Headlight, hammerfist, clicking oh my (Page 1/1)
Squall86GT OCT 30, 01:32 PM
Hey so all of a sudden the passenger side headlight would not go up anymore. Doing the Hammerfest technique on top of the motor bolt does then make it want to go up. If I put it back down most of the time it will then not go back up again unless you Hammerfist it.

Someone in another thread mentioned that it’s because there’s some kind of rubber seal that falls out from the top of the motor down and gets wedge somewhere. I’m looking all around and I don’t see anything like that. However this particular headlight motor does not have the Or dial on top of the motor like the other side does.

Also even when they are both up and lights are on there is this continual intermittent clicking like the relays are still trying to do some thing. Is that normal?

Here is a quick video of what it’s doing:

https://youtu.be/9YRKPjAZxAA

So I guess the questions are - what should I look at next with this rubber seal/having to hammerfist it to make it work situation?
Why did the relays seemingly keep clicking?
And does anybody know who sells those little plastic dials that go on top of the motors?
Thanks
fierofool OCT 30, 01:58 PM
The knob was never available as a separate piece. It's cast onto the motor shaft.

The rubber seal can only cause a problem if it was left on top of the case when the motor is disassembled.

Your gear bumpstops have probably crumbled. Time for a Rodney Dickman metal gear kit.
fierofool OCT 30, 05:43 PM
If the motor is ticking, it would be a good idea to leave the headlight up and disconnect the single wire until you can do a repair or replacement to prevent it from overheating.
Squall86GT NOV 02, 11:44 AM
I checked the motor a few days ago and it is not hot and it does not seem like it’s the motor that’s taking but rather a relay. It sounds like a relay is trying to come on to maybe get the motor to work because it hasn’t hit the top up position yet? Does that sound right?
fierofool NOV 02, 01:40 PM
When they tick, the motor knob will often twitch. That's caused by the pointset in the limiter switch or the thermal switch in the pointset. More likely the thermal switch. This is because the motor didn't generate enough torque to open the points and power is still being applied to the motor. The thermal switch will momentarily open the circuit to prevent a continuous 'short' so to speak. It can still overheat. You can place your finger on the motor relay and if it's what's ticking, you will feel it. You can confirm a bad motor relay by swapping them side to side. If it's bad, the problem will go with the relay and the other motor will display the same symptoms. If the problem stays with the original motor, then the issue is inside.

I suggest removing the motor and then remove the small cover on the side of the motor. Don't go beyond this point at this time. Just look inside to see if both brushes are on the limiter switch spring arms. They can lose 1 brush and still run, but not generate the required torque to open the points.

I also suggest that you leave the single wire disconnected. The thermal switch can eventally fail and cause the motor to catch fire. At a minimum, it will kill the battery.

[This message has been edited by fierofool (edited 11-02-2020).]

fierofool NOV 13, 09:49 AM
Any resolution to your problem?