Bad starter??

[MuskyRookie]

I have a 1993 40 h.p. Merc that after a spring tune up, was running perfectly. That is until I was 5 miles from the launch on the St. Croix and heading back straight into 30 mile winds. The motor would not start, in fact it would only turn over for a split second and stop. I thought it was my battery so I switched to my trolling battery (fully charged) and had the same results.

I am thinking it maybe is the starter but was hoping for some feedback from fellow FM'ers. If it is the starter, do you think this would be a fairly easy replacement that I could do myself? Any help would be much appreciated.

[MuskyRookie]

I have a 1993 40 h.p. Merc that after a spring tune up, was running perfectly. That is until I was 5 miles from the launch on the St. Croix and heading back straight into 30 mile winds. The motor would not start, in fact it would only turn over for a split second and stop. I thought it was my battery so I switched to my trolling battery (fully charged) and had the same results.

I am thinking it maybe is the starter but was hoping for some feedback from fellow FM'ers. If it is the starter, do you think this would be a fairly easy replacement that I could do myself? Any help would be much appreciated.

[BobT]

When it did turn over did it sound like it was turning slower than usual? In this case I would suspect battery or poor wire connections.

When it quit turning over, could you still hear the starter motor running? In other words, did it sound like the starter was turning but not connected to your outboard? In this case, I would suspect the starter drive might be going bad. This is the gear that engages the motor flywheel. I'm assuming these starters are similar to automobile starters so if they don't have a bendix drive then my thoughts don't apply.

[titelines]

I had a similar situation this year. Full Spring cleaning/Tune-up on my '93 115hp and it worked great the first trip out. Then got to the launch the second trip and nothing. Turned the key and nothing, just a "click". Frustrated, I took it home and gave it a good going over. Checked all the connections etc., all was good. Took the starter apart and cleaned it all out. Put it back together and it worked great. Have had it out a couple times since then and it works great. Not too bad of a fix, just grab your manual and give everything a good cleaning.

I'm not an expert, so others could probably give you more detailed directions, especially if you decide to replace it.

Hope this helps.

[ThaiNinh]

It spun but stopped? Like the other guy said does it just spin and sounds like it is not attach to the motor? If it is you will need to clean the gears that drive the sprocket up to engage the flywheel. Mine did that and I thought it was the starter so pulled it out and just greased up the gear drive. And threw it back on it works real nice. As of is it hard to pull the starter out. The answer is no it is just a couple bolts and manuvering to get it to come out. And don't forget to disconnect the battery please.

[minneman]

I had a merc 40 once that the shifter had to be in a very precise place in Neutral in order to start. (tiller)