Rebuilding Tip Kohler Brush Pins FROM VONNIE COKE he commutator end housing shown in Figures 1 and 2 was used on several United Technologies starter applications on Kohler engines in the 9-27hp range that were found mostly on both garden tractors and small generators. Lester numbers 5801 and 5802 are two of the more popular starters using this type of housing. As shown in the photos, the plastic brush holder is riveted to the steel housing. There are holes for brush pins, but they are so large that it is almost impossible to use a standard size brush pin to hold all four brushes in place at the same time. I discovered that a 1/8” diameter pop rivet fits tightly into the brush pin holes in this housing (see Figure 1). A long rivet of 1/2” or greater will easily hold the brushes back, leaving your hands free for assembly (see Figure 2). You may have to ream out the brush pin holes slightly with a 1/8” drill bit to allow the rivets to slide in and out easily. This has saved me a lot of time rebuilding these starters. Figure 2—Inside view of comm. end. Page 1