Back to the solenoid ! Seems that Bushing`` is not metallic as I thought. It`s ``fiber`` and as such is an insulator to isolate the Buss-Bar from the solenoid plunger shaft that everything mounts on. That justifies the two fiber washers - one on each side of the Buss-Bar. I had no choice at this point but to drill the hole in the new buss-bar to accept the insulating bushing, My original concern regarding the narrow current path on either side of the hole is lessened significantly with the 'new" one being a bit thicker.
As I additionally discovered: The travel distance of the solenoid plunger is relatively short and the clearance between contacts when OPEN and CLOSED turns out to be critical !
I took this for granted when I installed the longer/THICKER Buss-Bar. I had to play a bit with the metal washers/spacers on either side of the Buss-bar. All good again ! The relay is easy enough to remove and disassemble but as I've just suggested; attention to clearances is mandatory. I had mine apart twice before I figured out these details. My suggestion for most would be to clean the stationary contacts and the ORIGINAL Buss-Bar and not be bothered with this Mod. This is dependant on your skills and patience ! With the original contact-parts cleaned and presuming your bike doesn't have to be cranked and cranked and cranked you should get some decent time out of the effort BUT, heat and the spring pressure bends the original buss-bar, significantly reducing the actual contact area. This just exacerbates the condition! If you're on the starter button too long repeatedly, you'll end up taking it apart again. My original issue was aged burnt contacts which required a few blips of the starter button and was clearly going to end up with a no-starter condition. My 1300 usually starts with the first blip of the starter button so with the "new" thicker and full length Buss-bar I'm fairly confident I won't have to deal with this again. I did the mod simply to prove it could be done and last longer between contact cleanings or total replacement. The main objective was to hopefully never have to service the relay again.
If there are any issues subsequent to this repair I'll post them, but for now I say all of this with confidence.
Bottom line: Never assume anything !
