Trying to help buddy troubleshoot a cranking problem. Thought his starter died and he ordered a new one and thinking it’s bad too.

He pulled the old starter and hooked it directly to a 12v power source. The old starter will spin if it’s on its side but not in a vertical position. The new starter, when hooked directly to 12v, won’t spin at all.

He says he checked the wiring leading TO the starter with a meter and it’s getting 12v. He’s relatively mechanically inclined but neither of us has any real experience with outboards. Does it sound like he just happened to get a bad new starter or are we missing something obvious?

What brand is the new starter? If it’s not OEM or Arco, it’s probably chicom junk and therein lies the problem. If it has a proper ground, and you excite the starter on the post with 12 VDC and nothing happens, the starter is bad.

I’ll pass this along to him. From what he told me, seems to confirm he just got a bad starter. Thanks.

Take both starters by a local shop that rebuilds them. They probably won’t charge but a few bucks, if at all, to check them.

Gomer I use a guy that lives pretty close that does all my work and he’s the real deal no half ass or bull and honest if u want his number just let me know.

Thanks. Buddy picked up a different starter and it fired right up. Crisis averted it seems