Alton Electric Starter - Share Your Experience

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In my last post there is a sentence that says..."perhaps I am being overly cautious..." I put the starter in someone else's Norton and have not had the luxury of using it day in and day out for months or years. Two weeks is my experience with the Alton. I have talked with the owner a couple of times and he is very happy with it and rides it often. My idea of avoiding cold starts is to add a big margin of safety. If you folks have been using it for cold starts with no problems and for at least a year then I can revise my opinion.

In the installation manual they make a point of using the full torque setting on the crankshaft nut.

And no, it is not useless if you avoid cold starts. It's great if stalled at a stop sign or any other time while hot. I used it often.

NEXT QUESTION... Has anyone needed to replace the plastic buttons yet?
 
It says installing one of these on a belt drive bike, mine being the RGM flavor, is "use at your own risk" sort of a situation. Wouldn't the starter chain need some sore of lubing and is it idle during normal bike operation, meaning does it only spin the chain during actual starting only?

I have heard belt drive application/versions coming from Holland but details are scant and seem to be more like a rumor.

The other big question is having to do with incorporating the Alton inner case with the Maney outrigger. Again, use/cut away at your own risk?

What's the output of their stator?

Their instruction do not mention the center post shimming. I think it would be a mistake to assume this procedure isn't needed.
 
I tried shimming the center post but the closest I could come was .010 too much. That little bit was too much and I could not get the stator clearance right so I removed the shim. The mounting bolts wouldn't all line up right
. Everything OK when I removed the shim.
check...check...check...and double check
 
Their instruction do not mention the center post shimming. I think it would be a mistake to assume this procedure isn't needed.
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not needed in my installation, apparently Alton must have accurately measured the thickness of their inner cover perfectly when they built it
 
pete.v said:
It says installing one of these on a belt drive bike, mine being the RGM flavor, is "use at your own risk" sort of a situation. Wouldn't the starter chain need some sore of lubing and is it idle during normal bike operation, meaning does it only spin the chain during actual starting only?

I have heard belt drive application/versions coming from Holland but details are scant and seem to be more like a rumor.

The other big question is having to do with incorporating the Alton inner case with the Maney outrigger. Again, use/cut away at your own risk?

What's the output of their stator?

Their instruction do not mention the center post shimming. I think it would be a mistake to assume this procedure isn't needed.
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I have a 32mm RGM belt drive and a Maney Outrigger bearing with the Alton Ekit. I have only managed to find time for a few hundred miles so far but all is working well up to now.

Running the sprag clutch with on oil is the main issue not the outrigger but many others use belt drive and dry primary. Alton said from time to time depending on mileage put disulphide grease through the two holes for extractor on the sprag to lubricate it.

Using the 32mm RGM belt drive needs a different spacer to the one in the standard Ekit but Alton can supply this on request or you could make one if you the access to a small lathe. Or even use suitable bearing shims.
 
pete.v said:
What's the output of their stator?
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150 watts if you use a 20ah battery it seams well up to the task. I have started mine more than 10 times one after another when it kept stalling as i tried to set the carbs. All lights on my bike are LEDs expect the headlight and the battery monitor colour changing LED thing is green at 2000rpm or 2500rpm with headlight on. (All new wiring an solid state regulator/rectifier fitted to. Why do people use 40 year old wiring then complain it fails??)
 
ntst8 said:
. The clamping force of the 70ft.lb torque on the rotor nut .
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As am missing in the garage i decided to check this as i read it as 80ft.lb.

In my manual which has part number 065146. In section A at the front under torque settings it says rotor nut 80ft.lb. The only 70ft.lb i can find is the clutch to mainshaft nut and as has been said many times that figure is a miss print.
 
The only 70ft.lb i can find is the clutch to mainshaft nut and as has been said many times that figure is a miss print.
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my understanding is that the 70ft lb torque setting may be too much so that it can shear the circlip behind

so what IS the current consensus recommended torque for the mainshaft nut, I have mine and Tompros' set at 65 as a good compromise figure...
 
toppy said:
In my manual which has part number 065146. In section A at the front under torque settings it says rotor nut 80ft.lb. The only 70ft.lb i can find is the clutch to mainshaft nut and as has been said many times that figure is a miss print.
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The reference to 70 ft.lb. is in the Alton instructions, not the factory manual (nothing to do with the gearbox mainshaft nut torque):

http://www.alton-france.com/wa_files/eKitNortonBd.pdf

Step 17

Secure the rotor nut

Loctite the rotor nut in place. Lock the crankshaft in place with the plastic chock and tighten the rotor nut using a torque wrench to a minimum of 65 to 70 lbs-ft (95N.m 9.5 kgm). This is really important. Failure to use Loctite and the proper torque settings will likely result in the nut backing off and creating a major failure.
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pete.v said:
I have heard belt drive application/versions coming from Holland but details are scant and seem to be more like a rumor.

It's no rumour.
I'm in the process of installing an Alton kit from Holland. The UK suppliers weren't happy about me having a Maney belt drive (and were out of stock anyway), so I contacted Alton. They recommended Holland Norton Works http://www.hollandnortonworks.eu/?page=7&lang=EN because the owner, Constant Trossell, has more experience than any of their other suppliers fitting Alton kits with a Maney set up.
It took several months for it to arrive because Alton had to make a new batch of kits, but I saved quite a bit because of the strength of the pound against the euro.
I've had to make a lot of modifications to my Commando and the Alton inner primary cover to get everything to fit, but Constant has been incredibly helpful at every stage. I've never experienced such good customer service before, certainly not from UK suppliers.
I'd recommend anyone thinking of fitting an Alton starter to buy it from a supplier who has experience with their particular primary drive set up, and who is willing to help if (when) problems arise.
Commandos vary quite a bit, it seems, and mine more than most. Constant had seen most of the problems I encountered, but not all on one bike. He puts this down to Nortons not being made to modern tolerances, and the wear and tear they've suffered over 40-odd years. But at least one of my problems was down to Alton: their machining hadn't allowed for the radiusing of the crankcase boss, so the inner cover wouldn't fit flush when the three screws were tightened. I could get a 0.025" feeler gauge into the joint. Filing a chamfer around the large aperture was an easy fix.
The Z-plate curve and the bottom of the battery tray bracket had to be filed away to allow clearance for the top rear of the inner case.
The three screw holes had to be opened out because they didn't line up with the threads in the crankcase.
The engine plate hole for the centre stud had to be filed oval to make it line up.
The rear of the inner case contacted the swinging arm pivot and had to be ground away to make a recess.
The chainguard part of the cover above the gearbox sprocket fouled on the rear isolastic mount and had to be shortened.
The keyway in the rotor was shallower than in the Lucas rotor, so the Woodruff key had to be filed down.

I haven't quite finished the installation, so there may be more problems to solve. The alternator stator mounting plate will need spacing out to give clearance for the starter chain, so I'm waiting for Alton to send the shim kit they supply for the Maney drive.

I didn't expect to have to do so much, to be honest.
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