Another stupid noob question.

[four_shot]

'79 gs850gn


hello all....I tried a search and didn't find what Im looking for yet. I was wondering where the "tire loading" label was located on the motorcycle.
I'm brand new to motorcycling so be gentle.

[Nessism]

Did you look under the seat? Chain drive bikes often have the label on the chain guard but obviously that won’t be the case on a shafty.

[spyug]

Welcome aboard. You'll be getting the official welcome soon.

No stupid questions so by all means ask away. Your question may never have been posed so its all good.

On my 83 750 (Canadian model) there was a sticker on the inner rear fender close to the battery. Oddly, it did not jive with the info in the Suzuki shop manual (which was lower). I go with the manual but since I ride alone and don't carry a ton of junk, I don't ever come anywhere near limits.

Check it out in the manual (BCliff's website I believe) or hopefully someone with your model will chime in soon.

Enjoy the ride & stay safe.
Cheers,
Spyug

[Billy Ricks]

The very best way to adjust pressure is through cold and hot tire pressure measurements. You want to see about 3lbs more pressure hot vs cold. Less pressure difference hot means you are running too much pressure and the tire isn't heating up properly. More pressure difference and you're not running enough pressure and the tire is heating up too much.

[BassCliff]

Greetings and Salutations!

Hi Mr. four_shot,

Please click here to receive your mega-welcome, chock full of suggestions and links to vendors and other information. Then visit my little BikeCliff website for lots of GS850G lovin'. You'll find a complete shop manual and other documentation with lots of pictures. Thanks for joining us. And we like pictures, of your bike, not you.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[BassCliff]

Hi again Mr. four_shot,

I thought I'd take a stab at actually answering your question too.

When you ask about "tire loading", are you asking about 'tire pressure' or are you asking about 'maximum recommended weight' of bike and passenger?

This is from the manual (there are slight differences between model years):

Dry weight = 253kg (558 lbs)
Gross vehicle weight rating = 455kg (1003 lbs)

The "wet weight" of the 850 is closer to 600 lbs. If I'm reading this properly, you can carry around 400 lbs of passenger(s) and gear. I should take a closer look at my other documentation and ensure this is correct.

As for tire pressure:

Front tire pressure: 1.75kg/cm2 (25 psi) normal solo or dual riding
Rear tire pressure: 2.99kg/cm2 (28 psi) normal solo or dual riding

For "continuous high speed" solo riding: front-28psi, rear-32psi
For "continuous high speed" dual riding: front-28psi, rear-40psi

Note that these numbers are factory recommendations from the Suzuki Shop manual. I like the idea of measuring hot and cold tire pressure to get the best tire pressures for you and your riding style/conditions. Basically, if the warm pressure is more than 10% greater than the cold pressure, the cold pressure is too low. If the warm pressure is less than 10% greater than the cold pressure, the cold pressure is too high. That usually works out to about 3psi difference, as mentioned by Mr. Billy Ricks.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[Flaggo60]

There is one caution that I would like to raise here to build on the foregoing information, and this is that some manufacturers require different pressures than that which is written in the manual (ask me how I know, see thread as follows:

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?p=911063#post911063

To add to the information supplied in the manual, perhaps a cautionary call to the dealer would be wise. It may be that since the bikes were designed 30 years ago, tire design requirements have possibly changed in some cases.

Just my $.02 (Cdn) worth. Thanks.

[four_shot]

yeah I was referring to tire pressure. as for under the seat, I didnt see anything. unfortunately the bike has been through several owners.

I dont even know what's supposed to go where...lol.

The p.o. passed away and I inherited the bike, so i have very little history on it other than it sat in his garage for 8 yrs untouched. so, how it ran, little quirks and such, are going to all be new to me.

I do look forward to all the input that the site has to offer and hope that the northern IL gs'ers will look after a noob with a strong emotional bond to his bike.