Starter Rebuild

[NicoPags]

Starter Rebuild and Overhaul.

I had the common symptom ?starter spins but does not engage?. It was a very frustrating time for me. I was out on the water in Detroit River where the current moves approximately 192,000 cu ft of water per second. I brought my wife and child out for the firs time. Everything was great, showing them the city from the outside looking in. I turned the rig odd so we could drop a line for a bit and catch some silver bass (I use silver bass season to get my son into fishing, you can catch them by the dozen on just about anything). I dropped the anchor, but the current lifted us lose but I didn?t care much as we starting jigging. Once we drifted towards the high traffic, middle, of the Detroit River I suggested we pull anchor and go cruise. Go to start and nothing but the sound of the Bendix spinning. Sounded a lot like the sound of the bilge. Uh oh, that?s not good. Turn key off, repeat. Symptoms repeat. F***. Remove the cowl, turn the key, same thing. I almost panic (as my son is aboard). About to call c-tow or Canada's tow boat (hate the idea as its upwards around $300 CAD for a non-member tow. What makes me wonder, is the abundant boaters whipping by during our (Canadian) Memorial Day Weekend, seeing me wrench on the outboard, not a wave or a ?Hey guy you need a hand??, I guess we all have places to be however I try to lend a hand as often as possible. OK to the point. Out of frustration, I smacked the solenoid, and the starter gave a split second spin. Bingo, bad connections. I didn?t bring any tools. I smacked it again, it span. Finally, I got pissed and smacked it with the anchor, when I turn the key the boat fired up. Within 5 minutes we were back to shore. Motor was turning off and on just fine. Still, decided to pack It up and go home.

So now I?m home, at first I assumed it was the solenoid. Took a week to order the proper solenoid and sleeve from one of the only decent Evinrude dealers around here. Normally iBoats treats me well (even being in Canada) however I assumed a dealer would have the solenoid and sleeve in stock and I could fix it just about instantly. I?m happy I bought the OEM with the proper sleeve for a nice tight fit. The p/o had tossed in the 12v general solenoid from princess auto/harbour freight with many wraps of electrical tape for that tight fit. My fault for trusting it. New solenoid installed, re did some wiring while I was in there. Went to fire up and the starter drive assembly spun, with not engagement. WHAT THE F*. Right pissed, I take the starter off to inspect. There?s NO way it was external connections. And this starter was just purchased brand new last year from World Power Systems! After reading posts, a reputable member said that Starter motors are basically brick s*** houses. I knew there was something wrong inside.
Within 5 mins I had the starter and bracket off. I continue to remove the first long bolt to free the starter from the bracket. I could tell right away, when the bolt came out not even an inch, it was covered with brown and orange dust. Not to mention the Bendix/Drive assembly was being seized by some type of contaminants.
As the pictures show, the armature, grounding brushes, and power brushed all corroded. Only a year old, and corrosion is present. So without further ado, I will share how I rebuilt my starter motor from start to finish.

1. Removed the bolts that fasten the brushes to the bottom cap
2. Secured the small bolt into a bench vise, and wire brushed them to a new mirror like shine.
3. Wire brushed anywhere the starter meets the bracket. This includes the long bolts and the top cap assembly. As on my model, the top is where the starter gets grounded.
4. Using a fine emery cloth, sanded only the metal of the armature to a nice shine.
5. Used a silicone oil on the Bendix/drive assembly to free it from whatever it was seized on. Physically worked the Bendix up and down the shaft for a few minutes with a light oil each time (I used air tool oil).
6. Used electrical cleaner on the copper located at the bottom of the armature. I also did a light sand with emery cloth however I wouldn?t do it again. The area seems extremely sensitive, and most of the dirt/discolouration is caused from the brushes.
7. Sprayed everything, Bendix, armature, bottom cap with brake cleaner to remove any and all internal contaminants and heave oil. I proceeded to brush on light coatings of air gun oil on anywhere there is metal. Not an excessive coating at all, but a protective coating to prevent corrosion.
8. Recoiled the Bendix, and worked it again with more oil. To be safe.
9. (OPTIONAL) As much as I didn?t need to, I learnt that if you sand your brushes you actually ruin them as they are brittle to abrasion. SO, since your starter is giving you problems, and at this point its disassembled, use the opportunity to replace the brushes. I did. Not a bad $20 purchase for such an integral cog in the machine.
10. < >Install back on OB and triple check your ground connections. I ran a ground jumper from the starter motor bracket to the cable stud just to prevent any bad ground issue.

I was very happy with the appearance of the end result. And as we know, function is more important than form. Installed, hooked up cables, filled tank. Turn key, she started in < 2 seconds. The starter spins faster and stronger. (I assume; I have not proved that) I used this opportunity to decarb and this motor purrs. It?s a 78 Evinrude 35HP which I think I?m the first owner to perform any maintenance. Take a look at the before and after pictures and know that results could vary, and some might not recommend the methods above. But tried and tested by myself with success. I hope many members find this useful as I see more and more starter posts being born.

Cheers.

Sorry for the long post, if I had friends with any interest in boating, fishing, or motors I would not have to type a 5939 character post.