My First Bike: Will no longer start...

[scottmc]

Greeting all,

Three months ago I purchased my first bike, a 1984 GS(x)400s. It was running incredibly well considering its 46,000Km and 4+ previous owners.

However now it will no longer start, all I hear is the clicking of the solenoid.

(1) It is NOT the battery, it was charged and completed a load test fine at 12.5 volts.

(2) The electronics work fine, headlight etc.

(3) It does NOT start (or spark) when I try to jump the solenoid with a screwdriver.

(4) The starting motor did give a tiny cough when I plugged in the battery after doing the load test. But then back to the clicking.

...My inclination is that it is the starting motor. If you all agree, I will attempt to inspect, and possible replace said motor.

I am not at all technically inclined, I apologize in advance. Tomorrow I will purchase a volt meter and attempt to further diagnose the problem, but I am leaning towards a bad starter.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

Edit: Every conclusion I have reached so far is from combing this forum. If you feel I have made a misstep please correct me. This is all new for me.

[Big Rich]

If it is the starter motor, they sell rebuild kits on ebay. And the motor is extremely easy to get out too.

Have you looked in the service manual for checking the motor? There are a couple things that decide whether to rebuild or replace.

[pete]

First of all, welcome to the forums!

I'm pretty much with Big Rich on this, although it's possible you could take the starter motor to an auto electrician to get the brushes replaced or something.

One thing I remember from my younger years was my dad doing stuff with starter motors with the brushes to get them going for a bit longer. I don't recall exactly what it was he did though...

If your 84 is anything like my 82, you'll need to take the camshaft tensioner out to get the starter motor out, no big deal there but just be careful to lock it in place first as per the manual, and it might be wise to get a new gasket for it while you're at it.

Once the starter motor is out, I'd hook it up to 12v and see if it spins or not. That's not a perfectly good test, as if it's on its way out it may spin under no load but won't be enough to crank the motor over.

The other thing you can try with the starter in place is removing the spark plugs which will reduce the pressure on the starter motor, maybe by enough for it to turn over and determine if it really is the starter or not.

Worst case is something in the motor seizing up and preventing the starter from turning, but from your description I'd be surprised...

[scottmc]

How much technical skill is involved in the refurbishing of a starter motor? I would not know even where to begin.

[Big Rich]

It's very easy. Once you're sure the motor is the problem, find a rebuild kit online. Start taking the motor apart on a clean (non-cluttered) surface. Nothing will shoot across the room, but there are some small screws and washers. Lay out all the parts out left to right as you take it apart and substitute the rebuilt parts for the old parts as you go. Sometimes it's tough to get the brushes to spread open when putting the plate around the shaft- but use some small zip ties.

[Raid3n]

does yours still have the kickstart? see if it'll start with the kicker.

i don't know how long they kept the kickstarts on these bikes. mine has one but it's a '78

[scottmc]

does yours still have the kickstart? see if it'll start with the kicker.

i don't know how long they kept the kickstarts on these bikes. mine has one but it's a '78

No, unfortunately.

[tom203]

How much technical skill is involved in the refurbishing of a starter motor? I would not know even where to begin.

If you're not comfortable with rebuild kits, just buy a used starter motor off ebay- maybe $30. But remove your starter and see if it spins freely in your hands.