I goofed my '82 XJ550 Maxim

So I guess the starter clutch went, it just made a whirring noise when I tried starting it. Being the genius I am I took apart the starter motor to clean the brushes. It was very dirty. I thought I put it back together correctly.

Tried starting it. Made a click and smoky acid started coming out of the battery breather tube.

My only turn signal stopped working like a few days before, and I could sense the starter motor/clutch was going.

I took the battery off, and haven't f***ed with it since. I don't really know what to do. I'm a pretty poor bicycle mechanic and this was my only fun for the summer. I don't know what to do.

New solenoid, starter motor and starter clutch? (I don't know if I'm ready to pull the case apart to replace the starter clutch).

 

Well ya see it's like this:
Electricity is magic; and you let the magic smoke out of your battery . . . it will never work again.

Do NOT fret, that is just my theory, there are other members here who understand the witchcraft of electrons cycling back and forth - you will soon have the information you need.

 

Good thing we have wizards here.

 

I am not one of the wizards, but I can take a crack.

Sounds like a dead short to me. Wondering if you cooked the starter motor? Possibly the battery too? How long did it stay shorted? I don't think there are any fuses involved once the starter solenoid closes.

 

did the wire from the battery to the starter solinoid melt? its red and large. Here is a wire digram for you
http://frankjohansson.com/stuff/xj550/XJ550ElectricalDiagram.html

buy a multimeter
a new battery check your wiring for the starter circuit
get another starter

 

Check the positive terminal stud of the starter for proper assembly in regards to the insulators and washers to isolate it from the starter chassis:

 

That ^^^ It is the most common cause of a dead short large enough to cause the battery to boil. The starter post insulator is realtively fragile, and can be easily broken during installation.

 

Did you hook up the wrong wire to the starter

 

that happened on mine, the post insulator busted and was grounding the hot wire. i got a buzz and smoke lol. fixed now, but i'd check it out before you cause damage.

 

everything seems set up properly

 

that 4th photo, those wires look iffy. decent connection?

 

as rooster and kmoe said , are you sure you replaced the insulating "tube" , around the starter positive terminal , (its in the middle of item 12 on the schematic diagram above.) it insulates the bolt from the case.
as stated , that's where most dead shorts would occur.
stu

 

fooooooooooor sure.

 

Did you foooooor sure check that it didn't crack after you tightened the post? That is when damage is most likely to happen. Like I said, that insulator is very fragile.

Can you make the starter spin on the bench? Negative lead to the case, positive lead to the post, hooked direct to a charged battery (there will be sparks, and you don't want to let it spin for more than a second or two). That wil help to isolate where the problem is.

 

so there is where I'm at. I should really just buy a new starter?

 

Ya. Get a used one to rebuild. That one is fooked.
It had to have been subjected to a hard hit for the magnet to fracture.

 

okay, i replaced the insulator. it turns over now. but there's a spark coming from the negative lead of the battery. might be a bunk battery? but the starter works now.

 

I'd check your connections everywhere.

 

alright, it turns the engine over but won't start it. i can bump start it really easily. it sounds like the battery might not have enough power to really spin the starter? where do i troubleshoot from here?

 

New battery

 

+1

 

At the very least have that sucker load tested, bud.