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January 25th - Starter motor Overhaul I had a fun few hours overhauling the Jeep starter motor. During the 2019 season, the starter motor pinion gear wasn't always being thrown out to engage with the flywheel, mainly when everything was cold and tight. The starter is down at the bottom of the bay, under the dizzy, coil, rear battery, voltage regulator and alternator. Fortunately just removing the rear of the two batteries gives just enough room to get it out. |
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It was all cleaned including the commutator and starter solenoid and its mechanical mechanism. This is a French modification and isn't the standard wartime starter where all the starting amps go through the foot switch. The only problem I had with the rebuild is that one of the studs on the solenoid, for the positive battery power, was copper and quite worn. The battery and ignition switch power come from this terminal. There was only enough good thread for the battery terminal, so the ignition wire was extended to the battery terminal instead. At some point in the future, I'm going to have to strip it all down again and try to replace the copper 5/16 UNC stud. |
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As I discovered in previous overhauls, the brushes, which are spring loaded, stop the end fitting back onto the starter. The wire to one gives around 1/2 free movement - not enough to put the cap on and hold the brushes out of the way. So some time ago, I drilled two small holes in the cap, through which I can insert two small L shaped pins. |
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These hold the springs outwards, allowing the brushes to clear the commutator while fitting the cap. Once the cap is in place, the two pins can be withdrawn and the brushes spring down to make contact. |
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End cap refitted and about to have the nuts fitted. After that, the brush pins can be withdrawn. Finally, the starter is fitted back to the engine and wiring reconnected. |
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The starter engaged straight away after the rebuild, but I need to leave it several days to get cold before I find out if it works after a period of inactivity. |
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