Starter hesitation

[rob f]

Took me awhile but I clued in when I seen the date of your post.
Good one P.
r

[Pilgrim]

I think the driveshaft is interchangeable on this and the 1500 and much cheaper if you buy the snowmobile one. I may be mistaken though.

[Old Drifter]

I just had to Google a Drifter snowmachine.
The actually made one back in the early 80's
Learnt something new today. thxs for the info cdnr.
R

Here's one...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdMIRONuzuA

[rob f]

I just had to Google a Drifter snowmachine.
The actually made one back in the early 80's
Learnt something new today. thxs for the info cdnr.
R

[CDNRatMan]

       to bad you did not put the heart of the Drifter into a Kawasaki Drifter Snow machine....lol......

[rob f]

Just to cap off this Battery post on a chuckle:
I bought a Skidoo about 2 months ago that had an electric start system but the battery was hooped. Have been using the pull rope instead. Our winter has extended itself longer than normal and am still using the skidoo. Unfortunately 2 weeks ago I broke one of my ribs and pull starting is out of the question. Then it dawned on me that I have a weak Drifter battery that I have to toss  anyway so what the heck ,I might as well try it in the Skidoo. Fit right in and turns that 300cc engine over like nothing.
The heart of the drifter is now running over the drifts.

[rob f]

Will look at a Yuasa. Thanks for the tip. just bought a new battery for my honda 4 trax and tried to swap it for the drifter battery. Fit in the battery box but the pos/ neg terminals were on the wrong side of battery. The old drifter battery would have worked  for that 300cc honda engine easy, plus it has a kick starter. looks like the drifter just cost me a bit more. as it stands now I probably have around $4200 invested. Not  too bad for a cool piece of iron.
R

[CDNRatMan]

  Well Rob in Alberta seems that first guy had it right for once. Glad it is a simple fix. I have mine in at battery battery today getting tested on the bench and then if it is in good shape I'll get it charged and installed and if not then a new Yuasa, like Tfrank been using them and like them.....

[Tfrank59]

That's great news. Now you can head that thing off before you do get stranded. Come to think of it I had some kind of a warning sign like that when my battery was going south and I didn't heed it. Like I said turns out I was able to push start the bike and that got me home. What kind of battery are you going to buy, a Yuasa?  Been running that brand for years and all kinds of bikes and they haven't failed me even in cold cold weather.

[rob f]

Well guys.............looks like it was a poor battery.
The fellow that I bought the bike from in Dec 2017 said he had just installed a new battery 6 months prior. The bike started nicely at his place and has been starting ok here at my place. Have been charging it up once in a while because bike is in cold storage. Guess that I ASSUMED that it was fine.
Did a voltage check and was at 12.3 before start and dropped to 9.5 when I hit the starter button. Checked the charging system and is working good at 14.5 v. I heard bubbling of the battery after shut down which tells me one of the cells crapped out.
While i was in the battery compartment I pulled all of the connectors apart and sealed them with dielectric grease. Most terminals were clean but a few showed some green.
Kinda like the way that Kawi arranged all the components in a nice little zone under the seat. Sorta wish that those engineers were involved with the carb mounting.

[Pilgrim]

Clean and tighten all your grounds also.
Since it has been sitting I would get some DeOxit and spray all switches, connections, light sockets, etc. Good stuff. It works.

[rob f]

Thanks for the tips guys and from what I am gathering by comments is that the starter relay is not a common weak spot on this bike. looks like i"ll have to dust off the voltmeter and start doing voltage drop readings across all the connector points.
This bike has been stored outside for a number of years before I bought it and could be corrosion at any of the points in the starter circuit.
R

[Ogri]

I'm not familiar with the solenoid, is it possible to short the two terminals with something beefy to see if that affects the problem?
Might be the commutator on the starter motor being dirty/damp or even worn brushes.

[greenbarn]

Could be the starter button, too..    Might check the contacts

[Tfrank59]

Rob, for me personally I wouldn't wait till I am stranded. My battery died last July, it was a nice 85° day, so I was able to push start the bike to get home. But not sure how it would've been on a 45° day. either way I hate being stranded, so I'd get to the bottom of it whether it's a weak battery or as you said a bad starter relay, or something else. sorry I can't be of more help on the diagnosis.

[CDNRatMan]

  I would take the battery out and have it checked. Then a full boost and see what happens then......

[rob f]

 I have been experiencing a slight hesitation of the starter when I first hit the starter button. Usually if the bike hasn't been started for a bit. Seems like if has been warmed up some and shut off the hesitation is gone. Connections at the battery seem ok and battery seems ok. Past experience tells me that it is a bad connection that heats up and then connects. Anyone have any issues with the starter relay. I think that is where it is but of course won't replace it until it leaves me stranded in the middle of nowhere.
R