My sister brought her '02 500 Sportsman needing the recoil starter and 12volt starter fixed.
Pulled the recoil assembly off and found that it has an oil leak that seems to be the seal behind the stator.
EVERYTHING is caked with it so thick it's like clay.
My question is, What would be safe to clean the stator and everything else with?
Would brake cleaner be strong enough to cut it but not destroy the windings of the stator?
The caking is so bad that the stator and inside of the flywheel was solid. No gap! Poor machine.
Thanks for reading.
Brian
Palatka,FL

 

If you want to be sure not to harm the windings or their coatings I would use electrical contact cleaner (solvent) which is very highly evaporative, should cut grease and is for electrical stuff. You might need to dab at it with ano ld soft bristled paint brush along with the cleaner. Don't use a paint brush with plastic bristles - they'll melt.

One thing I wouldn't do is try to scrub it until clean like new - just clean it up some should do fine.