Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

[steviecops]

Hi<br />I have a 1971 Evinrude 60, (3 cylinder), that I'm trying to get running. The starter turns on the key, but only cranks the engine very slowly. I've cleaned all the terminals and tightened them but it made no difference. I've tried jumping it from the selanoid and even direct from the starter motor, but it will still only crank slowly.<br /><br />I took the starter motor apart and cleaned it all up. The brushes looked fine. When reassembled it would still crank slowly.<br /><br />Is this starter motor shot?<br /><br />I need to get the engine cranking at normal speed in order to do some tests that will tell me whether the engine is worth doing up or not. I don't really want to spend out for a new starter motor just to find that the engine has other issues and isn't worth doing up.<br /><br />Thanks in advance.<br />Steve

 

[DHPMARINE]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Have you bench tested the starter?If it still cranks slow then you know it's the starter.<br /><br />Also,you can wrap a rope around the flywheel to get an idea of the compression.Spark test by rope may not be accurate though.<br /><br />DHP

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

If the armature is bad, you can usually smell it. It's quite strong and smokey. Otherwise check your cables. I worked on one once where everything looked fine except for a little corrosion where one of the cables went into the connector. It was enough corrosion to prevent a decent circuit and you really couldn't tell by looking at it.

 

[steviecops]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Thanks for the quick replies.<br /><br />I have bench tested the starter and it spun a lot quicker than it does when it's on the engine. But I've no idea how fast it is supposed to spin when it's not under load. I tested the compression O.K by cranking the engine, but as you say, I can't do a proper spark test because the thing isn't cranking fast enough. At that low cranking speed it showed no spark at all on one and three, and just a very weak spark on two.<br /><br />I can't smell anything strange when I crank the engine. Perhaps it's worth renewing all of the cables and connectors to find out for sure. That won't cost that much to do.<br /><br />Thanks again<br />Steve

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Have you been using a known good battery. If it has a bad cell or two it will not spin the starter very long or very fast.

 

[Solittle]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

When you cleaned the terminals did you disconnect them, sand the contacts & reattach?<br /><br />Try another battery - preferably one that is known to be good & fully charged.<br /><br />And if that doesn't do it check for internal corrosion on the battery cables. I've seen where they look good on the outside and are almost green corrosion mush on the inside.

 

[papasage]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

is the battery a marine cranking battery you need the amps to turn the motor with the little starter . most car batterys want work .papasage

 

[steviecops]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Yes, I took all the terminal connectors off and sand papered them clean. I tried two different marine batteries that were fully charged. I even tried the battieries on a different engine to make sure they were good.<br /><br />Where the battery leads are joined to their connectors does look a bit suspect, so I'll be replacing all the cables and connectors as soon as the snow stops!<br /><br />I'm leaning towards it being the cables at the moment. I just replaced the cables on a friends Johnson 35 that was just clicking at the selonoid, and that spins over perfect now. I was quite surprised because his cables looked pretty good.<br /><br />Thanks for the advice.<br />Steve

 

[angus63]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Poor shaft bearings and starter alignment could also cause the problem if the motor and cables don't solve it.

 

[87Aggie]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

You might take a look at your starter drive (the little round thing with the teeth). Mine was exhibiting the same symptoms (good battery, cables etc. and slow crank speed) I discovered the drive was loose - you could grab the shaft and twist the drive. Anyway I replaced the drive gear and all was fine.

 

[Indymike]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Check the contacts in the soleniod. May be burned or pitted . A file will clean them up. Did you check the voltage at the starter during cranking? If it is low after all you have done above the solenoid is the next place to look.

 

[John McFarlane]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Before you spend considerable money on bits and pieces, spend a little at the local auto electricians and get them to test the starting circuit, battery/batteries, cables etc. A little spent now may save a lot in the future, that does not solve the problem. It is a fine thing to want to do it all yourself, but some things require a little greater expertise from time to time. It may be as simple as a faulty cable or connection, or as complex as a starter armature that is failing.

 

[OBJ]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Steve...when you had the starter apart, what did the commutator look like? This is the place where the brushes ride. If it's dirty and the slots between them dirty, this can cause poor current transfer and make the starter run slow. These can be cleaned up very nicely by chucking the stator up in a drill and using crocus (sp) cloth to polish the brass commutator. Use a sharp knife to clean the slots out. Follow up with some electronics cleaner in a spray can.<br /><br />When you bench check the starter, it should spin fast enough to pop the bendix up and hold it there.

 

[steviecops]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Hi OBJ<br />The starter body was full of crud. Looked like pieces of carbon and dust. The brushes looked as if they'd been replaced at some point becuase there was plenty left in them. As for the commutator, it was dirty! I cleaned it up with some fine sand paper, but didn't know about the grooves having to be cleaned out! From what I can remember, the whole thing seemed flush.<br /><br />The bendix pops up even when the starter is mounted on the engine, and it stays up. It pops up really quickly but as soon as it contacts the flywheel ring gear, it just drags. The other thing I forgot to mention is that with the plugs out, the motor will spin over a bit faster, but still not anywhere near fast enough.<br /><br />Thanks everyone for the good advice. At least when the weather improves I'll have lots of things to try out.

 

[John McFarlane]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

DO NOT USE SPRAY ELECTRONICS CLEANERS ON STARTER OR GENERATOR PARTS. The solvent in the cleaner can dissolve the lacquer/varnish that coats the armature and field windings, rendering them useless. This applies to any parts that contain 'wound' components, like armatures in wiper motors, solenoids etc.

 

[steviecops]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Hi<br />I replaced all the battery and starter cables, then took the starter apart and cleaned the commutator properly and now the engine spins over fine. Thanks for the help.<br /><br />Now I find that I have a very weak spark on one and three, and no spark at all on two. The ignition system on this engine seems complicated to me. I have the OEM manual, but can't really make much sense of it. Is this ignition system very difficult to troubleshoot? <br /><br />Thanks<br />Steve

 

[fireman57]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Sounds like a bad powerpack. Swap the coils and see if the same trouble follows. If it does replace them.

 

[Todd Humphreys]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Did you put a dab of grease in the bushings. Also check to see if the bushing is wore out. If the bushing and shaft has alot of play it can cause the armature to drag the magnet.

 

[steviecops]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

Thanks, I'll try the coil swap.<br /><br />Yes, I did lubricate the bushing. The starter works fine now.<br /><br />Steve

 

[R.Johnson]

Re: Starter dragging. 1971 Evinrude 60.

This engine has the battery CD system with one coil, and two sets of points. You are going to have to start right from go. Point's, rotor, distributor cap, and plug wires. You have spark on two, but none on three. Take a look at the points first. Clean the contacts, and adjust to .010. Since you will have the flywheel off, clean everything off, and replace the anti-reverse spring. On an engine this old, it will be ready.