No power to starter motor

[Trevor76]

Awesome, thanks!

[PdxGS]

Wow, nice find Trevor. I'm in the same boat. Picked up a '81 850g w/ a starter that jumps when I short the solenoid, but a starter button not working (though looks sparkly clean).

Cheers

[Trevor76]

Yeah, I figure EVERYTHING has been covered at some point, just a matter of looking for it.
But then I usually need to ask questions anyhow -if I were in motorcycle school I would be in remedial classes

Anyhow just a few minutes ago I tested the solenoid and it "clicked" as it should, no surprise there as it's brand new.

Moved on to the starter motor, it makes a clicking noise as well but is not turning over. There is a big fat spark and a click but it doesn't sound like it is even trying to turn over. This is strange, because when I purchased the bike a month or so ago I was able to get it to start. I have pretty much overhauled the entire electrics setup between now and then, now the starter isn't working...

Just to cover all bases:

battery is charged and showing 12.64

I am using a 4' length (give or take) of brand new 12GA wire to do the testing.

I am doing the test with the battery in the bike, but without the ignition on.
I don't think I need the ignition on but I want to make sure.

Also, there is a strange odor coming from the starter motor when it does try to start. It was making more noise the other day -like it was close to actually turning over -and there was this smell of sulfur.

Tonight I caught a slight whiff of it again, although fainter. Seemingly in direct proportion to the amount of activity within the starter motor.

So, not turning over and smelling like bad eggs = not good.

Rebuild, whack with hammer, or buy another?

[ikantbreave]

Yeah, I figure EVERYTHING has been covered at some point, just a matter of looking for it.

This is 99% of the reason the ppl that have been here for a long time get frustrated with new folks. But if they didn't ask, all we would have is the Off Topic.

Also, there is a strange odor coming from the starter motor when it does try to start. It was making more noise the other day -like it was close to actually turning over -and there was this smell of sulfur.

Tonight I caught a slight whiff of it again, although fainter. Seemingly in direct proportion to the amount of activity within the starter motor.

So, not turning over and smelling like bad eggs = not good.

Rebuild, whack with hammer, or buy another?

I dunno for sure, but you may want to take it out and check the brushes and then rebuild. I'm a cheapo, so if I can rebuild, reuse or repurpose, I do it. Sometimes, that just won't cut it. Anything electrical that makes bad smells is usually a bad thing.

[koolaid_kid]

I agree, it is time to pull the starter. You may be surprised what you find. Most of the time if you get to this point it is fried, but you won't know for sure until you pull it and take a look. Rebuild kits are available, as well as new starters and used ones on fleabay.
Pics are required, of course.

[trippivot]

bad eggs is what a battery smells like just before it explodes.

not sulfer, but a burning metallic smell is the starter motor brushes burning / welding themselves to the commontating area of the armature.


if you catch it soon enough you may save yourself a hundie or two.

[Trevor76]

I'll pull the starter motor next time I have a chance, probably tomorrow evening. In the meantime I'll read the Clymer to familiarize myself with the process of pulling it. To be honest I will probably buy a replacement instead of a rebuild kit, those kits start at $25 +S&H and it looks as if a working motor can be had for not much more. I could always hang on to the broken one and rebuild it for fun over the winter.

originally posted by trippivot:
bad eggs is what a battery smells like just before it explodes.

Okay that freaks me out. I really only smell that odor when I am trying to run the starter, but I guess it could possibly be coming from the battery...maybe the increased load of trying to turn over the starter is causing the battery to work harder...

Nothing about the battery looks unsafe or defective, but then I really don't know much about batteries. What should I look for?

[koolaid_kid]

The first thing you need to do is fix the starter. The collective has already determined it is bad. It is entirely possible that the starter is shorting to ground, which would severely overtax the battery.
Peel away the layers of the onion one at a time. Starter first, battery investigation second. JMHO.

[Trevor76]

New starter motor won on Ebay, I'll post continued progress on my other electrical thread I have going.

Thanks for all of the replies.

[Steve]

That was an excellent writeup (IMO).
Ken

Would have been that much better if he had used all the keys at his disposal on his keyboard.

I only got part-way through it, found it too hard to read because of all the "texting" lingo.

.