I have just picked up a 900sd winter project bike but some where along the years it has had the starter motor and gears all removed. I would like to bring it back to original and wondered if anyone knows where i may pick up the bits at a reasonable price. Everything has been removed, gears starter ,solenoid and the previous owner only used the kick start and it has been sat in a shed for the last 10 years gathering dust.
Its going to be very difficult especially the starter motor. Its not the sort of part that sits around in the garage as they are worth good money, the other bits will be not so bad but beware the sprag clutch as the modern ones usually fail on the first start. Pietro at Motori Di Marino use to have a source of original italian sprags that were the only ones that really worked.
thanks for quick reply. I can get a starter motor (i think) it is all the gears ect that looks to be a problem. I think it will be keep looking a see if a scrap engine is being broken.
When you say all gears do you mean the sprockets & chain behind the starter cover and the starter spindle (gear). I'm thinking the starter gear (on the crank) is present? probably with a mangled sprag clutch still in situ. See parts diagram https://www.ducaticlassics.com/parts/900-sd-and-ssd-darmah/all/electric-starter Have you thought about using the kickstart & just replacing the ignition with a decent modern set up e.g. Electronic Sachse which will undoubtedly make starting so much more reliable & easier. The original Bosch ignition pick up wiring will most probably be toast anyway. It's a bevel there's no such thing as a reasonable price....
Paddy, I fitted a replacement sprag to my Darmah years back (before it was laid up) & I seem to remember it was a part sourced from the car world. It hasn't given any bother (yet) but as mentioned in the previous reply I've fitted a decent ignition system that ensures he fires up pretty much straight away with no hint of backfiring etc which I'm thinking does the damage to it.
thanks again. I will remove the side case to check what is there in the next few days and post a photo. Years ago i had a 860gt that had a starter motor that was useless and was only good for a traffic light stall and you got one chance. Always used the kick and had no problem. Just want to return sd to original if possible. I will look into the ignition set up as it has the original bosch set up but i believe was working ok when bike stored when the owner had a heart attack 10 years ago.
The ignition pick up wire sheathings inside the lhs engine cover are prone to attack from engine oils and can quite literally rot away. The Bosch advance/retard 'curve' is a stepped progression & I have heard it been said these sudden changes could compound any crank problems there may be. The Sachse ignition I added to my Darmah resto was the best thing I bought & ensured it fired up on the second spin after the rebuild. I can't recommend it highly enough. It does make you wonder why the electric start & attendant gubbins was removed? If the sprag is toast then the starter gear on the crank can (continually) spin the starter motor.
