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Okay, after just tackling some malicious program messing with my internet connectivity I will attempt to type this again!
After the 200 mile ride back from up the coast, where I bought, serviced and registered the old girl, I decided it was time for a bit of a shakedown away from the monotony of freeways and urban congestion. She seems to have a lot of new bits (coils, leads, carb boots, brake pads, tyres) and runs like clockwork, but I haven't had the pleasure of taking her for what you might call a 'spirited ride' yet.
A favourite road of mine runs out of town and then back, a round trip of about 50 miles. It covers some great scenery and also a good bit of riding road - twisties through rolling hills, gentle sweepers through the countryside and a few nice straights where you can wind it out and see what she's got. A bit of everything. Its also got good pavement for the most part, but does have a few inconsistencies, midcorner bumps and ripples that I like to ride through to see how the suspension is holding up.
I donned the riding gear while she warmed up, then hopped on, jerked the bike off the centrestand, turned the choke off and rode to fill up with fuel and check tyre pressures. The weather was cold but sunny, so not too bad for riding. Fuel filled up and tyres full of air (32f/34r) I headed for the road out of town, using my tachometer to gauge speed as the speedo is currently toast.
Holding behind a line of traffic before the limit changes from 30mph/50kmh to 50mph/80kmh, I got lucky; a large truck up front was turning right and held up traffic while waiting for a gap.
First test: Overtaking.
I shifted back from 4th to 2nd and gave the old girl a bit of juice, maybe half throttle. She pulled away cleanly through 6,000rpm before I upshifted, flitting past the traffic and opening up a clear road ahead. Nice.
Settling in to 50mph/80kmh, or what I thought was such from the tacho showing 4,000rpm in 5th, I cruised the road out of town and got to the first few twisties. Clicking back to 3rd I leant in, feeling how the bike responded on the smooth road. Not bad, lets try it again... a bit faster.
Test two: Aggressive Cornering.
My hand pulled back; winding the cable that opened the carburettor butterflies which increased the vacuum that raised the slides and upped the mumbo, making the bike blast out of the corner and towards the next. Woo! Not bad at all, old girl!
I settled into a rhythm of this for a while; jetting in and out of corners on the good pavement and seeing how she felt. Overall it wasn't bad, acceleration was definitely good and clean through the range, but I felt a tad of clutchslip up top. Perhaps it was just me being used to a newer bike but I couldn't shake the feeling that pushing to redline might bring some unwanted news.
Test Three: Suspension Compliance.
Out of the twisties and into some roughly roaded hills we tested the suspension together. Bumpity-bump, wallow and bump! Hmmm... not bad for this bit of road really, and at no time pitching any which way or making me fell out of sorts. Again; nice!
The scenery was flitting past quickly now, the bush closed in and the trees were emphasizing the sense of speed, making me feel like a real hero even though I was only doing 50mph/80kmh on a 33 year old bike... stuck behind a Hyundai and a diesel ute.
Up ahead the road went through a gentle sweeper and I prepared to make my move; normally I'd be fine in traffic but the ancient diesel was spraying me with fumes and I wasn't enjoying it. Again I turned back the throttle and felt the revs climb as I pulled out to overtake, big, round indicators clearly stating my intentions. Of course, not everything goes to plan...
Test Four: Emergency Acceleration.
Mr Hyundai and Dr Diesel decide they'll use the now open road to speed up while I'm overtaking. Fine, you do that. Except a car is coming the other way now, just cresting the hill up ahead. Crud. Split second decision; pull back in or gun it and get past?
Gun it.
Snick, turn, waaaaAAAHHHHH! The exhaust blares out of the old Hanco 4-1. Down on the tank, the scenery speeds up and the cars go backwards. Nice... and now, about to shift into 4th, I get the clutchslip that I'd been hoping so much was just me imagining things. Yep, definitely clutchslip. Damn. Oh well, 3 outta 4 ain't bad, we'll see how we go once we get to the twisties again. We fly past the traffic and settle effortlessly in to a nice 70mph/110kmh cruise.
Up ahead the country gets hilly again near a windfarm and the riding gets really fun - roads running curves over and between hills with beautiful scenery... almost nothing better for miles in any direction. In my opinion, at least.
Unleashing into them like a (highly sedated) bat out of hell, the clutchslip shows up again and again... but it seems to be getting better. Maybe its just my imagination again. Hmmm. Anyway, the bike is running alright and the suspension is doing its job as well as can be expected for what looks like 33 year old original running gear.
