GS450 Starter Replacement

[Dostoy320]

I was experiencing intermittent weak starting, and after checking the usual suspects, pulled the starter to find that 2 of the 4 magnets had come loose from the housing, and one was shattered into several pieces. I'm surprised it continued to spin at all...

Anyway, I'm in the market for a replacement starter and wondered if anyone has any advice or good sources. There are new replacements on Ebay for $50, which seems too good to be true:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Starter-For-448cc-Suzuki-GS450ST-GS450SX-80-81-82-1980-1981-1982-18778/133468807082

Has anyone installed one of these and had any luck with it? Should I be hunting for an original Nippondenso to rebuild? Are there other trusted sources for starters?

nOd5Jd7.jpg

[pete]

I had good success gluing the magnets back in place using JB Weld, although if one is shattered it will definitely compromise its performance even when glued in place. One of mine was in two pieces, the other intact. It definitely doesn't crank quite the same as it used to but still starts reliably every time.

I've been told GS500 starters are a direct replacement but I've not seen a side by side comparison to validate if that is indeed true or not.

[Dostoy320]

I hadn't considered JB Weld-ing them back into place. I suppose i have nothing to lose from trying. Thanks for the advice!

[Redman]

If the repair is not a good option,
look at stocker starters. They have a great web site.

[Redman]

You pay the price plus the core. The price includes shipping to you and the core return. When you do return the core (your original), then you get a credit for the core.

rter - Suzuki Motorcycle Type: Remanufactured Replaces: Denso Stockers #: SS-4 Retail Price: $209.95 Your Price: $139.95 Core Deposit: $50.00

Starter - Remanufactured Fits: Suzuki Motorcycle 1980-1983 GS300/450 1980-1983 GS650 12 Volt, CCW, 9 Teeth

[Dostoy320]

You're right, Stocker does look like a great option. Unfortunately, they are out of stock on that starter. I'll give them a call and see if they plan to have any available any time soon. Otherwise it looks like I can get the rebuild kit from them for $30. Hopefully that plus gluing the magnets back in place will get me back on the road.

One thing I learned when the starter began intermittently failing is that the GS450 is an easy bike to bump start!

[Steve]

I have found that many (most?) of the GS starters are pretty close to the same. The only difference I have seen is one that required a slight curve between the two mounting bolts. Does yours have that? If not, I might have a starter for you.

Too bad I am seeing this post now. If you had posted last week, my son could have delivered it to you, he was in Owatonna a couple days ago.

.

[Dostoy320]

Hi Steve,

I assume we are talking about the bolts that mount the starter into the case? I've attached some photos of that area, as I'm not entirely sure what you mean about a slight curve.

If you've got a usable starter you are willing to sell, I'm certainly interested!

mounting2.jpg

[Dostoy320]

Apparently I can only attach one photo per post...

Another angle:

mounting1.jpg

[Dostoy320]

Just to close out the thread:

I followed pete's advice and jb-welded my two loose magnets back into place. One was pretty much intact and the other was split into two pretty beat up pieces. I put it back together and threw it in the bike, and it actually seems to be cranking pretty well. So, I'm going to order a rebuild kit from Stocker, refresh this thing, and hope those magnets stay put. Thanks everyone.

[rphillips]

I like the way you think. Congrats & Good luck

[pete]

Glad it helped! Not sure who to give credit to for the JB Weld trick, it wasn't original by me and I'm pretty sure the source was on here somewhere. I did that years ago and the starter still cranks as good as it did then, so while I haven't gone back in to check recently they were still staying put last time I had to swap the brushes out.