fix problems before selling?

[Alex M]

HI,

I have an 81 GS750 with 28,000 miles. I need to sell it ASAP because I'm moving, but it has some issues first. Thanks in advance for taking the time to look.

1) the previous owner painted the tank, which looked good, except it started to bubble in once place. The bubble got so big I had to pop it. i peeled the paint back and found this (click image to see larger) :



It looks like the tank was dented in a little, and he put some epoxy or something on before repainting. What is the best way to get this to a sellable condition? Can I patch it with some epoxy and then paint the bare area? I know that wouldn't look perfect, but anything would look better than this....

2) the bike won't start when it is not warmed up. I have to pop start it, or spray starter liquid into the carbs to get it to start. Once it is started and warmed up, it will start with the ignition button, no problem. My mechanic thought it might be evaporating fuel....any ideas?

3)I had an old battery that wouldn't hold a charge overnight, but did fine during the day, if the bike was being ridden periodically. I replaced the battery, and instantly the new battery is not being charged when the bike runs. I'm trying to borrow a multi-meter so I can test the stator, with BassCliff's excellent stator test guide. Is it strange that the stator would instantly stop working with a new battery? The old battery would not hold a charge overnight, but the stator charged it, so I could at least ride it somewhere and be able to start it to come back.

I paid over 1200, plus I put brand new tires and fixed the rear brake and starter. But I'm afraid if I don't fix these problems, the bike will only sell for a few hundred bucks.


Thanks again for any advice!

Alex

[tkent02]

They don't sell for much with problems, where are you located?
On the other hand, they don't sell for much in perfect condition right now either.
Good luck.

[Steve]

Can't help you with #1, but for #2, the first thing to do is to PUT AWAY THE STARTER FLUID.

After you have the starter fluid put away, adjust the valves. Tight valves will typically cause hard starting when cold. If you have never adjusted the valves before, it might take you a couple of hours, plus whatever the wait time is for a valve cover gasket, if yours does not come off cleanly.

Concerning #3, it's not likely that a stator would quit because you changed the battery. It's more likely that a connection came loose somewhere when you were changing the battery, and it just not charging properly right now. Take your voltmeter, check EVERY step, don't skip it just because you think it's OK, actually test every item in the list.

And, ... your right, with the problems you have mentioned, you should only expect a few hundred for it, and that's if it runs well. Might start hard, but as long as it runs well, and you can tell the buyer what might be wrong, he won't pay you for the information.

.

[spyug]

If you are in a rush to sell it you will not get your money back in that condition.

If you want to maximize your return you will need to fix that tank and get it to start when cold and sort the charging issue. It will take some effort and a bit more money.

Without seeing the rest of the bike and in the condition you describe its maybe only worth $300 to $500 to someone that knows the bikes ( sorry to be blunt).

The fixes might be simple so don't lose heart. You will need to pull off all that bondo on the tank to see what's there. It might be simpler to replace the tank as I'm getting the sense that you don't know anything about body/paint work. However, if you have any friends that have experience with bodywork ask for help.

The hard starting is likely a combo of dirty carbs and need for a valve adjustment. Both are not difficult to do but do take time and a bit of effort.

The lack of charging might just be dirty contacts ( from the stator to the R/r and R/R to the fuse block etc) and or a weak ground from the R/R. Read up on it.

Hope this will help you decide how to proceed.

Good luck with it.

Spyug

[mighty13d]

where are you at? there's people all across the country and I bet if you pay with beer (or whatever they drink) and pizza that there would be a couple people willing to come help you out and see what kind of things they can help you sort out.

[BassCliff]

Hi,

If I remember correctly, the 81GS750 is a 4-valve per cylinder engine and does not use shims. But the valve clearances need to be checked anyway. Have the carbs ever been properly cleaned? If it's been running OK then maybe you can get away with putting a few good doses of Sea Foam in the next few tanks of gas to help clean the carbs.

The charging system should be gone through via The Stator Papers. EVERY electrical connection and ground needs to be cleaned, including the fusebox and ignition switch. You may want to install the coil relay mod and a fresh battery. Run the negative wire of your r/r directly to the negative terminal of your battery. That will also help cut out some resistance in the old wiring harness. You'll need to get it running perfectly in order to get near what you paid for it.

Yes, you'll have to patch that tank somehow. Maybe a rattle can flat black paint job for the tank? At least shoot it with some primer. Good luck.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[mrb302]

HI,

1) the previous owner painted the tank, which looked good, except it started to bubble in once place. The bubble got so big I had to pop it. i peeled the paint back and found this (click image to see larger) :
[ATTACH]7952[/ATTACH]

The rust on the metal and the description of the bubble tells me that the tank has a small (maybe even pinhole) sized hole in it. It takes months or even years, but eventually the gas eats through the bondo, primer, and then paint causing the bubble you described.

I just repaired a non-GS tank with the same problem. It took about 8 months after bondo, primer, and paint for the gas to find it's way out. I re-welded the metal, re-filed the area, and then primed it. I used Kreem tank sealer to seal everything from the inside and then painted. So far no problems.

If you just body fill and paint you will be leaving the problem for the next owner to find in a couple years or less.

The tank liner is not that hard, just ask me if you have any questions about it.

[gane]

Alex

Sir, Offer these, A pristeen 81 gs 750, might sell for $2 grand.(in time) figure elect (charging system) prob at @ $300.00, carb clean/probs about the same. then cosmetics (Probable tank deteriotion/sealing/repair/paint) again.... your' down to $1'100.00 , for your' $1.200.00 investement, + your tires etc.. and, you have no time..... Realisticly you can't break even. You can either sell, or transport and wait. experiiance has it that selling is best. Get what you can, and move on. i doubt the 750 will ever be a "collectible" in the scale of the 1000 or 1100. you must be the judge. Adressing present probs makeshift will most likely be more costly than time /effort warrent. And no I've no intrest. luck g

[Octain]

Where are you located? I'm looking for another GS project.

[Alex M]

Thanks very much for the replies! I'm in St.Louis, Missouri. I have a few weeks before I move, so I'm going to try and fix this bike up a bit.

I just purchased a multimeter, and I'm going to try to work through the stator papers troubleshooting chart.

I'm going to try this without the tachometer, which stopped working the day I brought it home. The tach-cable looks chewed up and is likely the culprit, but is there a way to test if the problem is the cable, the tachometer itself, or something else?

Also, I bought some SeaFoam, hopefully that will help the starting problems. I'm totally willing to try and clean the carbs and/or retime the valves, but I'm afraid that with no experience and no expert to help, those things are just over my head right now. Right?

I'm ready to pull the tank off and repaint it. Any suggestions on a brand of primer and paint? Is bondo the best thing to try and smooth over that cracked puddy?