A few questions

[konablend]

Sorry to be such a newbie, I have just spent 8 hours cleaning the hell out of a 81 GS650GL and now I an noticing some things about this bike I'm not familiar with. How do I hook up the fuel lines? Do I need to use a tee fitting? Does fuel go to the fittings between the 1&2 and 3&4 carbs? I am used to a simple OFF/ON/RES petcock. I am of the understanding that this type is vacuum actuated. Is this correct and if so How do I hook it up and how is it operated. Also I've noticed no Choke knob. There is however a little knob on the left side of the carbs that can be pulled out and held, it springs back when released. Is this the choke and is it normal? Any help would be appreciated. My only other bike was a honda `80 cm400t.

[Steve]

The petcock has three positions. RES, ON, and PRI. Yes, it is turned on with vacuum, so the normal position is ON. If it has been several days since you last rode it, you might want to turn it to PRI for about a minute to prime the carbs before you start it. Don't forget to turn it back to ON.

Connections...There are two lines coming from the petcock. The smaller one is the vacuum line and will go to the engine side of carb #2. The larger one is the fuel line and goes to the "T" between carbs 2&3. The "Ts" between 1&2 and 3&4 are vents. If you have the stock airbox on, the Ts should have a hose on them that routes up over the battery. If you have individual pods and a pipe (header) on the bike, leave the hoses off the Ts.

Choke...there should be something a bit easier to use. Sounds like somebody "fixed" something, but did not do it correctly. My '82 650L has a lever under the left handgrip, but I think that is something that started in '82. Look to see if there is a knob near the steering stem that you can pull out. Somebody with an'80 or '81 bike will be able to tell you better.

Don't be afraid to ask questions and reveal your 'newbieness'. That's how we ALL learned, at one time or another.


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[81gs750bagger]

i have 1980 gs 750 e choke knob is at center of handle bars and has cable down to carbs

[konablend]

Thanks guys. I'll have to try and figure this thing out. Oh yeah. It hasn't moved since 1994. However it was disassembled and packaged up this whole time as well so the tank and carbs had absolutely no fuel in them.

Oh yeah, anyone know the oil capacity on this thing? It has an aftermarket derailer oil cooler so I need to add 5oz to the stock number to get it right. I'm not even thinking of starting it 'till that old oil is flushed out good. Something about 13 yr. old oil scares me.

As far as the choke is concerned, Yeah it was 'fixed' but not in the duct tape sort of way, more like the 'oh hey i can sacrafice funtionality for looks if I put a little chrome knob there' way.

It's Shiny not Grimy. Old bike but nice bike.