Help all pls

[1982gs650E]

Hey everyone I'm Seth and have come in possession of a GS650E for a small price of $300 buckaroos.. It was in obvious need of large amounts of TLC though and so the journey begins as i undertake restoring this beauty of the past.
This is my second bike, my first one being a 2002 R1 which was tragically stolen after about 5 months of ownership.

I have as of yesterday got it running with a carb clean, sync, new igniter, fresh oil & filter, new plugs, and a new head gasket. It has almost 17,000 miles

The Speedometer does NOT work and the gas gauge decides it likes to let me know how much fuel i have only sometimes..

I know new chain and sprockets are def in order soonish, as well as FORKS REBUILD?if thats the correct term for it.. I have no clue how to go about that just yet, they are really bad and compress with almost no resistance.
I also am going to replace the rear springs with much nicer ones, NEW pirelli tires are in order as well, New plug wires

I am looking to make this baby ready for long rides and turning heads as I take the open road. No detail is too small to be overlooked for me so bring it on.

If you have any suggestions, comments, advice, or just plain want to converse please leave a response and in the mean time i continue my search through old Q&A and whatever else i can dig up on the internet

HAVE A LOOK!!!

[1982gs650E]

[renobruce]

Looks good, Seth! Especially for the price!! Did you check your valve clearances? I'd do that if you haven't. Pretty easy. That's about all these old girls need...valves adjusted and clean synched carbs. If you need any help with anything, ask away! Lots of friendly, knowledgeable people here! Where do you live? Check out the GS Meeting Place for a rally near you. They are a blast!

[1982gs650E]

Thank you and i will be checking the valve clearances tomorrow sometime

[pntrdave]

Welcome Seth. I'll bet it was the pretty yellow color that clinched the deal when it came time to decide to buy the bike. They are great bikes for going the distance, once you get it sorted out, you'll be able to jump on it and go anywhere you want with confidence. Oh you may wanna get the bullet dings in the front fender fixed, although it does give the bike character.

[oshanac]

Het Seth-Good deal! I got a 79' GS750 off a coworker for $350, a similar steal. I've owned three GS's, they are such bulletproof, fun, fun, bikes! You will love it. You can do the forks yourself, I did mine on my last GS. Same problem you had-springs shot, and seals leaking like Twinkies. Get a manual if you don't have on already. Best $30.00 you'll sepnd. They reall are user friendly bikes. Here is what I would suggest doing:

-Flush and fill new brake lines

-Lube you throttle assembile, and carb linkage

-Check your radiator fluid (Ha, I couldn't resist )

-Pull your tank off and drain her out. If there is rust and debris inside, get a Kreme kit and line the tank. About $45.00 or so, but will make sure your carbs a sucking ONLY clean gas, these tanks can get nasty in there). While it's off, add a transparent fuel line with see through fuel filters. I NEVER had good luck with the real glass Autozone/Pep Boys variaty. I had to return two from two separate stores. I but the ones from the motorcycle catalogs now.

-Clean your wiring harness terminals and grounds with a little sand paper/brass brush, etc.)

-new bulbs all the way around. Cheap preventive maintenance. these old lights don't put out that much light as it is, don't want to find out your bulb is about to go out on a late night ride.

That's it for now. Good luck and welcome!

[1982gs650E]

Welcome Seth. I'll bet it was the pretty yellow color that clinched the deal when it came time to decide to buy the bike. They are great bikes for going the distance, once you get it sorted out, you'll be able to jump on it and go anywhere you want with confidence. Oh you may wanna get the bullet dings in the front fender fixed, although it does give the bike character.

Haha yes i do really like the yellow color,, eventually i will repaint the yellow and add some accents to it but of course leaving mostly yellow especially because it stands out. yea the "bullet dings" are from trying to tow it with a chain and when it tightened the slack being pulled it clanked the bike and dinged it up.. but mistakes are to made when doing something like this.

Het Seth-Good deal! I got a 79' GS750 off a coworker for $350, a similar steal. I've owned three GS's, they are such bulletproof, fun, fun, bikes! You will love it. You can do the forks yourself, I did mine on my last GS. Same problem you had-springs shot, and seals leaking like Twinkies. Get a manual if you don't have on already. Best $30.00 you'll sepnd. They reall are user friendly bikes. Here is what I would suggest doing:

-Flush and fill new brake lines

-Lube you throttle assembile, and carb linkage

-Check your radiator fluid (Ha, I couldn't resist )

-Pull your tank off and drain her out. If there is rust and debris inside, get a Kreme kit and line the tank. About $45.00 or so, but will make sure your carbs a sucking ONLY clean gas, these tanks can get nasty in there). While it's off, add a transparent fuel line with see through fuel filters. I NEVER had good luck with the real glass Autozone/Pep Boys variaty. I had to return two from two separate stores. I but the ones from the motorcycle catalogs now.

-Clean your wiring harness terminals and grounds with a little sand paper/brass brush, etc.)

-new bulbs all the way around. Cheap preventive maintenance. these old lights don't put out that much light as it is, don't want to find out your bulb is about to go out on a late night ride.

That's it for now. Good luck and welcome!

well thank you i shall start looking into all this