Anyone know of a builder or kit for GS1100E hardtail conversion?

[Sojourner]

chopping it up to look like every other Tom, Dick, and Harry bobber isn't unique.

And if you read the whole thread, aside from the safety concerns, the clone syndrome is the other thing that turns me off the idea. But then I'll see one done up fairly decently and so begins the cycle all over again (no pun intended). As for smoking anyone, the section of Cincinnati I live in looks like a smaller scale version of San Francisco with all of it's hills and twists. I'm not interested in racing anyone. Actually I'm more interested in not getting side-swiped on the way into work.

The first thing is to replace that slip-on. If you look real close you'll see the section the PO cut out of it to stuff it full of something that looks like fake animal fur he skinned from a teddy bear. The worst part is that about 25% the exhaust is exiting the rear, and the other 75% is shooting straight up at me. I reek of exhaust even after only a 10 minute ride. Between that and the header I know I've got some rejetting to do once the new muffler goes on.

[MAJikMARCer]

I just like my bike to stand out in the crowd a bit like I tend to do.

Funny that you mention that because that's exactly why I got my GS. When I first started shopping around all I saw were Harleys and Sport bikes. Both fine bikes, but not what I wanted. I wanted classic cool. While the GS isn't super classic, that's not all bad. Personally I think your bike would look very nice cleaned up, maybe some fresh paint.

As Tim Tom mentioned, there aren't that many well kept 30 year old bikes, especially 1100s. I see a lot of old bikes with Vetters and the like or they are beat to snot. Clean ones are rare and stand out in a great way.

Of course I'm also biased. The only hardtail my butt is going to sit on has pedals and made by Trek.

[Pendulum]

Until the summer heat hit, I would commute 20+ each way daily on a hard-tailed bike. Both of my bikes are hardtails. I've put 500+ miles in a weekend on my GS550 which has solid "struts" with the seat mounted directly to the frame (no springs or anything). Is it as comfortable as a stock bike? No. But it's a lot more fun to ride and looks a lot better too. And really, the only time I dislike to fact that it's hardtailed/strutted is either huge dips in the road or long distances (more than an hour ride). I don't experience either of those on my GS, and my XS650 (the other hardtailed bike) is comfortable for trips up to 3 hrs. As far as handling... My bikes handle well enough for the way I ride.

A properly built frame will not be a safety issue, and if you ride within your skill level and respect the fact that your 33 year old motorcycle isn't a 2012 CBR600RR or GSXR600, you'll be fine. I've ridden some pretty gnarly roads on my hardtailed bikes and I'm always the 1st to the end of the road. My XS650 was built in my friends garage, and he hadn't welded in like 4 years when we did my frame. It's been ridden hard, crashed, ridden some more, and the frame is fine.

[7981GS]

I've ridden some pretty gnarly roads on my hardtailed bikes and I'm always the 1st to the end of the road.

Have any riding buddies that don't ride mopeds/Vespa's?
Or do they break-down/crash trying to keep up?

Eric

[Sojourner]

Ok, so I was going to just hope this thread died but now I'm jumping back in a bit.

Contrary to some popular opinions, I actually liked the L model. I think some of the appeal of the "bobber" look for me is the upside down V shape ( /\ ). So here's an interesting question for those of you that know these E bikes better than me...

Rather than cutting the frame, could I swap the rear shocks for something a bit shorter? The thought being is that the end effect would be a bit of a lowering in the rear, and that's part of the appeal for me. This of course leads me to the next question- how adversely would this affect the ability of the bike to maintain traction in pothole-ville Cincinnati? Actually it's not the potholes as much as it is the odd sort of speed humps from the asphault shifting, but I digress. Is there a set of shorter rear shocks that would drop the tail end a couple of inches, but maintain some suspension without bottoming out? I suppose I could adjust the dampeners, but at 6'3" and 230lbs I don't want anything breaking. Of course tire clearance is another concern as well.

Then it's simply a matter of finding/fab'ing a custom seat to get what I want all the while maintaining bike (frame) purity for future generations.

[groundshock]

I'll be the first to tell you, I've been looking at GS's for sale for over two months. Every single ad posted.

You are absolutely correct when you say that a bone-stock machine is the exception, not the rule. There's enough hacked up, destroyed bikes out there to fill Heinz Field to the brim. And they all want thousands of dollars for the junk they've created.

What you have there is THE baddest machine created in it's time, and you got it for a song and dance. It's a g-d work of art and deserves to be treated as such.

