Starter - Where to get a brush kit?

[Sobek]

Hey guys,

Well, now that the heep is running great again, I think my starter is just about to let go. I'm getting progressively slower cranking starts, and my battery is in great shape (swapped it for another good one anyway and same thing). I need to take off and clean all my grounds just to be safe, and I know my starter has been getting doused in oil for a long time from the dang oil housing leak, but reading up, all signs point to wasted brushes? It's the stock starter and I just ticked over 300k kms, so I'd say it's done well

The yanks all just go WELL GET YESELF ONE UH DEM TWENTY DOLLAH BRUSH HOLDER KITTERS AND CHUCKER IN. And that's lovely, but that $20 usd turns into a hundred AUD pretty darn fast, not to mention the shipping times too. Does anyone know of anyone in Australia selling the complete drop in brush assemblies? Or any alternative options, like buying the brushes and soldering yourself maybe. I'm open... just want something that's easily DIY-able and fairly fast to get a hold of. I'm based on the Sunshine Coast in QLD. Keen to hear what you guys have done for yours. I'll be removing my starter maybe tomorrow and dissecting it, at least maybe assess if there's any life left in it to get me by, but one way or another I need to deal with it...

Cheers

[Jonny Jeep]

If it's the same starter as on my 97 TJ 4.0L it's a Mitsubishi M1T series starter motor. Try a search for M1T starter brush and see what turns up. If you're going to strip it there's a guide I used which is available on the internet archive which might help.

http://web.archive.org/web/201001031...ny/starter.htm

Edit. Checking rockauto, the starters that fit my 4.0 are the same fit as on 87-98 4.0 XJs.

[Sobek]

Hey thanks for that! I actually just came across the information about looking at Mitsubishi M1T starter kits right after you posted. I managed to find a single source in Australia that has the full brush kit for sale, and the price is good so I've put an order in and hopefully I can get a hold of that before mine goes entirely.

That guide is great too. I watched a youtube vid of someone totally disassembling one of these starters, and man, aren't they some of the simplest, easiest things to get into?! I've pulled apart a few starters over the years and they've all been such nightmares, these look EASY though. I'm actually looking forward to refurbishing it

Thanks, will update once I pull it and fix it etc

[awg]

a bit of a caution here

in the instance of 2 failed starters..afaic, it was the solenoid

they have internal points which arc and cant carry the full current of the starter under load

I am almost certain, as I found one with new brushes, test ok on the bench... wont turn engine, replaced brushes, same thing

another I found a good cleanup of the brushes got them moving and still ok

the solenoid can be bought seperately

just a heads up

[Sobek]

Thanks for the heads up, that would explain what happened to the guy in the video I saw on youtube. He put new parts in his starter and it would engage but not spin. I actually did a sneaky and bought another starter at the same time as the brush kit, because I just KNOW how these things like to never go to plan and I got one for $150 overnighted to me... Glad I did too. I pulled the starter today because it's getting REALLY sluggish and I have a lot of running around to do, and just needed it to WORK. The oil contamination actually was barely anything, it was just some minor crud on the casing so no problem there. But the bendix is crazy loose. If you shake the starter, the bendix and shaft that it's on just move in and out very freely... So I'm thinking brushes alone may not be what it needs.

Thankfully, the replacement starter works a treat, the removal and install was a breeze, all of my contacts and grounds are in mint condition, didn't even need cleaning but I did so anyway to be safe. Once the brush kit arrives I'll tear down the old starter and see just how bad it is inside, and maybe throw up some photos and such for the curious minded. I see what you guys mean about the Mitsubishi stuff too, soon as I pulled my oem starter I noticed it has the sticker with Chrysler and then Mitsubishi and all those mitsubishi part numbers on it, pretty cool!

Hopefully the stock unit can be saved, I'd very much like to have a backup on the shelf for a rainy day