Starter for 941B

It's been a while since I've been around here. Last year everyone helped me out a lot with replacing the seals on the lift arms of my 941B, so thanks again. I've cleared several acres of property since then, though the drought set me back some. Anyway, I'm pretty sure my starter's gone bad now. I'm about to tackle removing it, but the bucket's down from where I parked it last week, so it's going to be a real pain to get to. Before I do that though, I wanted to ask: does anybody have recommendations for a replacement starter? I've seen some posts about aftermarket options, but I'm not sure how good they actually are. My serial number is 80H39771. Thanks!

Finally got the starter out without too much trouble. Turns out it was a Caterpillar remanufactured unit from 1987, which says something about how well they build them. I went ahead and ordered an aftermarket starter since the price was too good to pass up. I'll let you know how it performs once I get it installed and running.

Got the new starter in yesterday. It was pretty close to the original, but the mounting plate and pinion hood casting were clocked differently than what I had. For most machines that listing would be fine, but on my 941B, having the solenoid positioned that way meant it wouldn't fit as-is. Had to pull the mounting plate apart and reposition it, then I checked the pinion hood orientation real carefully to make sure there was clearance with the flywheel. There was clearance, but not much to spare. Figured neither part should shift around in service, so I buttoned it up and got it installed. Working okay for now.

I'm hanging onto the original starter though—planning to rebuild it as a backup. I guess the takeaway is that "one size fits all" really means most fit poorly, so you've got to be ready for some extra labor to make it work. Is it worth the money you save? I'm not so sure. Looking at the quality of those nuts on the terminals, I seriously doubt this new one will last as long as my last rebuild that I got done back in 1987.

Did you count the teeth on the starter drive?

Sounds like in six months we'll hear from Member 1 asking about flywheel ring gears.

Ha, yeah, teeth and rotation were the obvious ones. Amp draw, torque, and speed came next. Does anybody know anything about a kit for the manual primer pump?

Your serial number shows 7 different priming pump part numbers. Can you find the Part Number on your existing pump or post some photos?

Thanks, but I've got a leg out of commission so it'll be a bit before I can get to it.

No problem, we're here when you need us.