The commutator is the set of copper bars inside the starter that rub against
the starter brushes.
If you didn't do anything to the inside of the starter you haven't bothered
anything.
George Richardson
'57 TR3, TS15559L
(getting ready to paint - and now on the web!)
http://www.merlingroupinc.com/tr3.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Zaborski <peterz@merak.com>
To: 'TR6 List' <triumphs@autox.team.net>
Date: Friday, November 21, 1997 3:22 PM
Subject: starter (oops?!?)
>The following is a (lengthy) description of a (hopefully not too
>serious) problem I may have caused myself while suffering from the
>dreaded shipwrights' disease. Hopefully the electrically inclined can
>offer some insights...
>
>Last weekend, while waiting for the O/D on my gearbox to get repaired I
>was naturally doing some other stuff on my car to prepare it for the
>return of Mr. Overdrive (can't wait!). One of those things was to clean
>out the float bowls in my carbs and re-set the float levels (still have
>a leak and I finally figured out how the floats affect the flooding
>behavior). No problem with this...
>
>While the carbs were off I had a peak at the rear of the engine (gearbox
>out of the car at the shop) I noticed a lot of dirt and such around the
>starter. Ok I say, it's easy to get out now, might as well clean it up.
>I removed the starter and noticed that the wires were extremely hardened
>from the heat of the manifold. The insulation was so stiff it actually
>broke on one of the wires. No biggie I say and splice in a new wire. In
>the meantime I also attack the problem of the dirty starter. I
>diligently scrape of the build up of dirt and carefully wash it down
>being careful not to get any of the inside parts wet.
>
>It was starting to look not bad at this point. Well of course I figure I
>can do better. So I get out the drill with wire brush mounted and
>proceed to give the starter a pretty thorough cleaning with the brush.
>By this time it looking like new and I am feeling pretty good about the
>whole thing. So I put it back in the car (with new wires), replace the
>carbs and wait for the call about my gearbox. This will not happen for a
>few days....
>
>In the meantime I am perusing the web for useful info and stumble on to
>an article about starter problems (I must point out that I have no
>problems with my starter prior to any of the above). The article
>(http://www.team.net/sol/tech/starter.html - quite good actually)
>contains a statement which practically makes my heart miss a beat,
>namely:
>
>"3.. Don't use emery cloth or any other kind of abrasive material on the
>commutator. If it needs cleaning or turning, take it to a shop."
>
>Oh my god I say to myself, what the h&*% have I done now. As I
>understand it, the commutator is the casing at the front of the starter
>(the part facing the front of the TR6 when properly installed). I
>definitely applied a fair amount of wire brushing to this part to get it
>nice and shiny. Although I don't understand what harm could have come
>from cleaning the housing with a drill mounted wire brush, I'm no EE so
>I welcome any insights into this matter. Am I just being paranoid or did
>I really screw myself bigtime here?
>
>Help! Dan Masters? Trevors? Any other EE's?
>
>Hoping the statement above actually refers to something *inside* the
>starter...
>
>Peter Zaborski
>76 TR6 (CF58310 UO)
>Calgary AB Canada
>
>
>
>
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