The thing that makes me think it's my starter manufacturer is this set up work before. Same tranny ,motor, flexplate other than the starter.since then i've put two starters on from the same manufacturer and I get nothing but grinding.It's definately the offset left to right is the problem, not front to back.It makes since that you say the flex plate is chinese but this has all worked in the past.It got kept in the corner of the garage for a few years now it won't work.The original starter has left the building and this is where the problem started.I was planning on a trip south this weekend and I can't get it to turn the motor over to get it ready.Has anyone seen the starter offset bad like this I'll start buying a starter from somewhere else but it's money down the drain like the other 2 have been.