The Troubles of My Motor

While I was making my motor, I ran into some problems. My electromagnet and my armature were very strong, but I had a lot of trouble with the copper plating and the brushes. There were different things each time; one time it was the gaps between the copper plating were to big or another time was that I had to use steel wool to rub off the copper plating and the brushes to get rid of all the enamel. I also had to reposition the brushes many, many times (they kept getting caught onto the copper plating). But, when I finally got it to go, I felt great. It was the best feeling in the world..........then, there was a big spark and it didn't work any more. I thought the copper wire was too burnt and changed it to tinfoil, but that didn't work so well so I had to change it back. And after a few more readjustments the following morning, I got it to work consistently again and once again, I felt like I was on top of the world (that's an exaggeration).