Starter Conversion: Electric to kick

Has anyone ever done or heard of converting an electric starter bike to kick start? I know a lot of people will think it's dumb to take a "step back" like that but I'm wondering if it's possible and maybe cheaper than buying a new starter for my bike; they're going for around $300 almost anywhere online these days.

My starter is pulling too much current and I have no idea how to fix that on my own - I've already done a rebuild once, which held for a while. So now I've been roll-starting my Maxim for about 7 months now. I'm grateful for the awesome calf muscles I gained, pushing 500 lbs all around town...I just wish I looked cooler when I left the places I'm visiting and at this point, a kick start bike sounds pretty bad ass!

 

No way, Jose! 8O lol

There's plenty of info & willing help here to guide you through rebuilding your starter to last or even replace it for less than that new starter you found

Welcome to the forums by the way, hope you'll be sticking round. I'll have a little search see if I can't drag up a starter rebuild how-to or walk thru'

What did you actually do in your first rebuild exactly? It should last another 25 years once we have you sorted! 8)

EDIT-: can't find the one with pics I was thinking of but this looks like it has plenty info too http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=3 ... build.html

 

A few years ago, I had a Goldwind starter totally rebuilt at an electric motor speciality shop (or whatever it should be called when you speak English properly) for 80$. I doubt it would be more expensive for an XJ.

 

I wish all motorcycles still had kickstarts!!!!!!!!!! makes you fell more manly and more one with the bike!!!!! you can feel that beast comin to life right threw your leg!!!!!! love it love it love it!!!!! (especially the old shovelhead harleys that you CANT kick while sittin on the bike, you gots to get off, hold those bars tight then give her all you gots, gets my adrenaline going)

pm me if you get this figured out cause im totally 110% willing to convert!!!!!

 

It would be interesting to see how you would engineer a kick start for a XJ engine, It can be done on a XJ11 by swapping parts from a eariler XS11.
A new or rebuilt starter would be much cheaper and easier.
Have you inspected the starter positive wire and engine ground strap, what about the starter soleniod and wire to the battery? Any weak connection will cause problems there.

 

When a Starter gets lazy, intermittent or draws too much current; it can (sometimes) be an easy fix.

Stop-off at a Drug Store.
Buy 2 bottles of Isopropyl Alcohol.
Remove the Starter.
Remove the two long Cap Bolts.

Pull the Aluminum Housing away from the Motor.
See if the Brushes need replacement.
If they are OK, ... "Do the douche"

Open a Bottle of Alcohol.
Puncture the Seal with a Finishing Nail, Pop Rivet, or a Sharp Pencil point.

Spray the Alcohol into and onto the Commutator, Brushes and Interior of the Aluminum Housing until what drips-out is as clean as what you are spraying in.

Removing Carbon Dust buildup will put some pep back into the Starter.
So will New Brushes if it needs them.

 

Thanks for the speedy feedback everyone, and for the welcome.

The first rebuild was the brushes and other basic parts, it was like a $30 kit - super simple.

While trying to do another rebuild, I noticed a magnet from the stator had come lose so naturally I thought it was grounding out there and epoxied it bad in place. Still no go...all other electrical contacts are solid and clean. I'm pretty sure that magnet busting lose did me in on his one...

Despite my ranking here, I've been riding for just over a year and am quite mechanically inclined so don't be afraid to talk technical to me!

 

The ranking is purely post related, you'll soon be a gear grinder & shortly after that make it into first gear! lol

If the fixed magnet came loose it could have chipped & left a few tiny bits rattling round to short out in there (obviously being magnetic they can hide even when you cleaned it)

It may in this case be simpler to buy a replacement from somebody on here, lots of good quality parts for good prices in the for sale area of the forums, somebody will be able to advise on which starters will be suitable for your 700N.

In the meantime I'd pull the starter back out as it's "dead" anyway, make sure the magnet's still in place & all tiny bits are removed, then clean the commutator up gently with glasspaper so the copper's nice and new looking, and using a small nail or similar scrape gently the dividers in between before flushing as per Rick's post, to make sure no copper dust is left in them.

