Soon to Come!!!

[darkbane]

Well hopefully my GS is going to thaw out soon and I can start applying the new changes. I thought I'd start a little thread here and start logging my progress for myself and for others.

Currently my GS650G is as pictured except for the dent in the tank. I don't have a picture of that yet.

My plans before spring......

I got a great deal on a Brand new set of K&N Filters. I probably saved about $200 dollars buying these off of Ebay.

They're going to look SOO much better than the generic pods I'm running now.

I've also been wanting to put an oil cooler on my bike (if you want to debate about your thoughts on oil coolers on a 650, please find the 50 other threads discussing it, I've already made my arguments there), so I got this one for a steal (again on Ebay) off of a Katana 650. I'm still looking into my options for adapting this to my bike....so it may or may not be used. If I end up not using it, I'll post if for sale here.

Probably one of my first goals when I get going on my bike is to install the new rearsets I purchased. The beauty about the Winter in Chicago is you have all the time in the world to sit and wait for a good deal on things. Again I got these rearsets for next to nothing. They came with the linkage and a rear master cylinder is in great condition. I dismantled the Master Cylinder and cleaned it out and everything checked out fine. Reassembled and ready to go. I just hope that adapting it to my bike will go smoothly. I believe these rearsets came off of an '04 Ninja.

I shaved off all of the casting marks and smoothed them out a bit. I'm probably going to speed-hole the brake and shifter pedals. I was thinking about just painting these black, but the more I work on them, I think I'll just polish them up real nice.

Other Mods on the list:
>>>I need to fix the dent in the tank and shave the Suzuki emblems off and repaint the tank and tail piece to match. I'm still deciding on a color. If you want to comment, you can find the thread here:
http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=120603

>>>I'm relocating the battery under the tail piece of the seat. I'm still searching for the right size battery. I'm trying to find a compromise between size and durability...any suggestions? Along with the battery I want to relocate all of the other electronics to hide them as much as possible. I'm probably going to construct some sort of tray to mount them to under the seat. I want that space to be as empty as possible.

>>>I'll be wrapping the headers in black and I'm trying to figure out what to do with the exhaust. I still like the look of the chrome tip right off of the header, but I have no back pressure. I'm trying to locate a baffle that I can mount or just weld in a washer. I'm not sure, I'm need to talk to my buddy about that. He knows more about that than I do. All I know is I want to keep the same look, and keep it loud, but I don't want to sacrifice performance or durability of the engine. Suggestions???

>>>I purchase a triple tree and I'm in the process of shaving it down. Once that's finished I'd like to push the forks up and get some clip-ons and probably drop the rear about 2 inches. I want this this bike to sit low.

>>>Once I have the clip-ons ready to go, I'm probably going to eliminate all the dummy lights in between the gauges, or even swap the gauges for something smaller. Too much stuff on the top.

>>>The only other thing I'd like to do, but probably never will do to the shaft drive is get different wheels. I'd love to have spoke wheels and even if I got something to fit the front end, it's next to impossible to find something to replace the rear wheel with out some serious modification, which is something I'm not up for. I'll stick with the mags.

That's about it for now. I'd love to hear any other comments or suggestions you all may have.

This winter in Chicago has been horrible and this cabin fever is kicking my ass. I hope to get all of these changes done by this riding season. We shall see.

DB

 

[TheCafeKid]

I think its gonna look great bro. I made a suggestion on the paint, but just a suggestion.

Also, i too was considering moving my electrical components under my seat, but with my frame cut as short as it is, i may be able to get the bat under there, but that would be about it. Your frame looks cut in just about the same place from what i can tell.

Making the rearset brackets should be cake for you. Check out Dardoonk and 8Trackmind's threads on it. simple brackets cut with a saw. Looks good too.

Im digin your pipe, ive been trying to trade out my nice shiney V&H 4into1 for something i dont mind painting..lol. This pipe is practically new, and they dont make it anymore apparently. so i cant bring myself to paint it black.

