Starter Relay

[Slick]

Does anyone know anything about installing a Ford starter relay? I remember on my boat, before I bought it, there was a significant amount of lag on the motor when turning the key. I was told it was because the power was being robbed from the starter and going back to the ignition switch. Apparantly a Ford cutoff relay will prevent this. I have a 502HP in my boat. Thanks for the help.
Slick

[spectras only]

Slick, the ford starters were always troublesome, especially when hot,because there's no relay on it.It is incorporated ,by one segment of the stator being the bendix actuator .A slight corrosion buildup [resistance] on the heavy copper wire inside the starter will rob a lot of power from the starter also.I recommend to replace it with a prestolite unit that has an external solenoid mounted on.Any rebuilder would trade your ford unit for the prestolite unit.

[Slick]

Let me clarify a few things. My motor is a Chevy 502hp. I have a bottom mount prestolite starter. The Ford starter relay, as I was told, is fairly common on jet boats with either Ford, Chevy or Olds motors. It restricts the power from traveling back to the ignition switch, therefore all amperage from the batteries goes to the starter. Or am I just an idiot?
Thanks
Slick

[spectras only]

Slick, I've tought you had a Ford 502 horsepower engine rather than a 502cubic Chev.Yes you can use the relay to get all the power to the starter.

[Ken Marsh]

Chevy starters pull 50 or 60 amps on their primary line. This must be supplied through the boat wiring. Often there is enough resistance in the wiring to cause excessive voltage drop. This can cause starter drop out and/or low ignition performance when cranking.
A primary relay drawing typically one amp can be used to pull in the starter sol and relieve the boat wiring of the high starting sol current. Km

[Slick]

Great, but how do I do it. Where do I get the relay and and at what point is it installed?

[Bubbledeck]

Slick I had the same problems a couple of years ago with my 460. I went to either Pep Boys or Kragen (can't remember which) and bought a generic type relay for as I recall about $6. I installed mine right by the starter and have never had a problen since.