DONT BUY SBT STARTERS

cookn

Kamikaze
Location
where you live
I have never got an aftermarket starter to last more then a year no matter the brand. last year I tried putting some rtv on the seams because I think that is the number one failure point is water getting in them becasue of cheap seals. This season will be the test to see if it lasts. The ones you get off ebay for 60 bucks seem to be the what everyone else sells , just with their sticker on it and marked up double the price.
 
First starter never work. They warrantied it. The next starter lasted 2 months. FYI, I don't ride salt water. They warrantied it. The third starter I ran for a month before I had other engine troubles. Lucky the troubles were at the end of season (I know some of you the season never ends). So the Motor/starter sat in the garage for 5 months. Started rebuilding last month. I did not bother to check the starter while it was out, so once I put everything together...another failed starter. Original purchase was 3/15/15....so I missed the year long warranty by a month. Good riddance, I'm tired of rebuilding for a starter that should be relatively reliable. I've owned 9-12 different skis over 10 years, 2 starters have failed. A 88 SX Kawasaki, and the starter that SBT replaced which was a 93-97 Yamaha (20 year old starter I would guess)

#1 failed out of the box.
#2 failed in 2-4 weeks, locked up and hummed when connect to power
#3 spins freely and feels like nuts and bolts are being grinded, on power turns randomly with no torque.
 

smoofers

Rockin' the SQUARE!!!!
Site Supporter
Location
Granbury, TX
One thing you may want to look into is your battery cable condition. Old corroded cables can kill a starter over time. I'm willing to bet that the cheaper alternatives to OEM starters are more sensitive to those variables.

I've tried all of them. My HX had an SBT starter in it for probably 4 years. It never gave me any issues until one day about 7 miles down river I went to start the ski, the motor kicked over once and then all I could hear was whine of the starter spinning. Turns out the shaft sheared right behind the bendix.

On my SJ, as ashamed as I am to say it, I've got one of the $60 ebay specials (DB electrical or whatever). It's going strong with 4 years of use on it! However, when it was installed I also upgraded all of my cables to new JSS ones.
 
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