what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

[Sixmark]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Don't forget guys, that you can also clean the internals of your starter as well. Over time the inside of a starter can build up plenty of debris which can cause shorting and slower turning, and also higher amperage draw. Local hobby shops will have cans of electric motor cleaner which you can use for this purpose.......just remember to regrease the bendix afterwards.

 

[tomynoks]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Yep, I cleaned out the starter and lightly sanded the brushes and commutator... I will start checking wires tonight... geez.... just when I thought it was done... lol I need to get a digital tester as well and really check the voltage and drop to see where it might be...

 

[clanton]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Starter brushes, and end plate with bushing, listed on Iboats parts section. When I repair one I clamp a 2/4 in a vise, connect starter to battery, if the starter gear will gawn up the 2/4 like a beaver, good to go LOL.

 

[tomynoks]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Brushes look new..... Commutator was glazed.. shined it up like new.. Checked negative griund again and made sure there is good contact. Same issue. I think I'll take the starter all apart and look for corrosion there... I have tried connecting a good-fully charged, load-tested battery directly to the starter and it still turns slow, barely enough torque to turn the motor over... so I'm pretty sure I have isolated the problem.

 

[tomynoks]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Took starter apart...cleaned all contacts very well... put back together........fingers crossed...... AANNNNDDDD.......Yeah..... still barely turns the motor over... I can see nothing WRONG with this starter... But I just ordered a brand new one on eBay for $68...(w/ 1 yr warranty..) My fear is that I'll hook up the new one and get the same result.. lol... I cannot see how it can be anything else though at this point....

Any thoughts.....anyone???

 

[dew2]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Brushes look new..... Commutator was glazed.. shined it up like new.. Checked negative griund again and made sure there is good contact. Same issue. I think I'll take the starter all apart and look for corrosion there... I have tried connecting a good-fully charged, load-tested battery directly to the starter and it still turns slow, barely enough torque to turn the motor over... so I'm pretty sure I have isolated the problem. View attachment 89855View attachment 89856

I used this to reply because the second pic is my example,A starter is a advancing electro magnet, in pic 2 see the pie shaped wedges,each is charged separately advancing around the circle,Creating pull 1 after the other hence spinning the starter.The wires eventually dont carry the power they get old and the molecules misalign, dropping just one section of the complete circle,one out or low on power misses that steady pull and its then a bad starter. Each seperate section has to be tested and the bad one can be found by low current.BUT Heres the kicker they are all wound to gether,so one bad section means all sections need re wound.Check your local starter,alternator elec motor rebuild shop get a price,Where I live it around 35 bucks,Or ebay for a new is 60-70 bucks

 

[Randy J]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

BOB 12 foot battery cables ?????????? voltage drop big time ???? shorter the cable more amps to starter

 

[tomynoks]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Thanks Dew... yes, I ordered a new one on eBay for $68... I hope that does it!! It has a 1 year warranty and 14 day return...so it won;t be a loss either way...

 

[tomynoks]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

Step #1 is to pull the spark plugs and then turn the flywheel by hand. If the engine turns with a standard amount of force. Install the plugs again. If the engine turns hard then forget the starter and fix the mechanical problem. Back to the starter. Then connect a pair of jumper cables to a known good battery. Connect the other end of the NEG cable to the engine block. Touch the other end of the POS cable directly to the large connection on the starter. If you can't safely access that connection on the starter, touch the cable to the large post on the starter solenoid that connects to the starter. If the engine now spins freely you have electrical problems -- not a starter problem. If the engine doesn't spin normally the starter is in need of repair.

Silvertip? Shouldn't it be much easier to turn the flywheel by hand with the plugs out? My '84 115 Johnson ran fine 2 years ago.. now I have similar issue to this thread.. it turns over very fast with plugs out... barely turns at all with plugs in. Have jumped directly to starter (old one and brand new one) w/ fully charged, load-tested battery. Sprayed fuel/oil mix into cylinders a few weeks ago.. I can turn the motor either with plugs in or out by hand, but it is much harder with plugs in... any suggestions?

Thanks,

 

[dew2]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

tomynoks you should start a new post, Till then have you used a spark tester and the spark jumped the required gap 7/16s or what it should be for your motor

 

[Dhadley]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

We run into this all the time. Most carb'd outboards need to spin about 350 rpm (motor rpm, not starter rpm) to generate spark. Yes, the starter can be weak. Yes, many times it's a high resistance somewhere and not the starter. However, new starters are so cheap any more it doesn't pay to have a shop go thru one. Once we determine the starter is weak (very quick & easy) the fastest and most cost effective solution is to replace the starter.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

the battery cables are only two years old and are HUGE.. even if they are a little long( about 12 feet) I think i used 1 or 2 guage tinned battery cable and sweated the terminals on the ends!!

JB's comments about connection integrity are bang-on.

That type of soldered connection is notorious for corroding internally and building resistance. The type of flux you used could also be an issue.
And 12' is pretty long. Can you shorten them?

 

[tomynoks]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

New thread was started on March 29th: http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=466609&pagenumber=

 

[beagleboy]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

I noticed you said your cables are 12' long. That is quite long. Do you really need them that long. OHMS law....... the longer the cable is the more resistence and more voltage drop causing high amperage causing cables to heat up, causing starter to heat up and eventually burn up. People have a problem jumping cars when using long small gauge cables and the cable actually start melting. Another example of voltage drop people running 100' of small gauge extension cord to run power tools and wonder why they start smoking. There is a formula for working out cable length and gauge, volts and amps. Just don't have it at the moment.

 

[bob johnson]

Re: what do they do to rebuild a starter ...generally?

now that summer is here the starter is working fine....I know the cable length was long but i went with much larger cable than nornal...that should make up for the length...I checked the voltage at the motor and i think I lost .02 volts!!!!!!!!!!! that doesnt seem like much to me... I think it was a combo of everything...bitter cold....long cable length, weak starter....battery less than 100%

bob