1978 Jota Starter Cover

[bul74]

Working on a  1978 Jota 1200. Want to remove the starter cover for polishing. What needs to be removed first?  I have already removed the starter.
Bike sat for 20 years but actually runs fine after the carbs were cleaned. We are tearing it down for a refresh and repaint. Fun project except for the wiring and the $$$ of parts its going to need. Thanks in advance, Jeff

 

[Grant]

Jeff, only the end closest to the engine was bare alloy (unpolished).
The bulk of the starter motor body was painted satin black.

It is possible to remove the outer body but unless you want to refurbish the starter motor insides I would leave it alone.
Unless you know what you are doing, of course, then it is easy.
For me, not so easy.  8)

 

[sfcpiet]

Grant,

I think Jeff wants to remove the rear alternator housing... not much to polish on the starter motor!

Jeff, you need to remove the alternator complete.  Behind that, you will find a 36mm nut with lefthand thread.  Undo that, remove the screws from the casing and you should be able to pull the assembly off.  If it is stubborn, heat the recess "behind" the alternator, there is a ball bearing fitted from the rear, and it should slip off.

Check the nut, inner bearing race and sprag clutch housing for wear at their respective contact points.  When the big nut is done up, all these components should be tightened to each other.  Loose nuts are a cause for a lot of undue clatter and wear on the sprag splines.

While you're at it, it's worthwhile to renew the sprag clutch springs, pita to tear it down again 2 weeks after completing a rebuild.

piet