Belt cover/kickstart problem

[drbob]

So my last belt cover broke on the inside where the small gear slides in so I bought a new one a few weeks ago and the whole face of it around the kick start lever broke in an L shape. My kickstart was making a grinding noise before it broke the first time but I figured it was due to the case breaking. I've contacted the seller on eBay but haven't had a response in days and really don't want to spend the 30 dollars for another. My electric start work but always has problems in the cold weather here and it's going to be cold all this month and it never starts with the electric. Always starts with one kick but I've had so many issues with the case lately. Just don't know what to do and hate being left ride less

[cwazywazy]

Yeah, these CVT covers are pretty weak. They break under normal kickstarting use. After mine broke I just removed all the kickstarter stuff and I make sure the electric start works reliably.

So even if you do get another CVT cover, you should make your electric start work well enough to be used most of the time.

[drbob]

When it's cold out my electric start will crank the engine many times and will never start but always starts with the kick start.

[cwazywazy]

Feb 6, 2016 20:55:22 GMT -5 drbob said:

When it's cold out my electric start will crank the engine many times and will never start but always starts with the kick start.

Have you tried twisting the throttle a few times?

[spaz12]

Minarelli clone? See if one from a Yamaha will fit. I never use the electric start and have never broken one of those cases. Even the ones that look like swiss cheese haven't broken.

[scott7]

Do you have a trickle charge on it, if not i would get one to make sure the battery is strong when you first try to start it, also if you can keep it warm that would help . Like keep it inside

[drbob]

So it has been starting with electric start even with the cold the last few days. Been using a tiny bit of starting fluid and the first start of the day(usually around 10pm as i work 3rd shift) takes a bunch of cranking but she starts eventually. Got a new orange coil today,have one already but its been on there for a few years now so maybe that will help too. Also the eBay buyer I bought the case cover from agreed to send me another one, I'm going to order all new guts for the kickstart as an extra precaution

[Fox]

My advice would be to try and buy a new starter asap. Also, a tiny bit of grease on the starter Bendix shafts and the inner gear that meshes with the starter motor will help it rotate easier but you don't wanna grease the outer gear as that can migrate to the belt. Greasing the kicker gear shafts and the kicker gear teeth will help it to work more freely. Lastly, you can't just kick the kicker a bunch of times really fast. You have to work it slowly until you feel the compression of the engine. At that point, you let the lever come up all the way and then push down fast on it. The engine is more likely to fire on a compression stroke. If it doesn't start then repeat the process. This will prolong the life of the kicker.

Moving the kick starter lever to a 1:30-2 o'clock position will allow more travel on each kick increasing the chance of it firing. The case breaks when the lever is on the bottom of it's stroke and you are putting all of your weight on it. I face forward, weight on my left leg and use my right leg to kick it holding the bars with both hands. This way I am not putting all my weight on that flimsy case cover.

Brent made an excellent video showing how to properly install and lube your kicker.

[cwazywazy]

Feb 8, 2016 16:59:32 GMT -5 drbob said:

So it has been starting with electric start even with the cold the last few days. Been using a tiny bit of starting fluid and the first start of the day(usually around 10pm as i work 3rd shift) takes a bunch of cranking but she starts eventually. Got a new orange coil today,have one already but its been on there for a few years now so maybe that will help too. Also the eBay buyer I bought the case cover from agreed to send me another one, I'm going to order all new guts for the kickstart as an extra precaution

Are you using the stock CDI or one of those orange/blue "racing" ones that do bunk? The stock one should start easier and have basically the same performance.

[scott7]

Also make sure you have the case cover gasket on, sometimes without the gasket it binds the starter more. Which can cause the starter not to spin as fast as it should.

[Fox]

crazywazy's right. Those orange, red and blue CDI's are snake oil. BS, crapola.

[cwazywazy]

Feb 8, 2016 22:12:44 GMT -5 scott7 said:

Also make sure you have the case cover gasket on, sometimes without the gasket it binds the starter more. Which can cause the starter not to spin as fast as it should.

Yeah, this. I didn't have the gasket in and I ended up replacing my starter motor before realizing that it was the lack of the CVT case gasket causing my engine to turn over very slowly. After putting in the gasket that came with my BBK it fires right up.

[drbob]

To each his own, I can honestly say I noticed a difference from the stock to the orange and anyone's opinion won't change that. On another note it was in the 20's today and after a few cranks the battery practically died. I'm going to order a new one tmrw.

[scott7]

drbob, do you have a battery tender, cause these batteries are so small in that weather they just don't seem to keep much charge, I notice here in florida that when it gets down to the 40s they don't have much juice. I can't only imagine 20s

[Fox]

Feb 9, 2016 19:57:26 GMT -5 drbob said:

To each his own, I can honestly say I noticed a difference from the stock to the orange and anyone's opinion won't change that.

It's not so much an opinion as a direct comparison done by someone who knows a thing or two about scooters. You do see about 3/10 of a second improvement 0-30 but that isn't much and would be totally imperceptible by just "feel" alone.