never actually tried it. I believe them. Or spool it up with a bench grinder brush wheel.

For all that, it doesn't matter if the starter drive is extended on truck engines. Why does it matter on car engines, just curious. No clearance?

I'm really surprised they are sending you a new starter for this?? Crazy.

I recall reading on an archived post somewhere, that one motor repair shop guy said the very first thing that everybody would always do when they picked up their rebuilt starter at the counter or whatever, is spin the Bendix by hand. They had a sign telling people but they did anyway.

*Click!*

They always charged a $1 to reset it

The auto parts store is getting me the replacement.  I am beginning to believe the wire size of 00 is critical.  That's why my starter is "clicking"  I have 00 from output of relay to starter but from battery to input of relay is #4 wire.  When I went straight from battery to starter I used my jumpers #10.  The starter is on the engine, #10 jumpers wont cut it.  Starters on the bench will spin with #10 jumpers.
   VERY GOOD LESSON....ALL STARTER WIRES SHOULD BE #00..............INCLUDING THE GROUND CABLE.

Ok, I thought you wrote they were replacing the starter because the bendix was extended.

Vintage MoToRs from the 50s or the Ford shop manual among other things they have very good tune up and troubleshooting procedures using a low ranging voltmeter and voltage drop testing the cables and connections, solenoid and so on.

The battery and cables, grounds, charging, generator, were considered integral to performing a tuneup, because a weak battery meant weak ignition and poor performance, especially under load.

This is from a '56 Merc w/312 shop manual.

This is slightly off topic, but when I first test ran my blown stroker motor the Bendix drive was hanging up on the ring gear. The flywheel I'm using was an 11" from a truck and when I had it resurfaced I noticed the teeth on one side of the ring gear were worn. I had heard that you can remove the ring gear and flip it over which is what I did after I got the flywheel back from the shop. I have since heard that the teeth on the ring gear are beveled on one side so that the teeth on the Bendix drive mesh smoothly. So, is flipping the ring gear to use the unworn side a myth or could my Bendix drive have a problem? The starter was a newly rebuilt unit by a local auto electric shop. 

  Ron Lane,  Meridian, ID