Motorcycle Repair: kickstarter, shaft gears, xr500

Question
I have a 1979 xr500, the problem is the kickstsrter will not catch on the gear inside the engine, I took off the right side cover and could not find any problem. it just seems like the teeth will not catch and crank the engine. i would like to know if you could tell me how bad a problem this is and if i could fix it myself

Answer
Bryan, you are probably looking having to take the engine apart and split the cases.  There is a gear that rides on a spiral grooved shaft that cams the gear into one of the main shaft gears when you  move the lever.  The teeth on the gear may be worn or some may be sheared off.

Regards
Rich