starter motor not raising up?

[Maldoror]

on an '85 30hp seahorse. the starter motor stopped raising up and it just spins. i replaced my remote controls and cables today...and i noticed sparking from the battery before.
could it be it's just flooded? i guess the motor should push itself up electrically? i'm just beginning.

any ideas?

 

[twostroke87]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

Your post is a little confusing but I will try to help.

Replacing your remote controls and cables would not cause this problem with your starter. Your starter works magetically and as long as it is receiving power magnetism should cause it to spin up and into the flywheel. Since it is just spinning you know what it is recieving power the question is how much.

Sparking at the battery might be loose connections. Make sure that your battery connections are all tight and free of corrosion, if they are green and grungy try cleaning them up with a wire brush, and if the wing nuts/nuts are corroded, rusty or pitted, replace them.

Do you have a multi meter tester? If you do test to see if you are getting a full twelve volts directly at the red terminal at the starter, when the key is turned, a voltage drop of between .5 volts and 1 is normal, anything more is not.

If the starter is recieving enough power, it might be a mechanical issue the inside of the starter itself is stuck. Try spraying some spray oil like CRC or something stronger like PB blast down into the starter, let it soak for a bit and try it again. A few light taps and I stress LIGHT taps with a rubber mallet NOT A HAMMER, might also break it free.

I hope this helps.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

a drop of oil on the bendix shaft,, also,

90% of starter problems are bad connections. remove and clean both ends of the battery cables, so that they are shiney, also the cable from the solenoid to starter. check for nicks in the cables. and make sure the connectors are on the wire good. the cable tend to corrode from the inside out, if nicked, corroded wires, and connections, heat up and cause resistance to the follow of electricity, thus the starter doesn't get enough. you can also take jumper cable pos battery post to large post on starter. with a good connection, the engine should spin. then if the starter is good clean everything and retest. then trouble shoot solenoid. starters can be rebuit at a starter/alternator shop, much cheaper than a new one.

also have the battery load tested at the auto parts store, free, i've had new batteries go bad

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

ok...thanks...i'm going to run out to autozone now for a meter. what kind of lubricant would they have there? is crc the brakecleaner?

also, should i remove the bolts on top of the shaft or dissasemble it at all to clean or check anything?

 

[mthieme]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

Make sure the multimeter can read DC amperage. We might be getting to that a little later.

 

[tx1961whaler]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

Don't go taking anything apart yet. Just start at the battery and make sure all of the connections are clean and tight from the battery all the way to the starter.

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

the battery charge was 12.26 when i first checked it.
i've got it jumped to my car battery now..will that charge it or is that too much voltage for it? i just checked it and it read 12.07

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

it came up to 12.76 so i tried to start it. the shaft engaged and then faught to push the flywheel very slowly only a couple of inches. the charge fell down to 11.00.

 

[david_r]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

i would have the battery load tested at the parts store and if thats good have the starter bench tested............provided all your connections and wires are in good shape.

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

i tried a couple more times and it spun it around a couple times pretty normally each time and then stopped..and nothing fired. could this have anything to do with the carb valve? or air and gas mixture? does the follower cam need to be pushed up off the surface by the warmup lever to open up the valve for it to start? or is that valve closed when starting. the cam follower is in a completely different sync since i replaced the cables and i can't figure out how to line it back up or where it needs to be.

 

[david_r]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

are your cables not adjustable at the cowling?

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

yes...i think i just got it pretty close...the warmup moves the follwer just port of center.

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

what i'm most afraid of is that i wired the key switch wrong and blew the coil. i was pretty sure everything was wired right but was nervous about it anyway. could this be the problem? and how would i know?

 

[david_r]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

look here
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/ignitionSwitch.html

 

[david_r]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

also here
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/wireColorCode.html

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

i used those guides to hook it up. everything checked out there.

 

[david_r]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

your motor will have to spin around 300 rpms to fire.

did you try cranking it with it hooked to your truck and jumper cables?

 

[CharlieB]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

Most outboard ignition systems have a minimum cranking speed of about 300 rpm to generate the voltage for the ignition to fire.

A poor battery, poor cable connection ANYWHERE, or excessively worn brushes inside the starter and the motor will NOT crank over fast enough to make a spark.

Pay close attention to what these guys are telling you about making double sure that ALL battery cables are clean, bright and tight.

 

[SKEETR]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

A starter solenoid is a fairly cheap part. When I replaced mine it would crank fine. Prior to replacement it would stop after a few rotations even with the key still turned.

 

[Maldoror]

Re: starter motor not raising up?

ok..i got it cranked.
now my problem is it's shutting off when i put the warmup lever down into idle. following my manual it says to put it in gear and turn the idle screw C-clockwise until it misfires. then turn clockwise until it misfires then half inch back. i've tried the screw in many different places now and it's not idleing. there is ALOT of smoke coming out of the trashcan. i have some ethenal in there from before i knew about i shouldn't...but it was idleing fine before. actually everything seemed to be working fine when i had a flush attachment on it in idle..but when i put it in the tank to throttle forward i couldn't get an idle.