GS650L--bike too bouncy??

[Anonymous]

Ok, I am a new rider. Bought a GS650L for $1200 about four weeks ago to learn to ride. Although I would like to add a windscreen, I think I am doing just fine learning to ride. Bought the bike from a local dealer who sells refurbished bikes from the 80's to new guys like me. I am second owner of this one which has 19K on the odemeter. However, I am uncomfortable taking the bike over 55mph because it overreacts to the bumps and grooves in PA's roads. Also, the front wheel seems to get squirly in some turns. I adjusted the rear shocks, but they are on the final adustment peg....

Do I need new shocks or work on the fork, or am I just a new rider who is too conservative with the bike? My wife started riding as a passenger a week ago, and while she likes to ride also but has been complaining about the harsh ride.

[Cajun Cycler]

I would bet you have little to no fork oil in the forks. If that is the case then the springs are working with no damping whatsoever. My suggestion is order new fork seals, pull the forks down, drain the oil and replace the seals. Sounds complicated but you can do it all in an afternoon. Use a bottle of say Honda fork oil and measure the oil you put into them. check with some other owners of your model bike if you have no manual to find out how many cc's of oil each leg holds. It won't be much. Do a GOOGLE search for "changing fork seals" and you will find a few excellent sites with pictures showing you step by step on the process. That's what I did.

[Anonymous]

Thanks a lot. This site has been very helpful. I think I will work on changing the oil in the forks this week so I will be in good shape for next weekend.

[Anonymous]

I've been thinking, after looking at the front forks. I checked out some of the recommended sites that delt with changing fork seals. They said to look for leaking fluid or a black ring of sludge around the forks that would indicate a deterioration inside. My forks are really clean.

Is it possible that since the rear shocks are on thier last leg, that too much weight is being transfered to the rear when it settles on the rear shocks? It seems to me this would make the front wheel a little lighter or less planted. Does this srgument make sense?

I'm thinking of replacing the rear shocks with a stock pair, then see if the front is more stable. However, for all I know the shop that sold me the bike may have just cleaned up the forks, so I would not know if there is a problem......

Caddy

[jimcor]

That old crawfish rider wouldn't steer you wrong, but I would go about it just a little differently.

I would drain the forks and replace with SAE 15 fork oil, that is what the manual calls for, for my bike and I'm betting yours does too. (In reality, I would use ATF, but that opens another can of worms. But you might consider it because it's cheap and what we're doing now is checking for leaky seals) Ride it for a while and look for leakage, no leaks? Don't replace fork seals. On these older bikes seriously, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

If you decide to get rear shocks and springs Dennis Kirk can set you up with OEM spec shocks and springs from Progressive Suspension for about $210. www.denniskirk.com if nothing else get 'em to send you a free catalogue. Lots of aftermarket GS parts.

And what's the story on your tires? Proper inflation? Old tires or new replacements?

The weight transfer idea, well who knows, I'd say "Nah". You're just out of dampening at both ends.

[Cajun Cycler]

The reason I offered that was when I changed my seals (which were fairly cheap to do) the oil was nearly non existent and what was there was black and gray grunge. once the forks were apart, clean, seals replaced and the fluid replaced the bike handled like a different animal.

[Anonymous]

Either way, this does not sound too fun for me. By the way, motorcycle shocks are quite a bit more than car shocks, huh? I know it has to be done though. I think I'll do the front, then the back, since I just adjusted up to the last peg. All told, though, not too bad since the rest of the bike is great--very little cosmetic issues and the engine runs and shifts really nice. I think the carbs could be synced a little better, but they only skip a little when it is warming up.

I'll let you know how things go with the suspension.

[Anonymous]

One more question----checked out the site you recommended for the rear shocks. Do I have to replace the shocks AND the springs, or just the shocks? On cars, I rarely change both, unless the spring is shot.

[jimcor]

CC, not knockin' your suggestion at all. I'm just cheap (or lazy!). If the old seals don't leak, leave 'em I say. But, I can certainly understand changing them. I don't know if mine are original or not but they've been in the bike since I owned it.

Richey, technically those rear units, if they are original equipment, don't come apart. Thats where buying the new springs comes in. The Progressives do come apart,obviously, since you must buy shocks and springs separately.
How's the tires? Not over inflated are they? Hope you're not riding on old rubber.

[Anonymous]

Rear tire is new--had to be very careful with it until I got it scuffed in properly. Do not know the age of the front tire and need to check to day if each is properly inflated. Might be too much pressure in both.

[andyjohnson]

you can check for major fork seal leaks by just getting the forks real clean and then working the front suspension a few times. push down on the bars in the garage and load the shocks a few times, If you have bad seals there will be an oily residue on the upper part of the forks after doing this. If your forks stay clean, I agree that you should just drain all the old fork oil out and replace it to the correct level. If you take the caps off of the forks be very careful with them and use the correct tool, they are usually made of aluminium and have teeny tiney threads that can get crossed and buggered fairly easily.

[Cajun Cycler]

Yeah guys but! and this is a big BUT, IF there is no oil in the legs (which could happen if nobody has attended them all these years) He can bounce those springs till the cows come home and he won't get any leakage from the seals. If the seals failed long before he got the bike, like mine did, they will be old and cracked and there may be no oil left to leak. If he is in doubt, remove the top bolts add a little fluid, cap them and then bounce them.

[Hoomgar]

Michael is giving sound advice here. I would drain the forks (and find out) and check them as a service job on them isn't a bad idea anyway. If the front forks aren't right the whole balance of the bike is thrown off.