I do believe there is a GSR member who makes an adaptor for your oil sending cap that would allow you to bolt up that oil cooler. Frankly, i dont understand what the debate is about? So go for it IMO....

Cant wait to see some pics man!

 

[80GS1000]

IMHO, if at all possible stick with the stock battery size for a street bike as the smaller ones don't have as many starts in them per charge as the stock battery size. Unless your charging system is flawless and you don't mind having to bump start it somewhat often. Having to bump start your bike cause you used a smaller battery than stock sucks, don't ask how I know this...

As for the battery type, get an AGM as you can mount it anyway you like except upside down...

As for paint, I'd keep the design you currently have and go white on the side, and red or blue on top.

 

[bowzer]

Don't knock the snow Shane. All the snow plow overtime money I can put into my project!!!! I'd be more worried about the condition of the streets. Do you think Sir Richie can get them all fixed up by summer?
I dig the look (paint) as it is. Sure move the battery and stuff to open the frame, maybe lower it. But I like the overall look. Exhaust is sweet!

 

[SDK]

Hey Shane, Great Name, Let me introduce my self, My name is Shane!!! Anyway great looking bike as is, and even better looking bike when you will be done. Keep going!!!

and for Bowzer i think Homer has a song that you would enjoy.
Mr. Plow Jingle
Homer: Call Mr. Plow,
That's my name,
That name again
Is Mr. Plow.

or how about

Mr. Plow Rap
Homer: Boom-chi-cha-boom-chi-cha-boom-chi-boom
I'm Mr. Plow, and I'm here to say,
I'm the plowin'est guy in the USA.
I got a big plow and I'll move a lot of things,
Like your cow if you have one...


Shane

 

[darkbane]

These pot holes are pretty wicked right now. Check out Grand Ave. I hope they fill them up pretty quick, cause the way this Chicago Winter has been, I guarantee that come 45 degree weather, it's gonna feel like Summer to all of us that have been longing to get back on our bikes.

 

[darkbane]

>>>I'll be wrapping the headers in black and I'm trying to figure out what to do with the exhaust. I still like the look of the chrome tip right off of the header, but I have no back pressure. I'm trying to locate a baffle that I can mount or just weld in a washer. I'm not sure, I'm need to talk to my buddy about that. He knows more about that than I do. All I know is I want to keep the same look, and keep it loud, but I don't want to sacrifice performance or durability of the engine. Suggestions???

Well, I was having a hard time locating an inexpensive baffle to fit a 2.5" pipe, so instead I'm going to weld on a reducer to bring it down to 2" and theres 10 times more options for a baffle. Hopefully I can get it to fit within the chrome tip to keep the same appearance. I know the size reduction alone will give me a little back pressure, but probably not enough. I know manufacturers have this kind of thing perfectly tuned, but how do people figure out how much back pressure is needed?

I know this is a technical question and I'm in the appearance section...sorry.

Thanks

DB

 

[PAULYBOY]

I wonder of u repost this question in the tech section, if there are any engineeribg types with adequate info/experience to answer. Seems to me the variables would be air/fuel mix, spark capability, volumetric efficiency of the engines design, air restriction going in, and desired change to the torque range in both directions( width of torque range and low and high numbers desired).

 

[darkbane]

Update!!!

Update!!!

It's been a while since I've posted on the forum, but now that my bike is out of the shop and the riding season is upon us, I've started working on my bike a bit more. Unfortunately I couldn't do as much work as I wanted during the off season...mainly because my bike sat in a shop waiting to get worked on for almost 2 months.

While in the shop, I found out the one of my coils was bad, so they both got swapped out with some 3ohm Dyna Coils, now I have full spark. We were trying to rejet the carbs to compensate for the new K&N pods and open exhaust, but the mechanic said that I'm going to need new needles, otherwise, the larger jets aren't going to matter. Anybody know where to find a selection of needles for the '83 GS650G???