Now get a multimeter (or a growler if you have one) on the commutator & check your windings aren't shorted or broken at all, check/replace brushes & ensure springs are pushing them in enough, make sure all other parts of the starter & it's gearbox are clean and that the gears & the bearing surface either end of the armature are lubed with good quality grease, rebuild & start your bike!

 

hey iv got a couple of those!!! i keep beer in them :lol: :lol:

 

Is this a US joke I'm not getting, or you actually keep cans of beer in them to stop them rolling away? :lol:

 

Beer Growler

Armature Growler

Both are good to have around.

 

Let me look around my junk, As I may have another starter and I live in the High Desert. I may be able to assist you in this problem. I have done lots of wiring on my bike.

 

THIS ^ Is why you are in the right place to be owning an XJ, top man 8)

And k-moe, cool think we call them Flagons and they're used for real Scrumpy Cyder :twisted: mmmmm

 

I have bought a few "Parts" Starters "As is"" off Ebay because the seller stated it flunked a "Spin-test"

After a thorough cleaning and a set of replacement Brushes they were as good as new.

Not every one I bought had a happy ending.
At least one became a Door Stop.

 

hahahahahahah , im laughing hard. Yes fill me a flagon old top!

 

We had this discussion a while back and at first I thought it was impossible, but after thinking outside the box, I came up with a solution. Ready? First remove the starter, next have a shaft machined to fit the starter pinion gear on the end, have a support spacer machined to fit into the hole where the starter used to go, next have a second shaft support machined to attach where the starter mounting bolts go, next attach a return spring, lever and pedal to the shaft. And WAAAH LAAAH, there's your kick starter. You will have to work out the torque and geometry values for yourself though. Oh! and one other very important thing, which direction to kick.

 

and the kick would be on the left hand side i am assuming....? that would be odd lol

ps, YOU MAKE IT SOUND TO EASY LOL

 

No, it'd come out over the top of the clutch cover, and spin the engine rather slowly :?

 

Hi Bloke, how would you disengage from the clutch basket's ring gear? and besides, you need to have some speed when you kick it to over come the compression. Wait a minute... I know how, use a sector gear mounted on a ratchet DUH! Foolber, you just get on the bike backwards to start it.

 

hmm might be able to fabricate a bracket of some sort that goes in place of the clutch cable bracket but also holds the shaft in place.? im going to go out and have a cig and stare at my bike and rub my beard and think this one over you know, ponder!

ROFL people would think i was drunk LOL (although i have ridden a 4 wheeler backwards before, not to tute my own horn but i thought i did pretty good all things considered, was using the brakes and everything, so tricky...)

 

Umm woops, I was thinking of your system coming out the right of the bike but it wouldn't, the starter goes in from the left! (blame it on Soichiro Honda, he puts his starters in from the right...

But hey hang on a minute, I just inspired you to a better design there, I own the intellectual property on that you know! :lol:

 

Easier to ride a motorbike or atv backwards than a pedal bike IMO, it's not the controls so much, or even the balancing that's too hard, it's the balancing AND pedalling backwards that gets you...

 

Hey, RBloke, supposing I don't have a growler, how do I test the commutator with my MM?

 

The only thing missing is some sort of device that would spin the starter pinion fast enough so the starter clutch can engage. Hmmm.... I wonder how a fella would do that? :lol:

For your plan to work I think that you'd have to remove the current sprague clutch, fit a different type of clutch for the kicker, and re-gear the starter input shafts to a ratio suitable for kick starting. Doable? Yep, but it'll take time, money, and a skilled machinist.

 

just be glad you don't have to do this to start your bike

 

damn dont kill that thing at a stop light! rofl

 

Hi K-Moe, no, you would not have to remove the sprague clutch. Since I don't have the torque values required, I wouldn't know how long the kick start lever would have to be, who knows? 12" or 3 feet? Anyhow, it's just a solution to an engineering problem that might work.

 

Sorry didn't notice the reply till just now. Using a multimeter set to Ohms, test between each segment of copper to the next, should show 0.014 ohm IIRC

Also Haynes suggests checking the field coil resistance too but these are a permanent magnet motor aren't they??? :? No figures available for field coil testing anyway!

would be useful to put up a pic of inside the body to see haw bad it looks where the magnet broke off