Changed the starter out, finally. New starter cranks like new & now i can obviously tell the old one was bad. BUT....

1. Why are the lights now bright as new

2. Why did the pulse I was seeing in the lights go away

3. Is it worth rebuilding the old starter with the good HD contacts & plunger & throwing it on the shelf until needed, or turning it in for the $35

Thanks for any & all info.

 

When you monkeyed with the cables and such, you ended up with cleaner conections causing the magic electrons to flow better.

 

With out seeing what the rest of the starter looks like [ the bushings at either end , how far the armature is worn down & cheek the winding of both the arm. & field ] changing contacts is not a rebuild , but if those others are in OK condition , then it could be a spare , but it would save a tow unless you kept in truck , or you broke down close to home .

 

there's merit in carrying a spare starter in an automatic transmission vehicle since you can't usually push-start these (there are exceptions). OTH these starters are pretty reliable so it's the trade-off of space in your truck vrs reliability. The last few starter rebuild kits I used had brushes and bearings ending up with good spare starters. Of course I would then install the rebuilt unit to be sure it was OK, and carry the other as spare.