Powerglide and flexplate issues

What flex plate is everyone running with there glide setups. The reason why im asking is because my starner made a terrible grinding noise the other night when i was at the track. I crawled under the car today and it looks like the starter gear is only touching on the flexplate teeth by 1/8" . Ut looks like the starter gear needs to extend out further but it cant. The flex plate that im using is made by tci and it has a spacer on it that between the crank flange and flexplate. So if i were to remove the spacer it seams like the started would enguage the flexplate more. I guess what im really asking is why is there a spacer between the crank flange and flexplate. Or am i over thinking it and using the wrong starter?

How thick is the spacer ?

My eyeball says its about 3/16" thick . And im running the db electric starter

A midplate will also cause starter spacing issues...if you have one. I'd at least lose the flexplate spacer.

Not real sure on the TCI flex plate but when I bought my CSR I ask for one I could run my c6 with and use it when I put the PG in he told which one I needed and I bought it. But it does not have a spacer it just bolt right to the crank. I have seen a spacer/ring that bolt to the outside between the bolts and flex plate to keep from scaring up the flex plate when TQ it down but not one used to go between the flex and crank.

maverick wrote:A midplate will also cause starter spacing issues...if you have one.  I'd at least lose the flexplate spacer.

I dont see how a midplate would change spacing? The starter is mounted to the mid plate thats bolted to the back of the block. The flex plate and starter location are in the same place even if i used a 10" thick midplate.

I have been screwing with it all day . I just took my old mini starter from a FE project and the starter gear came out a little bit further so i milled another 1/8" off the starter nose and it seems to work alright. But im certin that its not the correct fix.

you dont use the spacer on the crank unless your starter bolts direct to the bell on the glide. is your glide a gm bell or ford?

It is a standard gm case with gm bell mounted to a adapter midplate deal

The midplate effects the input shaft and the converter spacing.

fe50stang wrote:It is a standard gm case with gm bell mounted to a adapter midplate deal

if the adapter/midplate has the starter bolted to it then the spacer needs to go....... 

fe50stang wrote:My eyeball says its about 3/16" thick . And im running the db electric starter

I run a 3/8" adapter/midplate w/glide and dbStarter. I don't have a spacer and it engages far enough but,I did have to take a die grinder to the inside of the nose to make it engage deeper into the ring.

fe50stang wrote:

maverick wrote:A midplate will also cause starter spacing issues...if you have one.  I'd at least lose the flexplate spacer.

I dont see how a midplate would change spacing? The starter is mounted to the mid plate thats bolted to the back of the block. The flex plate and starter location are in the same place even if i used a 10" thick midplate.

I have been screwing with it all day . I just took my old mini starter from a FE project and the starter gear came out a little bit further so i milled another 1/8" off the starter nose and it seems to work alright. But im certin that its not the correct fix.

Woops. Thinking of a different deal. I stand corrected.