Out of the twisties and into the next town, I have a quick squiz at the golf club I've never noticed until now. I've recently started golfing after a two year hiatus and am absolutely loving it. Like motorcycling, its a form of Zen for me, providing a system of order, relaxation and enjoyment that I particularly like. Turning back home I get an open road (YES!!!) and quickly pull over.
Fifth Test: Standing Start.
No cars around, snick into first and gun it. Bit of slip through first, none in second, hit third hard and then settle into fourth after clutchless shifting all the way through the smooth Suzuki gearbox. WOOO HOO! Big grins all round! She certainly is running well, the last guy mentioned having 'everything done to her' and whoever he sent her too certainly did a nice job on the carbs and valves. Brilliant.
The clutch slip definitely seems to be getting better, possibly a product of a bike not ridden hard for a long time, at least a year according to the last owner, who'd bought a new Bandit 1250 and, with a wry smile, said that the 850 is more comfortable.
Lets test that theory!
Test Six: Sport Riding.
Having gotten a feel for the bike over the last 25 miles or so, I fell prepared to do the run back a bit quicker, especially through the twisties. I hold higher revs and give more throttle, slingshotting out of the corners and braking where needed, the service up the coast included brake fluid and gives me peace of mind as I run the old Suzuki to its limits. She hauls up fine, leans over, and blasts out of the corners with ease. More grins!
Out of the twisties I open her up and get to around 7,500rpm in top - not bad. I later calculated that it was around 100mph or so, and that's plenty for a ride on a relatively new (to me) motorcycle. Adding another layer of pleasure, I slow down to the limit just as a police car turns the corner up ahead. Nothing beats beating a ticket.
On the cruise back to base, it dawns on me that the bike didn't slip its clutch once during the sporting ride through the hills. Looks like she just needed a good hard ride to bring her back into condition; the plates longing for the heat and friction to resurface them to peak efficiency.
Rolling back into the driveway, I shut her down and pop her up onto the centre stand to give her a lookover. Everything seems to be good, apart from a small blackening of one fin on the lefthand engine head which is most likely a leaky gasket starting, or possibly just things getting back into the groove after a long period of non-use. I assume the former and hoper for the latter.
All in all, I'm pleased with the old 850. I'm thinking I'll replace the rear shocks and redo the front springs, too, and the master cylinder reservoir up front needs renewing... but that's about it apart from some metal polish and TLC.
As I walk back inside, I think to myself that I'm very glad to have a Suzuki GS back in the stable again.
Cheers all!
- boingk
After the 200 mile ride back from up the coast, where I bought, serviced and registered the old girl, I decided it was time for a bit of a shakedown away from the monotony of freeways and urban congestion. She seems to have a lot of new bits (coils, leads, carb boots, brake pads, tyres) and runs like clockwork, but I haven't had the pleasure of taking her for what you might call a 'spirited ride' yet.
A favourite road of mine runs out of town and then back, a round trip of about 50 miles. It covers some great scenery and also a good bit of riding road - twisties through rolling hills, gentle sweepers through the countryside and a few nice straights where you can wind it out and see what she's got. A bit of everything. Its also got good pavement for the most part, but does have a few inconsistencies, midcorner bumps and ripples that I like to ride through to see how the suspension is holding up.
I donned the riding gear while she warmed up, then hopped on, jerked the bike off the centrestand, turned the choke off and rode to fill up with fuel and check tyre pressures. The weather was cold but sunny, so not too bad for riding. Fuel filled up and tyres full of air (32f/34r) I headed for the road out of town, using my tachometer to gauge speed as the speedo is currently toast.
Holding behind a line of traffic before the limit changes from 30mph/50kmh to 50mph/80kmh, I got lucky; a large truck up front was turning right and held up traffic while waiting for a gap.
First test: Overtaking.
I shifted back from 4th to 2nd and gave the old girl a bit of juice, maybe half throttle. She pulled away cleanly through 6,000rpm before I upshifted, flitting past the traffic and opening up a clear road ahead. Nice.
Settling in to 50mph/80kmh, or what I thought was such from the tacho showing 4,000rpm in 5th, I cruised the road out of town and got to the first few twisties. Clicking back to 3rd I leant in, feeling how the bike responded on the smooth road. Not bad, lets try it again... a bit faster.
Test two: Aggressive Cornering.
My hand pulled back; winding the cable that opened the carburettor butterflies which increased the vacuum that raised the slides and upped the mumbo, making the bike blast out of the corner and towards the next. Woo! Not bad at all, old girl!
I settled into a rhythm of this for a while; jetting in and out of corners on the good pavement and seeing how she felt. Overall it wasn't bad, acceleration was definitely good and clean through the range, but I felt a tad of clutchslip up top. Perhaps it was just me being used to a newer bike but I couldn't shake the feeling that pushing to redline might bring some unwanted news.
