i dont know how to turn my key on my ignition. HELP!

[xkalelx]

just bought my very first suzi the other day. a great condition 1985 GS700E 17k miles and new paint-- paid $600 for it. i dragged it home not running (bad reg/rec... i have a honda unit in the mail comin my way right now). im currently in the process of getting it up and running. it sat not running for about 6 months. battery was completely dead and dry (i think when the reg/red fried it toasted the battery) and theres a small fuel leak (im hoping something simple).

ANYWAY... all of the paint has faded off of the top of the ignition switch where the key goes so i dont know where to turn the key to get it to start. i figure with the key inserted at the 12:00 position it is just the neutral position. theres one position at about 2:00 i can only assume is the "on" setting. but there are two more positions... one at 10:30 and 9:00 which i dont know anything about. anybody have a picture of one? or anybody feel up to microsoft paintbrushing my a legend? i couldnt find anything helpful on google images. TIA

-sam.

[Nicholaschase29]

12:00 is ON

2:00 is just the rear brake light on (if you were to leave the bike on the road or something while you go for gas..)

10:30 is OFF

9:00 is to lock the forks if you turn the steering all the way left then rotate to 9:00 you shouldn't be able to move the steering wheel back to center.

[seuadr]

oops someone beat me to it :P

[bakalorz]

12:00 is ON

2:00 is just the rear brake light on (if you were to leave the bike on the road or something while you go for gas..)

10:30 is OFF

9:00 is to lock the forks if you turn the steering all the way left then rotate to 9:00 you shouldn't be able to move the steering wheel back to center.

On mine 2:00 does the brakelight and locks the forks too

[Steve]

Oh, boy, another one withing striking distance. :shock:

Holler if you need help, I'm just up the road.

Welcome to the forum, BassCliff will be along shortly with his little bit. 8-[

.

[TheCafeKid]

Ditto to that man. I can almost throw a rock and hit Steves place (ok maybe not, but you get my point) and id be happy to lend a hand as well.


TCK

[BassCliff]

Hey howdy hey!

H Mr. xkalelx,

As foretold, here is your very own mega-welcome! \\/

Let it be known that on this day you are cordially and formally welcomed to the GSR Forum as a Junior Member in good standing with all the rights and privileges thereof. Further let it be known that your good standing can be improved with pictures (not you, your bike)!

Perhaps you've already seen these, but I like to remind all the new members. In addition to the carb rebuild series, I recommend visiting the In The Garage section via the GSR Homepage and check out the Stator Papers. There's also a lot of great information in the Old Q&A section. I have some documentation on my little BikeCliff website to help get you familiar with doing routine maintenance tasks (note that it is 850G-specific but many tasks are common to all GS bikes). Other "user contributed" informational sites include those of Mr. bwringer, Mr. tfb and Mr. robertbarr. And if your bike uses shims for valve adjustments, send an email to Mr. Steve requesting a copy of his Excel spreadsheet that helps you keep track of clearances, shim sizes and other service work.

These are some edited quotes from one of our dear beloved gurus, Mr. bwringer, with ideas on basic needs (depending on initial condition), parts, and accessories.
***********Quoted from Mr. bwringer************
Carburetor maintenance:

Replace the intake boot o-rings, and possibly the intake boots. Here's the procedure:

http://bwringer.com/gs/intakeorings.html

Here's an overview of what happens with this particular problem:

http://cycleorings.com/intake.html

You'll also want to examine the boots between the carbs and the airbox. There's a good chance these are OK, but check them over.
And finally, if things still aren't exactly right, you'll want to order a set of o-rings for BS carbs from the GS owner's best friend, Robert Barr:
http://cycleorings.com
Once you receive these rare rings of delight, then you'll want to thoroughly clean and rebuild your carburetors. Here are step-by-step instructions that make this simple:

http://thegsresources.com/gs_carbrebuild.htm

***********************************
Every GS850 has (or had) a set of well-known issues that MUST be addressed before you have a solid baseline for further troubleshooting. It's a vintage bike, and it's quite common (as in, every single GS850 I have had contact with) that there are multiple problems that have crept up and slowly gotten worse over the years. It's not like a newer vehicle, where there's generally one problem at a time.

