Is my rear damping adjustment shot?

[jetta90]

Everything mentioned by the other members till now is right on.,...........
The Canadian 1984 GS 750 I bought a couple of years ago had the similar adjustment cable break where it connects to the lower portion of the shock. Innner cable was fine, just the outer cover was cracked and had broken open. Remove complete cable, then remove the inner cable, get everthing cleaned up, lubed, and put it back together. Billy Ricks' repair description is very similar to what I did. The little platic gear found at the adjuster end strips out eventually as once the inner cable becomes "grunged" up within the outer cable it becomes more difficult for the little plastic gear to turn that cable. You and I both know what the gear comes out looking like when this occurs.
I need to mention though, that when I got the bike I pretty much took the rear end/suspension all apart. I was curious to see how all those connections on the rear suspension looked after all those years. There was no wear that I could see on all the needle bearings contained in all the pivots but they were very dry. There wasn't much grease left in there..........I would assume Suzuki would have included a bit of grease in the bearings back at the factory. So I cleaned everthing and added some fresh grease to the bearings and put everything back together. I'm sure it made a difference in how all the pivots worked. There had been a slight squeaking sound in the rear suspension before taking it apart...........it was now gone. My point is that all the needle bearings found in all the pivots needed some attention. There is a lot of work involved taking it all apart but to me it was worth the effort.

[Ola]

Great info, thanks! And thanks to all responders. I do indeed have a little squeek in the rear (no gerbil jokes!), I'll keep that in mind for an eventual teardown!

[Billy Ricks]

Everything mentioned by the other members till now is right on.,...........
The Canadian 1984 GS 750 I bought a couple of years ago had the similar adjustment cable break where it connects to the lower portion of the shock. Innner cable was fine, just the outer cover was cracked and had broken open. Remove complete cable, then remove the inner cable, get everthing cleaned up, lubed, and put it back together. Billy Ricks' repair description is very similar to what I did. The little platic gear found at the adjuster end strips out eventually as once the inner cable becomes "grunged" up within the outer cable it becomes more difficult for the little plastic gear to turn that cable. You and I both know what the gear comes out looking like when this occurs.
I need to mention though, that when I got the bike I pretty much took the rear end/suspension all apart. I was curious to see how all those connections on the rear suspension looked after all those years. There was no wear that I could see on all the needle bearings contained in all the pivots but they were very dry. There wasn't much grease left in there..........I would assume Suzuki would have included a bit of grease in the bearings back at the factory. So I cleaned everthing and added some fresh grease to the bearings and put everything back together. I'm sure it made a difference in how all the pivots worked. There had been a slight squeaking sound in the rear suspension before taking it apart...........it was now gone. My point is that all the needle bearings found in all the pivots needed some attention. There is a lot of work involved taking it all apart but to me it was worth the effort.

Good advice on pulling the shock and linkage out to grease the bearings. Once you go that far it's a good idea to pull the swingarm out and clean and grease the needle bearings on the pivot.

[jetta90]

oh........I forgot to mention it, and Billy Ricks reminded me. For sure, if one gets as far as dismantling all the rear suspension pivots and linkages make sure you pull the swing arm and get some fresh grease on the needle bearings as well. I did the swing arm bearings on mine at the same time and even though there seemed to be no wear on them and on the swingarm shaft, they were just as dry as the suspension bearings.

[first timer]

Would a gsxr 600/1000 shock work? I have seen them used on the 83+ 550's

[Billy Ricks]

Would a gsxr 600/1000 shock work? I have seen them used on the 83+ 550's

They can be adapted. You have to turn them upside down and bolt the clevis to the cushion arm up top. If I did it I would try to find some bronze or maybe copper washers to use between the arm and clevis.