My new old GS550L

[jqueen]

So, it has been a couple of years since i had a bike, and I just HAD to get one. I found a 1979 GS550 on Craigslist that the guy said just needed coils. He said it was getting fuel but no spark, and he had tested the coils. So I researched the GS bikes and decided this one would do for me (I like the older midsize cruiser styles - my favorite so far was a 1985 Honda Shadow 500). I have attached the "Before" pic.

So... now that I have looked at it, here is what I will need..Coils (they both do test bad, go figure)

• Tank (not only is the rust bad - it apparently is from another Suzuki, as the mounts are way too wide and don't touch the tank mounts on the bike!)
• Carb rebuild (no way fuel was getting to the bike through all that varnish and whatnot) Still deciding if I want to do it or let somebody else.
• Throttle cable
• seat cover
• Master cylinder (reservoir is busted, and complete unit is cheaper than reservoir)

Wiring seems to still be good, nothing is frozen or stiff, bike is actually relatively clean.. so hopefully only a few weeks from a road-worthy bike. Then I can start making her something to be proud of.

Anyway - just wanted to say HI from a new member. Probably won't turn into a whole 'restore' thread, as I doubt that I'll ever get it pretty and 'like new', but I intend to end up with a bike I can take for at least 200 mile road trips.

 

[Eli69]

i picked up a 550L in much the same shape as yours, maybe even worse, but with a bit of patience, got it looking and running pretty well. 2nd picture below. i got lucky and got a friend to paint the tank and that made all the difference. it's worth it. good luck. oh yeah, even though the wiring looks ok ya might want to clean all contacts and switches. i use dielectric grease on them. it seems to help keep them from corroding and they come apart easier if you need to.

 

[Larry D]

Welcome !!!!

To rebuild your carbs get an o-ring kit from Robert Barr at cycleorings.com

http://www.cycleorings.com/

Then, follow this tutorial.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/images/vm_carb_rebuild.pdf

Since you have a few bikes, I'm guessing you know your way around a toolbox. Looks like you'll have a nice ride after a little work.

 

[Kwest187]

got a tank for ya-

got a tank for ya-

Check the parts for sale thread under kwest187-
I have some links for pics of the tank-
If you want it PM me a reasonable offer
Good luck with your build!

 

[drejal]

I just picked up a 550L last month in very similar shape. Absolutely love it, and the information available here, and on BassCliff's website is phenominal.

I highly recommend the O-ring kit, once ordered he ships QUICKLY!

Being a new owner myself, the best advice I can offer is not to be shocked when a 30 year old component wears out or fails when it is suddenly used again!

 

[jqueen]

Hopefully have tank on the way

Hopefully have tank on the way

Check the parts for sale thread under kwest187-
I have some links for pics of the tank-
If you want it PM me a reasonable offer
Good luck with your build!

I appreciate it, but I found an Ebay one for $50 that I'm waiting on..

 

[Redman]

• Tank (not only is the rust bad - it apparently is from another Suzuki, as the mounts are way too wide and don't touch the tank mounts on the bike!)

I am not certain about on a L but on a G (650G, 850G, 1100G) the front mounts for the tank fit over rubbber cushions mounted on the frame. Wonder if those rubber cushions are missing on yours (they can fall off when tank is off), and if those are missing it makes it seem like the tank does not match the frame mounting.

.

 

[jqueen]

Carbs in progress

Carbs in progress

Decided to give the carbs a shot myself, although I did get a really fair price estimate from Chef. Just want to see if I can be meticulous enough to get it done correctly. I've always said I wanted to be a motorcycle mechanic when I grow up, so here's my practice. Main thing I worry about on the carbs is getting the synced up. Got all 4 torn down, and all but the last has gone through the carb dip - seems to be going really well so far - now just have to wait on the O-rings.

Next worry is dealing with points, but hopefully I can limp along until I can afford to convert to electronic when the points need adjusting.

I'll probably be asking questions later on, but the forum has a LOT of stuff already covered. (I discovered that before buying the bike.. it was kind of a deciding factor)

 

[jqueen]

I am not certain about on a L but on a G (650G, 850G, 1100G) the front mounts for the tank fit over rubbber cushions mounted on the frame. Wonder if those rubber cushions are missing on yours (they can fall off when tank is off), and if those are missing it makes it seem like the tank does not match the frame mounting.

