Starter Only engages 1/3 of the time .

[Punk]

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

[twowheels]

Originally Posted by Punk

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.

[STEVEV]

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.

[Neil E.]

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.

[Neil E.]

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.

[GMP]

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.

[n_green]

Can you buy rebuild kits for these starters? Pretty sure mine packed it in on the weekend. It's not throwing the bendix out 99% of the time even when hot and sometimes when it did engage it would stall the motor as if the battery was flat. New Li-on battery testing at 12.6v so it's not the battery.

[STEVEV]

Originally Posted by n_green

Can you buy rebuild kits for these starters? Pretty sure mine packed it in on the weekend. It's not throwing the bendix out 99% of the time even when hot and sometimes when it did engage it would stall the motor as if the battery was flat. New Li-on battery testing at 12.6v so it's not the battery.

It seems like mine started having issues when I went to the Li-on battery. I changed back and it worked better. As far as the KTM's, my son's '13 engages every time. Hasn't kicked out once since he got it.

[Punk]

Yes the main problem is the starter not engaging . It turns it over quite good once it engages but it only engages 1/2 the time . button seems to be fine so not sure what is really up. Had a tractor that had issues and it needed to be cleaned . But this doesn't even make an attempt to engage it's frustrating . I'll check all the wires maybe there is something loose or ill fitting . So anyway thanks for all the help and ideas .

[Neil E.]

Originally Posted by Punk

But this doesn't even make an attempt to engage it's frustrating.

If the starter motor doesn't turn, then you have an electrical issue (fuse, connection, battery).

If the starter motor turns and you have an engagement issue, then the bendix needs to be replaced (this assumes basic alignment is correct so the gears can mesh with some freeplay).

Whenever I check my bendix, it always "cams out" correctly by hand so I have not replaced it. The system still misses (starts correctly about 75% of the time).