car doesn't like to start when it's cold (in the mornings)...

but the battery reads 12 or more volts with a multimeter

and the connections seem good because from the terminal on the starter to the alternator housing i still get 12 volts

in the middle of the day (when warmer) it doesnt seem to have a problem and reads over 14 volts when running indicating that the battery is charging

but why in the morning does it turn over so slow and dash lights etc dim like there is no power? (i've had to take the train to work....and worse drive the girls beep beep barina)

last weekend i drained the battery trying to start the car and charged it with a portable charger. draining it and charging it may have damaged the battery and for some reason it struggles under load in the cold???

since draining the battery i have rebuilt the carby so it actually starts very easily if it turns over a few times nicely

It is possible that you damaged the battery when it was completely run down. Try another battery, from another car, to see if it is actually the battery. If not, you may want to have a look at your starter, they tend to wear out over time, and starts to "drag". So in the morning when the engine is cold, the problem is amplified, and the starter struggles even more to turn the engine over.

a New set of bushes and brushes normally cures the problem.

It's really not to difficult to refurbish a starter yourself. Buy the kit with the brushes and bushes at a parts shop. Take apart, fit new parts and assemble, you're set. I think the worst part is the soldering of the new brushes.

One thing to look out for, these bushes are normally made out of Oilite. Oilite is a porous bronze material. Sometimes these bushes comes pre-lubricated. However, if they seem dry, it's quite easy to lubricate them yourself. What you do is to balance one open end on top of your finger, fill the hole up with any engine oil you have handy. The oil should almost stand out above the edge of the open end. Then close the open end with one of your other fingers, and press down hard. You'll soon see the oil coming through the bearing. This is all you do, and is the only oil it will need for the life of the bearing.

Don't, whatever you do, put grease on those bearings, it clogs them up, and they seize very quickly.

G'day Mick, Your batterys cold cranking amps are low and the batterys life is at an end. It doesn't matter how much you charge the battery it won't come good. Most small car batterys are approx 280cca to 350cca and once they deteriorate to below 200cca rating then they really load up on the colder mornings. It is the first sign of a failing battery.

yeah i have the same problem in the cold on the datsun, its the starter, have a similar problem on the suby and its the battery. only reason i know the datsun battery is ok cause it was tested. also its low on cca and something draining datsun battery, if i leave it disconected overnight, it will start first go in morning, no matter how cold. I think wurzel had same problem and used an isolater switch to stop the drain.