Complete and utter failure

[Utahclaimjumper]

  Yes the GMs have a relay in the electrical bay behind the right rear wheel,, but it's part of the problem as the voltage drop burns the relay points as well.>>>Dan

[bevans6]

Relay control coils draw very little current hence virtually zero voltage drop.  That's kind of the point of having a relay.  The voltage that the relay controls with it's points probably comes from a bus bar about 6" from the relay, again to minimize any voltage drop.  The current that the actual starter solenoid draws isn't that much either, and voltage drop to it can be managed with an appropriate wire gauge for the current load.  Which is not to say that a 50 or 60 year old relay might not have various issues, burnt points or otherwise...

[luvrbus]

It has been years since I have used the copper contact solenoid on a Delco starter  I buy the silver contact solenoids for around 60 bucks.
I am looking to find the amps to engage the solenoid I know it is under 10 amps because my remote starter button has a 10 amp fuse that has never blown in 20 years of use   

[eagle19952]

Some of you may recall I have a GMPD4106 with a starting problem.Cold it starts very well but once warmed up won't even turn over. Its like trying to start with dead batteries, I have bought new batteries, changed cabling(going direct from batteries to starter) had the starter rebuilt,all to no avail. So I decided to get a different starter and tried it today. Same result. The only difference is that the "new" (to me) starter wants to continue to run after the engine starts thus adding further insult to injury. Anyone want to buy a bus cheap!!

seriously bad ground somewhere....battery to chassis ? starter to frame ? start adding jumper cables...to eliminate the cause. remove one at a time to confirm

[bevans6]

I would check grounds, too.  My starter has a dedicated cable direct to a 1/2" bolt welded to the chassis.  The positive lead comes direct from the 4/0 cable termination on the firewall that runs up to the batteries, and is a 4/0 cable itself.  My alternator has a separate ground connection to the chassis from it's frame, and the engine block is grounded through that cable for sensors and such.  Nothing else electrical is actually on my engine except for the jake brakes.

[Fred Mc]

" I take it you didn't have the starter checked a shop can test the winding on a solenoid"
Actually ,I did take it to a rebuilder  a couple of days ago before I put the starter in  just to make sure it worked and spun the right direction, which it did.

As far as grounds are concerned I have 2 ground cables going directly from the starter to the batteries as well as a ground strap from the starter to the engine so I THINK the grounding is OK.

I REALLY appreciate the comments and suggestions. I have been fighting this for a long time and it can really be frustrating.

Regards

Fred

[Iceni John]

When I relocated my start batteries so they're now just a few feet from the starter, I made new 4/0 cables for all the positives and negatives between the batteries, their cutoff switch and the starter.   I also replaced all three Cole-Hersee constant-duty solenoids, even though the old ones were still working just fine.   I just want to be sure that there's nothing old or questionable at all between the ignition keyswitch and the starter.   Considering that my bus is much less old and with far fewer miles than most on this forum, I still think it's cheap insurance to completely replace every cable and connection related to the starter.   If in doubt, replace it!

John

[Fred Mc]

Some of you may recall I have a GMPD4106 with a starting problem.Cold it starts very well but once warmed up won't even turn over. Its like trying to start with dead batteries, I have bought new batteries, changed cabling(going direct from batteries to starter) had the starter rebuilt,all to no avail. So I decided to get a different starter and tried it today. Same result. The only difference is that the "new" (to me) starter wants to continue to run after the engine starts thus adding further insult to injury. Anyone want to buy a bus cheap!!