New starter

[Gcraay]

I believe I have fried my starter. I have it on a stand and while I get 12 volts at the starter, I do not get any reaction. I did a couple times get it to turn over the engine, and with juuuust a bit of brake cleaner got it to fire. Now that I have my carbs on it, of course zippo.

So my first really stupid question, do they make a new aftermarket starter?
Second, If I pull it, do I have to drain the oil? (I can feel the yes coming on.)
Third, are they ever completely shot?

I hope not, I have it painted and all pretty already.

 

[angus67]

Yes, drain the oil. Take off the starter, 4 bolts, take the end that sticks into the motor off. You prolly have oil in it. Not suppose to. Clean it all out, see if the connection that goes into it is stil connected , not broken. Get a new starter seal. Test the starter before putting it back in.

 

[Gcraay]

Damn it!! You weren't supposed to say that. The seal is new, but I'm hoping its just a wiring issue with my stand. It was tested and fired the engine, but me thinks it fried with the last effort it gave.
!!!!!!!ugh

 

[retiredgentleman]

How old is your battery? You should charge your battery for 8 hours or so, to be sure its fully charged.

Once you know you have a fully charged battery, connect a digital VOM to the battery terminals to read voltage. Try to start the engine, and if the voltage quickly drops to less than 10 volts, your battery is worn out and needs replacement.

 

[fredintoon]

To solve the dead starter vs dead battery question, just boost the bike from your car battery.
If the starter don't crank when it's boosted and you also jumpered the starter solenoid to remove it from the equation, the starter is hooped.
OTOH, if a freshly charged bike battery works the starter and the bike starts it's no guarantee the battery is OK neither.
After mocking my son's having to buy a new battery because his old one died of neglect I charged up my own bike's battery after it's winter rest.
It spun the starter real fast and the bike fired up right away.
3 days later I pushed the button and the bike barely groaned over with the Voltage too low to work the ignition. New battery time for me, too.

 

[5twins]

There is the large seal in the engine case that the starter unit fits into but there is also a small seal in the end of the starter unit, around it's little shaft. That's the seal that could be bad and letting the starter unit fill with oil.

But, before tearing things all apart, you may want to inspect and clean the main connection stud on the starter. My starter didn't work at all when I got my bike. Turned out to be nothing more than a rusty connection on that stud. I wire wheeled the stud and the end of the wire clean, and it's worked fine ever since.

 

[warrenlevihursh]

I leaned my bike over to the right side, placing the handle bars on a dirtbike stand. I drained the carb bowls first, but this allowed me to remove the starter without draining the oil. Just an idea if that is a concern.

 

[XSLeo]

One test you can do before you get too far is as RG suggested, is to use a car battery, Out of the car is ok but in the car works. Without the car running, Hook jumper cables to the car battery, on the bike or stand hook the ground to the engine case or any good ground. Put a large screwdriver in the positive cable clamp. Touch the screwdriver to the stud on the starter. If the starter spins, clean the connections.
Leo

 

[Gcraay]

Battery is new. Its a compact model. I may have fried the solenoid also. I am leaning toward the starter. I have power up to it, but zippo. I got a rebuild kit on the way. wish me luck.

 

[Gcraay]

thats next.

 

[retiredgentleman]

Battery is new. Its a compact model. I may have fried the solenoid also. I am leaning toward the starter. I have power up to it, but zippo. I got a rebuild kit on the way. wish me luck.

Being new means nothing.................it could still be a defective battery. That's why I said you should use a voltmeter to test for voltage as you attempt to crank the engine.

How compact is it? What is the amp/hr rating? If its too small, it may not have enough power to be able to crank the engine.

You also should have tried Leo's suggestion to use jumper cables directly to the starter motor.

 

[louis]

In my (limited) experience these bikes need a pretty solid battery to spin that starter. I had a brand new Lead Acid battery with what I thought was a high CCA rating and it was absolutely hopeless at spinning the starter. I ended up replacing it with a high quality Motobatt with twice the CCA and haven't had an issue since.

I very, very rarely use the electric start though.

 

[Gcraay]

I will do that test. I know I get the 12 volts, but haven't done the draw down test. Its an Anti-gravity 8 cell. My thing is, that I Get 12 volts all the way up to the starter, but zero reaction. It is of course the only thing I didn't rebuild. Got a kit on the way.

 

[Gcraay]

I get no reaction, but have the 12 volts I need all the way up to the starter. Got a rebuild kit on the way. It's the only thing that's not been rebuilt.
thanks,

 

[retiredgentleman]

Have you done the test that Leo suggested.............jumper cables from a large automotive type battery. on a car or truck??

 

[angus67]

12v means nothing. The batteries in a garage door opener is 12v. Need amps.

 

[Gcraay]

Not yet, but I will before attempting a rebuild. All though the rebuild may be worth it. It's the only thing not done. But, I will try that first. thanks