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Finally got some in-town time from my job travels and used the opportunity to (mostly) finish my project.
While I rode the bike last year, there were definitely a couple of issues. One was a stumble, or at least a flat spot, above 4500 rpm. Had to push it to get above 60 mph. Right at the end of the season, I heard some noise from the front brakes. Then winter set in, so it was time to get down to it.
Upon closer examination, bike was in much worse shape than I thought, so over the last 8 or 9 months, it's been:
· Rebuilt all the brake calipers (found the right front was frozen, then snapped off a bleed screw so had to replace the entire body anyway) and new pads all around.
· Rebuilt the front master cylinder
· Installed stainless brake lines (The OE ones on the bike were dated 9/79!)
· Replaced fubar'ed front brake switch with a pressure switch
· Adjusted valves (replacing 4 shims – 3 of the 4 intake valve clearances were over .2mm
)
· Did the carb teardown, clean, bench sync, float adjust & synchronization routine (found a broken float post in carb #1, requiring replacement of the carb body)
· Replaced all carb and intake o-rings
· Replaced the carb screws with the stainless steel kit
· Replaced the r/r (found taped-up melted connections courtesy of a PO)
· Replaced the tires (tread was good, but date codes said they were 10 years old)
· Replaced the clutch & brake handles (both were bent but usable when I got the bike)
Other improvements included Sonic Springs up front (where I found each fork had different oil) and Koni shocks in the rear.
All the while, I was also making the bike into the form I wanted - a two-up tourer. I like the look of the Bates luggage, but IMHO they made horrible looking fairings, so stuck with Vetter there. I had previously purchased a custom painted tank, side covers and tail piece and my original intent was to then paint the bags and fairings to match, but the time and $$ spent on all the other stuff above blew that idea out the window!
The VH 4-1 had to go because it interfered with the bags. Found a nice stock setup to replace it.
In all, not counting new stuff, there’s used and/or rebuilt parts & bits from 10 or 11 different bikes here, courtesy of Ebay, CL and fellow GSR members. Kinda what you gotta do when you’re wrenching on vintage machines, eh?
Then I re-wired the fairing and bags, and added LED running lights to the bags and trunk in place of the reflectors that were there, and an LED high-mount brake light to the trunk. Also replaced the stock horns with Fiamm Freeway Blasters, adding a relay for that.
Once I got it all together, I think the color scheme actually works. Certainly ‘back in the day’, custom-painted fairings and luggage were not the norm. Most riders simply added the stock white or black equipment and left it as is. So to me, it’s a vintage look on a vintage machine and I’ll keep it like that for at least a while.
On the road – WOW, what a difference. Starts easily, idles nicely and runs like a champ. Even with the increased profile, I can feel an improvement in handling, probably courtesy of new tires along with the upgraded suspension. It’s rideable now and I’m using it every chance I get. There’s a few more bits and pieces to add or improve, but they can wait until the snow flies.
So, how do I get this silly grin off my face now?
Before and after pics. I’ll get some more detailed pics up later.
PS – Remember one of the Steps to GS Happiness: “Replace the Petcock”? Well, I didn’t, because mine worked just fine, thank you very much. It did until yesterday that is….now it only works in the prime position. The Run position is like an Off position now, so I’ll use it on Prime until winter or it fails completely. For you newbies – SEE? – I tried to skip over a step on the path to Nirvana, and it came back to bite me in the butt. Rats!
While I rode the bike last year, there were definitely a couple of issues. One was a stumble, or at least a flat spot, above 4500 rpm. Had to push it to get above 60 mph. Right at the end of the season, I heard some noise from the front brakes. Then winter set in, so it was time to get down to it.
Upon closer examination, bike was in much worse shape than I thought, so over the last 8 or 9 months, it's been:
· Rebuilt all the brake calipers (found the right front was frozen, then snapped off a bleed screw so had to replace the entire body anyway) and new pads all around.
· Rebuilt the front master cylinder
· Installed stainless brake lines (The OE ones on the bike were dated 9/79!)
· Replaced fubar'ed front brake switch with a pressure switch
· Adjusted valves (replacing 4 shims – 3 of the 4 intake valve clearances were over .2mm
)· Did the carb teardown, clean, bench sync, float adjust & synchronization routine (found a broken float post in carb #1, requiring replacement of the carb body)
· Replaced all carb and intake o-rings
· Replaced the carb screws with the stainless steel kit
· Replaced the r/r (found taped-up melted connections courtesy of a PO)
· Replaced the tires (tread was good, but date codes said they were 10 years old)
· Replaced the clutch & brake handles (both were bent but usable when I got the bike)
Other improvements included Sonic Springs up front (where I found each fork had different oil) and Koni shocks in the rear.
All the while, I was also making the bike into the form I wanted - a two-up tourer. I like the look of the Bates luggage, but IMHO they made horrible looking fairings, so stuck with Vetter there. I had previously purchased a custom painted tank, side covers and tail piece and my original intent was to then paint the bags and fairings to match, but the time and $$ spent on all the other stuff above blew that idea out the window!
The VH 4-1 had to go because it interfered with the bags. Found a nice stock setup to replace it.
In all, not counting new stuff, there’s used and/or rebuilt parts & bits from 10 or 11 different bikes here, courtesy of Ebay, CL and fellow GSR members. Kinda what you gotta do when you’re wrenching on vintage machines, eh?
Then I re-wired the fairing and bags, and added LED running lights to the bags and trunk in place of the reflectors that were there, and an LED high-mount brake light to the trunk. Also replaced the stock horns with Fiamm Freeway Blasters, adding a relay for that.
Once I got it all together, I think the color scheme actually works. Certainly ‘back in the day’, custom-painted fairings and luggage were not the norm. Most riders simply added the stock white or black equipment and left it as is. So to me, it’s a vintage look on a vintage machine and I’ll keep it like that for at least a while.
On the road – WOW, what a difference. Starts easily, idles nicely and runs like a champ. Even with the increased profile, I can feel an improvement in handling, probably courtesy of new tires along with the upgraded suspension. It’s rideable now and I’m using it every chance I get. There’s a few more bits and pieces to add or improve, but they can wait until the snow flies.
So, how do I get this silly grin off my face now?
Before and after pics. I’ll get some more detailed pics up later.
PS – Remember one of the Steps to GS Happiness: “Replace the Petcock”? Well, I didn’t, because mine worked just fine, thank you very much. It did until yesterday that is….now it only works in the prime position. The Run position is like an Off position now, so I’ll use it on Prime until winter or it fails completely. For you newbies – SEE? – I tried to skip over a step on the path to Nirvana, and it came back to bite me in the butt. Rats!
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