Restore it to factory original and then add some tasteful, reversible modifications to suit your tastes. Properly maintained and treated well, the bike will outlive you. That said, you will not own the bike until you die, I assure you. Save it for someone else down the line to enjoy the experience it provides. Pure, raw power and exhilaration.

Pretty soon I'm going to make it my life's work to save these beautiful machines from the hands of hacks.

[groundshock]

And in response to your last post, if the 'look' is your thing, take a look at some pics of my 750L.

No irreversible mods, rode like a Cadillac, looked phemomenal, and gave the next owner the same thrill. All on less than 1000 dollars.

Some pics:












Proof positive that you can get the look you want and not destroy it. The bike was able to be put back to stone stock in less than 2 hours with the exception of some of the painting, and none of the parts painted were offensive.

Good luck man.

[Sojourner]

No worries, it's all good info Old_Skool.

I had an L for a while, an '82 GS1100L to be exact. I opted for the E this time around for two reasons: A) $650 for an >1000 bike that runs and the rubber's not dried out on is a steal. B) Since it was a chain drive, I thought I could always bob it if the subconscious call for rear slant got to be too much.

I like to look. That being said, I'm not sold on the idea of riding a nut-masher over dips, bumps, and potholes. That's why I was suggesting the shorter throw rear shocks. I'll look when I get home and see what kind of tire clearance I have in the rear, and I want to look at the forks and see if I can slide them down a touch in the trees to increase the rake.

One more off-topic question- Is there a gearing difference between the E's and the L's? I don't remember my old L stretching my arms in 2nd and 3rd. Kind of gave me a big ole' grin when it happened on this E.

GRoundShock- That's one nice looking 750! I'd still like the rear to come down farther on my 1100, based off your third pic. I was thinking of flipping the engine color. Trying to paint the ends of the fins black and leaving the main a silver/aluminum. <$1000? Seriously?

[lifguardct]

I like the looks of that 750, if its a bobber look you want. Take that bike, put on lower shocks, mini apes and pull the front fender and you have a bobber that is rideable.


Maybe thats what i'll do with my 1100L.

[Steve]

I had an L for a while, an '82 GS1100L to be exact. I opted for the E this time around ...

One more off-topic question- Is there a gearing difference between the E's and the L's? I don't remember my old L stretching my arms in 2nd and 3rd. Kind of gave me a big ole' grin when it happened on this E.

I am thinking that your 1100L must have been a shaft-drive with a 2-valve head.

Your current bike is a totally different animal, it is chain-drive with a 4-valve head.

There is more than a gearing difference that is causing that grin.

.

[Sojourner]

Not really interested in mini apes. In another appearance thread I was looking for suggestions. I think I've narrowed it down to Nighthawk or LTD bars. *EDIT* - Or a set of Buckhorns. Found a couple of POV pics and they look like they'd fit the bill nicely.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=198762

Buckhorn bars:


Looks like I'll be shopping for shocks next. Going to play with the stock ones first to see if I can save some $$. And no, not cut them or anything!! Don't want anyone having another cow!

Oh, and Steve- yes it was a shafty. Couldn't tell you about the valves. It came and went in a single season- our first kid was on the way and the toys had to play elsewhere.

[Steve]

Until the GSX1100G in the '90s, all the shafties were 2-valve heads.

.

[groundshock]

I've seen plenty of shocks on ebay that will do the job. Pull them off what you have now, measure eye-to-eye (or clevis) and find a set that measures what you want.

I really planned on dropping the rear end a bit more on it, but along came a buyer...

[kawfeedave]

For a bigger guy, lowering the tail is not the best idea. Keep in mind that the back end lowers itself when you sit on it, so if you lower when it's unloaded, you're going to be close to zero travel once you sit on it. When you add that you live in 'pothole-ville' right next to 'frost-heave town', I can't see why you think this would be a good idea.

Just my own .02, the bobber stuff that people seem to be into, the whole 'build not buy' routine is bull-poo. It's like when I was a kid, all the punk kids were anti-establishment and anti-conformity, but they all wore the same clothes and had the same bad haircut. You're not standing out anymore, you're just conforming to a different crowd.

I would suggest that a super-clean 30 year old superbike is far more rare than any bobber/cafe/cheaop custom out there. I would also suggest that mods made for sake of being 'cool' that comprimise the functionality of the bike are the height of non-sense, and the furthest thing from cool.

Despite what some may say, suspension is a very good thing on a motorcycle in terms of safety. Maintaining tire contact with the road, and allowing fore/aft weight shift for traction in braking and accelerataion are high on my list if priorities.

[almarconi]

Buckhorn bars just suck. Uncomfortable on your wrists and back. The LTD or E bars are way more comfortable.