Kicker is not turning the cylinders. Have I screwed something up?

pnedac

pnedac

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I got my 78 a couple of months ago and the PO did let me know that the starter bendix gear needed to be replaced. I already had a new one so I installed it and. I am not even running the electric start but I figured I should replace it just in case I wanted to use it later.

So I haven't tried to start it since I had a whole bunch of other things to do before then, but I finally went to give it a kick yesterday and I notice that the kick is hard to move and it isn't turning the engine over, it is just moving and with a lot of friction. I know that if you were to hold the clutch in it would spin fast and do nothing so I know it is not that.

Did I screw up the reassembly of the clutch perhaps? Would that be a potential place to start? Maybe I missed something. I have had 4 XSs in the past and never felt this before It sure is strange at any rate, but obvioulsy I am not moving forward until it is fixed.

Cheers. Any help is appreciated.

Pnedac
 
Well now that I am reading about this in other threads it is perfectly clear that I need to inspect and redo the clutch assembly. I am almost 100% sure that I have something screwed up. I bet I do not have the index hole lined up.

Disregard my thread. First thing to do (as I should know) is to do my research.

Thanks!
 
I doo have a burning question though about this.

Does anyone know what the result is if the index hole on the clutch basket is not lined up is? I am just curious about the importance of it (other than the obvious that it is the directions).

Will the clutch just simply not work at all or something?

Just curious.
 
Brilliant! I am pretty excited to get home and jump into this and see what it is that I've screwed up. Supposed to be 103 degrees in Sacramento this afternoon so that will be a definite obstacle, but I'll get over it. This is more important than a bit of afternoon heat!
 
Good news bad news. The great news is that the clutch indexes were indeed off and now that I've put it back together the kicker and clutch are back in business,

Here is the weird thing and where I'd love a little more input: I changed the bendix gear out personally per the PO telling me that it needed to be done. So far I don't even have plans to run the electric starter, but I manually wired it tonight and to my dismay it sounds like a blender or something when I hit the button. Spinnnnnnnnnnn, but no action. Is the starter perhaps in need of replacement (can do if I think that is what needs to happen) or may I have somehow screwed up the bend gear job?

I feel like I read quite extensively about the bendix issues and definitely followed the protocol for how to do it, but I wouldn't have started this thread if I was some sort of professional (clearly).
Any thoughts or suggestions are appreciated.
 
The parts source may be part of your problem.
Did you check the tension of the wishbone spring?
 
Weekendrider, I'd read about that spring tension and I read that basically, if I understood correctly, you can take out that bendix gear, put it in the clamp, tighten it as hard as humanly possible and put it on your bike. Sound about right? Basically it is the bendix (even new) spinning because it still doesn't have enough tension. If that's the case then I guess I know what I've gotta do. I have a feeling the starter itself must be working if it is turning it like it is. Guess it all makes sense even if I wish the answer were different.
 
Last edited:
Hi Pnedac,

I had the same experience with my replacement gear I got from Mikes. My starter went from kind of working to not working at all with the new gear. The solution for me was a combination of tightening the spring and polishing the teeth inside of the new gear so it would slide smoothly. I used a Congress EDM 320 stone and a llittle 3 in 1 oil to polish. It made a huge difference. The finish inside the new gear was way to rough on mine. You can test this by assembling the two gears and spring in your hand and compressing them. With mine the original gear would spring right up and the new one would bind.

If you know anyone that works in a mold shop they will likely give you a stone for nothing. The whole polishing process took me about 30 minutes.
 
weekendrider said:
The parts source may be part of your problem.
Click to expand...

arod_1 said:
Hi Pnedac,
I had the same experience with my replacement gear I got from Mikes. .
Click to expand...

Ahh yep.

pnedac said:
Weekendrider, I'd read about that spring tension and I read that basically, if I understood correctly, you can take out that bendix gear, put it in the clamp, tighten it as hard as humanly possible and put it on your bike. Sound about right?
Click to expand...

I don't know about "as hard as humanly possible". Some folks can snap the rivet on a pair of C.T.'s with hand pressure and at least one poster has reported snapping the spring in the small bend with too much pressure in a vice.
I would use the old springs if possible. Mikes stuff doesn't meet the mark/ isn't up to snuff/ can't reach the bar/ leaves something to be desired, imo.
 
Much to my shock, before I could even get the bendix gear out to do the ole tightening trick I see that the clip has actually broken in there! YIKES! It has broken in three pieces and here is the charming part: I don't know where one of them is! Gotta be kidding me! I took out the oil pan/sump filter and I do not see it in there or feel it up in there or anything.

Has anyone ever had this happen and if so do you know where a fella might start his search? This SUCKS! Look like I might need more than a new bendix gear after all.

:banghead:

Pnedac
 
There is a good news story here. Turns out I was actually thoughtful enough not to throw away the original bendix gear so I should be able to remove the spring clip and put it on the good gear.

This does not however solve the mystery of where the piece of the old spring clip is hiding.

Grrrr.
 
Final update: It did NOT break in 3 pieces. It broke in two and I have them both and I am a happy happy man. It bent the heck out the spring clip when it broke and it appeared to be in more pieces, but it was merely deformed.

Old spring clip on new gear. May the reassembly commence and be fruitful!

Thank you.
 
Bit of hard luck. Good luck with your search.

Guess I should refresh the page before I post.
 
We shall see. I got her all buttoned up and was able to marry the two parts. I believe I have it more solid this time. I really couldn't explain what might have led to that clip breaking like it did, but either way I put the old spring clip in the vice and got it pretty well tightened up. I am not even planning on going with the electric starter, but I don't like things being broken and certainly if I get sick of the kicking I want to be able to go electric. Makes sense right?

Cheers!
 
One thing you can do, is before you put the clutch or the engine cover back on, you can test the starter engagement. Just try using the e-start. Unhook the red/white wire at the coil. This will disable the ignition so you can spin the starter without starting the engine.
If it engages and spins the engine, put back together, if not you don't have to pull it all back apart.
Leo
 

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