IDK how they should look, but there is a slight chamfer on one edge. You can see it in the picture above and here.

 

Is the ball bearing in the inside of the pinion shaft, Joe?

 

OK there are a number of things to check..

1. Make sure that the spring (44) is in good shape. Might want to get a new one. Make sure the snap ring (17) is in place.

2. Pull off the pinion gear (18) and make sure it slips freely into the hole in primary cover and that it doesn't hang up on any nicks or burrs.

3. Don't put too much tension on the center bolt. I'd only go 60 in/lbs.. Too much and you destroy the small snap in in the coupling (30). If damaged the coupling will cause the shaft bend and the pinion drags

If that all looks OK, disconnect the battery. Remove the solenoid cover, and manually push in the solenoid until it hits the contacts. The pinion gear should mate partway with the ring gear..

 

Make sure that part #30 (the coupler) is facing in the right direction when you install it.

 

I looks to be if you look at the pics in

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/evo/1...l#post21296821

 

If you are talking about the ball inside of the starter drive, with the long spring, yes

The coupler is installed correctly with the counterbore towards the jack shaft. I will double check though.

I am at my mother's for the weekend, will check these things when I get back. Thanks!

 

I didn't grab enough of the drawing to show the number tag but it's the item next to the coupling (30). It's a small one in the ID of the coupling.

It's interesting that circa 2000 manuals state to torque the bolt to 84/108 in-lbs. but the later 06 bagger SM says 60 to 80 in-lbs. I'm bad in that I've never used a torque wrench on this bolt but have found that if the bolt is too tight, the pinion has trouble engaging the ring gear.

 

Success! I checked everything Max Headflow suggested and nothing was missing, and everything assembled correctly. I didn't like the sharp edges on the clutch gear, so I filed them off. Maybe that's what fixed it?



Interesting that pressing the solenoid plunger manually didn't cause the pinion gear to engage the clutch gear, but it did work smoothly in and out. If I aligned the gear teeth by hand, it would engage. Here's a quick video.


Here's before pressing it:


Fully pressed, and twisting the gear to let it engage. It looks crooked, probably because no outer primary holding it aligned.


Releasing the plunger, it didn't fully retract. Maybe because it's crooked?


Regardless, it seems to work ok now, with the outer primary installed, pushing the button. Got the gear noise with the first button push but then eight good engagements in a row. Sealed the cover, added primary lube and adjusted the clutch. Tested again with success. Took the bike off the stand and started the motor with no problems. IDK what I did right this time, but happy it works.

I just made the bolt snug, 1, because it has a shoulder, and 2, the lock tab will keep it from backing out.

 

Sometimes the ring gears get a little hashed at certain points, they tend to settle in one general spot when you shut the bike down so the starter is always hitting the same spot. It can be just enough to not the teeth engage and kick back out. Played this dance a few times on the old bikes and belt systems

 

The does seem to be a bot of a bevel on the inside ring gear teeth.. It may be enough to keep the starter from engaging. The pinion bolt torque can **** the mainshaft enough that the pinion doesn't float in the out primary bushing. The pinion gear only need to be push into the ring gear enough that it engages the ring enough not to slip.. At that point, the is a spiral spline inside the starter clutch that pulls the pinion in the rest of the way..

Glad it's working. Any more issues I'd replace the ring and pinion.. I suspect that the looser TQ on the pion bolt helped.