.

No - it is wide enough to completely miss one cushion, and just graze the other. I've had several bikes with this kind of tank, and I couldn't figure out any way (short of extending the shoulders on the tank or the mounts on the frame) of getting the tank to fit.. Good suggestion though - it would be a bad thing if I was trying to use it without the little rubber pieces..

 

[Redman]

GS550LN, item 6.

<<later note. Looks like we were posting at same time.>>

 

[Redman]

Welcome to GSR.

Hopefully your ebay tank fits better.

You like Shadow 500s, .....
http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=133521


.

 

[Steve]

Got all 4 torn down, and all but the last has gone through the carb dip - seems to be going really well so far - now just have to wait on the O-rings.

Just out of curiosity, ... how long are you leaving each carb in "the dip"? :-k

Especially with them as bad as you mentioned earlier, a minimum of 24 hours would be required.
Keep in mind that is is far in excess of what is suggested on the can, but that's what works.

.

 

[jqueen]

Just out of curiosity, ... how long are you leaving each carb in "the dip"? :-k

Especially with them as bad as you mentioned earlier, a minimum of 24 hours would be required.
Keep in mind that is is far in excess of what is suggested on the can, but that's what works.

.

I thought I would need to leave them in longer, but I seem to be getting good results after about 3 hours on the jets and pieces, 6-ish on the carb bodies, and the bowls will definitely be over 24 hours.. When I said last one, I was mostly talking about the jets - I only put jets for one carb in at a time so I wouldn't mix them up. The bodies I can keep track of, even if I put 2 in at a time. Hopefully the float bowls won't matter too much, because I don't know which was which anymore. I've 'cleaned' several carbs, but never had to completely disassemble, because none of them had gas sitting in them for years.

 

[jqueen]

Carbs cleaned and mounted, I have spark

Carbs cleaned and mounted, I have spark

Now I just have to get a bit more fuel line and filter and I can see if she'll fire off.. I had to wrestle the points for a couple of hours (never had seen points in person before), but once I got them re-gapped and clean, I finally got reliable spark.


Hopefully will know tomorrow about whether it runs or not.

 

[Eli69]

points must seem like dinosaur eggs to younger folk.

 

[Steve]

I thought I would need to leave them in longer, but I seem to be getting good results after about 3 hours on the jets and pieces, 6-ish on the carb bodies, and the bowls will definitely be over 24 hours...

Sorta backward on the logic there. :-k

It's the bodies that have the most areas that can cause problems. They are the ones that should be left in the 'dip' the longest, in my opinion.

The jets might not need as much time, as you can easily poke through the holes with a strand of copper wire.
The bowls only have the passage for the enrichener circuit (the "choke"), so not much problem there.

I agree that it's easy to tell one carb body from another, but it sounds like you have multiple dips going on there. I just keep all the parts together for each carb by using a 6-place muffin tin for each carb and dipping the body, bowl and jets all at the same time, all for the same 'day in the dip'.

(no, the slides in the tins do not belong to the rack of carbs in front)

.

 

[jqueen]

Almost there!

Almost there!

Wiring seems to still be good, nothing is frozen or stiff, bike is actually relatively clean.. so hopefully only a few weeks from a road-worthy bike.

So.. 3 1/2 months later (but only a couple weeks work), and I'm getting her inspected tomorrow. Waiting on a mirror to come in, but I believe I only need one in Texas to be legal, so I'm going to get it legal while I can get away from work..

As far as mechanicals, it needed a carb clean badly, 2 new coils (go figure), new tank, flasher, some wiring re-done, replace missing engine mount bolts, valve adjust, fork oil change and preload adjust, master cylinder from a ninja 500 (FYI, they have offset holes for the handlebar perch, so you can't just use a regular mirror adapter with them). Still needs some stuff, but just want-to-do items now, not need-to-do.

Here is the after pic. As stated, it's not going to be a 'restore', but I'm really happy with it so far. You can't see, but the paint is not smooth at all - didn't even attempt to wet sand, and no clear coat for easy touch up.. but I like it.. it is kind of like a flat finish to my eye, but with a gloss paint.

Can anybody guess what the side panel is? The other side is stock, so it's not as interesting.