I also just went through the mess of wrapping my exhaust. I heard it was messy, but had never done it before. It really does suck, and takes a lot of time and patience, but I'm happy with the results, considering this was my first crack at it with nobody helping me.
I choked on the fumes the first day of riding as it was burning off the steam and chemicals. That stuff is pretty toxic in the lungs.

I'm still trying to find the footpegs to fit onto my rearsets I purchased and polished up. I'm not trying to spend a lot of money, and can't find a whole lot on the cheap on ebay. Any suggestions. My friend knows a Pick and Pull place called Fast Track that has nothing but scrapped sports bikes. I might have to take the drive and go there.

Now that I'm Riding and working on it, i'll try and post more progress pics.

 

[Nessism]

Bike looks nice.

Regarding the oil cooler, the Katana 650 oil pan has adapter ports already integrated in. Very clean set up - much nicer than those of us setting up a cooler on a roller bearing GS engine.

Your mechanic is not trying very hard regarding the jetting; it's a simple matter to shim the needles to raise them. More importantly though, you will need new main jets and maybe pilots as well. A far bit of trial and error involved.

Good luck.

 

[bowzer]

I've ridden by Fast Track, they seem to have lots of sport bikes just stacked up outside in back. They're on Oakton in Des Plaines. Let me know if you hit paydirt, cause I'm always looking for another source and it's only 15 min. away from me.

 

[sluggerknuckles]

i need to ask... is that one of the "universal" cafe seats from ebay? it looks just like them1 i was going to purchase but wasn't sure how to mount it.

how is it on there?

 

[darkbane]

I think I found the pegs I want at a descent price, so it doesn't look like I'm going out to Fast Track, but I would like to check that place out some time.

SluggerKnuckle....The seat I have I bought from a guy on Craigs List, but he said he purchased from a guy he knew at HotWingGlass. It came with the padding and cover. It comes extra long so that you can trim it down to whatever since (i still need to cut another inch or so off).
Unfortunately, at the moment the seat is being held on by a belt. It works for the time being, but once a trim a bit more off the frame and trim the seat to the way I want it, I'm going to weld a plate of steel accross the frame under my ass (to support the weight), and I'll use some long cotter pins to hold the seat on. I'll post pictures once I figure it out.

 

[darkbane]

This is a long over due reply.
I've been wrapped up in my Honda Bobber Project over the winter so I've neglected this forum a bit. For that, I apologize. Now that the riding season is coming very soon here in Chicago, it's time to get back into Suzuki mode otherwise I'll have NO motorcycle to ride as the weather gets nice. I'm not cool with that.

My first order of business is to get the front brakes sorted out. Since becoming the owner of this bike, I've never had any braking power in the front end. All of last season, about 70% of my braking power was from the rear. I couldn't even lock up the front end if I wanted to. I'm not cool with that, because things almost went bad on two occasions and I don't want to deal with that again this season. I've got all of the brakes apart for cleaning and reassembly, now I need to order the brake lines. Z1 Enterprize sells all the pieces individually, but if I order from Hel USA it seems to be a bit cheaper and all pre-assembled, but Hel doesn't list my bike. I don't want to do a custom order...if I get a measurement wrong, then I'm screwed. I'm thinking I'll order piece by piece from z1 cause I need to go a bit shorter than stock to compensate for the cafe bars and possible clip-ons in the near future. Any advice regarding SS brake lines and places to purchase/order is appreciated.

I've also gutted the battery box and electronic mounting on the rear end. Soon I'll truck the bike over to my buddies garage and weld up a mounting plate for the electronics and battery to get everything tucked up under the seat and into the seat cowl.

Once the SS brake lines and Electronic relocation is complete, I'll throw in the Stage III DynoJet kit and have it tuned by a buddy.

I recently made adapter plates to mount new Honda CBR rear sets to the original frame peg mounting bolts. I haven't done a final mock-up, but hopefully it will all work out.

I've torn down the bike to where it's at a point of no return, so I have to get the work done in order to get it rideable this season. I'll try to post pictures and info of the progress as much as possible.

