79 GS850 - Shooting for cross country reliability on a college budget

[SqDancerLynn1]

Sounds like you are making great progress. I have put 25K trouble free miles on my 79GS850. The only thing I would suggest on you trip is to lube the points cam at every oil change

[Lunchbox88]

I will post a big update maybe tonight or tomorrow but I have a quick question. I beleive my fuel petcock to be letting fuel by while the bike is not running. While I believe this is a common problem, I want to check with you guys before I take action. Should I just get this rebuild kit from z1( http://www.z1enterprises.com/detail.aspx?ID=1508) and repair it myself, or try to find a manual one with reserve that fits if there is such a thing?

[Don-lo]

I've found petcock rebuild kits to be "iffy", sometimes working, sometimes not. If the diaphram is good, then disassembling and cleaning often works.

You're doing good work there, like you've done it before.

Your shim adjustment sounds good, and changing that .04 to .09 per Steve is good advice. An X shim is a little extra big, so that would help on a .04 or .05.

Did you disassemble the rear caliper, or just flush it? They are very prone to dragging, and burning up pads and discs.

If you have the wheels off, I'd put a finger in the bearings and check for looseness.

Can your friend make more of those turn signal controllers? I'm sure there would be people to buy them .

A clear windshield and soft bags makes cross country runs much better.

How is the Honda coming?

[Lunchbox88]

I've found petcock rebuild kits to be "iffy", sometimes working, sometimes not. If the diaphram is good, then disassembling and cleaning often works.

You're doing good work there, like you've done it before.

Your shim adjustment sounds good, and changing that .04 to .09 per Steve is good advice. An X shim is a little extra big, so that would help on a .04 or .05.

Did you disassemble the rear caliper, or just flush it? They are very prone to dragging, and burning up pads and discs.

If you have the wheels off, I'd put a finger in the bearings and check for looseness.

Can your friend make more of those turn signal controllers? I'm sure there would be people to buy them .

A clear windshield and soft bags makes cross country runs much better.

How is the Honda coming?

Thanks for the kind words, and yes I did disassemble the rear caliper to clean and re-grease it. Although I might take it apart again just to double check everything is good to go. I did also check the wheel bearing and they seem good as well. As far as the turn signal controllers, I will post more info in the next update post here in a few minutes.

My roommates CB750 is going fairly well. He did beat me to safety inspection and getting a plate but I wasnt far behind. We went in on a 4 gauge carb synchronizer since we both have to do that and it seem logical. I thought he had it pretty much squared away, but just as I was diagnosing my electical issues, he determined his powered rotor was faulty, so he is going to attempt to rewind it himself. All and all we seem to be fairly close to the same point in rideability now.

[Lunchbox88]

Weekend update (3/20/11)
Hey guys just thought I was do a weekend up on my progress. Also I wanted to say thanks to everyone for their kind words and helpful support during this ongoing progress.

What I have mainly been focusing on is the electrical system. After going through the stator papers and doing alot of diagnosis on my charging system I have deemed my r/r busted. I have already ordered a new honda unit from duaneage and Im excited about getting that in. While I was in an electricity mood, I decided to tackle a things this weekend. I started cleaning connections throughout the wiring harness, and Ive been finding alot of burnt connectors, so Ive been replacing them with new bullets along the way. Next while diagnosing the charing problem I found a decent drop across the old fuse box, so taking from what I have seen here I replaced it with a newer automotive style fuse panel. Once that was done it was time to install the new turn signal controller we made. Everything was solid state and easy to do, except we were thinking about its shape when he was soldering it together. We were able to still put it were we wanted but if he ends up making more it would be in a more stacked package. Speaking of that, if there is interest from members in purchasing these units (see video of functionality below), he said could start producing them. He wasnt sure on pricing yet, but depending on interest he could through me a number. Also mine was connected with bullet connectors to the harness but if he actually went into a small production he might be able to do a nice connector.

Getting a little burned out on electrical stuff I moved to sealing the airbox, which did make a noticeable difference in the way the bike ran. It was definitely lean.

I did manage to get to and pass safety inspection, after I had to convince the inspector that my bike didnt have a 17 digit vin number like the newer bikes. Got it plated and legal, and boy did that feel good. I managed to get out this morning for a short ride as kind of a test. Turns out this thing is actually pretty fast and really fun. It was a little short lived though as the clutch was obviously slipping when I got into it at higher RPM. Hopefully its just 30 year old springs that are the culprit.

