Starter eaten

[DobbM]

👋 I just had my starter motor rebuilt. Ran it daily for about three weeks and today -- a nasty sound while cranking it. I look below and I see these three bits laying on the garage floor. I remove the starter, and yup. Problem identified.
My question: how did these three shard end up on the floor? The starter was fully attached. Is there a natural way that they could have got thrown free? Or should I worry more? Thanks.

  

[Bob Preston]

Gravity. 

[ronmanfredi]

If your car is like my 63 with an auto trans, the bell housing isn't completely sealed at the bottom and those pieces could drop through the gaps to the floor.

[mfg]

Probably through the 1” (?) hole provided to drain converter…. But more importantly ‘Why did this happen’?