OMC starter sparks???

[LTP]

I have been having problems with my starter. The boat hasn't been cranked in probably 7 months. I was working on it and was having problems getting it to crank. I thought maybe the solenoid was bad so I 'jumped' the starter straight from the battery and I got SPARKS?? and no cranking at all. Is my starter bad?? its brand new, literally its only been cranked 3 times EVER. Am I missing something?? I am desperate to at least get the motor running this week
Thanks
LTP
electroshift. 76-77?? OMC 175 with a ford 302.

 

[Bt Doctur]

Re: OMC starter problems

Re: OMC starter problems

jumping the starter ?
to the small lug with the yel/red stripe.
or to the starter motor lug itself

 

[LTP]

Re: OMC starter problems

Re: OMC starter problems

Well I jumped it first to the solenoid post that runs from the solenoid to the starter and then directly to the starter post, got the same result both places.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

Non use and moisture is hard on them...pull it and bench test..

 

[LTP]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

Its a marine grade starter that cost me a fortune, it ought to be gold plated for what I paid for it?
When you say bench test it, you mean pull it out and see if it runs when not on the motor, or pull it and take an amp meter to it??
Thanks for the Help

 

[a70eliminator]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

you can get sparks when attemping to bypass solenoid starter thats normal there's alot of amperage across your screwdriver or whatever, try turning you engine over by hand if it's not seized and your battery is fully charged and you can't get the starter to turn with direct connection then your starter needs to be pulled and checked.

 

[LTP]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

My battery is fully charged, I just pulled it out of my convertible(my deep cycle was deep, so for the sake of trying to find the problem I improvised) which started just fine with that battery and ran the engine for some time to make sure it was fully charged before pulling it out and putting it in the boat. I am pretty sure that the engine is not seized it has been properly oiled and it was not seized that last time it was cranked(could it just seize up randomly?? I have never heard of that happening). Also i used jumper cables to 'jump' the solenoid they should have been able to handle the amperage just fine, right?
Thanks I appreciate the help guys

 

[LTP]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

I pulled the starter out and bench tested it. The starter is bad, the armature barely spins. It's almost brand new!! Should I try to find a place to have it rewound?? or should I just go buy a new one,(something like $300)

 

[sea wolf]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

Have the starter rebuilt. It will cost you a fraction of the cost of a new one. By the way, if the starter is practically new, what about the warranty?

 

[bruceb58]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

Was the starter ever submerged?

 

[LTP]

Re: OMC starter sparks???

I highly doubt that there is a warrenty anymore for it, because even though its never been used, I bought it over a year ago, and then didn't install it till 6 months after I bought it, and its been about 7 months since then, it worked perfectly when it was first installed, but i just have not had time to work on the boat since then. How would i go about finding someone to rebuild it? People that do that kinda work seem to keep getting harder and harder to find.
And no it was never submerged, thats what killed the starter that was in the boat when I bought it(bellows was cracked and filled the whole bottom half of the engine compartment) I don't even think there is any possibilty for it to get wet, the plug was pulled all winter, and had a cover on and i think we only got probably 1 foot of rain spread out over 6 months