Yeah it won't harm the engine... however you need a pretty stout starter to do it that way. I found with my 90SP that even a high-torque starter wouldn't turn it over from the front! I borrowed a fellow club member's starter that was on a 24 volt battery system and that did the trick.
But anyhows I ended up buying a Magnum high-torque starter and clamping the start wand to it and using it from behind. On the plus side, don't have to worry about accidentally burning the spinner with the starter if it slips.
HobbyBarn.com sells the RCV start wand for around $9 US seperately if you need it. RCV needs to design a better start wand though, something with a 1-way bearing in it so it won't back-out the starter bolt on the engine when the engine fires up. [&:]
Regards!
- Michael