Starter Help

[bob]

I am having trouble with my starter on my old MF12H. The starter is a tecumseh.33835, probably orginal one. It hangs up when the it spins out and at first it would only spin when engaged. I took it apart and it is a flat flange that spins out and meshes with the rubber coated inside of drive gear. This is my question is that all there is to it, the rubber is chewed up some what and may be worn down. The drive gear on the starter is also very sloppy. When I took it apart I cleaned the rubber up and now it does try to turn engine over but some what slow but it is still staying engaged not coming back in . Are they repairable or need to be replaced. Thanks.

[bgsengine]

If the starter turns good there are still bendix kits for them.

[bobodu]

Complete new starters are only $47...

[Arkie]

I had a old Kohler starter awhile back that used a Bendix similar to what you describe and bsengine indicated some of the Tecumseh"s used the same Bendix slip clutch type as you describe when I asked questions about mine on this site. I had never encountered the rubber clutch type Bendix type. The rubber slip clutch kinda gives the starter gear a soft start spin when it first meshs into the flywheel which prolongs tooth life of flywheel and Bendix gear. They made couple mods to the new style Kohler kit that prolongs the clutch life as compared to the old style and if you get the kit you may see few extra parts that are not used or needed on some of the starter end shaft designs. (Make sure you install the new kit in proper order, springs washers, keepers, etc.
I bought a complete Kohler replacement starter from flea bay for like $38 with free shipping, then after I took my old starter completely apart to see if it was worth repairing, checking brushes, bushings and the start torque and amps I seen that the old starter only needed the new style Bendix which costs about $12, so I repaired my old starter as a spare. The starter on this Kohler engine was in a very hard place to access and I wanted to make sure I installed a real good starter in one shot is another reason I went with new replacement. It was own my own eq. counting time spent checking the old starter and searching for parts and repairing the old starter (making sure I was not whipping on a dead horse, the old starter) I now have about $200 in time spent for repairing and saving the old spare starter, but I have a good spare.

If you give complete engine model info someone on here maybe can guide you to a kit, assuming your old starter is ok or talk to these people that sell starters and parts on flea bay.

I've bought small engine starters (mostly Briggs) and starter parts from these guys (dbelectric) and everything has worked out great with fast shipping with tracking provided in the USA.

Here is who I get my starter and parts from dbelectric on Flea bay and I've had real good luck with their replacement starters and parts.
dbelectrical
and a link and a Tecumseh starter example only so as you can contact them about your starter questions.
130598100346
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Starter-Tec ... 1e6840dd7a

Some of them old square type Tecumseh starters are in the $80 area and if yours is in this category you might want to give yours a good exam before ordering any parts to make sure you are not whipping on a dead horse.

and to answer your other question, on some small engine starters the Bendix gear will stay engaged in the flywheel if the engine don't start or the flywheel don't spin fast enough to run the gear back when the starter voltage is removed while cranking.

[bob]

Thanks for info guys. I wish I could find a starter as cheap as you guys are talking. I'm from Canada so from a dealer you are looking at $200.00 plus. Even the bendix is $82.00 plus tax from a small engine place if they order it. So I did find a starting gear from another small engine for $32.00 which I am sure must be old stock but I am going to get that. The cheapest starter I saw here from amazon is $98.00 but I agree with you and I hope I don't end up wishing I bought it. I did figure out the starter in the end and checked part as the tecumseh engines on walk behind snowblowers have the same setup only they are120 volt. They are actually interchageable except for number of teeth. Could have got lots of them used. Anyway going to pick up part next week and I will give that a try. Thanks

[38racing]

Thanks for info guys. I wish I could find a starter as cheap as you guys are talking. I'm from Canada so from a dealer you are looking at $200.00 plus. Even the bendix is $82.00 plus tax from a small engine place if they order it. So I did find a starting gear from another small engine for $32.00 which I am sure must be old stock but I am going to get that. The cheapest starter I saw here from amazon is $98.00 but I agree with you and I hope I don't end up wishing I bought it. I did figure out the starter in the end and checked part as the tecumseh engines on walk behind snowblowers have the same setup only they are120 volt. They are actually interchageable except for number of teeth. Could have got lots of them used. Anyway going to pick up part next week and I will give that a try. Thanks

bob
did you check bantsaw? or www.repairclinic.com .they are in Michigan but ship to Ontario for 12 usd. plus maybe a small international fee.

[bob]

Just giving an update. Got new starter or bendix gear and still no better. Using my car for battery now to make sure battery is eiliminated. What happens is bendix spins out but it just stays out there and does not come back in . I have to manually turn it back it in to try again. When I have the starter out on the bench and test it with a battery charger it spins good. Using my car as the battery it does spins the engine until to finally just stops and then the gear just hangs out there. My engine is Tecumseh HH120 so she is a beast and a bit old. Any help or suggestions is welcomed. Thankyou

[KE4AVB]

It could binding in the flywheel ring gear, try a few thin washer to space the starter out a tad bit. Also make the starter gear matches the ring gear pitch. I had a couple Kohler starters that this was the case. Just a thought...

[bgsengine]

OK if it has trouble cranking I'd be checking for grounds - but as KE4 said it could be too tight of a clearance - will it spin back down if you turn flywheel by hand after the gear gets stuck? or does it stay stuck even turning flywheel by hand? (turning in normal rotation direction) - a bad ground even though you got a fully charged automotive battery can cause starter to not crank over fast enough to turn the engine (check for any of the cables getting hot? - if you find a hot cable after cranking you probably have a bad connection somewhere in the area)

Other than that, as KE4 mentions, could be needing shimmed - those starters are known for the mounting tabs bending and also some are already shimmed and shims get lost when the starter is removed.

[Arkie]

Have you got a electrical tester? (vom or DMM) If so do a online search for how to use a meter to test starter cranking.
or do you have good set of jumper cables.
We can tell you how to jumper connections using good jumper cables, for example first with a heavy duty jumper cable go from the neg bat terminal to the engine block and try cranking. This bypasses all the ground connections.

Next go from pos post on a good battery directly to the starter lug. This bypasses the solenoid and all connection in between.
Make last connection at the battery pos post and starter should immediately engauge and crank.

Take the spark plug out of the engine and give it a try!

rike][/b]Also best to actually install a good battery into the engine battery tray area. wimpy jumper cables can be very misleading especially if jumpering onto a dead battery. Also be careful around batteries when jumpering, at least wear safety glasses. Acid in the eyes from a exploding battery is not a good thing.


Harbor Freight sells a real good battery tester for around $20 that places a heavy load simulating a starter load on a battery for load testing. I'm a electrician and find the HF load type battery tester more user friendly than using my electrical testers to analyze a battery. Very handy to have for especially for testing small engine batteries.
Don't feel bad I've seen guys buy very expensive ATV starters and all they needed was a $35 battery or needed to clean a battery cable connection.