Rebuild Your Pullstarter, page 2
Remember be careful when pull out the spring assembly! The rat's nest below can be the result of problems that were caused before you took apart the pullstarter, or it could happen if you're not careful taking out the spring assembly.
After pulling out the pullstarter's spring assembly, take a look at the curled end of the spring. If it's broken off like the example below, that could be the result of normal wear and tear, an overactive yank on the pullstarter, pulling the cord out too far when starting, or trying to start the engine when it was flooded.
Sometimes you can see the problem before even taking apart the pullstarter. The example below is the spring with the broken end that we showed you above.
The bend in this pullstarter spring is the result of user error, and not the heat/cool/heat/cool cycle that a pullstarter spring goes through.
The springs inside your pullstarter is made from spring steel, a special type of steel that is heat-treated and specially bent for maximum life. Below you can see a brand new spring. Notice how the ends where the metal is bent have been heat treated? You can tell from the blue-purple coloration about an inch from each end.
With this in mind, any spring steel part that is bent beyond what it was designed to WILL fail, the question is just how soon before it fails. You can bend the spring above back into shape to try and get more life out of it, just keep in mind that it's considered an "emergency" action only, since you should know the spring is about to fail, and soon.
