An outboard motor has a quieter operating recoil starter arrangement. The recoil starter has a starter drum with a dog clutch arrangement having two dog cam members. The dog cam members rotate between an initial position and an extended position under the influence of a clutch drive member. Specifically, the dog cams each have a portion which engages a starter pulley when a starter rope is pulled. The dog cams are configured to extend minimally into a corresponding slot of the starter pulley when in their extended position. Such configuration results in less chatter when the starter pulley speed exceeds the starter drum speed upon ignition of the engine.