upgrading the running gear on a tired 79 "L"

[makenzie71]

so if sticking with the stock-ish rear setup of a 1100 arm, progressives will be ok?

on the front rebuild of a 93 front end, progressive springs or racetech springs only, or coupled with cartridge emulators?

A 170 or 180 is possible but avoid it. You stand nothing at all to gain from having such a wide tire. Stick with a 150 or 160. Not only are they just as common, but they are cheaper.


On the front end I would go with which ever springs are cheapest if you have to have them...but I probably wouldn't get any. Just replace the seals and start truckin'.

[jed.only]

Wait a minute, you are doing all these performance mods and you don't know how to ride???
WTF, man you should be spending your time out thrashing a 250 and learning how to stay alive...

the bike was given to me. why replace years of neglect and wear on sub-par stock parts that are just as expensive? a bike is a bike is a bike. id ride a 2 stroke the same way id ride a streetbike. what difference does it make what platform i choose or what is done to the bike suspension/control wise, especially if the upgrades are going to make the ride better. im not curious about triple digit speeds, grinding pegs while leaning into a turn, or switching gears on 1 wheel. im interested in fun, reliable, and safe transportation from point a to point b.

A 170 or 180 is possible but avoid it. You stand nothing at all to gain from having such a wide tire. Stick with a 150 or 160. Not only are they just as common, but they are cheaper.


On the front end I would go with which ever springs are cheapest if you have to have them...but I probably wouldn't get any. Just replace the seals and start truckin'.

good deal. i feel this thread is going to take a downturn any second now.

[80GS1000]

Don't take my comments the wrong way, last thing I want to do is rain on anyone's parade. I know you are a smart dude and have tons of mechanical aptitude and interest.

That said...

The '79 GS1000L is plenty of bike as-is to learn on, maybe even a bit too much in terms of power and weight. If I were you I'd save my money, take a MSF class, fix any egregious mechanical issues with it (such as brakes not working properly, tires needing replacement etc) and ride it for a few seasons. In the mean time you'll A) learn how to ride a motorcycle, on a bike designed by engineers smarter than any of us and B) find out what your riding style is.

[jed.only]

Don't take my comments the wrong way, last thing I want to do is rain on anyone's parade. I know you are a smart dude and have tons of mechanical aptitude and interest.

That said...

The '79 GS1000L is plenty of bike as-is to learn on, maybe even a bit too much power and weight-wise. If I were you I'd save my money and just fix any egregious mechanical issues with it (such as brakes not working properly, tires needing replacement etc) and ride it for a few seasons. In the mean time you'll A) learn how to ride a motorcycle, on a bike designed by engineers smarter than any of us and B) find out what your riding style is.

understandable. where my opinion deviates from yours is here:

front forks are trashed and leaking. why spend the time and labor replacing springs/seals on the stock L forks that i hate if i can have a relatively inexpensive upgrade in a 93 1100 front end?

tires are garbage. why settle for standard replacement bias ply when i can have radials, especially since im not crazy about the wheels that are factory trim on the L bike?

rear shocks are murdered. the only viable upgrade here is ebay trash, or progressives. from there we get into ohlins, works, etc.

i like the idea of monoshock rear ends, but i can agree im probably not ready for that much, although i cant see the difference in learning to ride on a traditional twin shock or monoshock swingarm.

[gmansyz]

Just get the matching 5.5x17 rear wheel that matches the front and stop worrying about how long the forks are. You want to make the steering head angle correct first. Otherwise the rear is so high up, you have too much ground clearence. To go with the older GSXR that still use the speedo drive and cable, up to '95 GSXR 750 and to '98 GSXR1100. You don't need the inverts and the '89-'90 GSXR11's had 43mm forks and clip-ons above the top clamp so you wouldn't even need your "Clubmans". There isn't much difference between the Bandit swinger to the GSXR swingers. Just depends on the year.
Laters
G

[80GS1000]

understandable. where my opinion deviates from yours is here:

front forks are trashed and leaking. why spend the time and labor replacing springs/seals on the stock L forks that i hate if i can have a relatively inexpensive upgrade in a 93 1100 front end?

tires are garbage. why settle for standard replacement bias ply when i can have radials, especially since im not crazy about the wheels that are factory trim on the L bike?

rear shocks are murdered. the only viable upgrade here is ebay trash, or progressives. from there we get into ohlins, works, etc.

i like the idea of monoshock rear ends, but i can agree im probably not ready for that much, although i cant see the difference in learning to ride on a traditional twin shock or monoshock swingarm.

