Can I test starter with head off

[jwipprecht]

I back at getting a 1919 Center Door running after 77 years in storage. It has the generator and starter options.
At present the head is off, valves out, coilboxes overhauled and also out, carburetor overhauled and out, no battery in, generator out for testing and switch/ammeter out to fix the fact that BAT does not make a connection to COIL. (I know why and how to fix that.) The commutator (timer) is new and on the front of the engine. There is no gasoline in it and the switch is out so MAG is not connected to COIL. I am approaching the point where I believe I have cleaned everything up and new parts on hand and almost ready to reassemble. Before I start reassembly I would like to test the starter, which is still in place, to find out if I need to take that out too. I think I can just ensure the transmission is in neutral, set the brake, connect the starter to a 6V battery and see if the cylinders go up and down. My questions:
1. Could any harm be done by testing the starter like this?
2. Have I missed any preparatory steps?
3. Should I jack up the rear end so the back wheels are off the floor?

John

[speedytinc]

You can remove the starter brush cover to get a sense of the brushes & commuter condition/cleanliness. Possibly spray some brake clean before running.

1) possibly.
If the motor hasnt been run in 77 years, every bearing is bone dry. I would put in fresh oil. Minimum 2 quarts thru the transmission cover on the drums & triple gears. Pour 1/2 quart @ a time to allow the oil to soak into the bands & bushings. Pour the remaining quart & one 1/2 in the front breather cap. Squirt some oil in the 4 cylinders & valve stems. Hand crank to check if free & move the oil around the cylinder walls.

3) to be safe, I would jack up one wheel, chock the fronts & turn over in gear to insure dry triple gear bushings get oil before having to spin as they do in neutral.

[jwipprecht]

Thank you! I have already done what you said to do in 1), including hand cranking. I'll jack up a wheel as you suggested. I'll wait to see if anyone else replies before I try the starter.

John

[big2bird]

Make sure you have 4 qts oil in it, handle crank a few minutes to move the oil, and go ahead.

[Jerry VanOoteghem]

You can certainly "test" the starter with the engine head removed, but it won't be a great test since it won't take much torque at all to spin an engine with no compression. It will tell you whether or not the starter is "dead" or "alive", I suppose, and if the bendix will engage. It won't tell you if the starter has the power to turn over an engine with normal compression, however. In short, an interesting test, but really conclusive of very little.

As to the pre-lube advice, oiling the cylinder bores and making sure that they're free of surface rust is a must, but you're not going to hurt anything else by running the starter for 5 seconds.