Starter Only engages 1/3 of the time .
 

Anyone had problems with their starter whirling but only kicking in sometimes . Does it need a clean and lube or what ? Has anyone done this before or is they just aren't that good like the KTM starters ?
Thanks
Punk :(

Welcome aboard. Have a look around and search for the starter threads.

Cleaning never hurts, but you may have to shim the starter or adjust the gaskets on the ignition and power valve to get correct alignment.

A stronger battery (like a Shorai LiFe) helps engagement as well.

We have two, 2012 300's and for one a thinner gasket helped a little. The other we put in the Shorai battery. But honestly, I put in a Yuasa and it seems to work 98% of the time now. I may put the Shorai back in now that it's getting warmer. I've heard these new Li-on batteries can be temperature sensitive. Not sure how true that is.

I've had my starter assembly apart many times. Everything looks reasonable, but I am tired of seeing the little slivers of gear metal on the flywheel. Mine has always had poor function, I'd say it works 60% of the time. That means I have to push the button several times before it engages.

Other people have had trouble and then replaced the bendix assembly. This seems to have the greatest effect when it comes to improving the situation. The bendix feels fine when I inspect it. My starter motor has never had any issue cranking the engine regardless of battery strength. The problem has always been initial engagement.

If the gears mesh, the bike starts instantly. Many times I get gear clash noise when the pinion gear spins against the ring gear (without engaging). I've tried different lubes on the bendix assembly and very light motor oil seems to be better than heavier oil or grease.

It's easy to check gear backlash; just take your bendix and wind it out to full travel. Wrap it with masking tape to hold it extended. Put the side cover back on (bendix installed but without the starter motor). Check the free play by manually oscillating the drive gear at the top of the bendix. You should have a few degrees of play. Too tight means the bendix will be slow releasing after it cranks the motor. Way too tight and the gears can't engage.

I have polished both my pinion and ring gears to reduce the shards created by gear clash. I had a .020" thick gasket with good backlash, and recently changed it to .040" thick for very generous backlash. I also machined the shaft recess in the cover to be .040" lower in the case. This was just done to restore the free distance between the gears that increased as a result of the polishing.

I've also installed the 8 cell Ballistic Li battery since it has more cranking capacity than the Shorai battery I had in place of the Yuasa stock battery. I've only just got the engine back in the bike (new piston, bore and rod) so I can't say if any of my recent changes will help the starter situation. It may be that most of the stating issues relate to the quality of the bendix unit.

I'd like to know if the factory actually made some engineering changes to the bendix parts on the newer bikes. I've never seen anyone post that their starter has 100% perfect operation.

For the original poster:
Do you get starter whine and no gear clash? If this is the case, the sprag elements in the bendix assembly are not engaging to drive the cam action of the bendix. In this situation you need a new bendix unit.

If your committed to the estart, why not do it right and convert to a wet system? Coat the stator windings appropriately, and instead of jerking around with gaskets, make correct thickness metal shims and use Threebond. That dry idea is just BS, on KTMs too.

Glenn,
I don't agree, think of automotive starters from years ago. Their bendix units were completely dry. Modern vehicles use shift fork actuators on the starters for better reliability; the shift mechanism forces the tooth engagement.

The GG pinion and ring are hardened and will do fine. If the bendix functioned well there would be no issue. The only real advantage of a wet system comes from the starter gears being always engaged (this is how it's done on four stroke bikes). The sprag clutch is continuously over-running when the engine is running. You also have a torque limiter in the system to protect the starter motor. The sprags do eventually wear but have a good enough lifespan as designed.

I think that in many cases, things like the GG estart just don't get enough testing in the design stage. The ideas in the GG system are sound, I can't put my finger on the actual problem. It could be the camming ratio that needs improvement or the actual gear tooth profile (tooth size) is too fine/small for this application.

Despite the issues, I'll always take a "kick plus estart" bike over an "estart only" bike.

You think it was a rush to market.....counter the koolaid?

It has been said that the original GG estart method infringed on KTM patents so they had to alter their design prior to production. I don't know how much the intended design differed from what was actually produced.