I'm getting serious deja vu with this conversation, sounds a lot like convincing newbs on gixxer.com not to get a brand new GSXR 1000 as their first bike 'cause they're not ready for it yet...

Same advice as I'd give to anyone. When starting out, start on something factory and cheap till you gain enough experience to know what's what. There are a lot of little things that need to be done to do suspension swaps on a bike that you wouldn't know about until you're gained a bit of seat time, plus you won't have the feel for what it SHOULD feel like till you've got a few tens of thousands of miles under your belt.

You gotta start somewhere in your learning curve on how to work on bikes. Gotta learn how to walk before you can run...

GS parts aren't nearly as expensive as GSXR parts, trust me on this. Who's to say you wouldn't have to rebuild that GSXR front end anyways?

You already have a set of GS forks. New GS1000 fork springs are about $70, new seals are about $20, fork oil is about $10, you can have my old rear shocks for the cost of shipping (in good shape BTW), and a new set of Avon Roadriders would be about $200. Total in the neighborhood of $300. And you've have it done fast because they're all bolt-ons and learn about working on bikes in the process. You'd then have a solid platform to learn how to ride on.

Good sportbike tires are a minimum of $250 a set, not to mention all the time, effort, money, parts, research and possible pain when things go south when trying to modify a machine you don't even yet know how to operate....

For learning purposes, there really isn't much difference between a twinshock and monoshock rear end. If that's what you want, go buy a Ninja 250 and putt around on that for a couple of seasons then mod your GS1000 like crazy once you've got some more experience.

[groundshock]

Just to give you another option, I put Progressive springs in my old L, new fork seals and found some new rear shocks on ebay.

I had less than 250 into it and with crap tires it hung just fine with a few friends that had MUCH newer bikes but with less rider skill.

This thread reminds me of when I was younger and I bought my 01 R6. Went to a track day and thought I was the hottest sh*t on the planet, only to have 3 guys on the rattiest-ass F2's you've ever seen make me look like I was standing still.

Right what is there. Progressives with a nice spacer, new rear shocks or at least old-school upgrades and GOOD RUBBER will make that sloppy old L put a grin on your face a mile wide.

Take it FWIW.

[jwhelan65]

I'm getting serious deja vu with this conversation, sounds a lot like convincing newbs on gixxer.com not to get a brand new GSXR 1000 as their first bike 'cause they're not ready for it yet...

Same advice as I'd give to anyone. When starting out, start on something factory and cheap till you gain enough experience to know what's what. There are a lot of little things that need to be done to do suspension swaps on a bike that you wouldn't know about until you're gained a bit of seat time, plus you won't have the feel for what it SHOULD feel like till you've got a few tens of thousands of miles under your belt.

You gotta start somewhere in your learning curve on how to work on bikes. Gotta learn how to walk before you can run...

GS parts aren't nearly as expensive as GSXR parts, trust me on this. Who's to say you wouldn't have to rebuild that GSXR front end anyways?

You already have a set of GS forks. New GS1000 fork springs are about $70, new seals are about $20, fork oil is about $10, you can have my old rear shocks for the cost of shipping (in good shape BTW), and a new set of Avon Roadriders would be about $200. Total in the neighborhood of $300. And you've have it done fast because they're all bolt-ons and learn about working on bikes in the process. You'd then have a solid platform to learn how to ride on.

Good sportbike tires are a minimum of $250 a set, not to mention all the time, effort, money, parts, research and possible pain when things go south when trying to modify a machine you don't even yet know how to operate....

For learning purposes, there really isn't much difference between a twinshock and monoshock rear end. If that's what you want, go buy a Ninja 250 and putt around on that for a couple of seasons then mod your GS1000 like crazy once you've got some more experience.

