Long Trip. What All Do I Need To Do?tires?

[Anonymous]

TAKING A 1,000 MILE PLUS TRIP THIS SPRING ON MY GS650GLZ. I NEED NEW TIRES CURRENTLY 90/90-19 FRONT 130/90-16 REAR. I ALSO HAVE TUNE UP Q'S.VALVE ADJUSTMENTS?SPARK PLUGS?SYNCING CARBS?DO I REPLACE REC/REG AND STATOR?

I HAVE FOUND THAT WHEN LOOKING AT TIRES I FIND MANY 100/90-19 TIRES BUT VERY FEW 90/90-19, CAN I GO TO A DIFFERENT SIZE ON THE FRONT THAT IS MORE READILY AVAILABLE?IM EYEING SOME PERELLI MT66'S AND BRIDGESTONE S-11'S.

MY BASIC WISH IS TO ENSURE THAT I DO EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO AVOID PROBLEMS ON THIS TRIP. IF I DONT FEEL I CAN DO THAT BY THIS SPRING THERE IS NO SENSE PLANNING ANY FURTHER. AS OF RIGHT NOW I STILL HAVE ALL KINDS OF Q'S.

THANKS MATT

[Anonymous]

You should check your voltage output instead of just replace the parts. When I took my first 1000mile trip on my 400 I returned with a dry battery. Before that I had only ridden for 1/2 an hour at a time so my battery wasn't being overly abused by the regulator.

If your bike rides like a sea-saw you should change your fork oil.

Your best bet is to take off as much body work as possible and just look/poke at things. If you see any sloppy work (you will) redo it. If your bike has been safetied recently you should be okay with respect to the frame components.

Steve

[Bill + Karen]

Put together a tool kit if your bike doesn't have one. Include some spare fuses, a can of fix a flat so you can limp to the nearest town,extra oil if your running a hard to find brand. Try to think about what might go wrong and if it takes a hard to find item to fix drag a spare along. Change all fluids before you go and try to fix any leaks. Run another ground wire directly from the regulator to the battery, this will help it last longer.Top up battery with distilled water. Safe Riding, Bill

[argonsagas]

You should have no problem in going up one size to 100/90 on the front.

Typically, the shaft drive bikes have pretty close tolerances on the rear tire fitting. Before considering any upward size change on the rear tire check your existing clearances at all points, as you may find there is very little there.

[Anonymous]

thanks steve bill and ron

thank you for the information.ive seen a gs650gl in the gallery and emailed the owner it looked to have a much larger tire in the front than the one mine currently has. i wonder if it would change the handling much. i love the way my bike handles i feel like i am on a rail but still respect the bike not to take it too far.

matt

[focus frenzy]

check your clearances, mesure how wide the tire you have now is, and measure the width of the new tire and compare that to how wide the forks are, normally one size wider will work, but it depends on the tire, the size of the tire will varry from one make to the other even when they are marked with the same size.
my current front tire is wider than the old one and they are marked with the same size.
I have a 110/90-19 on the front of my 1000g and the current one has a total of 1/4 inch clearance.

new plugs in the normal heat range would be good before the trip, chainge all the normal fluids, check your front wheel bearings, if they are more than a few years old go ahead and change them, they are cheap and would be aesy to change while the wheel is off for a new tire, you can get the bearings at any bearing dealer and most auto part stores, alot cheaper than at the bike dealer.

test your charging system out put, and make sure the stator conections are clean and good. if your out put is good and conections are clean it should be fine.

any other questions?

[Anonymous]

I have no experience with the qualifiers so I can't say one way or the other if they are any good. Chances are that they will be a fine tire. You will discover that finding the "perfect" tire depends alot on your riding experience and how you personally feel about the tread life versues "stickiness" issue. I like the Dunlop Elites (491s) as they offer, to me at least, a very nice compromise between being sticky and having a decent tread life. I do not ride the roads like I am trying to qualify for the nationals, so stickiness to me takes a back seat (somewhat) to treadlife. Go to websites of manufactures that make tires and you will find a wealth of information that addresses what the different numbers mean and how they have been tested and how great their tires are versues the "crappy" competition. As far as a valve adjustment, it is pretty straight foreward. If your bike is like my 850 then its just a matter of checking the clearance and reshimming as necessary. There is no actual adjustment (like on a chevy small block). YOU NEED TO GET A MANUAL...........NOW!!!!!!!!!! It will take you through the steps of how to check the clearance and has a table that will help you reshim depending on what the measurements are. $245 dollars is a very fair (well, the going anyway) price for the stator/RR. Its not a life and death operation to change them out either. As far as plugs are concerned my bike uses the B8ES number by NGK, sometimes I'll run a hotter plug and go to the B7ES. I have used NGK plugs in a variety of situations (motorcycle, boat and auto) and find that it is a good plug for the money. Hope this helps.

First time I've ever quoted myself. This is a "cut and paste" from my response to your question in the general discussion area.

[earlfor]

Re: Long Trip. What All Do I Need To Do?tires?

Any tire you choose will easily last for a 1000 mile trip. There is no problem with using a 100/90-19 on the front. I always do.
I dont have any experience with Pirelli and I quit using Bridgestones a long time ago. However, a lot of people like Bridgestones and there is nothing wrong with them. My preference is Dunlop or Metzeler. Currently, I have Metzeler 88's on the bike. Its handles rain well and the milage is very good. Its more of a touring tire than a sport tire.
On the right surface, it grips well with a peg scraping but its not meant for that type of riding.

Earl

[Anonymous]

thanks for the replies guys,

i may be losing it here but im almost possitive the tires on m bike are bridgestone qualifiers, i dont want to go to the garage to look though because its 5 degrees, did dunlop buy them out or buy the Qualifier name because the raised white letter qualifiers im seeing on the websites are dulop brand?

[saaz]

Nope, Bridgestone and Dunlop have always been separate, two of the biggest names around. If the tyres work for you, let all of us know you opinion so others can learn, relax and have a beer ) GS650s are not as common on here, so the more we learn about them the better for everyone (I really like them myself...great mid range package with a shaft..how many of those are around these days??)

[Anonymous]

relax and have a beer

damn........................gotta run to the fridge for another.....................BBS

[Anonymous]

well according to the polls 6% SAID THERE ENGINE SIZE WAS 650 BUT WHO KNOWS HOW MANY OF THOSE ARE SHAFTIES.youll never guess what i paid for her.

[Anonymous]

My guess is somewhere between 1 dollar and 100 million dollars.

[Anonymous]

did you say your guess was between 1 and 100 dollars, you are right how did you guess

[Anonymous]

My guess was between 1 and 100 million dollars. I wuz able to guess that cuz I am sooooooooooooooooodarn smart. Actually, I was just being silly. Am slurping down some brews.............maybe a little too fast. If you picked up your bike for under a hundred bucks........then my friend, you got a steal of a deal. So kick back and have a beer.......Hmmmmmmmmm, don't mind if I do.