Ride an hour, repair an hour?

[Anonymous]

My experience with my 850 has been more like ride a year, repair an hour. In 20 years, I've replaced the starter and rectifier, recovered the seat, gone through numerous tires, batteries and brakes, and I'm going to put in a clutch this year. That's a better repair record than any other vehicle I've ever owned.

[Anonymous]

You got that right! I think that the 850 is perhaps the best bike ever made. Surely is one of the most reliable!
GY

[Anonymous]

Things are still braking so I guess I'm going to be rebuilding the bike as necessary. I'm just glad that the bike continues to be rideable at this point.

[Anonymous]

blah...bike continues to nickle and dime me to death.

Steve

[Pete's GS]

Sorry about the struggles and frustrations. Enough new parts though and you'll have it running great. Hey, I know where Letchworth is. Beautiful ride but a tad cold now, eh?

[Anonymous]

I went there two years ago! That's how old this post is... It was a wonderful place though, I would like to go again but I only get 1 day weekends now.

Actually, most of my spending has been fixing stuff that wasn't really necessary. In the last year other than tires I think I've been limited to getting a few gaskets, tach and speedo cables, rear shocks, and fork seals twice. ah! that is a lot! I am unsure if I'll even be bringing it back from Central America when I return...may sell it for a plane ticket.


Steve

[Detman101]

Don't feel bad dude. Just think of all the modern day sportbike parts you can put in these bikes of ours!!! We are the true winners with these bikes because we can put a GSX-R1000 engine into our frames without so much as costing 1000 dollars! Maybe a few new engine mounts but that's about it!! Suzuki has been overly kind keeping things the same for us all.
Let the sportbike heads buy their 12,000 crotch rockets. We can take their engines when they lay em down and have our bikes be total sleepers and the fastest on the streeet!!!

just imagine the possibilities!! That's why I got my GS...no end to the possibilities if you have the patience!! (which I am growing in day-by-day of this bike owning me hehe.)

Chin up dude,
Dm of mD
Damien

[Anonymous]

Very correct Hap. Also, have a plan and stick to it in a rebuild. It's easy to get sidetracked. I'm the worst at following this however, so forget what I just said. As my father said many times "Do as I say , not as I do"

Yes I have a hard time following that advice also.

What I have learned the hard way is. You can buy more value than you can build. In other words buy the best example of the bike you want with the extras you want, for the money you got.

You will still have plenty of oputunity to do upgrades and repairs as the years go buy, But you will probably enjoying much more riding time than wrenching time. And wrench when you choose, not in a crisis.

There are many examples of very fine reliable bikes on this sight with a long and happy life ahead of them.

Charlie