So before I consider it functionally decent there are a couple things I still need. A new seat, a new headlight, and for some reason the numbers in my gear indicator are missing so I need those too.

Now for some pics and a video:

Burnt connectors


New fuse panel (wiring was cleaned up later)


Turn signal controller


The controller hidden in a rubber sleeve


Where the controller sits in the bike



Video of the controllers operation:

http://s667.photobucket.com/albums/vv39/Lunchbox_reloaded/gs850/?action=view&current=025-1.mp4

Sealing the airbox:



How the bike sits right now, its not pretty but I havent gotten there yet

[Lunchbox88]

Also could someone see if this is the correct placement of the kick starter, it feels like it might not be in the right spot.

[hampshirehog]

Also could someone see if this is the correct placement of the kick starter, it feels like it might not be in the right spot.

Needs to come round a couple of splines - the kickstart should point at around one o'clock and the rubber bit where you put you foot should be pretty much horizontal.

[tas850g]

The kick starter should be more vertical. At about 12 o'clock, maybe in between 11 and 12 but closer to 12.

That wing nut holding the kick starter on looks interesting. It shouldn't be a wing nut but maybe that was the PO's touch and personality, HA!

[tas850g]

actually, hampshire you're right. The kick starter shaft starts at about 12 o'clock but it curls forward to about 1 o'clock.

[DanTheMan]

Your shift indicator lights are probably just unplugged. Look around on top of the tranny, you'll find a 5 wire plug just laying around, and a matching plug up under your gas tank. The one that's on laying on the tranny goes up between #1 & #2 carbs to hook to the one under the tank. They're easiest to route when you've got the airbox off, but they can be fished up there too.

[Lunchbox88]

Your shift indicator lights are probably just unplugged. Look around on top of the tranny, you'll find a 5 wire plug just laying around, and a matching plug up under your gas tank. The one that's on laying on the tranny goes up between #1 & #2 carbs to hook to the one under the tank. They're easiest to route when you've got the airbox off, but they can be fished up there too.

The lights are there and work, but its just the light bulbs. I assume there should be some type of number plate on top of it although I could be wrong.

[Lunchbox88]

Can anyone confirm some type of number plate on top of the gear indicator lights?

[Don-lo]

Yes, there is a numberplate above the lights. Bike bandit has a fiche to look at. See what you are missing and order it.

The turn signal controller looks good. The stock controller reads speed and cancels signals after 5 seconds driving over 10 MPH. Is that integrated into your controller? It's not absolutely needed, just nice to have.

[Lunchbox88]

Yes, there is a numberplate above the lights. Bike bandit has a fiche to look at. See what you are missing and order it.

The turn signal controller looks good. The stock controller reads speed and cancels signals after 5 seconds driving over 10 MPH. Is that integrated into your controller? It's not absolutely needed, just nice to have.

Yeah, the pieces seem to be discontinued, oh well I will do some more searching.

The solid state one he made currently does not. Although it was something he said he thought he could do if he had some time with his o-scope to figure out how the distance signal worked. If people are genuinely interested, as a poor college student Im sure he would be willing to make some to sell. Also if you watched the video I posted in my last weekend update, there are currently 4 modes (left, right, alternating, hazard). But those can be edited and added on to, as well as changing the blinker rate if so desired.

[azr]

Yeah, the pieces seem to be discontinued, oh well I will do some more searching.

The solid state one he made currently does not. Although it was something he said he thought he could do if he had some time with his o-scope to figure out how the distance signal worked. If people are genuinely interested, as a poor college student Im sure he would be willing to make some to sell. Also if you watched the video I posted in my last weekend update, there are currently 4 modes (left, right, alternating, hazard). But those can be edited and added on to, as well as changing the blinker rate if so desired.

I watched that video, it was fantastic to see hazard lights. Very cool. I would be interested in finding out what he would be asking for that little piece of intelligence. Looks like you're making good headway on the project. I noticed your seat is looking a little worn out. I've got an extra 79 850 seat in the shed. Surface rust on the bottom of the pan, the seat is in fairly good condition but has two small tears on the side. Not looking for much, maybe a swap?