Best starter for GM 6-cyl pre-alpha 165 horse Mercruiser?

[porchlight]

I finally got a chance to bench test my starter and it's... not in good shape. Looking for recommendations for new starters, I've seen people mention like the.... PMCR? PMRC? Something like that? But I can't find any threads that mention it now, and I also didn't see that type/brand when I looked.

Would really appreciate any recommendations on which starter is good and/or where to buy

Thank you!

 

[Scott Danforth]

Any of the PMGR starters, just match the correct bolt pattern.

 

[porchlight]

Scott Danforth thank you for the information. I see that the PMGR starters seem to come in a lot of different ratings.... for example, this one:
https://www.dbelectrical.com/produc...r-starter-ht-sdr0031-l-with-2-long-bolts.html
doesn't seem to fit my engine according to the fitment chart, but the bolt pattern seems to match and it looks very, very similar. It looks like it fits newer mercruisers, maybe the fit list just doesn't go back to pre-alpha. Do you mean "any PMGR starter that says it's for your engine" or literally just "any PMGR starter with the same bolt pattern"?

Regarding the bolt pattern, is the eye test good enough, like how the difference between a 4 and 5 lug wheel is so clear that there's really no chance of screwing them up? If the bolt pattern "looks" very, very similar, is that almost certainly the right bolt pattern? Or are there subtle differences that I need to be aware of?

Thanks!

 

[Scott Danforth]

On Chevy starters, there is straight across and staggered

Get one for a V8 that matches your pattern of straight across or staggered

the one you linked to is NOT marine.

you need to make sure you get a marine starter

https://www.dbelectrical.com/produc...-8GPPT_M6v-Y_pNeiJSvyMjOhlDdemdYaAlrSEALw_wcB

 

[porchlight]

OK thanks, I see. It says that it works for mercruisers, I didn't realize that that doesn't make it a marine starter.


Mine has the straight across bolt patterns, but I don't see a PMGR starter with the straight across pattern and two long bolts. So something like this: https://www.dbelectrical.com/produc...ne-starter-long-short-mount-6563-sdr0059.html has the straight bolt pattern, but it has the short bolt. Has anyone just used a short bolt in place of the long bolt, or is there some reason why the long bolts are long?

Thanks!

 

[Scott Danforth]

Your direct driver starter had 2 long bolts. It also weighs about 30#

PMGR starters have one long, one short and come with new bolts