Does anyone in the UK or elsewhere have any experince with the Oil seal for the starter motor. I dont have a workshop manual so I dont know about the Triumph name for it ( it appears in the Haynes as starter motor oil seal ), but basically the starter motor has a small oil seal around the shaft and the front of the starter motor - ie the end that enters the engine. Triumph - no go, for a very inexpensive part ( probably less than postage ) they want me to buy a new starter motor. Anyone have any experince with after market?
That might have a number on it if you can make it out Someone who sells bearings and seals should be able to help Up here a company called bearing services limited dunno if they’re national though Triumph don’t make seals But they’ll sell you a starter motor
Is this it? This is for the air cooled Bonnevilles, but if you go to the World of Triumph parts web page https://www.worldoftriumph.com/partscatalog/catalog/select/catalog/triumphmc/method/model/ and then select your model of Bonneville and click the Starter & Alternator link you get the exploded parts diagram like below. The part may be cheaper on the Fowlers site https://www.fowlersparts.co.uk/
Yes, thats the diagram Ive been seeing. They ( Triumph ) obviously imagine that you will be replacing the entire starter motor - and I dont want to do that - its a part thats worth less than the postage it would require to send, and in the UK the starter motors are £700 odd quid. I have a feeling I will end up having to manufacture the part myself.
So it's not item number 10 (part number T1310910) above? - Is it a seal internal to the starter motor then?
https://simplybearings.co.uk/shop/index.html If you can get numbers off the seal as Dilli said or if not measure the inner and outer dimensions and thickness required, you could have a chat with these guys I have used them on several cases and they have not let me down yet , hope this helps.
Bearings and seals are generic items. The reason for buying an OEM spare is usually the faff of identifying sizes. Specialist suppliers do it routinely..... from the original item, if necessary.
Have a look on the World of Triumph website they show a parts diagram for the Bonneville. It appears that they show an 'O' ring on the end of the starter motor for £4.82, part number T1310910. This is for the carb models.
Unfortunately this is not the easily obtainable o-ring. As can be seen from the photo comparing the front of the starter motor to the seal it’s much smaller. In all likelihood as the O-ring seals the outside of the starter motor from the engine it’s doubling up and preventing a very small amount of oil getting down the shaft of the starter. One of the starter motor magnets was cracked and so it had to be taken apart. When I did I saw that this seal was heavily damaged so needed replacing. Looking at the Haynes manual it suggests that this used to be a replaceable part which has since been withdrawn very irritatingly. The seal has a ridge that sits inside the bearing of the starter motor and the top if the seal sits in front of the bearing facing the engine as I say a likely seal against the very small amount of oil that gets in when you take the motor off - and hot oil will travel really well so leaving it out is not an option. In addition this seal has a very tiny garter spring attached. it’s looking as if best case i will find an after market or worst case I will be forced to make a mold and make the thing myself.
My major problem is the seal is completely decimated - taking it out was difficult as it was bonded probably by heat to the starter, as well as being shot by the turning action. Not ideal. I can take measurements though, and draw a diagram but it will need a vernier ruler.
There are repair kits for Denso starter motors available, it might be worth checking if just the seals from these kits are available... https://www.triumphparts.co.uk/product/denso-starter-motor-brushes/ £24.95 https://www.rexs-speedshop.com/product/triumph-denso-starter-motor-repair-kit/ £47.50
Check out https://simplybearings.co.uk/shop/p...-Springless-Design-VC-Style/product_info.html and press technical tab. All you need is to measure inside and outside diameter plus width
Ok so simple solution here - because the seal is a completely standard shaft seal, 22mm I think but I’ll publish the details when I get sent the bill from the guys that sold it to me and fitted it. Total cost £7 The bike now works fine. When I initially disassembled the motor because the seal had completely disintegrated I took it to be a completely different type of seal. The body was metal and so it seemed that a seal was sat in a recess. Of course it does have to be mentioned that I did go straight to a triumph dealership to get to the bottom of the issue. That dealership put me into the guys that sold me the seal but triumph should be publishing the details of the seal to make it easy to replace. I don’t think anything bad was happening like they wanted me to buy something excessive but just bad lack of information that isn’t good.
Seven quid is a bit steep for a thirty bob part! Great to know you are sorted. It can be tricky doing an autopsy on a mangled seal!
Hi Louis, I am having the exact same issue though with a water cooled thruxton. Do you have the details on the replacement seal you ended up using? Thanks in advance!
