Recoil Starter fit? Old design vs New?

[dpsmith]

OK I am a newbie her on PM but have had a CT70 and Z50a for awhile. Recently, I picked up a 1983 ATC70 in a great condition for my daughters to learn on. The pull start was missing, this seems to be common with these? I can push start it but it is a pain. So, I bought a pull start on Ebay from a 1981 and it doesn't fit. It is too shallow. Before I purchased it I researched on here and the web. As I understand it there are 2 types, a shallow one for the early models and a deeper one for the late models. Here is a link to the one I bought.

81 honda atc 70 atc70 pull start recoil strater 81-85 : eBay Motors (item 130361626496 end time Jan-31-10 1512 PST)



I emailed the seller and he double checked to make sure it was from an 1981 and it was. He is going to send me the cage. If I swap these out will it work? The starter is about a 1/4 from mounting flush to the left side cover. I am thinking the cage must be narrower than the one on my 1983. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.



BTW, I only paid $120 for the whole ATC70 in great original condition minus the pull start. I had to pay half that for the pull start. I know the pull starts have been discontinued but why so rare? I assume the rope breaks and people take them off and they get misplaced. This is likely the story on the one I have.

[PlanetMinis.com]

[tmas]

1981-1985 ATC70's use the same pullstarters.... which is now obsolete from Honda, Although, all of the internal parts are still available.

What is the estimated thickness of the pullstarter you have? I have a 81-85 on hand and could compare the measurement for ya.

tmas

[atcrew]

make sure you dont have a older motor in the 83 also.

as tmas said 81-85 are the same if you are using a newer pull start on a older engine then you need spacers



*(1) ATC70 RECOIL_STARTER COMPLETE_ASSY (oem_Honda) 1981_to_1985 (73_to_80_READ) (99F) XED

[dirtbkr188]

The cages (part #28430-957-014) are all the same for every year the ATC70 was made...however...



the recoil starters have 4 separate part numbers.



'73-'74 - 28400-937-004AU



'78-'80 - 28400-957-004ZA



'81-'84 - 28400-957-024



'85 - 28400-957-670



Honda has been known to change part numbers strictly due to a paint color change

[dpsmith]

The starter I received is 1 7/16" wide from outer edge to outer edge. Thanks for the help. I will snap some pics tomorrow and post them.

[blue27]

the 73-74 are narrow, it is possable that the seller states its an 81 it could have been swapped out in the past, it you get the cage it should work. The 73-74 model uses the product code 937 and the 81 and up use 957 (middle 3 numbers), so you can see in the part #s that the number are different, the last 2 numbers in a part number usually defines a color, and if the last three change it may be a small change or supplier change. Also the 73-74 ahd a different recoil mount housing , (no neutral indicator hole) but the the bolt patterns are the same.

[tmas]

My pullstarter is an inch and 5/8 thick.

tmas

[Z]

All ATC70 pullstarters are obsolete from Amercan Honda now. I got one 12 months ago, and now they are NLA.



Find one used or rebuild the one you have.

[dpsmith]

Well, I rigged up the starter and got it started. I put some spacers between the starter and motor and used longer bolts. It has a ATC90 or 110 front wheel on it now. The kid I bought it from gave me 2 other rims/tires that are the right size but they need tires. Also, noticed it has a PK performance exhaust on it. Is this a rare item?



Any more thoughts about the starter spacing? Thanks!

[crfiddy02]

dratv sell spacers that will fill in your gap! ill look for the link!

[crfiddy02]

BC1001$12.95

[dpsmith]

crfiddyo2, thanks thats just what I need to remedy the problem. The gap is about 1/4".







If you look back at pictures from Ebay it looks the friction plate on the starter I bought is different than the one on dratv's site. Mine butts up to the cage and the one in the microfiche looks like it goes inside of the cage. I am just puzzled why I need the spacer? Anyway thanks for you help.

[tmas]

That ATC was a wicked deal for $120. My 1985 pullstarter is 1/4 thicker than yours. Maybe yours is a pre 1981 pullstarter. Can you get any more pics of the exhaust. I know PK made suspension frames.

tmas

[dpsmith]

That ATC was a wicked deal for $120. My 1985 pullstarter is 1/4 thicker than yours. Maybe yours is a pre 1981 pullstarter. Can you get any more pics of the exhaust. I know PK made suspension frames.

tmas

Thanks, it's a Craigs list special. I picked up this Z50 last year for $300 on CL. Been pretty lucky lately finding deals on CL.



I'll take some more pictures of the PK exhaust and post them up when I get chance.

[dirtbkr188]

The '73-'80 flywheel part number is 31121-937-005 and the '81-'85 flywheel part number is 31121-957-005. Possibly, two different styles of flywheel, with different depth measurements? Somewhat along the lines of the Z50 flywheels shown below...

[blue27]

the recoil cage that mounts to the flywheel is different. The thinner recoil (73-74) needs the thinner cage. 79-85 use a thicker recoil and recoil cage, and the TRX70 86-87 is completely different. If a spacer will work then go for it, if not you need the correct cage.

[dpsmith]

the recoil cage that mounts to the flywheel is different. The thinner recoil (73-74) needs the thinner cage. 79-85 use a thicker recoil and recoil cage, and the TRX70 86-87 is completely different. If a spacer will work then go for it, if not you need the correct cage.

The Ebay seller is great and is going to send me the cage that was with the starter. If it is not thinner, then I will order the spacer from dratv and call it good. I had it running with the starter and my makeshift spacers and it worked well.



Thanks for everyone's help.