79 GS1000 / 39 Harley WL custom PICS

[Gritter]

Just wanted to post some pics up here, showing the 1979 "Appearance Mods" on my GS1000. What d'ya think?

Here is the GS1000 on the left, and my GL1100 on the right, for comparison.



Full Frontal View:



Side View:



Tank and Front End:

[Billy Ricks]

Not my cup of tea but as long as you're happy that's all that matters. Did you just buy that? I think someone posted about it being for sale a week or two ago. If it's not the same bike it looks very similar.

[srsupertrap]

Wow, that is one hell of a GS1000 transformation. Absolutely amazing, countless hours in your project. I am curious what's the reaction of HD boys on the road and then up close and personal.

[yaddy]

Hey Gritter,

The style of your bike certainly isn't my thing but i can still appreciate it for all the hard effort and time taken to carry out such a task.

The bike looks very well put together and is a credit to your skills (or the original builder's), you are no doubt very proud of it, it looks great.

Nice work

[Odinist]

Whoa... That's pretty wicked!

[Hammered]

Welcome Grit. Seems youre bike was the topic of a lengthy thread not to long ago. I like it. Give us the run down on all the stuff done to her.

[80GS750]

i like it!

cant even tell its a GS till you look real hard. it just flows well i guess

[Gritter]

Welcome Grit. Seems youre bike was the topic of a lengthy thread not to long ago. I like it. Give us the run down on all the stuff done to her.

Yes, I just bought it. The builder is a welder by trade, and I just found the other thread about the eBay auction that I won, here: http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...52#post1001252

I knew people would have mixed feelings about it, but I am so stoked about this BEAST! I know a lot of this board's members might not like Harleys, and I'm not the biggest fan myself, but a lot of these Harley parts are very hard to find, and it just reminds me of my dad's bike, even though his was not a hardtail. It's very nostalgic, and the Jap guys won't like it cause it looks like a Harley, and the Harley guys will hate it cause it's a Suzuki. Either way I have to hear it, but for me, it's right down my alley. I like the "ergonomics" of Harleys, but the reliability of Jap bikes, and this one wins on all counts.

[posplayr]

I personally LOVE this thing! It is BY FAR the most comfortable hardtail I've ever ridden! This thing is a rolling work of art, and it runs perfectly!

The guy that built it did a great job, and he's a welder by trade. He said he put about 100 hours into this project. The pipes aren't low at all. Plenty of clearance. This bike is NOT LOUD at all. It has baffles, and it's as quiet as my stock goldwing. Okay, maybe a LITTLE louder.

Hey thats great. When I first saw it was not sure about build quality as could not figure out that it was a Zuck.

I'm I had the room, it would be kinda cool to have but alas, only so much room, so much time and only so much money .

Good luck; I'm sure you get lots of comments

[Gritter]

Welcome Grit. Seems youre bike was the topic of a lengthy thread not to long ago. I like it. Give us the run down on all the stuff done to her.

Dennis is the builder, a welder by trade, and waaaay too modest, IMHO. The girder front-end, he built from "scratch" out of thick stock. It even has grease fittings in all pivots! The shock for the front fork is a standard Suzuki GS1000 rear shock! And the springs too! How cool is that?!?!

All welds are "stick", or "arc" welds, and very nice and uniform too. He said he added about two hundred pounds to the stock GS, in the BEEFY floorboards, fork, tank, etc.

All the wiring in the front end is routed inside the light bar! (Still needs to be cleaned up a little, but it's a tight installation) The Harley speedo is driven from the front wheel, so it's way out of calibration.

All the brakes, controls, motor, wheels, and frame are all Suzuki... The fenders, tank, horn, rear rack, dash, and seat are all old Harley stuff. It's an old Harley Police seat, I was told. I am wondering if he fabricated those front and rear crash bars, but they look just like the old Harleys, and they're really burly. He fabbed the custom side panels too. Super "old school" grips too, I think from a knucklehead or something.

I have an old Tombstone tail light I plan on slapping on the rear. I also have two old BMW pipes, that I will throw on as well, just to "make it mine". They are stock, with baffles, so it will still be relatively quiet.

Dennis was a really nice guy - he actually threw on a new chain, points, condenser, and changed the oil! Who does that on a bike they're selling? Not many... He said he had put 100 hours into it - Yeah, he got to have all the fun of building it, but it's really good for giving me ideas - I've always wanted to build something custom, and this gives me a "template" so to speak.

It is a work of art, but it does bother me that I didn't build it. I plan on making some changes, but I still can't say, "I built it," so part of me wants to strip it and use some of the parts to build my own version. I only have a "weak" MIG welder, and I'm not sure if it's enough to do these frames.

Lots of great information here, thanks for letting me join!

[old_chopper]

Cool! Building a 550 chopper myself with HD 12" over springer front so I can definitely appreciate this. I'm in the same boat, sort of. My HD is a V-Rod, you know, not a "real" harley and my Suzuki has HD parts! I say enjoy what you got!

[1978GS1000custom]

and now its for sale? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Suzuk...65%3A10|39%3A1

[white_2003]

I just seen that on flea-bay, why buy a bike if you don't want it. My first motorcycle ever Is still in the garage the 81 850g still rollin' strong lmao