These common issues are:

1. Intake O-rings (install NEW OEM or Viton only - common nitrile O-rings will quickly deteriorate from heat)
2. Intake Boots (install NEW -- these cannot be repaired)
3. Valve clearances (more important than most people think)
4. Carb/airbox boots
5. Airbox sealing
6. Air filter sealing
7. Petcock (install a NEW one)
8. On '79 models, install new points or Dyna electronic ignition (or at least verify that the old points are working correctly)
9. On all models, it's fairly common to have problems with the spark plug caps. These are $3 or $4 each, and often worth replacing if you're keeping the stock coils/wires.
10. Stock exhaust with NO leaks or holes -- good seals at the head and at the junctions underneath.
***************************************
OEM Parts/Online Fiches:

I would definitely double and triple the recommendations to use Cycle Recycle II and Z1 Enterprises as much as possible. These guys are priceless resources. Z1 tends to have slightly better prices, CRC2 has a wider range of goodies available. If you're near Indy and can bring in an old part to match, CRC2 has a vast inventory of used parts.
http://denniskirk.com - Put in your bike model and see what they have.
http://oldbikebarn.com - seems to be slowly regaining a decent reputation, but it's still caveat emptor. They don't have anything you can't get elsewhere at a better price anyway.
http://www.babbittsonline.com/ - Decent parts prices. Spendy shipping. Don't give you part numbers at all. Useful cross-reference if you obtain a part number elsewhere. Efficient service.
http://bikebandit.com - Fastest. Middlin' prices. Uses their own parts numbering system to obfuscate price comparisons -- can be very confusing for large orders. Cheapest shipping, so total cost usually isn't too bad.
http://flatoutmotorcycles.com - Slow. Cheapest parts prices, crazy shipping costs. Don't expect progress updates or much communication. Real Suzuki part numbers.
http://alpha-sports.com - Exorbitant parts prices. Different type of fiche interface that's quite useful at times, especially with superceded part numbers. Real parts numbers. Shipping cost and speed unknown due to insane, unholy pricing.

Stainless Bolts, Viton o-rings, metric taps, dies, assorted hard-to-find supplies and materials, etc:

http://mcmaster.com - Fast, cheap shipping, good prices. No order minimum, but many items like bolts come in packs of 25 or 50. Excellent resource.
http://motorcycleseatcovers.com - Great quality, perfect fit (on original seat foam), and available for pretty much every bike ever made. Avoid the textured vinyl -- it's perforated.
http://newenough.com - You DO have riding gear, don't you? Great clearances, always outstanding prices and impeccable service.
***************End Quote**********************
Additional parts/info links:

GSR Forum member Mr. duaneage has great used upgraded Honda regulator/rectifiers for our bikes. Send him a PM.
New electrical parts:
http://stores.ebay.com/RMSTATOR or http://www.rmstator.com/

http://www.ricksmotorsportelectrics.com/index.php

http://www.electrosport.com/

The Rice Paddy (salvage/used)
http://www.ricepaddymotorcycles.com
Ron Ayers Motorsports
http://www.ronayers.com
MR Cycles
http://www.mrcycles.com
Moto Grid
http://www.motogrid.com
If all else fails, try this:
http://www.used-motorcycle-parts.org/
Used bike buying checklists:

http://www.amadirectlink.com/roadride/Riderresc/checklist.asp

http://www.clarity.net/~adam/buying-bike.html
Lots of good info/pictures here:
http://www.suzukicycles.org

http://www.cyclechaos.com/wiki/Motorcycle_Wiki

Thanks for joining us. Keep us informed of your progress. There's lots of good folk with good experience here.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
(The unofficial GSR greeter)

[seuadr]

throw a rock and hit Steves place and id be happy to lend a hand as well.


TCK

boy you guys sure are MEAN :twisted:

[xkalelx]

awesome.

thanks alot guys. i was beginning to think i had the only gs700e. ive searched and searched to no avail, how many were produced?

thank you basscliff, i will for sure check out all of those links. infact... i stumbled upon this place because i was reading the stator papers.

woot.

-sam.