How to replace a broken rope in your recoil the easy way!

Simply remove recoil from engine/sled, now get a pic tool out and flip the recoil over, you will notice the rope knot sticking thru the pulley. Using the pick tool simply pull the knot from the pulley and pull out the old rope, discard the old rope. Take your new rope and tie a knot on the end of it, heat the knot up slightly with a burnzamatic torch to keep it from slipping. Heres what makes this so simple, now that the rope has broken all the twist or recoil pull is out of the spring, so you simply grasp the pulley and spin it in the same direction the rope comes out, turn the pulley a good 5 times, complete 360 degree circles, this preloads the spring so it will pull the rope back in. Now grasp the pulley to keep it from spinning back( I use a small welding clamp and gently clamp the pulley to the housing, making sure I align the holes up with outer housing) and insert the rope to the recoil pulley knot hole and align the pulley up so the rope will come out the hole in the recoil housing, pull the rope till the knot seats in the pulley hole. Gently remove the clamp while holding on the end of the rope. Let the string recoil back into the housing keeping a good grasp on the end of it, if you wanna play it safe tie a knot in it near the handle end and check the recoil action when you pull the rope in and out, if its not retracting the rope all the way you need more spring tension, simply remove rope in reverse order and spin the pulley back a couple more times then before. There is no need to ever remove the pulley/spring from the recoil unless the spring is broken or the pulley is broken!
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I did mine the hard way and flipped out at the same time.I even think I had tears running down my face.I could of killed that night,anything or anyone who would of walked thru my garage door,would of put that damn spring around their throat.I can handle major repairs and things,but it is the small things,the minor stuff that I will blow apart on.Have to watch my temper,one time my heart started racing and I thought I was having a heart attack.My wife tells me to cool it or I will have one.It comes with old age I guess.

bluemonster1 said:

I did mine the hard way and flipped out at the same time.I even think I had tears running down my face.I could of killed that night,anything or anyone who would of walked thru my garage door,would of put that damn spring around their throat.I can handle major repairs and things,but it is the small things,the minor stuff that I will blow apart on.Have to watch my temper,one time my heart started racing and I thought I was having a heart attack.My wife tells me to cool it or I will have one.It comes with old age I guess.

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LOL yea those springs can be a real blast. This is a good method and works awesome when you dont have problems with something else in the recoil. If you do happen to pull the pulley and spring for service or if something broke, make SURE you put some loc-tite back on that post/nut or the nut will come off and destroy the post, not to mention the recoil pawl will fall out and the recoil won't work anymore. Starting them off the clutch all weekend isn't very fun.

Here's the easiest way I've found to wrap up a recoil spring:

1. Pound a nail into your workbench.
2. Hook one side of spring onto the nail, now wrap the spring as tight as it needs to be.
3. Lock the spring in place with a needle nose vise-grip.
4. Install spring where it needs to be.
5. Release vise-grip lock.
6. DONE!

The simple way is to have somone do it for you.

you said it nightmanx1.Ain't it the truth.

There is an easier way. You do not have to preload the spring and clamp it.

First heat each end of the rope with a flame and squeeze and shape the ends to a taper with a pliers. Insert one end through the recoil rope hole from outside the housing and feed it to the knot cavity in the pulley. Pull it out of the pulley slot with a needle nose and tie a knot in it and pull the rope from outside of the recoil to seat the knot. Then from the INSIDE of the hole in the recoil housing, grab the rope with the needle nose and pull the entire rope through the housing hole. Now grab the rope near the pulley and wind the pulley a few times around counter clockwise (the rope will turn between the pulley and the housing - there may be a notch in the pulley for this purpose. The housing will not turn and the pulley will) until the rope lines back up at the space where the hole is. Then release some of the tension on the rope while letting the spring pull the rope onto the pulley. Repeat the winding/recoiling process until all the rope is on the pulley. Then wind the rope 2 or 3 times more for tension and put the end through the housing hole and pull it through. Tie a temporary knot to hold it.

It may seem a little complicated and maybe I didn't describe it very well, but it really is quick and simple. Takes about a minute.

[Edit: The rope can also be inserted into the pulley through the knot cavity. Have it lined up with the housing guide hole and when the rope appears there, pull it between the pulley and housing. Depending on the particular type of recoil, that may be easier. With the Yamaha's I normally work on, I find it easier to insert the rope through the housing and into the pulley.]


If you need to put a spring into a housing:
Secure the outside end of the spring into/onto the slot or peg of the housing (make sure it is in the right direction). Hold the housing with one hand and hold the spring end into place with your thumb. Now feed the spring into place in the housing with your other hand and slightly lift your thumb when the spring gets to that point each revolution.
Wear gloves and safety glasses and be cautious.

A video of this would make it much more clear, unfortunately I do not have that capability.