clip-ons for an 83 GS110E?

[Anonymous]

Sounds silly, but..how long are your arms?
I have a 82 GS1100E with a drag bar, and it's a very long reach.
I have long arms. 37-38 sleeve.

Not really a silly question, as I argee that although form is impurtant, it should follow function.
I am 6'6" adn wear about a 39 inch sleeve ( when I can find them).
You may be right about the riding position, but I will not know till I can get it on the road. It is is a pretty comfortable, slightly sporting position in my carport though.

also,

tried this but in order to get the Telefix bars to mount on top of the triple I had to drop the entire front end 1 to 1.5in. This lowered the front end too much and took away ground clearance that I could not afford to loose. This is why I went with the LSL riser bars. Raising the stock tubes in the triples by this amount is huge-be careful of lost cornering clearance.

In my case even though the Katana forks are shorter, I made up most of the difference by going with the 17in front vs the stock 16in wheel.

Ed, I think tha my 1100E already has a pretty big wheel in the front, should I add some air to the front to stiffen it up a little? May go to aftermarket springs/cartridge emulator (when finances allow ie: when I am not afraid to go to sleep in my house after spending more money on the "other woman" )

as always, geat to hear from everybody and thanks for the input,

Derrick

[oldschoolGS]

Aftermarket springs are a plus- I am using Race Tech springs on the Katana front end. I have never used air on the stock GS tubes-never saw the need for it- quality aftermarket springs will do the job better and allow you to run zero air.

I forgot that the 1100 has the big front wheel-I was thinking 16in. That will surely help, but that is still a large amount to drop the front end. You will notice a difference in steering and lose some ground clearance. Go easy at first- be carefull not to unexpectially bottom out while cornering.

Good Luck with your project-my 750 should start moving along soon, Ed.
1983 GS750ED

http://groups.msn.com/SuzukiGSGarage/gs750edbacktolife.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=3337

[Anonymous]

I am looking at a set of progressive front spings, they seem a litle more suited to my street riding.
I have seen a few posts about using spacers with the stock springs, any thoughts about using this technique to bolster my springs ( maybe with a touch of air) until I can afford new springs?

(BTW Ed; I really like the stance of your project bike , keep documenting your progress with lots oof pics!)

Derrick

[oldschoolGS]

Using spacers is a quick fix, it will stiffen up the front end but not provide the full range of dampning that the Progressive springs will. You can use PVC, EMT (thin walled electrical tubing) cut to fit- I have even seen people use 3/4 drive sockets. Again, I would not use air- the low pressure valve this provides is not worth the trouble. Will keep up with my project-it has been slow as I have been working alot. again, Good Luck, Ed.
1983 GS750ED

[KGB]

Derrick,
I upgraded the suspension on both ends last year. I used Progressive on both ends. I used the standard spring rates for the front, they only have 1, and I don't "need" a custom wound spring in the fork.
I run 15 weight oil in the fork, no spacer, no air. No problem.
I did get the heavy springs for the rear shocks, I ride 2 up lots.

Some people feel air and oil don't mix well.It causes the oil to break down.
I don't disagree,but, on my S model I do run about 5lbs of airin the fork, with the same setup as the E. No problems with viscosity break down.

I am looking at a set of progressive front spings, they seem a litle more suited to my street riding.
I have seen a few posts about using spacers with the stock springs, any thoughts about using this technique to bolster my springs ( maybe with a touch of air) until I can afford new springs?

(BTW Ed; I really like the stance of your project bike , keep documenting your progress with lots oof pics!)

Derrick

[Anonymous]

Ok,
pulled the upper caps off the forks, was a little suprised to find air pressure in already ( valve was really gunked up). And thus the front suspspension got really really soft, So new spring (probably progressive) are in my near future.
In the mean time, I need to make up some pvc spacers to add some preload. Considering my weight(260) how long can the spacer be to maximize the preload without hitting the spring minimum length on compression ?

Thanks,
Derrick