New Member, Please Help!!

I just bought a 1981 Maxim 550 a few weeks ago. It's black and had a few visual mods but it was running excellent. I got stuck yesterday down the street and it wouldn't start back up. Starter spins but engine doesn't turn over. I posted something about this in the XJ chat but have had no response yet. Anyone with ideas and few minutes, please, please reply.

 

probably a bad starter. Its not engaging the motor. You should be able to push start the bike though.

 

Well, first of all hello and you've come to the right place.
You say the starter spins but the engine won't turn over. If you are sure that's what's going on then it sounds to me like it could be one of two things.
First it could be that the starter clutch is slipping due to the wrong type of oil or that the starter clutch mechanism is worn.
Will it bump start, like fire up if you run with it and jump on with the bike in gear and ignition switched on?

 

Damn, we must have posted at the same time. :lol:

 

Ok, just went out in the rain and the bike will bump start no problem and stayed running back up the street to the house. I shut it off and tried to restart it and just the sound of the starter spinning.

 

More than likely you need to put a rebuilt starter in it if it isn't engaging the motor. This happen to me but ever since I put the rebuilt starter in it I have not had any problems.

 

Thank you all for the info. I believe I may have found the issue, however I have yet to determine that for sure. The starter is fine... It spins as it should and no teeth are broken or missing from its gear. If I am correct, this bike has a sprag clutch and not a bendix gear on the starter. So if the starter is opperating properly but doesn't turn the motor over and the bike will start when bumped, the problem must be in some mechanical component between the starter and the flywheel. The sprag clutch is not engaging and thus not turning the flywheel. Does this sound plausible to anyone? Has anyone had any experience with changing this part? How do I go about getting to it without damaging anything. I am mechanically inclined, just never worked on a motorcycle before so I am capable of learning as I go. Thank you guys for all your input!

 

If you're sure that the starter motor is good, then it's all pointing to a bad starter clutch.
But like i and one of the other guys mentioned, it could just be the use of either a synthetic based engine oil or a non motorcycle specific engine oil.
If it's not oil related then the other option is to replace the worn out parts in the starter clutch, which usually are the springs and the spring retainers and the rollers.
Now the only way to replace these items is by a full engine strip, i think. I'm not that savvy with the 550, someone else will chime in soon enough.

 

Yep, gotta tear it down. I was going to ride it to work today to change the oil and see if that helped but I only got a mile down the road and I could hear some clanking sounds when downshifting to a stop. I took it back home and cried a little (jk) and now I'm gonna start the dismantle process. Please share any ideas or suggestions. I really appreciate everyone's time!

 

My condolences ...

 

He fixed it already; different thread.