In article , "Steve W."
wrote:

The common reason for the pinion to stick is dirt/oil. The shaft needs
to be CLEAN. No lube unless it's dry graphite.
Since the motor turns I would disassemble the bendix and clean the shaft
and pinion. Then put it together and test it.

I second the clean and graphite only. As a temp fix I could use a small
wooden stick to hold the pinion UP against the gear (it was working
against gravity and dirt) but I had to make a new stick since the
starter would throw it away when I cranked it. Finally got smart enough
to use graphite so it had almost no friction and would not attract dirt,
has been working beautifully since

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