Hello from Hampshire UK

[MikeB 711]

Hi all, this is my old girl I've had since about 1985. Back then a friend had a trick GS1000 which he wrote off hitting a van, I was helping him rebuild it but we couldn't find a 1000 frame so tried getting the engine into a GS750 instead, it almost fitted but then he got bored & bought a Katana so I ended up buying the project.
I finished it, buying parts as I could afford them & eventually it was on the road. My friend then decided he wanted the engine for his Kat as he'd built it with lots of Yoshi bits & it was a bit quick. I quite liked the idea of the 16 valve engine so a swap was done.
It had sat unused in my garage for over 20 years until 2 years ago when I had inspiration to re commission it & we're back in business!

[steve murdoch]

Welcome to the site, Mike.
Turn it into a sleeper and put some 750 badges on the side covers. It would be semi-legit.
Works Performance shocks?

[MikeB 711]

Welcome to the site, Mike.
Turn it into a sleeper and put some 750 badges on the side covers. It would be semi-legit.
Works Performance shocks?

Not a bad idea, it's 1170 with RS34 Mikunis so still goes ok :-) The shocks are a UK firm called Nitron, they made them to spec as the 1100 swingarm is longer than a 750 causing it to sit slightly low at the back.

[salty_monk]

Very nice... Welcome to the Nut house!

[Rob S.]

So, in summation...

Why don't you sum up for us

What year and model:

frame

engine

What cc did the engine begin as? 1074?

[MikeB 711]

So, in summation...

Why don't you sum up for us

What year and model:

frame

engine

What cc did the engine begin as? 1074?

The frame is a 1978 GS750, the engine is a 1980 Katana 1100, the front end & swingarm are also 1980 Katana. The fuel tank is a 1978 GS1000, the fairing is a GSX750ES.
Clocks are GS1000 but with a GPS speedo.
It's a long way from being a show piece but it's done a lot of miles inc around 10 trips to the Paul Ricard circuit for the Bol D'Or that used to be my annual summer holiday, sadly my knees/back/wrists etc are no longer up to hours in the saddle :-(

[MikeB 711]

Very nice... Welcome to the Nut house!

Thanks Salty, does your brake conversion adapt to the Katana anti dive front end?

[rphillips]

Not that it matters but the eng. and front end are "80" Katana 1100, probably a misprint.

[salty_monk]

Thanks Salty, does your brake conversion adapt to the Katana anti dive front end?

Yes, either with the Anti Dive connected or with it disconnected and some cartridge emulators thrown in it will work with the fork shown in your picture.

I run the 83 1100E fork that way in the 78 triples on my skunk.

[Suzukian]

That bike is a real Gem!!

[Rob S.]

...the engine is a 1980 Katana 1100...

Katana 11...the mythical beast that wasn't offered in the U.S.

And the finished product looks quite delectable to my old, air-cooled brain. Could you tell us about the exhaust?

[Nessism]

We have another member from Hampshire...https://www.thegsresources.com/_foru...6-hampshirehog

[MikeB 711]

Katana 11...the mythical beast that wasn't offered in the U.S.

And the finished product looks quite delectable to my old, air-cooled brain. Could you tell us about the exhaust?

Thanks for the kind words, I'm glad it's not just me that thinks it looks sweet :-)

The exhaust is a Harris, I'm not sure how much presence they had in the USA but they were made by the legends who also made chassis kits for GP teams. Sadly they're no longer made, they were the pipe of choice for any self respecting hooligan in the 80's who had a big 4 Jap bike.

[rphillips]

I realize different parts of the world get different bikes... I've been looking and can't find any Suzuki Katanas in 1980, first yr. I find is 1981.

[MikeB 711]

https://www.katanacentral.co.uk/hist...natimeline.asp it was a long time ago & I was18 & couldn't afford one!