Starter whoas

I have a 82 KZ1100 Spectre and my starter went out. At first when I got the bike I would hear a clanking like noise and it would start and then last week I went to work and tried to move it (to get better parking) And nothing the starter just spins. All I hear is the starter whine. I'm going to take the side cover off what should I look for? I love riding my Big Nasty. So come on KZR Pros I got the bat signal up and need all your help..

If it spins, it sounds like the starter clutch is not engaging.

when you take the cover off how can you tell if the starter clutch is bad.

The over running starter clutch is behind the rotor for the alternator on the left side of the engine.

Before you start, have a new alternator side cover gasket on hand plus the new springs and rollers. They wear out over time and need replacing.

The cover will need removing, the rotor pulled and then the starting clutch can be accessed.

Put the bike on the center stand (if you have one) and lean it to the right to mimimize the small amount of oil to be lost. An oil change pan works good for this.

In order to remove the rotor you might needa 14 mm bolt with a ball bearing behind it to drive the rotor off the end of the crank shaft. When you actually take off the starter clutch, the rollers and springs might fall out. Look for 3 rollers, 3 springs and 3 spring caps. Replace the rollers, springs and caps. There is a thrust washer (looks like a shim that goes in between the starter clutch and the idler gear. Dont forget to put that in when reassembling.
Oh, the best tip for reassembly is to put grease in the roller cavities to keep the rollers in place when you go to put the starter clutch back on the crank, otherwise they keep falling out. Before you try to torque the bolt that holds the rotor on the crank, put the bike in 1st gear, then have your son stand on the rear brake pedal. If you have problems call me. I will be in New Orleans and also Mississippi until Friday, but will be available after that.
Grant

You should be able to test the starter clutch and then decide if you need to take of the Alternator rotor.

When you get the covers off and the alternator off, you can remove the starter idler gear that is between the starter and the starter clutch.
On my 1992 KZ1000P you test the starter clutch by seeing that it turns freely to the right ( clockwise) and does not turn to the left (counter clockwise) at all.

Mine spun freely to the right with hand pressure.
So my starter clutch was OK.

As always check your model specific engine manual to be sure...

So if it dose not turn left its good right.

A loose rotor will make a clunking noise also, and the gear will be loose to so the starter can not engage. The big bolt on the triple tree is the rotor puller on the 900/1000

Finally after waiting about four week got the tool to take off the rotor just to find out it was the three bolts that sheared off. o well i guess i need to get three bolts and loctite.

Use the BLUE Loctite not the RED as the former is hand tool workable but the RED takes about 300 F to loosen up,far more than is safe for the magnetic rotor.

Thanks for the heads up on the Loctite MFolks.