John Kunkel wrote:
: I've always assumed they were there to prevent the volotage induced by the
: collapsing magnetic field around the solenoid from spiking the electrical
: system.

I don't think so for two reasons:
1. The starter operating would require the master solenoid to be closed, so the
diode/resistor pair is shorted out and not a factor.
2. The direction of the diode is the wrong way to be a path for flyback current in the
starter solenoid.

Assuming the master solenoid stays closed, the battery should do a pretty good
job of absorbing voltage transients from the starter.

Good theory though.... I'm sure there are some setups where it's set up that
way... I just don't think this is one of them.

-Cory


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* Cory Papenfuss *
* Electrical Engineering candidate Ph.D. graduate student *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
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