this is a very wierd problem. I though for sure that it is the ground connection...I still think so. But, it is getting wierder for me. I can use the jumper cables on both my MG battery and on my truck battery and the starter/solenoid will work on the bench...however, once the starter is installed on the car, i get nothing. All i get is a good spark at the terminal when I touch the positive cable to it. I have the ground on the bolt which hold the solenoid to the starter(the one on the side, not the one which establishes an electrical conection) so the starter and the solenoid should both be directly grounded. When I bench tested it, I even triied to connect the ground to the car body instead of the battery teminal and it worked off the mg that way too. But it does not seem to do anything when it is installed in the car.
btw, enfoprefect, my solenoid is mounted to the starter and is installed to the engine at the rear engine plate by the gearbox. oh and I did not pait anything before putting the engine back into the car. I did however use "neversieze" on alot of the bolts when reinstalling things...Do you think that this could be causing bad electrical connections for the ground? I never would have thought of it as being a problem, but I am at my wits end.
joel
1976 MGB with a 1977 engine