1981 GS450E Rebuild

[Hoosier Daddy]

Refer to "The Blob" coment posted elsewhere... LOL
"Blokey"... pink.... I get it! You Mates from Oz crack me up!
OK maybe I am a little toasty... a lil... "hic"... maybe.

[pete]

Refer to "The Blob" coment posted elsewhere... LOL
"Blokey"... pink.... I get it! You Mates from Oz crack me up!
OK maybe I am a little toasty... a lil... "hic"... maybe.

Hahaha the only "toasty" I'm getting at the moment is from the fumes from the putty... horrid stuff!

And yeah that thing's still causing me grief, I really think I made a bad choice in putty... should've gone body filler I think!

[Tim Tom]

That ducati engine is too cool. A small motor powered bike has been on my list of things to make for a while. I was thinking steel frame 70's road bike would make the perfect chassis to start with....

Looking forward to paint on the 450 though.

[pete]

That ducati engine is too cool. A small motor powered bike has been on my list of things to make for a while. I was thinking steel frame 70's road bike would make the perfect chassis to start with....

Looking forward to paint on the 450 though.

Yeah it is pretty damn cool Tim Tom! Definitely looking forward to digging into that one

I think anything '70's or older would definitely be the right place to start, and then you can go pretty much wherever you want with it... but I'm doing my best not to think about that yet

I'm looking forward to the painting too actually, because that will mean this damn tail piece that's whipping my butt will be done...

Looks like I'm on the hunt for some body filler and lower grit sand paper tomorrow and I'm hoping like hell I end up with the day off so I can actually get the stuff...

[pete]

So this tail piece is really kicking my butt, but thanks to Dale and Larry I should have a way forward tomorrow, errr it's today now... gotta love working this time of morning... twiddling thumbs waiting for stuff to happen... at least I get to jump on and update this

Anyway, my mirrors arrived today and yeah well they're cheap but they'll get me a safety certificate as well as let me see behind...



If things go to plan I should be able to have a bit of a snooze and have the day off which means some stuff around the house then picking up some sand paper, safety goggles, a light for painting, and some body filler.

If things go better than planned I might even get some fibre glass filling done as well... we shall wait and see...

[Leigh]

Pete, I bought a set of those mirrors.
I put them on and they sat so high I had to look up to see them.
I could get good tv reception with them..

You know most mirrors let you see your elbows?
Those will look over your shoulder for you. hahaha.

[pete]

Pete, I bought a set of those mirrors.
I put them on and they sat so high I had to look up to see them.
I could get good tv reception with them..

You know most mirrors let you see your elbows?
Those will look over your shoulder for you. hahaha.

Hahahahaha

You sure they're the same ones? They almost seem a little lower than the stockers...

[Leigh]

Yeah, you take out the adapter from the base and screw those in..
I sat and looked and decided against them.
Then I got those little shorties.
Useless as mirrors but most bike mirrors are. I trust my swivelly head more.

[pete]

Yeah, you take out the adapter from the base and screw those in..
I sat and looked and decided against them.
Then I got those little shorties.
Useless as mirrors but most bike mirrors are. I trust my swivelly head more.

Aaahh ok these'll do for the time being... I had to get special Yammie ones to cater for the left hand thread in the brake side mount...

Swivelly head is definitely best for visibility

[Leigh]

If you find they sit a bit too high, I guess you can heat and bend the stalk down a bit.

[pete]

This is true... one day I'll actually get a seat on it and be able to work that out

[Hoosier Daddy]

I had to get special Yammie ones to cater for the left hand thread in the brake side mount.

Is this a stock Suzuki thing? I know exactly what you mean as I chave an adapter that came with the custom mirrors I put on the 'oldWing that is left hand thread for Yamaha applications. But it's been so long since I took the Zooks stockers off I can't remember if one was Left hand thread or not. May need to check mine before I choose the replacements if not bar end Napolean style.

If things go to plan I should be able to have a bit of a snooze and have the day off which means some stuff around the house then picking up some sand paper, safety goggles, a light for painting, and some body filler.

Good luck to ya! I had to get back to work to rest up after my vacation, The wife worked me like a rented mule while I was off, I had need to sneak in motorcycle time when she was gone!

[pete]

Is this a stock Suzuki thing? I know exactly what you mean as I chave an adapter that came with the custom mirrors I put on the 'oldWing that is left hand thread for Yamaha applications. But it's been so long since I took the Zooks stockers off I can't remember if one was Left hand thread or not. May need to check mine before I choose the replacements if not bar end Napolean style.

Nah it's because I got my new master cylinder from Mikes XS, so it has the left hand thread mirror mount now. Stock was normal right hand thread.

Good luck to ya! I had to get back to work to rest up after my vacation, The wife worked me like a rented mule while I was off, I had need to sneak in motorcycle time when she was gone!

Cheers mate, I know what you mean! I have to clean the house first this morning and duck up the road to grab that stuff before I'll even get to look at it...

[pete]

Ok I think I turned the tables on the tail piece today and now I think I have a chance of whipping it's butt instead of the other way around...

That putty is crap:



So glad Dale and Larry recommended I get rid of it. That was a pain to do but at least now there's a chance of getting the tail piece looking good...

It's currently got a fibreglass concoction sort of like a filler applied to the low spots to build them up:



Once that's cured and sanded back I've got some fibreglass reinforced body filler to go over the top to create the proper smooth overall shape and finish. That should be Saturday's fun...

So yeah I'm still progressing, it's just all over in the paint thread at the moment...

[oohsam]

Nice work my man.
I like that GS logo on your measuring board thing...maybe you could incorporate that into your paint job

Is it just me, or do you love the smell of body filler. Makes me feel good, dunno why, everytime I smell it, it takes me back!
I was gonna suggest not using putty, but I was too late, glad you got rid of it. I use this metalic body filler, its looks like a liquid metal mesh paste, very weird, but awesome to work with. Anywho...good work!