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Hi everyone! Way back in the early 90s one of my friends had a GS850G in black. At the time I thought it was a really nice bike, with just the right mix of practicality and style - a proper big bike without the vices of the sports bikes. I was going through a phase with BSA unit singles at the time, so didn't seriously consider buying one, then I moved country, started a family etc etc and motorbikes fell off the agenda.
With the kids getting older, it felt like a good time to get back to bikes, and I started looking at what was around. The modern stuff is OK, but I've always liked old bikes, so when I saw a decent-looking 1986 GS850G pop up, I was very interested. Long story short, I bought it for $2700 NZD (which is about $1900 USD). High mileage at 115,000km but it hasn't been butchered around and does seem to have been generally looked after. First registered in November 1986 so it must be one of the very last ones.
I think the 4 into 1 is the only significantly non-standard part. It's a bit noisy, but at least it isn't offensively ugly. I'll be keeping an eye out for a set of original pipes.
I changed oil, filter and brake fluid and have done nothing else to it. I'm really happy with everything about the bike, it has lived up to everything I wanted! The engine is strong and it handles really nicely. It feels completely solid and I haven't had any nasty surprises with maintenance. It does have the cam-walk tapping from the top-end but I'm already learning to live with it
I know it's a heavy under-powered barge by modern standards but I 100% honestly don't care - it's a really good ride and there's clearly many good years left in this bike.
Also there's a really good community here on GSR who have already been really welcoming and helpful.
Took a trip out to Muriwai beach today and took a few snaps. Here you go:
With the kids getting older, it felt like a good time to get back to bikes, and I started looking at what was around. The modern stuff is OK, but I've always liked old bikes, so when I saw a decent-looking 1986 GS850G pop up, I was very interested. Long story short, I bought it for $2700 NZD (which is about $1900 USD). High mileage at 115,000km but it hasn't been butchered around and does seem to have been generally looked after. First registered in November 1986 so it must be one of the very last ones.
I think the 4 into 1 is the only significantly non-standard part. It's a bit noisy, but at least it isn't offensively ugly. I'll be keeping an eye out for a set of original pipes.
I changed oil, filter and brake fluid and have done nothing else to it. I'm really happy with everything about the bike, it has lived up to everything I wanted! The engine is strong and it handles really nicely. It feels completely solid and I haven't had any nasty surprises with maintenance. It does have the cam-walk tapping from the top-end but I'm already learning to live with it
I know it's a heavy under-powered barge by modern standards but I 100% honestly don't care - it's a really good ride and there's clearly many good years left in this bike.
Also there's a really good community here on GSR who have already been really welcoming and helpful.
Took a trip out to Muriwai beach today and took a few snaps. Here you go:
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