RTH- No start after new contacts

[Lka1988]

Just like the title says. My starter was showing signs of needing the contacts replaced, so today, I took the time to replace them.

When I put the starter in, I made sure to connect everything. Both bolts, positive cable, and the ignition switch cable thing. All connected.

Went to start; "click". Figured the battery was low, so I put a good booster pack on it, let it sit for a minute to charge, then tried to start again. "click".

After taking the starter out again, redoing the contacts, and putting it back in, it cranked. "Ok, great," I think. Nope. Went to start again, and "click".

I've pulled the damn thing about 5 times now, each time testing it on the work table. Works PERFECT on the table. Every. Damn. Time. And it WILL NOT work in the truck.




I'm ever so pissed. What else can I do?

 

[Sno bored]

Could be dirty battery terminals, try cleaning and re-connecting both positive and negative. Just my WAG

 

[Lka1988]

Brand new battery and terminals.

 

[Atticus]

Brand new battery and terminals.

What about the cables? Maybe you jostled something changing the last battery?

 

[Lka1988]

By brand new I mean a week old. This issue just started today.

 

[Lka1988]

I'm getting 12.5 volts at the other end of the cable, as well.

 

[Lka1988]

Everything inside the truck works, the only thing NOT working is the starter.

I got it to start by having a buddy tap the starter. After that, I started it 5 more times, then it quit again.

 

[peepers]

something is happening when you bolt it down. that is the only difference between it working ever time on the bench and in the truck. are you over tightening? what if you just loosely bolt it on?

 

[Lka1988]

something is happening when you bolt it down. that is the only difference between it working ever time on the bench and in the truck. are you over tightening? what if you just loosely bolt it on?

Something, yes.

The starter being loose or tight doesn't really have an effect. I tried that a few times, leaving it loose and tightening it down to various degrees of tightness (does that even make sense?)...

I'm starting to wonder if I screwed something up while replacing the contacts.

 

[openoptions]

Did you also replace the plunger / magnet, or just the contacts?

 

[Lka1988]

Yup, contacts and plunger.

 

[openoptions]

I just did this same job last weekend. The behavior of yours is just like mine was before I replaced plungers and contacts: some clicks, w/ an occasional and unpredictable start.

When it was on the bench, did you see that pushing the plunger down pushed the gear out the other side? Was it an even and easy push w/ no binding? Not sure that a problem along these lines would cause your problem, but there's not much that could go wrong in there aside from plunger, contacts, and connections.

 

[Lka1988]

That's what I'm thinking... My shop teacher says I should just replace the starter, but I really don't think it is bad.

It was easy to push the plunger down; stiff, but easy. I made sure to transfer the spring from the old one to the new one.

 

[breathed]

Maybe your contacts are not aligned properly. If you didn't use a wood block per the FSM when you tightened the contact bolts, one of the contacts could have tilted out of proper position. If your contacts are not properly aligned with each other, the plunger will not be able to make a complete electrical connection and you won't have enough power to start then engine.

Have you tried removing and reinstalling the contacts?

You didn't lose the small ball bearing at the bottom of the plunger did you? I don't know what it does, but it's probably there for a reason.

 

[fj80toyman]

Sometimes it's a little tricky to get the contacts seated properly so when the plunger pulls down it touches both contacts evenly. It sounds like you've done all that, but I noticed when I did mine last how easy it would be to mis-align those little buggers and mimic the same problem as worn-out contacts. And by "easy", I mean easy to not notice that I goofed it up.

FWIW. Dan.

 

[Photoman]

Internet diagnosis is tough. Some starter possibilities are worn bearings/bushings in the starter. What can happen is the armature will then bind sometimes.
Bad or stuck brushes.
Bad field.
Bad armature.
When installing the new contacts it is important that the contact points are even and hit at the same time. In other words the starter can turn when out of the vehicle when there is no load, but trying to turn the motor over it needs amps and if the contacts are not making full contact it can’t get enough juice.
When the starter is out look for burrs on the bendix and the ring gear.
Just some thoughts. HTH.

Bill

 

[Lka1988]

Maybe your contacts are not aligned properly. If you didn't use a wood block per the FSM when you tightened the contact bolts, one of the contacts could have tilted out of proper position. If your contacts are not properly aligned with each other, the plunger will not be able to make a complete electrical connection and you won't have enough power to start then engine.

Have you tried removing and reinstalling the contacts?

You didn't lose the small ball bearing at the bottom of the plunger did you? I don't know what it does, but it's probably there for a reason.

No, I didn't lose the ball at the bottom. I took apart another Denso starter before and lost the ball... It didn't work after that.

And I didn't know there was a wood block involved... I'll have to try that at school tomorrow.

 

[Lka1988]

Internet diagnosis is tough. Some starter possibilities are worn bearings/bushings in the starter. What can happen is the armature will then bind sometimes.
Bad or stuck brushes.
Bad field.
Bad armature.
When installing the new contacts it is important that the contact points are even and hit at the same time. In other words the starter can turn when out of the vehicle when there is no load, but trying to turn the motor over it needs amps and if the contacts are not making full contact it can’t get enough juice.
When the starter is out look for burrs on the bendix and the ring gear.
Just some thoughts. HTH.

Bill

Thanks, I appreciate the help. I'm getting better responses than my shop teacher, "Your starter is fried, you need a new one"

So about the wood block... How exactly does that work? Do you just push the block against the contacts to make them flush? (need to make sure)

 

[Lka1988]

Sometimes it's a little tricky to get the contacts seated properly so when the plunger pulls down it touches both contacts evenly. It sounds like you've done all that, but I noticed when I did mine last how easy it would be to mis-align those little buggers and mimic the same problem as worn-out contacts. And by "easy", I mean easy to not notice that I goofed it up.

FWIW. Dan.

So my "problem" isn't uncommon....but it's not common, either.

That makes me feel a little better.

 

[breathed]

See the scanned pages from the FSM at the bottom of this post from the FAQ. The FAQ is all knowing...

Starter Motor Contacts