Mike R's GS550/650 bare bones street racer

[boontonmike]

My question now is, why could you not just use 4 of the 88 GSXR 750 intake boots, or 4 of the 92 GSXR750 intake boots???? Was it necessary to get the correct spacing? and would the stock GS650 boots not work? I measured the GS650 carb/boot spacing to be 75-82-75 center to center in mm, that's cyl's 1-2/cyl's 2-3/cyl's 3-4 spacing, respectively.

http://kzrider.com/archive/viewthrea...tion=printable

77-93-77 is the spacing on the bigger carbs. I contemplated trying to conver the rack to the smaller spacing of the stock 650 carbs. I ended up just mixing and matching boots til I got them to fit.

[T8erbug]

without the tail piece! just adds too much length IMO. I feel like with the freshness of the rest of the bike why dampen it with the old look of the tail?

[6pkrunner]

Can't decide which way I like the new seat better, with the tail piece or without.

I think the lines flow a bit better with the extension. Without it she ends a bit too abruptly.

[T8erbug]

What tank is that? I love it and I want one just like it

[Crankthat]

The tailpiece was throwing the looks off for me, but I think it would look good painted like the rest of the bike.
I cannot see it from the back view and that may change my mind.
Try painting with the rest and see what that looks like.
Really curious how shes going to look when you are finished.
I really like it so far.
Thanks for sharing!

[boontonmike]

Hey guys. Just dropping a line here. Started the season of riding the bike. Felt awesome, but after 3 rides my front sprocket bolt came loose and fell off. The countershaft sprocket melted the threads.

In the mean time I have a billion other things going on including house work and motocrossing with friends (RMZ450). I'm starting to get the itch to get back to this thing. Have a spare engine I am going to swap bottom end for. I am also going to try and do a big parts sale of all my spare **** as time allows. Really need to clear some room to begin the surgery. The goal is to touch up all the stuff I missed on the first go and do some painting also.

As of now.. Been lurking other builds. Thanks for the entertainment and motivation.

[dorkburger]

I dig the look. Definitely better with the extension. I do wonder though, if extending the frame cover under the seat to meet the new tail, may help it all flow better visually. Also, is there no battery, or is it hidden somewhere? I really like the "see thru" look, with its minimal body work, and tidied up wiring, etc.

[Chuck78]

Liking this build A LOT, preparing to do the same engine/carbs/cams for my wife's bike in the near future. The slingshot cv's and dual oval k&n filters will really really help to wake up the bike! & the 550 cams have such an aggressive sounding ( long) valve opening duration that they have to be kept so that the bike retains it's seriously authoritative tone. The 650 cams may develop more streetable torque, but this will give a little better top end and a lot more aggressive tone.

I'd at the very least black out the wheels and sand & polish the sidewall portion of the rims only, it'll look real sharp! If it were mine, I'd paint the frame black, and the tank maybe as well (or dark metallic blue, green, or grey), but that's just me. The tail and seat look awesome.

Those tires grip PHENOMENALLY WELL, by the way! I have nearly burned through the rear in just three months, but I ordered a second due to the great cornering and very cheap price.

[Gsgsxr]

What is the clutch slave off of I'm looking to do this to mine

[boontonmike]

What is the clutch slave off of I'm looking to do this to mine

It was off a 90-95 generation gsxr 1100 engine. I will probably be going back to cable clutch for simplicity and feel.


As for now... Just purchased a 2013 GSXR 600 for a daily bike. Cant beat fuel injection and brand new for reliability. I have a couple more projects to finish around my house before I get back to the 673 BUT I will never sell it and will finish it regardless how long it takes me.

[hotrods316]

mike, congrats on the new bike purchase. definately cool that you have a modern version of this bike. i like a much what you have done with this one, I kinda like the tail on the bike, and if in person it feels heavy in the back, could shortening up the seat a few inches pull that tail in closer to the tank, but i think it looks pretty good in pics. just my .02

[Chuck78]

Have you been able to get this bike together & on the road much? Carb jetting & needle height sorted? Contemplating the bst33's vs bst31's vs stock bs32ss carbs rejetted... Doing the 550-673 swap here in the next month, trying to figure out my best options. I have some bst31's & bst33's, & k&n dual oval filters that fit either. Tuning may be more of a challenge though than with the gs650's bs32's, which I can pick up for $100, but I'd need air filters for them.

[Rob S.]

Would it be possible to flip the oil cooler, and run the lines over the engine?

That's the way my Z1 was, and the whole setup was practically invisible.

[boontonmike]

Rob S.- I could probably do that but I enjoy the look of the exposed lines.

I've been working on this project again lately. I pulled the engine to fix the stripped counter shaft sprocket bolt and replace the head gasket.

In the process I found one of the pistons ejected a wrist pin clip and that ruined the piston and cylinder wall. I've already purchased replacements for that.

In the mean time I've stripped the engine completely down and split the cases. Everything looks good on the inside. I'm in the process of glass beading and painting the cases. I'm going to be going with gloss black cases, glass beaded side covers and I'm not sure about the head yet. I've also pulled the carbs apart and gave them a thorough cleaning inside and out. I'd like to do something about the looks of them as well.

For the engine case prep I'm going to use powder coating plugs to plug all the holes while I glass bead. I will then wash the parts and blow them out with air a couple of times. I am going to follow up with Alumiprep and Alodine dip tanks. After that I still haven't decided what type of primer and paint to use, but I have a quite a bit of work up until then to decide. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I do have a question on the crank seals. Do they get installed when bolting the cases back together or should I press them in afterwards?

Also, one more question. I have acquired .5mm OS pistons that I would like to use but I cannot find rings for the life of me. Where would be a source to find rings?

[dorkburger]

Cool to hear you're back at it. How did everything go with the houe situation?