Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

[Johni]

Yo guys & gals,

I'm trying to save my old starter from the scrap heap by rebuilding/cleaning it. Its come a decent way since first beginning the job. It started off caked with mud, dirt & grime. I almost didn't attempt the fix, but decided it was at least worth an attempt at a 2nd life.

After blasting out the mud & dirt I used a bunch of brake cleaner on the insides. Once the unit was relatively clean, emery cloth was used on the electrical connections, brush heads & armature. I was kinda hoping that this would do the trick, but to no avail there was no cranking afterwards.

I'm pretty new to all of this & am not really too certain as to what direction to head in now. I've included a couple pics of the motor & solenoid in its current condition for viewing. Maybe this 1 was too far gone to save?

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Thanks in advance for any & all help. It will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Johni]

Re: Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

My bad if I went overboard with the pics, I wasn't sure which ones would be the most helpful.

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Thanks again for all the help.

 

[Harritwo]

Re: Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

If you look at picture 4, the motor housing, you will see that you have a broken wire locate about 4 o'clock as you are looking at the picture. You can see the other end of this wire at about the 3 o'clock location. My advice is to take it to a starter rebuild shop and see if they can replace the wire for you. If they can, the brushes dont look to bad, the armature needs to be cleaned up. You can take a hacksaw blade in your hand and lightly draw it through the grooves on the armature to clean them. You seem to have a little corrosion on the brush holders that can be cleaned. The reason that the starter wont run though is the broken wire. IF you decide to go with a replacement, shop around, they range from $60.00 to over $150.00 depending whether you go with aftermarket or OEM. Just make sure that it is a Marine Starter and not an automotive.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

That's not a broken wire. That's a protective sheath over the wire. However, if you look at the brushes in the last picture, the one at the top is very worn and the holder will nearly drag on the armature. Replace the brushes. Any NAPA store or rebuilder will have them and they are cheap. To test the starter use jumper cables. Attach one end of each to the battery observing polarity. Attach the other end of the NEGATIVE cable to the starter housing. Touch the POSITIVE cable to the stud that connects the starter to the solenoid. No spin = bad starter. If it spins, move the positive cable to the other big stud on the solenoid. Now use a screwdriver to jumper the small terminal to the one the positive cable is on. No spin = bad solenoid or bad test procedure.

 

[sptjet90Reflexx]

Re: Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

Pretty sure they make entire rebuild kits for these. You could also take it to a alternator shop if you wanted and they could tell you if its worth rebuilding or not.

 

[gm280]

Re: Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

Not being able to test in myself, from just the pictures, I think it is rebuildable but conveying everything to a person not familiar with doing such repair/rebuilds is near impossible. You really need to totally understand how such a starter works and have knowledge of testing procedures using a DVM. VOM or even an analog volt ohm meter to be able to check it out thoroughly IMO. I believe I could make it run again and look absolutely new as well... But the OP stated he does not know much about all this or the direction he should approach it. However, I do tip my hat to him for wanting to try... I think his best option is to take it to a starter repair shop and either have them repair it OR explain what he has to do and sell him that parts to repair it himself for the learning experience. I mean we all had to start somewhere too...

 

[IGeeky1]

Re: Help with Starter Rebuild off a 3.0L

Two of the brushes look OK, two are pretty worn, replace them all. Not the place to bother saving a measly $12.

looks like the arms are pretty rusted on the brushes too. Either they are too rusted or the plate springs are shot. Those brushes, without anything to obstruct them should be much closer together.