Correct me if I’m wrong. While cranking the starter, the wire to the solenoid supplies 12V. The R terminal also sees 12V during cranking because of an internal connection within the starter from the solenoid to the R terminal. Once the key switch goes to RUN, the S terminal goes to 0 volts and the resistor wire circuit supplies the only current to the R terminal.
I think you are correct in the case of a key start. Same idea with my foot start, but the full 12v only comes into play when your foot is on the button.
