Winter Project - GS650G

[Thanatos]

Hey,

I recently picked-up a 1981 GS650G from a friend who did not put much mileage on the bike (12K) and no longer had the time to ride it ... the paint work and body are in good shape, but the metal work (crank case cover, etc) are in pretty nasty condition.

I do not know if I will even find some decent parts to replace these items. Does anyone have any experience on what my options might be to return these pieces to original condition? Should I strip them off the bike, sandblast (or other) them and have them re-chromed.

I have a picture of the casing ... any thoughts would be appreciated. (apparently I am limited to one pic upload ...)

[Larry D]

Welcome !!
There are alot of threads for cleaning up cases. Use the search feature in the upper right corner of the forum pages. You'll also want to go to the user cp (upper left) and edit your signature to enter in your bike, so you don't have to say everytime and where you are in the world.

Here's a way to post up to four pics using photobucket.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/images/how_to_post_pictures.pdf

[Nessism]

Yup, as Larry said, lots of information on how to polish the engine cases. Corrosion under the clear coat is a very common problem and easily repairable.

Good luck and welcome.

[doctorgonzo]

I had my first go with Aircraft stripper last night. I didn't have time for any of the big stuff I need to work on (and didn't want to get major greasy last night as other stuff to do), so I put the aircraft stripper to work on my pumpkin. All I have to say is amazing stuff. It stripped that clear off in about 10 minutes. I'm going to hit it with fine steel wool tonight and It's be ready for polishing. Looks 100 times better.

[waterman]

I get double duty out of Napa gasket remover, spray on cover and wait maybe 2 minutes and wipe off clear coat. From here, try any polishing method you like. The gasket remover works great to remove paint as well as softening gasket material. Polishing cases is a nice rewarding project, easy to do, quick satisfactory results. Welcome and congrats on rescueing another baby g model.

[Redman]

Than,

Welcome to GSR. I had an 82 650G for 20+ years.

You arent thinking that the engine cases should are chrome are you? They are aluminim, come new with just a little shine and clear coating on them.

Some folks do strip off the clearcoating (or maybe its all weathered away) and buff them to a reflective shine that looks like chrome.

.

[pjm204]

I didn't know about the aircraft stripper so I just used coarse steel wool to strip the clear and then fine to polish it. Mine are not very shiny. Took me about 45 minutes per sidecasing.

[Flaggo60]

Welcome from me too. Good to meet someone else who's freezing his butt off here in Eastern Ontario. This is an exceptional group and by starting with a GS you've lucked in big time. Cheers, Ted