Well put, I couldn't agree more...get a 250 beater you can take off road and not worry about dumping. Trail riding will hone your skills quickly and give you the basic mechanics...I rode dirt bikes for years, 125cc, 250cc a 400 and than I graduated to a 650 which I rode for 10 years, than of coarse the 1100 and I NOW have a FZ1 that is my daily rider..the bottom line here, THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR TIME BEHIND THE BARS..RIDE FIRST MOD LATER..

[jed.only]

i mind as well sell the bike and go with my original "plan A" which is buying another hot rod.

true, the bike is probably too much for me, even as is. im 130lbs and 5'10", and yeah, this pig is heavy as hell. i struggle to get it up on the centerstand. it isnt what i wanted, hell, i wasnt even interested in bikes when this was given to me.

so to get rid of this bike and buy something else or keep it and buy something else to "learn" on just doesnt sit well with me. probably better off sticking to what i know in that case. i was just trying to make the most out of what i had.

[groundshock]

There's nothing wrong with learning on what you have. In fact, it's probably better due to the fact that compared to a new bike, what you have is much less forgivingand takes a measure of skill to ride efficiently.

Trust me, jumping from a old GS to a new GSXR, the Gixxer feels like it's riding itself.

Fix up what you have to the best of your ability, spend time in the seat, and if you're still hooked/alive next year, buy something newer.

[jed.only]

forks are staying the same, rear shocks are staying the same, tires are staying the same unless they cant hold air. ill probably put it down anyway due to how heavy the bike is.

[briyenkieth]

jed, man the people are only lookin out for a brother. That said, it's your bike and your dough. Don't lose heart and sell it, that would suck! Do as you wish, change everything you want. I would think that if you followed someone elses lead the modds you want to do shouldn't be to big of an issue. Just be careful and go slow. I agree with you about throwing good money at bad parts. Definitly look into a msf course and wear your helmet. Yeah I know you don't have a helmet law but superman only fell off a horse and look what happened to him.

[almarconi]

Just my .02 cents

I've been riding for about a year now. Riding a bike in the street/traffic doesn't compare to riding a dirt bike or even driving in your car. When you are on your bike, you can't help thinking..I am going to die because some person in a car doesn't see me or Damn..that semi truck is really big. Most of my miles were done on a 550. IMHO the 550 is great bike for in town driving but is lacking on the highway. The 750 is more comfortable on the highway but it feels alot heavier than the 550. When I go for Sunday rides in the country, I still like to take the 550. The guys on this forum are giving you solid advice, take the MSF safety course and get some riding time under your belt. If you can afford it, I'd park the 1000 and get something smaller to learn on. You can always sell it after a year and put the money towards mods for the 1000.

[posplayr]

For me

I've been riding for about a year now. Riding a bike in the street/traffic doesn't compare to riding a dirt bike or even driving in your car. When you are on your bike, you can't help thinking..I am going to die because some person in a car doesn't see me or Damn..that semi truck is really big.

I agree with most of your comments but would simply add, that experience in the dirt allows you to push a bike further to the traction limit and at to higher extremes without near the danger of consequences that you have on the street. A good dirt bike background can provide the technical skills, that you are just not likely to get in normal street riding.

Having said that once you are one the street you better ride defensively as most likely anything you hit (or hits you) you are going to lose.

With that dirt bike background you are thinking less about how to ride and more about how to avoid getting hit.

Even though I had limited dirt bike experience and as much on a 5 hp mini bike in the early 70's, when I started riding street bikes in Dec 07 it seemes to have helped me. I also did a fair amount of technical mountain bike riding.

Pos

[almarconi]

I agree with most of your comments but would simply add, that experience in the dirt allows you to push a bike further to the traction limit and at to higher extremes without near the danger of consequences that you have on the street. A good dirt bike background can provide the technical skills, that you are just not likely to get in normal street riding.

The dirt is a great place to learn how to ride a motorcycle. Knowing how to operate the controls and how to ride in rush hour traffic are two different animals. The way to become proficient on the street bike is to ride on the street.