Starting Issue on Johnson 1979 Seahorse 70hp, Lockup

[marcusknight]

Occasionally when I try to start my Johnson seahorse, I will turn the key and I hear a click and nothing happens, no turn over. Battery is charged and no issue there. The way I able to fix this is I have to use the emergency manual start cord around the fly wheel and all I have to do is pull it half a rotation and whatever was "stuck" becomes unstuck and I can then use the regular electric start and it turns over and fires right up.

What exactly is getting "stuck" here and how do you fix it?

 

[orbanp]

Re: Starting Issue on Johnson 1979 Seahorse 70hp, Lockup

Could be a couple of things.
Check the heavy gauge wire connections, battery lugs, clean any corrosion.
It is possible that the contacts in the starter solenoid are getting pitted/burned.
It is also a possibility that the starter itself is getting tired, requiring new brushes and the dressing of the armature.
Do measure the voltage right on the starter while you are cranking, that should give an indication where the trouble is coming from. You would want to have more than 9V there!

Good luck, Peter