Hole in crankcase

[Guest]

First off, I'm no mechanic. I can change parts if I know what the problem is, but the most techinical I've ever gotten with a motor is replacing a blown head gasket a couple of times.

So this question may seem really basic to a lot of you GS owners, but I'll ask nonetheless.

A guy I know is selling his 1981 Suzuki GS750EX and I'm thinking of buying it. The bike's not in great shape and needs someone to love it.

It's missing a battery case cover, missing its chain guard, and there's some problem with the solenoid or something 'cause when it gets hot, it won't restart and this guy's been pushing it to jump start it!

Anyway, I think I can deal with that kind of stuff. But, he dropped the bike a couple of months back and, having no case savers on it, the spill and ensuing scrape along the road left a small hole in the left side crankcase cover.

He used some epoxy mix he picked up at an auto parts store to plug the hole and said it's been fine. But if I buy the bike, I'm gonna want to get it looking a bit better than having this wad of gum stuck on it to plug a hole.

So, my question is, how tough is it to find a new cover like what I'm describing. And is it an easy fix to swap it out?

Oh, and my user name is 'cause I owned two GS bikes back in the 80s, both 650s, both shaft drive models. I really liked those bikes. One, sadly, I wrecked. The second, even more sadly, I sold! What a mistake that was.

Anyway, this would be my first chain drive bike.

Any feed back provided would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[Clone]

Sure buy it if you are willing to put the time into getting up and going. Not sure what you mean by battery cover, do you mean side panel? Some are easier to find than others, check the parts section on this site. A chain cover you can probably get new cheap or aftermarket and adapt to fit, or manufacture one yourself out of aluminum plate. Cases are again probably going to be tough to find, check to see if you can get one from somebody who is parting out a bike, you might get it welded and then machine it to be smooth, again check the parts section, and also go on bikebandit to see if it is available.

[76FJ55]

replacing the left engin side cover shouldn't be a hard job. you basically just take out the bolt and remove it. then you will need to remove the stator from the cover (3 bolts) swap to the new cover and reinstall with new gasket.

If you can't find one I should have a spare at my parents house in a barn. I'm about six hours away from it but could probably convince my dad to dig it up if needed. Let me know

[SqDancerLynn1]

Sounds like he hit the stator cover & easy fix kind of like changing a valve cover. IT will not come right of It may need some help with a rubber mallot as there are dowel pins, do NOT pry on the cover . Make sure you hands are clean & the cover is clean and there is nothing behind you. Then pull hard to overcome the magnetic force of the rotor

[BassCliff]

Hee Haw Howdy!

Hi Mr. oldgsfan,

Plenty of information for you here in 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************
Every GS850 (and most other models) 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.
***********************************
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

***************************************
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/

For valve cover and breather cover gaskets, I recommend Real Gaskets (reusable silicon):

http://www.realgaskets.com

Carolina Cycle

http://www.carolinacycle.com

Ron Ayers Motorsports

http://www.ronayers.com

MR Cycles

http://www.mrcycles.com

Moto Grid

http://www.motogrid.com

Salvage/Used

http://www.ricepaddymotorcycles.com

http://www.ozpowersports.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

http://www.bikepics.com
Basic motorcycle maintenance/repair:
http://www.dansmc.com/mc_repaircourse.htm
Online Clymer manuals:
http://search.ebscohost.com/ Click on "Small Engine Repair" then "Motorcycles". User=library, password=library. Note: This link may not work if you are on a school campus.

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)

Click here to visit BikeCliff's website.

[Suzuki mad]

The crankcase is not a problem. Finding a cover for the battery, (a picture would be nice just to confirm) and a chain guard are not big issues.

What is a bigger problem is the starting issue when hot.

If you want the bike and can get it for a good price then its your call. People on here will be able to help you sort the problems.

Suzuki mad

[rudy]

I may have a stator cover for you too. Need a picture to make sure it's the right one. I got a bunch of stators and covers with my GS1000. I think only one of the four or five is actually from a 1000. Don't know what the guy was thinking when he picked them all up. You could have it for shipping and a few bucks for the box. I'll never use them, and my garage isn't getting any bigger.