GL1000 starter clutch

[kenai]

Hi All - what are symptoms of bad starter clutch? how difficult is replacement and parts thxs kenai

[Rat]

Engine spins but doesn't catch .... dozens of threads here .... scroll to the bottom of the page for 'similar threads' ....
And check ShopTalk.

Gord

[gltriker]

Engine spins but doesn't catch .... dozens of threads here .... scroll to the bottom of the page for 'similar threads' ....
And check ShopTalk.

Gord

great advice, RAT
following your directions, I scrolled to the bottom of this page and found considerable wisdom in 'Similar Threads' , too!

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=30830

[Sidecar Bob]

Ummm.... I think he meant "starter spins but doesn't catch"...

[Rat]

Right you are ....

Gord

[RB]

No, I think he meant the starter spins but the start clutch doesn't engage the engine!!

[Rat]

OK .... I meant .... whatever ....

Gord

[Sidecar Bob]

Just to clarify:

If you aren't familiar with the Starter Clutch, basically, the springs & caps push the rollers against the boss on the starter sprocket at an angle so that when the starter sprocket is turning faster than the engine the rollers grab the boss and push the starter clutch. The starter clutch is attached to the alternator rotor which is connected to the crankshaft by a chain so when the starter clutch turns the crankshaft turns. After the engine starts it turns faster than the starter driven gear so the rollers don't grab the boss.

When the starter clutch has problems (usually caused by one or more of the 3 springs breaking or becoming too short to push the rollers against the boss on the starter sprocket) the starter motor will spin without turning the engine. It usually begins with the starter clutch not grabbing every time (particularly if it is cold out) so that you have to press the start button, realize it hasn't grabbed, wait for the starter motor to stop spinning and press the button again 2 or 3 times before it grabs and the engine starts.

After a while it gets worse and the starter clutch mostly grabs as the starter motor slows down after it has been spinning without turning the engine which means it grabs after you release the button so the starter motor pretty much stops as soon as the starter clutch grabs. You will think you can beat this by pressing the Start button in brief pulses and that might work for a while but eventually that won't work very well either.

If you keep trying to avoid fixing it eventually the starter sprocket's boss will be hammered by those rollers so much that it is no longer close enough to smooth and round anymore and the springs will no longer be able to push the rollers against it anyway. But you will keep trying because it is cold and you want to drive home and go inside where it is warm and you will eventually rub the battery down and have to stop trying. At least that's what I did when the starter clutch in my CX650E based winter machine went (exactly the same starter clutch as the 'Wings have except that it grabs a boss on a gear instead of a sprocket).

That engine had other problems and I was just trying to keep it running until I could replace it. When I opened it up there were wear marks on the rollers, the springs were very compressed (very few coils sticking out of the caps) and several coils short, the ends of the caps are actually dished where they contact the rollers and the boss on the starter driven gear that the rollers engage with has a lot of damage from the rollers hammering against it. The caged roller bearing that the starter driven gear runs on was very loose with wear marks on the rollers. 2 of the 3 torx screws were loose. The surfaces in the starter clutch outer and the flywheel where the ends of the rollers rub on them had very deep wear marks with burrs.

BTW: When you open the engine to rebuild the starter clutch, whether the FSM tells you to or not DO NOT disturb the 3 torx head screws. It is not necessary to remove them to replace the springs, caps and rollers and if you do remove them they MUST BE REPLACED because they are single use screws that are stretched when torqued. Using them a second time can weaken them to the point where they can break at some time in the future after you have started running the engine.

[RB]

Plus sometimes it's just crap/gunk in the starter clutch that gums up the springs/roller, etc. cleaning the crap/gunk out (that's the process described in several of the threads..adding solvent to the oil running it a 100+/- miles easy and then doing an oil change) may returns the clutch to working order. worth a shot before pulling the engine.

[CYBORG]

Also heavy oil, not ridden for a while, and cold weather can cause this problem. Or just plain dirty oil