Wanted to cut a paving slab in the garden, so got out the Makita 9" disc cutter, which hasn't been used for at least 2 years. It ran for 10 seconds, then stopped. Bugger!
Dismantled it, and cleaned out the brush holders which had corroded a bit (it had been stored in a wet shed, albeit in its nice plastic box). They were preventing the brushes from being sprung onto the commutator. Gave it a good clean out inside, and reassembled, and lo and behold, it works beautifully. Satisfying, considering the mortality rate of power tools since we've moved. In the first 3 months here, we lost a hedge trimmer, a circular saw, a leaf blower, and something else I forget. I did not want the same to happen to my little used disc cutter, and thankfully, it hasn't.