Accord V6 Starter Problem

I've got a 2010 Accord V6 that's making a funny noise on cold starts. It's been doing it for a while, but I haven't had a chance to work on it until now.

At first, I thought it was a belt of pulley failing, but I think that it may be a starter issue. The car starts right up but there is a short noise right after the gears on the starter disengage from the teeth on the flywheel. I'm not sure if the bearings need to be replaced or if I can get away with just greasing it.

Any suggestions before I start taking the starter off? I can't have this car off the road for more than a day. If the general consensus is that the starter can't be saved, I'll have to buy a new one before I start tearing it down.

If it's like a "bad bearing" noise, maybe the teeth on the bendix mechanism are still touching the teeth on the flywheel due to the return spring being weak.

GameboyRMH wrote: If it's like a "bad bearing" noise, maybe the teeth on the bendix mechanism are still touching the teeth on the flywheel due to the return spring being weak.

I hadn't considered that, but It doesn't sound like the grinding of gears, more like a shaft spinning in a dry bushing.