Outboard Motor Trim Pump

This is the hydraulic trim and tilt unit for a 90 hp Honda outboard.  The unit did not work, so I checked the resistence on the electrical leads and found that it was an open circuit (infinate resistance).  The most likely cause of this is stuck or worn brushes in the motor.  In this photo the motor has been removed and is laying on the work bench, the red stuff is hydraulic fluid where the motor mounts.

When I took the motor apart there was a bit of rust and corossion inside.  The brushes appeared to be OK, but one of the springs had rusted away. 

This motor is built with an internal overheat protection.  It is hard to see with all the rust, but there is two round electrical contacts mounted on a bimetal spring.  If the motor overheats the spring will open the contacts and stop the motor. 

The contacts did not work anymore, so I soldered a jumper wire across them.  There will no longer be an over heat control on the motor, but I think that it is unlikely to be needed in our cold climate.  I reinstalled this part and replaced the spring in the brush holder and the motor runs great now.

Polaris Sportsman 500

I had a Polaris Sportsman 500 in the shop with electric starter problems.  It had a few corroded wires and loose connections between the battery and the starter solenoid and wore out brushes on the starter motor.

ATVs around here get used like automobiles in suburban America.  People make lots of short trips around town.  The engine gets started and stopped frequently.  This leads to a lot of wear and tear on starters and the electrical starting system.

This photo shows the brush holder assembly for the starter.  The brush on the top is completely worn out and the lower one is also getting short. 

I change these often enough that I keep a few spare brush sets on hand.  For some vehicles I have the complete brush holder assembly and for less popular models I have a few universal brushes that I can solder onto the original holder.  The universal brushes are cheaper, but the extra time to solder them on cancels out any savings.

C.O.