Missing epoxy on generator magnets + sometimes does not start = goats?

[nikux]

My motorcycle has been running just fine all the while, suddenly a week back it had starting problems. I heard a blast from exhaust, and then it felt like the engine was not turning over. Just heard clicks from the starter. A little bit of pushing around, and I tried to start again, started very cleanly.

No starting trouble for the next 2 days.

Then again, 3 days back, on the first click, it turned, but felt like it got stuck somewhere. Did not start for a while with just clicks. Then, I could hear some turning over, the sound like when the battery does not have enough juice to completely turn over. Tried full throttle and it did start with little trouble this time.

No starting trouble for the next 2 days.

Yesterday again, the bike had the same click phenomena. However, it did start cleanly after a bit of pushing. Today morning however, it started just fine. On close hearing I felt some weird clinging sound from the left side of the engine. I thought it could be goats, so opened the left cover, to see the magnets. The magnets are fine, just the epoxy seem to be gone.



This is not goats right? Should I just clean the bulging epoxy and try again... maybe the times it was hard to start was the epoxy stuck between something? Or do you guys thing the problem is something else?

[NF11624]

Not sure what your problem is, but I believe that you will soon have goats if you don't epoxy those magnets.

[jserio]

  (not laughing at you, merely at myself.... goats in a motorcycle....*snicker*) sorry...i'll stop threadjacking now.  best of luck to you though! 

[nikux]

any reccomendations on the epoxy?

How can I test the starter solenoid?

[bill14224]

In the English language, which most of us speak here, goats are four-legged horned mammals with coarse hair that eat grass.  I've been called a horny goat a few times, but that's another story.

You should clean and apply new epoxy where it is missing, but I don't think that's why your bike often doesn't start easily.  I think you have poor battery connections or an old weak battery that needs replacement.  Best of luck to you!

[08GSSteve]

Goats? 

Besides what bill said what the hell is goats?

[jeremy_nash]

goats is where the magnets come loose, and cause all kinds of horrible damage to the stator and other components under that cover

[nikux]

So I guess "Loctite HySol 9502" is the answer?

[DoD#i]

You might look into "starter clutch" (aka Starwalt's) issues when searching on old problems here.

Funny guys: Both Goat's and Starwalt's are GS problems under the left side cover that are named for the posters who had them first or most famously. I've never had either one but your ignorance of that basic fact would seem to indicate that you haven't really been paying attention around here. Ignorance of Goat's is a good way to make it much more expensive to fix - miss the early warning signs and all sorts of stuff dies messily when it lets go.

[jdw03n]

That makes me feel like less of a forum newb - I knew what Goats was!  $$

[NF11624]

There is also Rohde's syndrome (coined by Buddha) that also affects the stuff under the left cover.  In this situation that big bolt in the middle comes loose, so your starter clutch won't engage.  You may still be able to bump-start, but eventually your battery will die because it no longer will be charging and then your bike will shut down... completely (happened to me, luckily I was at the end of the driveway after a short ride).