83 to 82 GS550L front wheel swap

[BillGS550LZ]

Hello everyone,

I would appreciate your opinion and suggestions regarding a front wheel swap. My ride has a 19" front and 16" rear wheel. I don't like the chopper look and been researching possibilities. The 1983 GS550L, mine is 1982, came with a 16" wheel in the front that I think may fit mine. I would like to know in your experience:

A) Is this a good swap?
B) Any suggestions on what other year/models would work without needed mods or fabrication?
C) The 83 front wheel swap would drop the front end of my bike about 1.5". The forks are a bit flimsy IMO. Will it be safe under hard brake?

Thank you in advance for any input/insight you care to give.

 

[BillGS550LZ]

83 to 82 GS550L front wheel swap. Help

83 to 82 GS550L front wheel swap. Help

Hello, I think I posted to the right forum if not kindly please redirect me. Perhaps this questions have come up before, if so again please redirect me. I've been searching the entire forum for clues but found nothing specific to my bike.

Thank you for the help.

 

[Steve]

Oh, you are in the right forum, but you would be better off selling your bike and getting another one if you don't like the "chopper look".

By installing a 16" wheel on the front, you will severely upset the steering geometry and the stability of the bike.



.

 

[BillGS550LZ]

83 to 82 GS550L front wheel swap. Help

83 to 82 GS550L front wheel swap. Help

Thank you Steve. Yes rake, trail, stability. I resurrected this beast from the dead and another bike is not in my future, at least not until I finish this one.

I've seen other similar bikes where the 3Ts have been dropped 1+ inches down the forks. Isn't this in affect, with regards to Rake and trail, the same as dropping by use of a smaller wheel? Do you know anyone here who may have attempted/done this?

Thanks again

 

[Big Rich]

I'm not familiar with any of the 550's, so take my advice with a grain of salt.....

Instead of the 16" front, could you go with a GN400 front wheel? The GN uses the older "Snowflake" mag, is 18" diameter, and only has a single rotor mount. And with a little research you could probably swap out your rear wheel with something in the 17" or 18" range.

 

[BillGS550LZ]

Thank you Big Rich your suggestion is great, I will do more research on the GN series parts list. A parts application database would make life so much simpler for all of us. Oh well.

17 or 18 front may work as well as 17 or 18 rear. My current setup is F:19x1.85, R:16x2.75. I would like a slightly wider front and 83 GS comes with 16x2.15 which I think would let me slip on 110/90 shoes versus the 100/90 I have now.

I know in 30+ years there's got to be someone out there who may have tried the 83 swap and has some tried and true experience with the setup to share.

I've attached a pic of my ride looks like now, I hope it shows up. Work in progress...

 

[Big Rich]

Have you considered using spoke wheels instead of mags? The early GT 2 strokes had drum brakes in the rear with 17mm axles (along with the GS400 and GR650), so a replacement hub could be found to fit I'm sure. And the front wheel is extremely easy to swap for spokes.

 

[BillGS550LZ]

I've consider spokes but got lots of research to do to know what parts, year, model, would fit. I'm working out of my garage, don't have allot of tools and can't afford extensive fabs.

Today I did some sketching to help me visualize the impact of a small wheel, mag or spoke. My bike's rake and trail I believe are 29 degrees rake and 4.7" trail. A 16" wheel I calculated will result in a 27.5 degree rake and ~3.6" trail. Not horrible if I'm correct. Need to confirm but I think I can counter the rake loss by getting rid of my leading axel forks.

The 83 GS550 has straight forks and I think the 3T may just bolt right up. The 82 and 83 share steering bearings, I just don't know if the stems are the same lengths and if the racers are in the same location on both stems. It's a cool puzzle but it's getting out of control!

Specific information is hard to come by so I'll keep researching and following leads like yours. Mean time I have a motor to assemble and need to order piston rings, seals, bolts and screws, sprockets and chain.

Thanks for the input keepm' coming. Regards