i have a 88 flhs ,the starter was screeching so i took it apart,,looks like the starter shaft is turning but not gear,,i tried to pull the shaft out but it won't squeeze past the clutch basket,,will the nut on the end of the shaft come off ? ,i cant seem to get it loose,,and i hate to pull the baske ,chain,and comp to change the gear...is the gear on the "88 bagger "have any thing that can go bad other than the teeth ???

 

I think that nut has a left hand thread.

The pinion gear also is the over runing clutch.

http://www.bikebandit.com/assets/sch.../HD0865044.gif

 

The nut is left hand thread.

The pinion gear also has an internal clutch mechanism, that is usually what fails, allowing the starter motor to spin, but the gear itself does not turn.

Be careful, make sure the battery is disconnected before you do anything with that pinion gear.

If you pull on the pinion gear it will cause the contacts in the solenoid to come together, and the motor will be energized, even if the ignition switch is off.

You can remove the clutch,primary chain and compensator to gain room to pull out the pinion gear, or you can remove the starter and housing.

Don`t use an el-cheapo aftermarket part, get one from the dealer.

 

thanks guys,got the nut off finally ,,ordered the new bendix,thanks for your help ,i've rode and worked on harleys for 30 years and never had to replace the gear,,guess i was just lucky..