GS550L to Cafe Build

[loud et]

Hours and hours on one little peice. Labor of love. lol
Following your thread, I really like the Yamaha tank on that bike.
This is gonna be a looker....keep the pics comin

 

[Toasty]

I still want to use the Yamaha tank, but it's gonna take wayy more fabrication then I first thought. Pretty much nothing on the frame lines up at all so I'm gonna have to make and weld in front and rear mounts for it, plus make clearance in the front for the top triple. So until I get a welder and better fabricating skills Im gonna go with an easier tank to mount.

I put on the clip ons and the 650E tank I got and wheeled her out front.

I wanted to make a bracket for my Acewell, I was toying with the idea of putting the gear indicator lights on it.

Cut away, the red 1-2-3-4-5-6 inlay sits on top of that

The lights themselves

There wasn't any room to mount it with the plastic housing so the first bracket I made I made a window for the bulbs to poke through. It ended up looking like ass so I made another mount and left that out. I'll find somewhere to use it, when I put a half fairing on it I'll probably stick it some where on that. I know the bottom is crooked, it was too long and hitting the steering lock. I'll file it down straight later.

The aluminum controls and levers got hit with the big wire wheel. I was thinking of buying a new pair but all I can find is Emgo ones and they aren't nearly as quality as the stock units. Once the old paint and yellowed clearcoat got taken off they looked pretty good. The semi shiny machine brushed look is nice I think. The Tomaselli grips are on there too.

I don't have the clip ons angled way down and back because it's so much more comfortable this way.

 

[Toasty]

I couldn't sleep so I did a photoshop mockup of the bike.

So I really want to paint the bike Battleship Grey, like this

Battleship grey tank, gloss black tail for something a little different.

Or just battleship grey for the tank and seat

And what's a cafe racer without some extra power?

I found a decent deal on a complete GS650G engine, it's getting crated to me as I speak.

 

[Toasty]

Man I really want a fairing...

I wont have much time to work on the bike this weekend, so I've been doing stuff in my head

 

[Toasty]

Yea I know, the engine its self was really cheap. The guy would've charged to disassemble and overall I wouldn't have saved that much money, I can take some parts off the 650 block if I need and I can sell the left overs for a little bit too.

 

[Toasty]

 

[Toasty]

It got shipped via Fedex, it took about a week and on the bill it was like $119 for shipping. I got charged extra for "handling" but eh, it's a PITA to move and I probably would have done the same.

 

[Toasty]

Btw does anyone have any tips for splitting the cases? I have all the bolts out and the damn thing is just fighting me. I got the rear left (output shaft side) slightly separated but it's freaking glued shut, especially in the front.

 

[Toasty]

Finally a workspace! Got both engines on the table and I'm going to be taking the 550 down, we'll see how far I get tonight.

 

[Toasty]

I took it down to the block and removed the pistons. The cases are still giving me trouble, I have it loosened in the back but its glued shut in the front.

 

[loud et]

IIRC there may be a long bolt or two inside the oil pan holding the halves together. You seem on top of things, but just a reminder. (that is if I am even correct on this)

 

[boontonmike]

Great photo of the 650 and 550 side by side. Really helps you see the size difference.

 

[tkent02]

Great photo of the 650 and 550 side by side. Really helps you see the size difference.

Except in reality they are the same size.

 

[Toasty]

I think the block/tranny on the 650G is bigger, I can definitely tell you it's at least 15-20 pounds heavier. I picked up the complete 550 engine and put it on the table but I had to get help with the 650. There are some exterior differences on the two heads but I think the difference in block size makes it look larger.

IIRC there may be a long bolt or two inside the oil pan holding the halves together. You seem on top of things, but just a reminder. (that is if I am even correct on this)

I have all the numbered bolts on the bottom removed, the two bolts on the side with the clutch rod and output shaft removed and the bolts inside the oil pan. Maybe I'm missing something but I swear I've looked it over a few times and it all seems good to go.

edit: Oh and I got the one random bolt on top near the oil sensor too.

 

[Toasty]

btw I have this coming in tomorrow

 

[tkent02]

I think the block/tranny on the 650G is bigger, I can definitely tell you it's at least 15-20 pounds heavier.

The 650 G has a complete driveshaft drive system, that's probably most of the weight difference.

The valve covers fit each other.
The cylinders do too, the cylinders and heads are the same height. There may be slightly more cooling fins on the 650? Can't tell without measuring. The 550 transmission area is longer as it has space for the kickstart stuff.
Overall just about the same size.

 

[boontonmike]

The 650 G has a complete driveshaft drive system, that's probably most of the weight difference.

The valve covers fit each other.
The cylinders do too, the cylinders and heads are the same height. There may be slightly more cooling fins on the 650? Can't tell without measuring. The 550 transmission area is longer as it has space for the kickstart stuff.
Overall just about the same size.

I guess I should have been more clear. I was refering to the size of the barrels / fins. You can clearly see how much larger you are going.

 

[Toasty]

Man I hate this thing I really do. I had to stop for the night before I just smashed the damn thing open with a sledgehammer. Every bolt is out and I swear it does NOT want to come apart no matter what I do.

This bastard in the front is seized on there solid, I'm 100% sure there's one of those steel inserts and it is basically welded together.

I have some separation in the back and up to the front on the left side. The front and front right just won't budge.

It isn't supposed to be this difficult, I don't know where to go from here. My arm is sore from using the rubber mallet.

btw does this look stock? It's the base gasket.

 

[Toasty]

Got the cases split tonight.

I test fit the kick start assembly, I think it's right. Is it supposed to engage and disengage the gears?

I'll look at it more later, I had a victory drink (some good whiskey) and I'm gonna get some sleep. This weekend is cleaning and tearing down the 650 engine. Maybe if I have time I'll start mocking up the rear sets.

 

[Toasty]

I started disassembling the 650 engine this morning.

Pretty drastic difference in size between the 650 and 550 pistons.