Estart - Wet stator conversion

[Keg]

After picking up my EC300E 2011, I could see that dust would get in the bottom drain hole of the stator and stick in the starter grease - just like the KTM's do.

So I washed the grease out of the starter gears, sealed up the drain hole with devcon and added 100mm of oil. Then fitted a brass tube in the MX stator grommet and breather hose.

During the first ride up the road I discovered that the hole in the bottom of the engine case is not just for holding the cases in the factory when they machine them. It is also a stator side drain hole. So I blocked that up too.

The GasGas SM14 starter runs great and out performs the SM16 KTM/Berg starter that my riding mate had today.

I will post pics when I am back at work.

[Neil E.]

This is a very interesting mod. Venting the 6mm hole in the case to the airbox would stop dirt from getting in. Your setup is even better. No rust on the flywheel is another benefit. I like the idea that there will be some lube for the starter gears; however pulling the starter/bendix apart and greasing occasionally is not that difficult.

Are you sure it will work with NO venting? I would expect that the trapped air would want to expand (temperature change). Could this affect the crank seal?

[stainlesscycle]

the brass tube at stator wire grommet works as vent i assume. it should work well, it's how ducati has done it for years, and you know how reliable their electrics are!

[GMP]

My concern would be how the oil might affect the insulation coating on the windings. Likely it would be fine but it was not designed as a wet ignition. WD40 has been known to attack the winding insulation.

[Keg]

Several ktm dealers have been doing this on their estart bikes for a year or two now. They have been using atf but I used gear oil. A lot of bikes run wet stators with no problem to the winding coating. WD40 is nothing like gear oil. Gear oil doesn't hurt clutch plate material it won't effect stator coatings.

[Keg]

Here is a pic of the outer stator case drain hole sealed with devcon. Remember to seal the hole under the motor also.

And the other pic is the breather inserted in the MX wiring grommet. It is a bit of brass bundy-tube from a model airplane shop and a breather hose (carb breather hose) that is routed up to near the top of the left radiator and back over the right one, hanging back down.

[iamovru]

Originally Posted by Neil E.

This is a very interesting mod. Venting the 6mm hole in the case to the airbox would stop dirt from getting in. Your setup is even better. No rust on the flywheel is another benefit. I like the idea that there will be some lube for the starter gears; however pulling the starter/bendix apart and greasing occasionally is not that difficult.

Are you sure it will work with NO venting? I would expect that the trapped air would want to expand (temperature change). Could this affect the crank seal?

Mine worked with no venting on my 09 KTM300XC. The problem with the wet mod, is that it makes a mess when you go to clean it up. You only need to use 2oz of light weight for oil.

[liv2day]

Originally Posted by iamovru

Mine worked with no venting on my 09 KTM300XC. The problem with the wet mod, is that it makes a mess when you go to clean it up. You only need to use 2oz of light weight for oil.

Ditto to this comment, I did the wet mod on my '10 KTM 300 and ran the venting tube just like Slaven's suggested. My starter worked flawlessly, replaced the brushes at 60 hours and then did the starter rebuilt at 105 hours and it was still going strong. My guess is the new 410w starters they fitted to the '13 models and later make it even more bullet proof.

Assuming I'm able to find an e-start 250 for my wife, I'll be doing this immediately