carb rebuild questions and others

[Guest]

Hi guys,

I know of a 1980 gs450 that has been sitting in a shed for about 16 years and i may have the chance to pick it up cheap. I was told that one day when the owner was riding, a seal blew (they believe it was on the transmission, i assume the seal on the output shaft) and with the owners wife being anti-motorcycle it was put in the shed (engine ran when parked) and never repaired. First off, what do i need to rebuild the carbs? I dont see any rebuild kits for sale and read elsewhere on this forum that all you need is o-rings. Next, do diaphrams get brittle after sitting for years? The reason I ask is because I noticed they are about $135 each!
Also, i guess in general, what all do i need to look for on a bike that has been sitting so long? Im sure the tires and chain will need replaced as well as the seal and I found the list below on this forum as well:
-brake pads
-rebuild front master cylinder
-rebuild front calipers
-rebuild rear master cylinder
-rebuild rear caliper




So does anybody have a rough idea of what it would cost to get this bike back on the road if i did the above mentioned jobs myself? And what would you pay for a bike like this in good condition from somebody you know?

[gsrick]

Hi guys,

I know of a 1980 gs450 that has been sitting in a shed for about 16 years and i may have the chance to pick it up cheap. I was told that one day when the owner was riding, a seal blew (they believe it was on the transmission, i assume the seal on the output shaft) and with the owners wife being anti-motorcycle it was put in the shed (engine ran when parked) and never repaired. First off, what do i need to rebuild the carbs? I dont see any rebuild kits for sale and read elsewhere on this forum that all you need is o-rings. Next, do diaphrams get brittle after sitting for years? The reason I ask is because I noticed they are about $135 each!
Also, i guess in general, what all do i need to look for on a bike that has been sitting so long? Im sure the tires and chain will need replaced as well as the seal and I found the list below on this forum as well:
-brake pads
-rebuild front master cylinder
-rebuild front calipers
-rebuild rear master cylinder
-rebuild rear caliper




So does anybody have a rough idea of what it would cost to get this bike back on the road if i did the above mentioned jobs myself? And what would you pay for a bike like this in good condition from somebody you know?

Welcome to the forum. That's a lot of whats, but you came to the right place. Photos of where the oil leak will be the only way to help with that. It could also be the shift shaft seal. We had a problem with one on a 550T. You may be able to get by with o rings from Robert Barr at http://cycleorings.com/ , if the jets, floats and bowl gaskets are salvageable. The slide diaphragms are usually good as long as they don't have any tears. Use the tutorials and manuals found on bikecliffs website http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/ .

As far as what it is and will be worth, that comes down to what someone is willing to pay at the time of sale. Your area and time of year may have some influence on it. How much is everything going to cost, well that again depends on what you can do yourself and what you have to farm out. No real way of predicting that, but looking at your list, I'd say be ready to spend upwards of $300 - $500, depending on the bikes condition. Look at a minimum of around 2 bills just for tires and tubes.

[Nessism]

Dollars to donuts it's the clutch pushrod seal. They are problematic on the 450 but easy to change.

I'd say $500 minimum to get the bike back on the road, if you do all the work yourself.

Part cost:
Tires - $150
Battery - $65
Chain and sprockets - $150
Gaskets, filters, oil - $50
Etc. it adds up fast...

Read the Newbie Mistakes thread in my signature to give you an idea of some things to look out for.

[levsmith]

Awesome, thanks guys! I plan to do all of the work myself, except for mounting tires. This will be my third bike so I am not new to bikes in general. I have a chain tool and the tools to do most all maintenance jobs. I will check out the links you provided. Thanks again!

[GS450Rat to Riches]

Yup... I've got an 88 GS450 that blew an oil seal
while riding... It was the push rod seal and shifter seal...
Both were very cheap replacement seals online... And easy to change
(use a seal puller, makes the job a snap to complete)
cheers
image.jpg

[steve murdoch]

To both Ed and Rick, excellent responses for the questions of a fng.
Proving again, this is a great site.