Rumbaldi
XS400 Enthusiast
I don't know if my search skills are failing me or what. I bought a replacement starter for my bike. I would like to know how hard the install is and if there are any "gotchas" to look out for.
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Is there a how to on starter replacement?
- Thread starter Rumbaldi
- Start date
ThePsuedoMonkey
XS400 Addict
The big thing is that you need to open up the left (alternator-side) crankcase cover in order to get at the gear. The rest is just nuts (read: bolts).
Rumbaldi
XS400 Enthusiast
Thank you. I took all the bolts out (even the three under the round cover) but it doesn't want to budge. I didn't want to break anything. Am I missing something?
63-Coupe
XS400 Addict
If I remember correctly I had to give the cover on mine a couple of light taps with a rubber mallet to break it loose. Any more than that and either you have missed a bolt or something is amiss.
I also think that I had to remove the carbs to get enough clearance to get the starter out.
I also think that I had to remove the carbs to get enough clearance to get the starter out.
Drewcifer
1976 XS 360 Maniac
yes, you can read my stator rewire write up on how to neatly remove the cover that the stator/starter gear is hidden behind. You'll want to park the bike over an oil pan because it will drip half a pint of oil while you work, even if you park it level.
If you don't have it go buy gasket seal rtv silicone now. Before you start, slime your hands in dish detergent (it dries, amazingly, but oil won't attach to it) and set it and a paper cup of sugar by the sink. Sugar doesn't melt that easily and will tear the grease right off your hands in seconds as the detergent dissolves and lifts off the oil.
1. park over oil pan. Lay foil over your pipes under the stator to prevent it smoking when you start back up.
2. loosen clutch adjuster nut on handlebars until very slack.
3. loosen allen bolts holding two covers in place and stick them in the same arrangement through the lid of a pizza box so they are organized and go back in fast. Zip tie the clutch cable cover out of the way.
4. loosen the screws over the starter cover.
5. Unbolt the starter/detach the electrical cable.
6. carefully remove the gear from the shaft and try not to lose the circlip on the starter shaft. if it falls in your oil fetch it out with a magnet.
7. You'll need to lift the starter up from the butt end first, slide it out of the shaft hole at a slight rear upward angle. As you do, there comes a point where you have to rotate the starter to get around the carbs. Just rotate it as you lift it out. It's easy once you've done it.
8. Drop in the new starter in the reverse order of step 7, making sure circlip is in place, gear goes on well, and you are confident you bolted it back down inside/reconnected the electric lead.
9. Either trace a gasket to fit the stator cover and seal it with a generous amount of gasket seal on either side or seal the cover and bike side of the case with black rtv, finger tighten, and 30 minutes later wrench it down. Either way there's still a few drops of oil dripping out.
10. add a half a pint of new oil and clean out your oil pan.
Make sure the battery can put out enough amps. Volts are how many dollars the battery has, amps are how generous its going to be with that money. You want it to be generous (put out high amps) for a very short time at startup with an electric start. So it has to have a good amp rating. A bike mechanic usually will test the amp load of your bike for free. If the battery is old it will hold volts but be stingy with them. That won't work.
Good luck!
If you don't have it go buy gasket seal rtv silicone now. Before you start, slime your hands in dish detergent (it dries, amazingly, but oil won't attach to it) and set it and a paper cup of sugar by the sink. Sugar doesn't melt that easily and will tear the grease right off your hands in seconds as the detergent dissolves and lifts off the oil.
1. park over oil pan. Lay foil over your pipes under the stator to prevent it smoking when you start back up.
2. loosen clutch adjuster nut on handlebars until very slack.
3. loosen allen bolts holding two covers in place and stick them in the same arrangement through the lid of a pizza box so they are organized and go back in fast. Zip tie the clutch cable cover out of the way.
4. loosen the screws over the starter cover.
5. Unbolt the starter/detach the electrical cable.
6. carefully remove the gear from the shaft and try not to lose the circlip on the starter shaft. if it falls in your oil fetch it out with a magnet.
7. You'll need to lift the starter up from the butt end first, slide it out of the shaft hole at a slight rear upward angle. As you do, there comes a point where you have to rotate the starter to get around the carbs. Just rotate it as you lift it out. It's easy once you've done it.
8. Drop in the new starter in the reverse order of step 7, making sure circlip is in place, gear goes on well, and you are confident you bolted it back down inside/reconnected the electric lead.
9. Either trace a gasket to fit the stator cover and seal it with a generous amount of gasket seal on either side or seal the cover and bike side of the case with black rtv, finger tighten, and 30 minutes later wrench it down. Either way there's still a few drops of oil dripping out.
10. add a half a pint of new oil and clean out your oil pan.
Make sure the battery can put out enough amps. Volts are how many dollars the battery has, amps are how generous its going to be with that money. You want it to be generous (put out high amps) for a very short time at startup with an electric start. So it has to have a good amp rating. A bike mechanic usually will test the amp load of your bike for free. If the battery is old it will hold volts but be stingy with them. That won't work.
Good luck!
Rumbaldi
XS400 Enthusiast
Awesome, thank you.
Rumbaldi
XS400 Enthusiast
Finally got around to doing this. It is possible to replace the starter without removing the carburetors. It is a fiddly job but it can be done. The hardest part for me was getting the starter bolts back in. Lining it up with a flashlight in your mouth when you can't really see the holes is frustrating. Thanks again to everyone. I plan on giving this bike to my fiance when I buy something bigger or I would not have bothered. It almost always starts on the first kick. She seems intimidated my the kick starter though.
Drewcifer
1976 XS 360 Maniac
you can teach her the magic choke trick.
1. with ignition off flip on the choke.
2. Open throttle all the way.
3. Gently kick it 3 times. Not hard.
4. Close choke. release throttle, It is now aspriated and has fuel mist in the carb.
5. turn ignition to on, and give it a clean but not hard kick. Should fire straight up. If not, check your points.
Good luck.
1. with ignition off flip on the choke.
2. Open throttle all the way.
3. Gently kick it 3 times. Not hard.
4. Close choke. release throttle, It is now aspriated and has fuel mist in the carb.
5. turn ignition to on, and give it a clean but not hard kick. Should fire straight up. If not, check your points.
Good luck.
Rumbaldi
XS400 Enthusiast
63-Coupe
XS400 Addict
Thanks, but it has a starter now so it shouldn't be a problem.
Don't be too complacent about that. I just used my kick starter for real for the first time the other day. Without it I may have been stranded for quite a while. I have a new battery but I think my starter button is becoming suspect. These bikes are getting up there in years and almost anything can happen to them electrically. Show the fiance how to at least use the kick starter for that "Just in case" occasion. If she is stuck somewhere you may be surprised at how quickly she will become unintimdated by it.
Drewcifer
1976 XS 360 Maniac
+1 63coupe.
As they say in the special forces "two is one, one is none"
starter and kick is only one if the starter fails. If starter fails and she can't kick...she has no way to start the bike....
As they say in the special forces "two is one, one is none"
starter and kick is only one if the starter fails. If starter fails and she can't kick...she has no way to start the bike....
Rumbaldi
XS400 Enthusiast
I can see what you guys are saying and it makes sense. However I am dealing with a woman here. Logic does not come into play, everything is feelings. She has decided that she does not want to use the kick starter. I guess it's a good thing that she only plans on riding with me so i can start her bike if the need arises.
