1986 GS550es wheels and suspension

[kingofvenus]

I have Sportmaxes on mine in those same sizes. I think those are great for what you're looking for, for as far as grip vs treadlife. Rear wheel came with the tire on it from Billy Ricks, so I can tell you that he is a great guy to buy parts from. I am in the middle of installing the tach and speedo from a '94 GSX750 Katana into the dash area of my fairing. Trying to make it look decent is going to be the "fun" part of it.

[zig06]

Got some pic's to share.

This shows how close the Kat handle bar mounts come to the original gauges, and why I had to use the original front master cylinder.



Here's the gauges from the rider perspective. It's a tight fit, but overall, it should be fine for the first part of the summer.



And finally, here's a shot of the Kat front end with the brakes mounted, and even some smaller turn signals. These signals are brighter than the OEM's, and to me, they look better.



Spoke with Advance Precision and my sprocket is done!!, hopefully I'll see it before the long weekend!

[zig06]

Ok, I finally got my offset sprocket. I ended up going with Randy at Advance Precision (888-347-7262). He delivered a top notch product on time and on budget.

But when I installed everything, while the sprockets ligned up perfectly, the chain was brushing the frame... Sure, I could have left it alone ~ but what fun is that??

So, here's what I just did:


I decided to cut the sprocket carrier down by 7.5mm. I did this at work with a rotary table on a vertical mill. The actual cutting only took a few minutes but the set up was almost an hour. Plus, our rotary table is over 100 pounds! I got it concentric to just under .001", and for me, that's good enough.

With the carrier cut down, I'll be able to use a standard (non offset) counter shaft sprocket, and have plenty of chain clearance. I'm having new tires installed tomorrow (Bridgestone BT-45's), once all of that is done I'll take some pictures.

Stay tuned.

[zig06]

Ok, so here's the cut sprocket carrier installed. The OEM bolts for the rear sprocket are now too long now (because of the 7.5mm that I removed) and they are made specifically for this application. So, to make up for he lack of threads, I added a 4.5mm spacer under the bolt which was enough to give me enough theads to lock the sprocket down.



Here's what the chain clearance was before the "carrier cut".



And after the cut.



It's hard to tell, but the chain really did rub against the boss that the foot peg bracket bolts to, before I cut the carrier. Now I have lot's of room, and I do not need to use an offset sprocket. Matter of fact, I can even use a standard rear sprocket too. So it's a win win deal!

And for what it's worth, the best tool that I found in checking the chain alignment was this:



Yup, a simple piece of extruded aluminum 3/4" x 1/2" x 30", $3.75 at my local hardware store. Tried a laser, a 1/8" piece of stainless steel TIG welding filler rod, and straight math. All worked ok, but none of them gave me that warm fuzzy feeling that I was after. So on a guess, I decided to try the aluminum. Spent some time making sure that I got a straight piece (most were very good).

When I got home I just made sure that the wheel was in line according to the tic marks on the swingarm. I then clamped the aluminum piece to the rear sprocket, far enough in to sit above the front sprocket. And to my amazement it matched up perfectly with what I have expected. And it was far easier than any other method. So as far as I'm concerned, this is "the way"!

The tires are now mounted and I even took a test ride! Didn't go far and now it's running late, but things are finally going my way!

[zig06]

But I do have this little chestnut. Now that I don't need my off-set sprocket, it's for sale (just don't tell my wife!). It cost me $75 plus $20 shipping (I had Randy 2nd day it to me). Right now I'm taking "the best reasonable offer".

530, 10mm offset, 15 tooth:


It's got one 5 mile test ride on it.

[zig06]

Well, except for some minor testing and tuning ~ I'm done!! \\/

Here's a summary of what I've done to this bike so far:

As I bought it in February 2007.


And what it looked like in September 2007, before I decided to change the wheels.


And finally, this is what it looked like just a couple days ago in May 2008, right before my "new wheels" test ride.


Ok, now that I’m pretty much done (for the summer ~ maybe paint for the winter??), I feel like I need to sum things up before I close this out.

My bike is a 1986 GS-550es. It is a good all around bike, but the tires were getting worn, and the forks are not exactly smooth. When I started looking around for new tires, the options that I found were extremely limited and just not up to the standards that I needed (I do want to try the occasional track day).

So, I started thinking about doing this last November, and after reading several postings about similar projects I decided to pull he trigger. My project got a real kickstart when I found a ’94 Katana 750 rolling chassis (forks, wheels, brakes, etc.) basically everything that I needed, and I got it all for $125. Another huge plus is that all of the parts were coming from the same machine, so that just made it easier when I had to order something. Like handle bar ends, or fork seals and even the ignition switch.

There was one “third year” part. I’m saying “third year” because it’s not from the original ’86 550 or the ’94 Katana. It was the swingarm and it came from a ’85 GS-700. I did that because it bolted on and it could handle the wider Katana tire. I could have used the Katana swingarm or the 550 swingarm, but that was going to require cutting and welding, and that means that I would have to make a jig to keep everything lined up. And when I discovered that the 700 arm did everything and didn’t need any welding, plus it’s aluminum (the others were steel), it was an easy decision.

When you read through my postings you’ll notice that I did run into a few things. Like I really wanted to use the Katana’s front master cylinder and brake lever setup. But when I tried to install it, I discovered that the brake line ran directly into the instruments. Or instead of using an off-set counter shaft sprocket, it’s better to mill down the sprocket carrier. That way the chain doesn’t rub the frame.

One thing that many of you might have noticed is that I really didn’t care about how the bike looked when I was done. Yes, I did paint the wheels, even I had to draw the line at the purple wheels… But my intent for next winter is to do a frame off restoration. So it’s only being ignored just so I can ride it this summer.

Look for a posting in the Appearance Forum next winter.

But for now, I’m going riding!!

[kingofvenus]

Looks great! I like it!

[zig06]

Thanks, it's been a lot of work to get it to this point. And yet, there's so much more to be done (ie. a paint job).

I am open to suggestions on a color sceme. I would like to stay with the black wheels. Mostly because the black came out pretty good. The dark gray that the forks are was the color that I had in mind for the frame. But if I did that then it may be too much to paint the rest (tank, fenders, side panels and fairing) silver.

Got any suggestions?

Also, the new Bridgestone BT-45's seem to handle pretty good. But I haven't seen anything on a recommended tire pressure. Anyone with a suggested started point?? (like 32psi front and rear?)

[kingofvenus]

I've been running the 33 front 36 rear that is printed on the vin decal on my sons' '90 600. BTW where is Allendale?, I work for Alro steel that's based in Jackson.

[zig06]

Allendale is almost a spot on the map. If you can find Grand Rapids, then look for M-45 heading straight west out of Grand Rapids. It goes all the way to Lake Michigan ~ so don't go too far! But about half way between the Lake and "GR", is Allendale.

It's also the home of Grand Valley State University. Which has won the Division 2 National Football championship 3 or 4 times over the past 6 years.

I seem to think that there's some steel company in the industrial part of town (all 4 are in one spot...). Does Alro have another plant close by?

Thanks for the PSI recommendation!, I'll give it a try and report back.