I look forward to being more frequent on this forum again. It's sad that in certain states (with crappy winter seasons) some motorcycle riders seem to shut down and shift out of Motorcycle Mode. I wasn't out of the mode, just didn't focus on the Suzuki that much.

I know my Honda project won't fit in too well here, but it's definitely a site to be seen so I'll post pictures anyways.

DB

PS. sluggerknuckles about the seat mounting. Last season, I rode the seat with a regular belt wrapped around the seat and frame (belt running under the vinyl cover to conceal it a littler). It was ugly and I got a lot of **** for it, but it worked. When I relocate the electronics under the seat I plan on welding on a platform to the frame to mount the seat to so that it'll be solid and secure. I'll post pictures when it's complete. Hopefully soon.

 

[darkbane]

On another note. I was considering converting this to an oil cooled bike by adapting an oil cooler to it. From what I've read here, it's gonna take more effort that what I'm willing to put into it (unless someone says otherwise or has a cheap fix that I'm unaware of).
A while back I purchased I descent oil cooler to use for that project. I my post it up for sale soon.

 

[Nessism]

You can make your own brake lines for cheap. http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=114521

 

[ryonker]

Usually oil coolers are pretty easy to mount. Like Nessism said, yours should be plug and play.

I had to use and adaptor and run the lines up and over the engine. But I am glad I have it. On hot summer days and can put my hand up by the radiator and feel the heat peeling off of it.

Rick

 

[pkbjamn]

I have an 81 GS650G that I converted to a cafe racer over the winter. The SS brake lines were the easiest thing to do. I have clubman bars on mine, as well. For the front, I purchased 2 pre-made lengths of -3AN braided stainless lines, 30" long. For the rear, I believe it was 18" that worked for mine. I have the original calipers, front and back as well as the original master cylinder for the front. I installed rearsets from a 2004 GSXR 600. I also ordered 6 banjo fittings (10mm to -3AN) that were for -3AN lines that I used. I eliminated the front brake junction block below the lower triple tree and ran both lines for the front calipers directly to the MC. The double banjo bolt from the junction block was used at the front master cylinder. I slit a piece of 3/8" rubber fuel hose to wrap the lines as they go through the brake line clips on the swingarm and the fork legs. Otherwise, the -3AN lines are too skinny. I bled the brakes and was ready to go. It took all of 2 hours from start to finish. I think it took more time to remove the old lines and clean the calipers than it did to install the new. Looks better and brake feel is better, too.

Sounds like we're doing the same stuff. Mine is in pieces in the garage getting ready for paint, as we speak. Maybe, someday, I'll make an attempt to post some pictures.

 

[darkbane]

More Updates

More Updates

Previously I went through the bike and took off everything I didn
't want or need on the bike (gauges, battery box, random electronics, etc.) I've also torn apart the brake system in order to clean up all the calipers and replace all the lines with SS lines. My front brakes were always too squishy for me. Hopefully the SS lines will help.

Today after work I rolled the bike out to the patio and grabbed the cut off wheel. I cut off and ground down a hand full of small tabs that were unneccessary.

I also cut the rear frame rails to shorten it up a bit. Probably took about 3 inches off the rear.


I finally finished the adapter plates for the rear sets. Hopefully they'll blend in a bit more when I paint them to match the frame.

With the seat chopped a bit more and the rear sets mounted, it puts me in a much more aggressive riding position... which I like.

With the help of the guys at the garage, we welded on rearset adapter plates, and built the battery tray and electronic mounts under the seat.

The seat finally mounts securely (no more belt strap) and much better looking now that it's shaved down.
I've still got to tuck a few wires and such, but it looks much better.
The new brakes are much better and I'm about 90% where I want to be with the carb tuning. The Stage III jet kit seemed to help quite a bit and runs much better for me now.

These aren't the greatest pictures, I'll try and post some better ones soon, before the weather gets crappy.

 

[Nessism]

No disrespect intended that that bike looks like a torture rack.