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Search results

  1. bwringer

    New fuel tank without keys to open it.

    Probably not. But, these are VERY simple wafer locks, and not very hard to rake or jiggle open. It's been a while, but I believe GS ignition locks have five wafers, and the gas and helmet locks only use three. Once open, you can take the lock cylinder out of the gas cap, and by a combination...
  2. bwringer

    850 head bolt tension

    Yes, that is the correct torque figure. On air cooled engines, the head studs are very long and designed to be slightly elastic so that they can stretch without deforming as the cylinders and head expand and contract with temperature. As far as the slider, it's very common to find that the cam...
  3. bwringer

    Triumph Speed 400 and Scrambler 400 - Thoughts?

    Agreed on all points, Bob, especially the blue. You're going for the Street, I assume?
  4. bwringer

    Which New Tires For 83 GS850?

    It's... murky. The Avon Tyre factory in England is set to close by the end of 2023, or may already be closed. Last time I bought a set of made in England Avon motorcycle tyres (for my FJ-09), in 2021, both turned out to be defective. I only found out later that the factory was closing. Make...
  5. bwringer

    Which New Tires For 83 GS850?

    Do you have a 1983 GS850GL or GS850G? The rear wheels are different diameters. Since they're recommending cruiser tires, I'm guessing you have a GL, which has a 16" rear. (The G has a 17" rear wheel, and there are fewer tire options.) Anyhoo, the proper sizes for an '83 850GL are 100/90-19...
  6. bwringer

    Brake pad advice

    Agreed... whatever the vehicle, pay very close attention to brake pad fitment. If you need to do much fettling.... reconsider. Low quality in the parts you can see will certainly also mean low quality in the compounding as well. I've tried cheaper pads (why, O why, do motorcycle brake pads...
  7. bwringer

    1982 Suzuki GS300L Cam Timing Diagram?

    Yup, first link in the service manuals: https://gsarchive.bwringer.com/ Pages 112-114: https://gsarchive.bwringer.com/mtsac/~cliff/storage/gs/GS250T-300LZ_manual-82.pdf
  8. bwringer

    Cold Compression 1982 Suzuki GS300L

    Depending on where the engine happened to be when it was shut off last, removing the tensioner absolutely can and will allow one or both camshafts to skip time. That "faint kapwing" noise I mentioned earlier... Cam chain tension will also vary quite a bit depending on where the engine is in the...
  9. bwringer

    Cold Compression 1982 Suzuki GS300L

    You have enough compression to start, so there's little point to chasing that rabbit much further down its hole right now. As stated above, it's quite common for rings to get sticky when an engine sits for a long time, and it's also quite common for this to clear up pretty quickly once you get...
  10. bwringer

    Carb Cleaning Vs Rebuild

    It's been something like 10 to 15 years since I've seen the inside of my GS850's carbs. Ride the thing once in a while and the carbs will be fine pretty much indefinitely. Ignore it for three or four weeks in warm weather, a little longer if it's cool, and they'll gum up and you're back to...
  11. bwringer

    The Voyager has landed!

    I love this whole crazy project, and can't wait to see it up close. It actually looks like there's not much of a "project" there, honestly. You'll have to ration out the few tasks needed so you can get through the winter sane.
  12. bwringer

    Let's talk about cam walk, baby...

    One of the inspirations for making the video was the accidental discovery that idling hot on the side stand made the noise very consistently. I've literally never done that before, but after warming it up in the garage, I backed the bike out and left it running while I got off the bike in order...
  13. bwringer

    Rockauto Discount Codes

    Thanks, Dan -- it worked today, November 5.
  14. bwringer

    Let's talk about cam walk, baby...

    As I understand it, based on, er, 20 years (crikey, have I really been hanging around here that long?) of imperfect memory, this is a lot more prevalent on the earlier engines. On the GS850, it seems to be a thing that primarily affects the 79-81 models. My 1983 GS850G is wearing an earlier...
  15. bwringer

    Gs850g

    ​ Agreed. Nothing at all wrong with that, you just have to be aware of what's what when your maintaining and repairing it. I think the proper term for your bike is "bitsa". Bitsa this, bitsa that... ​ The badges are interesting. In the US at least, the 1979 side covers were wearing a "GS850"...
  16. bwringer

    Let's talk about cam walk, baby...

    The camshaft ends are nowhere near the plugs, even when the plugs are flipped around. They're a few mm away. Still, that points to a possible solution; make some aluminum or brass cam end caps thick enough to reach the camshafts, then remove material to suit the individual bike. You can shove...
  17. bwringer

    Let's talk about cam walk, baby...

    Yeah, controlling it from one or both ends really seemed like it could work well. I don't remember seeing any parts, but I'd love to see some less invasive method of managing cam end float. I'd buy a kit, but I'm not really interested in taking the engine apart again and having the machining done.
  18. bwringer

    Let's talk about cam walk, baby...

    FYI, another name for this, and more accurate, is "cam end float". This is a document prepared by forum member Ian Grant (49er) back in 2007 documenting the sources of the issue and the machine shop work required to manage cam end float and eliminate the noise...
  19. bwringer

    Let's talk about cam walk, baby...

    This hasn't come up for a while, but I thought I'd start a discussion. The video below is my 1983 GS850G, but the engine is actually from a 1980 or 1981 model. Long story, but this is the engine that's been in my bike for about 40,000 - 50,000 miles. Anyway, these engines are known to...
  20. bwringer

    Cu head gasket

    Over on ADVrider.com, I've seen several similar experiments in 3D printing intake boots and other unobtanium rubber bits. Some seem to be holding up quite well in service. As this gets figured out, it's going to revolutionize vintage motorcycling. If you think getting rubber bits for an old...
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