Motorcycle Repair: starting the motor, clutch unit, starter solenoid

Question
QUESTION: Went to start the bike for the first time [1985 fxrs,evo] this year and the motor just whins real loud. HD starter only 1 yr old so I pulled primary cover off and was watching fork pull in and the pinion gear just stalling on main gear. Went ahead and bought new solenoid, thinking maybe it was not pulling the fork in hard enough or far enough. But new solenoid and same problem. Pulled the starter and done bench test on starter described in the service manual and all checks good. Voltages on motorcycle test good. Is the HD starter junk or is that pinion gear clutch unit shot? Parts are to expensive to keep guessing. Thanks for your time  Russ

ANSWER: When you say the pinion gear is stalling on the main gear, are you refering to the starter drive gear just not turning the gear on the clutch or is it spinning and not turning it?
Mike

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: They call it a pinion gear in the manual but yes it is the starter gear bendix unit that shoots out there to engage the main gear on clutch housing. As soon as it meshes teeth the starter gear stops and the starter motor is still trying to crank.I put a wrench on the front shaft in the primary and made sure that i could turn the motor over by hand so their is no extra drag on any thing.

Answer
First, make sure the battery is good and fully charged. Check the battery cables, on both ends. If they are dirty, expecially the ground cable or the grounding point, it will not turn over. At the small post on the starter solenoid, check for 12 volts when you hit the starter button. If you dont, you have a weak starter relay
Good luck and happy riding
Mike