[C320-list] Is the starter motor the culprit?

[mseyler at cox.net]

Bob,

Although I haven't pulled the starter on my M30, it doesn't look like it should be that difficult. Access from the front is tight, but you could remove the alternator to get better access. You also may be able to reach around from the aft cabin.  I would completely disconnect the battery cables at the battery before you start, so you don't accidentally short out the positive cables to the engine as ground.  And I would label all of the wires with tape, and either draw a diagram or take a photo of which wire went where to avoid confusion on the reinstallation.  (This is especially important if you remove the alternator, too, and have more wires involved.)

Once the starter is out, you could take is to the shop for repair or a rebuild.  As Pat Tormey pointed out, starters usually can be rebuilt unless they are heavily corroded or something breaks in two.

But if you aren't in a position to pull the starter yourself, it probably makes more sense to replace it than to try to repair it.  A quick search shows that parts4engines.com has  a starter for the Perama M30 on sale for about $115.  Shipping to Pensacola would probably be another $35-$45.  If you need to get a contractor out there to remove it, then the cost for a second service call to install the old starter after repair might be almost as much as the cost of a new starter that could have been installed on the same service call where the old one came out.

Good luck with this project, and let us know what you ultimately find out.

Mark Seyler
S/V Reality,
Catalina 320, #232
New Orleans, LA



-----Original Message-----
From: C320-list <c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com> On Behalf Of Bob Hoyt via C320-list
Sent: Monday, March 27, 2023 3:34 PM
To: c320-list at lists.catalina320.com
Cc: Bob Hoyt <rehoyt at gmail.com>
Subject: [C320-list] Is the starter motor the culprit?

In this month's Cruising World there is a story (Renovating Your Starter
Motor) about a starter motor that was requiring more amps to start over time. The owner took it apart and found it was full of "gunk". This could be my problem. I queried the forum about a year ago that a group 27 dedicated starting battery would turn over but not start my Perkins M30 engine. I then tested my existing batteries that consist of two pairs of 6 volt Duracell golf cart batteries in series. Similarly, the house pair and the motor pair will turn over but not start the engine. It takes all four batteries to start the engine. They are new  and read about 12.8  volts.
The voltage at the starter motor is the same as at the battery. After activating the glow plugs and starting the engine the voltage drops to 11.7. The resistance across the starter motor with everything off is 9.92 M which I believe is too high.  All battery terminals and engine ground have been cleaned and look good 1. Is there enough proof to pull the starter out or should I try to connect a separate 12 volt battery to the starter  with battery cables to see if that will start the engine as the first test?
2. How hard is it to pull the starter motor?
3. I cannot find any tech articles about this in the forum archives 4. My situation is complicated by the fact that my boat is at the Navy base in Pensacola and it is very hard to get contractors to make a  service call 4. Also, the sole starter motor repair shop shut its doors this year.

I would appreciate any guidance

Bob Hoyt
"Ikigai"
1994 C-320 Hull #58
Pensacola, FL

-- 

*Robert (Bob) Hoyt MD, FACP, FAMIA, ABPM-CI*

*Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Internal Medicine*

*Virginia Commonwealth University*

*Richmond, VA*


*CAPT (Ret) USN*

InformaticsEducation.org  <http://InformaticsEducation.org>

nocodedatascience.net
rehoyt at gmail.com

Cell: 850-384-5235

QR Code for CV