Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

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tony.mon
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by tony.mon »

scott02464 wrote:Last winter I had the usual symptoms of the rusty connection on the starter.

In general I don't have problems starting but it's niggling me that the starter bolt is all rusted and not as efficient as it could be!

I came across this thread with regards to opening up the starter, removing the bolt and replacing it with a new bolt.

My question before I start this is, will it be obvious how to remove this bolt once the starter is dismantled?? :-)
Yes, it is.
Just make sure you make a note of where the shim washers go, and at which end of the armature.
And mark the brushes (or one of them, anyway) with a dot of paint and put one on the housing so that you know which way round to re-install the brushes, as they'll go back in either way round.
It's not falling off, it's an upgrade opportunity.
tony.mon
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by tony.mon »

scott02464 wrote:Last winter I had the usual symptoms of the rusty connection on the starter.

In general I don't have problems starting but it's niggling me that the starter bolt is all rusted and not as efficient as it could be!

I came across this thread with regards to opening up the starter, removing the bolt and replacing it with a new bolt.

My question before I start this is, will it be obvious how to remove this bolt once the starter is dismantled?? :-)
Yes, it is.
Just make sure you make a note of where the shim washers go, and at which end of the armature.
And mark the brushes (or one of them, anyway) with a dot of paint and put one on the housing so that you know which way round to re-install the brushes, as they'll go back in either way round.
It's not falling off, it's an upgrade opportunity.
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scott02464
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by scott02464 »

Cheers tony, I'm going to take some pics as I go too ;-)

On a really cold day first thing the batt would literally only turn the engine over 4 turns then click click click. Then fully charged it when I got to work on the optimate, but the same would happen the next morning.

The corrosion on the starter bolt deffo isn't helping....
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VTRDark
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by VTRDark »

Have you checked your battery is holding a charge. It may be getting a bit tired. Stick a multimeter on it and then check it the next day to see if it has drained at all. :thumbup:

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scott02464
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by scott02464 »

cybercarl wrote:Have you checked your battery is holding a charge. It may be getting a bit tired. Stick a multimeter on it and then check it the next day to see if it has drained at all. :thumbup:

(:-})
I have mate, it's a very healthy batt. Iv had the multimeter on it a few times throughout the year (just out of interest) and its always at 12.65-12.70v

It never has a problem firing up, it was just when it was really cold last year and don't want a repeat performance.
tony.mon
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by tony.mon »

Remember to check and clean your bat terminal connections and earth strap connections too, while you're there.
It's not falling off, it's an upgrade opportunity.
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scott02464
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by scott02464 »

Thanks for the pointers mate, ill check over them and give the connections a good clean ;-)
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BigVeeGrin
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by BigVeeGrin »

Mine's a mess - need to get round to this.
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Wicky
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by Wicky »

Just had to attend to my starting system as couple of days ago all I got was a solitary solenoid click, naught even when shorting the relay. Optimate said battery was weak - so with winter coming up I got a new un. Still won't start.

So took the starter motor off, gave it a thwack and that worked when connected to the old battery. Cleaned protective grease off the connector on the starter motor bunged it all together with some more grease under the hood and all now working.
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the exile
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by the exile »

Hi Scott,
Yes, the bolt is obvious.
With the starter motor in your hand, undo and remove the long bolts holding the unit together, then gently twist the top and bottom until they loosen.
Once loosened from the central body slowly remove the contact head cover ( the section that bolted to the bike ) and you will see the 4 brushes single unit in contact with the rotar top.
Now remove the other section of the motor by pushing on the rotor top AND pulling the section that went into the bike, removing both completely. Be careful to keep the 4 washers that sit on top of the rotor.
The brushes will spring into the middle, but won't fall out, and come away from the motor as a complete unit ( making note of the small metal lip that ensures the correct reinstallation to the cylinder body ).
Now you've done this, you'll see the rectangular bolt head sitting inside the cylinder casing ready for removal once you have hack sawed the rusty outer part of the bolt off.
One point of note is to keep and re-use the small rubber washer that sits inside the hole AND the plastic (?) washer that sits closest to the body of the motor, I think this part insulates the casing from the live bolt and your new securing nuts.
Re-assembly is obviously the reverse but the brushes are a bugger to get back over the rotor, so I kept all the brush springs slightly out and to one side of their slot. You'll know what I mean.
To ensure final bolt security I used spring washers between the new nuts that tighten the live wire, then I greased the whole bolt before replacing its rubber hood.
This all sounds a lengthy process but is really apparent once you open things up. Hope this helps.
Good luck
Ged
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scott02464
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by scott02464 »

Thanks a lot for that Ged! Much appreciated mate. My bolt is quite rusty and bugs me every time I think about it. Once my new bolt is in there I can look after it properly and pack grease round it ;-)
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lloydie
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by lloydie »

could you also seal it with silicone to help keep the water out ?
the exile
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by the exile »

Hi Lloydie,
I don't really know about silicone sealant, sorry. :?
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VTRDark
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by VTRDark »

No reason why silicone can't be used. You would have to make sure it all adheres to the surface properly because if it don't and water gets in underneath it will rust things quicker. My preference would be grease. :thumbup:

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firestorm996
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Re: Slow turning over, VERY corroded starter connections

Post by firestorm996 »

Adding some photos to help others with this problem as I'm in the middle of doing this myself.

This is the spline that sits inside yer motor:

Image


Two long bolts undone, the body starts to come apart:

Image

View of the other end that bolts to the motor:

Image

Motor bolt end cover removed, brushes now visible inside:

Image

Removing the spline end slowly - there is quite a bit of magnetic resistance but it does come out:

Image

Tharr she goes...be sure to retrieve the two wafer thin washers that will have stuck to the inside of the housing

Image

View of the brush end with the main spliney motory thing removed (technical term):

Image

When removing the brush cap be aware that two of the brushes are actually mounted to the body and will need folding up out of the way:

Image

With that removed you can now see the inside of the part that the bolt goes through:

Image

If you need to saw the bolt off like I did...

Image

This clip holds two of the brushes. If you rotate the bolt too much while trying to remove it from the outside, you will slowly muller the clip and the plastic insulating pieces it sits inside like I did, fortunately in my case they were not beyond repair and I was able to glue them back together and persuade the clip back into shape:

Image

That's all for now. Refitting is the reverse of disassembly ;-)
Firestorm996
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
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