The noobies first pandora's box.. I mean maintenance check

[JaNewb]

Hmm so I have a small list of things that I am unsure of doing by myself. My situation is no tools and no experience working on bikes. I have a GS750L. Please don't hate on the L, its my first ever motorcycle =]. I just had the back tire changed because I don't believe I could do it on my own, when they did the tire change I had them do a safety check as well. The question is what do I take into a shop and what is possible for me to do by myself.

I need to change my oil, oil is pretty dark but the thing is my clutch is slipping at times so I'm unsure if I should go with the usually recommended Synthetic oil or find plain 10w-40 motorcycle oil. I already have an oil filter ordered and on the way.

I need new rear brake pads and I suspect I need new front pads as well. The shop only looked at my back pads. The back has barely any pad left, almost down to the metal and the front is squeaking, squealing, screeching, whatever you want to call it. It's making a noise I don't like but it brakes ok. Are brake pads easy to install or do I have to take off the tire?

The last two things are the best, and by best I mean I highly highly doubt its possible for me to do on my own. The front and back master cylinder fluids for the brakes need to be changed and my chain and sprockets are worn. It sounds like changing the brake fluid is hard with one person and I don't have anything to lift the bike if that's required. I also don't have any tools and it looks like I need to take apart a bunch of things to get to the chain in order to change it.

I'd really appreciate any help on this. Thanks in advance for any recommendations I get from anyone.

[Big T]

Old motorcycles require money, time and quite a few tools

I don't know how you expect to work on the bike without any tools.

If you're not prepared to spend $500-1,000 on tools and parts, you've just bought a lawn ornament

Of course, you can pay someone else and spend $2,000 on your $500 bike

[mike_of_bbg]

First off, many of us use Rotella T 15W-40 diesel motor oil. It doesn't have friction additives, contains stuff that our bikes like, like zinc, and like most of us it's cheap The clutch slippage is probably just sacked springs, that's about a $20 repair job DIY (6 springs plus a gasket).

You need to have some tools. I don't know that you'd need $500 of tools for most repairs, but a basic metric socket set with 1/4" and 3/8" drives from 6mm up to 19mm (plus a spark plug socket) is a necessity. Plus combination wrenches from 8-17mm. Oh, yours is an 81, so you probably have philips screws for the side covers, thus an impact will also be a necessity.

If you post your location (go to that "User CP" link), there might be someone on the forums nearby who could help give you a hand in exchange for some beer or just out of general kindness.

If you don't have and are unwilling to get the tools and you're not going to work on the bike yourself, Big T is correct and you'll want to ditch it now before it's just someone else's barn find a few unridden years from now.

[Pendulum]

I've done just about all the work on my GS with literally a handful of tools.

Metric combination wrenches:

8mm
10mm
12mm
17mm
21mm
32mm

Sockets (6 pt preferred)

10mm
12mm
19mm
Ratchets to go with them. Probably a 3/8 and 1/2 ratchet.
Spark plug socket + swivel and extension. I have one from Autozone or Walmart that's all one unit. Socket, switch, and extension. Very handy.

Impact screwdriver (I STRONGLY recommend getting one. I resisted, but it's WELL worth it.)
Digital multi-meter. I have a nice Fluke, but you can get by w/ a cheap one.
Assorted screwdrivers, or better yet, a nice bit driver kit.
Various pliers

Those tools will get you by. I'd suggest just buying sets of wrenches, sockets/ratchets, etc but if money is REAL tight, then that should cover most of the jobs you'll do.

As far as knowledge, this site and the rest of the internet has more free knowledge than you could imagine. Before I got my GS, my motorcycle wrenching skills were non-existent. However, I do have experience working on late model cars. Regardless, you can learn I'm sure.

Where are you located?

[JaNewb]

O sweet thanks Mike, I almost bought some synthetic oil but thought better of it. I read that these bikes do better with more diesel like oil but I couldn't track down the exact kind. I was hoping the clutch was something like that.

