My 1998 Recon 250 will sometimes not start with the starter. I have checked the battery and it seems full charged. I pull start it and it runs ok. When the starter does not work there is a clicking sound behind the battery. Any ideas??

 

Very common when the starter brushes are worn down, but also can be flat battery, loose leads or faulty solenoid. Charge the battery up and check the terminals are tight, including earth onto engine. If that doesn't cure it, get a 12v test lamp and put it between the earth post on battery and the live wire to starter motor, either end is OK. Switch on, press start button, if the lamp lights but starter doesn't work, faulty starter motor, if the solenoid clicks but the lamp doesn't light, faulty solenoid.

 

New starters are pretty cheap on ebay and amazon. They have a lot of aftermarket replacements that cost a lot less than the oem Honda starter and work just as well. 20 years is a long time for an oem starter to last if its never been replaced. I just looked and saw a couple under $40 for that model on Amazon. Like this starter and solenoid combo

 

Not saying this of all of them, but our aftermarket supplier has recently been selling crap. They work, but coms burn and don't last 1/4 as long as Mitsuba. Starters are fairly easy to strip, and if it is just brushes, I would fit a new set, blow the dust out and emery the com. Just re-done a 300 with "new brushes 30/7/07" written on it, and it only needed brushes again.

 

Db Electrical has a pretty good reputation, they sell a lot of starters on ebay and amazon.