Test Three: Suspension Compliance.
Out of the twisties and into some roughly roaded hills we tested the suspension together. Bumpity-bump, wallow and bump! Hmmm... not bad for this bit of road really, and at no time pitching any which way or making me fell out of sorts. Again; nice!
The scenery was flitting past quickly now, the bush closed in and the trees were emphasizing the sense of speed, making me feel like a real hero even though I was only doing 50mph/80kmh on a 33 year old bike... stuck behind a Hyundai and a diesel ute.
Up ahead the road went through a gentle sweeper and I prepared to make my move; normally I'd be fine in traffic but the ancient diesel was spraying me with fumes and I wasn't enjoying it. Again I turned back the throttle and felt the revs climb as I pulled out to overtake, big, round indicators clearly stating my intentions. Of course, not everything goes to plan...
Test Four: Emergency Acceleration.
Mr Hyundai and Dr Diesel decide they'll use the now open road to speed up while I'm overtaking. Fine, you do that. Except a car is coming the other way now, just cresting the hill up ahead. Crud. Split second decision; pull back in or gun it and get past?
Gun it.
Snick, turn, waaaaAAAHHHHH! The exhaust blares out of the old Hanco 4-1. Down on the tank, the scenery speeds up and the cars go backwards. Nice... and now, about to shift into 4th, I get the clutchslip that I'd been hoping so much was just me imagining things. Yep, definitely clutchslip. Damn. Oh well, 3 outta 4 ain't bad, we'll see how we go once we get to the twisties again. We fly past the traffic and settle effortlessly in to a nice 70mph/110kmh cruise.
Up ahead the country gets hilly again near a windfarm and the riding gets really fun - roads running curves over and between hills with beautiful scenery... almost nothing better for miles in any direction. In my opinion, at least.
Unleashing into them like a (highly sedated) bat out of hell, the clutchslip shows up again and again... but it seems to be getting better. Maybe its just my imagination again. Hmmm. Anyway, the bike is running alright and the suspension is doing its job as well as can be expected for what looks like 33 year old original running gear.
Out of the twisties and into the next town, I have a quick squiz at the golf club I've never noticed until now. I've recently started golfing after a two year hiatus and am absolutely loving it. Like motorcycling, its a form of Zen for me, providing a system of order, relaxation and enjoyment that I particularly like. Turning back home I get an open road (YES!!!) and quickly pull over.
Fifth Test: Standing Start.
No cars around, snick into first and gun it. Bit of slip through first, none in second, hit third hard and then settle into fourth after clutchless shifting all the way through the smooth Suzuki gearbox. WOOO HOO! Big grins all round! She certainly is running well, the last guy mentioned having 'everything done to her' and whoever he sent her too certainly did a nice job on the carbs and valves. Brilliant.
The clutch slip definitely seems to be getting better, possibly a product of a bike not ridden hard for a long time, at least a year according to the last owner, who'd bought a new Bandit 1250 and, with a wry smile, said that the 850 is more comfortable.
Lets test that theory!
Test Six: Sport Riding.
Having gotten a feel for the bike over the last 25 miles or so, I fell prepared to do the run back a bit quicker, especially through the twisties. I hold higher revs and give more throttle, slingshotting out of the corners and braking where needed, the service up the coast included brake fluid and gives me peace of mind as I run the old Suzuki to its limits. She hauls up fine, leans over, and blasts out of the corners with ease. More grins!
Out of the twisties I open her up and get to around 7,500rpm in top - not bad. I later calculated that it was around 100mph or so, and that's plenty for a ride on a relatively new (to me) motorcycle. Adding another layer of pleasure, I slow down to the limit just as a police car turns the corner up ahead. Nothing beats beating a ticket.
On the cruise back to base, it dawns on me that the bike didn't slip its clutch once during the sporting ride through the hills. Looks like she just needed a good hard ride to bring her back into condition; the plates longing for the heat and friction to resurface them to peak efficiency.
Rolling back into the driveway, I shut her down and pop her up onto the centre stand to give her a lookover. Everything seems to be good, apart from a small blackening of one fin on the lefthand engine head which is most likely a leaky gasket starting, or possibly just things getting back into the groove after a long period of non-use. I assume the former and hoper for the latter.
All in all, I'm pleased with the old 850. I'm thinking I'll replace the rear shocks and redo the front springs, too, and the master cylinder reservoir up front needs renewing... but that's about it apart from some metal polish and TLC.
As I walk back inside, I think to myself that I'm very glad to have a Suzuki GS back in the stable again.
Cheers all!
- boingk
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