I was actually only asking about taking it to the shop if something needed to be done to the bike that required it to be lifted up or something. I move around a lot so I'm prepared to buy a bunch of sockets, wrenches, drivers, etc.. but I won't be buying anything big until I move into a place I plan to stay at for a long time. Thus if its something impossible for me to do because it requires a tool that costs hundreds of dollars, I'd rather take it into a shop. Right now the bike is running, I'm just trying to make it stay running #1 and #2 make it run better. =]

Thanks Pendulum and Mike for the tool recommendations. I was planning on going out either this weekend or next and picking up a set of wrenches and things so I could change my oil now that I know what oil to buy and hopefully my oil filter comes in pretty soon. =]

I live in Madison

[Killer2600]

Except for the chain and sprockets, that's all easy stuff you can do yourself. The only other thing you'll need besides tools is patience, and lots of it.

[mike_of_bbg]

Have you been acquainted with BassCliff's site yet?

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/

There's lots of great info there. A howto on changing oil, even You'll also find a service manual available for download there.

One thing to watch for when changing the oil filter - and it's a common newbie mistake - is to not over-torque the filter cover. More than a couple of foot-pounds of torque and you'll rip the steel studs right out of the aluminum crankcase. It's not an un-recoverable error, but will put a damper on your day if you do it. If you change the o-ring on the oil filter cover (which you should if one is included), put a little grease in the channel to bed the o-ring in so it doesn't fall out and get pinched when you put the cover back on.

The front brake squeal is probably as easily solved as applying a little caliper grease to the backs of the pads. But check the remaining lining thickness. Even more than just flushing your fluid, it's recommended to rebuild the brake calipers and master cylinder and replace the brake lines (if they're the originals) every few years. If you replace the brake lines with braided teflon lines they should last a very long time.

[providedrailroad]

I replaced the brake fluid in the front cylinder myself, the back hasn't needed it as it was done by PO.

Here's what I did. I put the end of the combination wrench on the bleeder nut that is circular, so it stays at least near the nut without falling out.

Next, I connected a hose to the nipple and taped the other end onto an edge of a jar so the fluid falls into the jar.

If you're only replacing the fluid, you can pump the front brake, once fluid is leaving the master cylinder you can slowly pour new fluid on top of that. Small strokes on the brake lever is important, you have to keep an eye on the tubing to make sure the fluid is not getting sucked back into the caliper when the brake lever retracts or you will introduce air into your system (dangerous).

Wait till the fluid leaving is clean and has no bubbles or air. Now, quick!!! with your hand on the brake and fluid slowly moving out, reach down and turn the combination wrench hanging off your bleeder nut so that it closes. Now you can remove the tubing and clean up. Take that old fluid somewhere to get disposed of properly.

I promise this is REALLY EASY. Hey - even I could do it.

[JaNewb]

Sweet! Thanks for the advice. I was wondering how I was going to change the cylinder fluid by myself. I was wondering the most efficient way to get through all this and since it sounds like a good idea to completely take out and rebuild the front brake I might as well start with that and the fluid change first. =] Looking forward to a greasy day next week.

[cableguy]

Don't be afraid to dive into mechanicals. If it runs halfway decent and isn't barfing oil you won't be taking the motor apart any further than than the valve cover or the carbs. By following the copious amounts of info and advice you will be fine. If youre just starting your tool collection buy the essentials, as listed in a previous post and then only buy specialty tools as required by the repair. If you do your searching on here you will know what you need, or even better, know the workaround to avoid added expense. You're in with a bunch of penny pinchers and maguyvers who looooooove to find ways to save money. These are money pits to begin with so any way to slow the bleeding is well received!

[suzukiSam]

torque wrench

One thing to watch for when changing the oil filter - and it's a common newbie mistake - is to not over-torque the filter cover.

Ergo, add "torque wrench" to your tool shopping list, because precision counts. I bought a Craftsman mid-range 'click' model at Sears , that was on sale for about $50.