First Bike Build Ever (GS450)

[salty_monk]

I suspect those to be GS650 forks as the 550's had the mounts on one fork leg only.

Measure the diameter. If they are 35mm at silver end then they are 650 or 750 forks. If they are 37mm they are 850 or 1000 forks.

Rotors are Honda CBR, Calipers are Kawasaki Ninja or Concourse (probably Concourse as they are silver).

[Chuck78]

Welcome, & congratulations on your GS! I'd recommend measuring the forks & ordering a Tarozzi fork brace. They list 83 gs650gt in their catalog as a tested fit, 81-83 should be same. They could be gs750 forks as well...
Find out what Dennis put on there, & if they are stock springs, etc. Sonic springs & mikesXS cartridge emulators will be a top priority in upgrading mine soon, as well as a Tarozzi fork brace that connects the lower legs below the seals to stiffen it about 20x more than a fender does. A nicer set of Hagon $200-300 rear shocks will really help also. Cutting the factory fork springs down to 13-1/2 or 14" will improve the soft stock spring rate a lot also. Then you have to add a pvc pipe spacer to make up the difference.

If your mufflers are totally gutted, you can make your own straight thru baffle with some car exhaust tubing, drill press, & mig welder, & it wont affect performance or jetting much vs gutted shells.

[Chuck78]

Also, I think those type of mag wheels would look AWESOME in you sanded just the rim surface down with 300-400 grit sandpaper, & then spentsome time with a 4" buffing wheel on a handheld angle grinder polishing them to a mirror finish withmothers mag& aluminum polish or similar. Then sand the rest lightly, clean with wax & grease remover (autobody supply store), & spray the spokes& hub areas all hi-temp gloss black or gloss black appliance epoxy.

I saw some late model wheels done like that & they looked AWESOME! Best of luck, have fun & be safe!

[pete]

That's sort of what I did with my wheels... I didn't mirror polish the lip though and I used POR 15 Blackcote for the paint... very happy with how they turned out

[PhillyCafe]

1 Step Forward, 2 Steps Back

Hey guys thanks for all of the help on the forks and wheels! I forgot to measure them up when I was in the shop yesterday so I will do that and post my sizes.

Now, for what I did over the weekend... I decided to tackle the leak coming from the oil pan. I drained the oil and successfully removed the oil filter ( two 11mm nuts and one 10mm nut???) and cleaned that out, removed the bolts from the pan and removed that, and then removed any excess gasket (completely shot) that was stuck to the pan and underside of the engine. I fitted the new gasket onto the pan and secured it with some Three Bond and then reattached it to the engine.

Next is where I messed up.. When I went to put the new oil filter in and replace the cap, I had decided to replace the old and random sized nuts with new 10mm because they felt like they gripped the best. I tightened them up (so I thought) and filled the engine up with oil and went to run her.

Oh, how oil went everywhere!

Oil spewed from the cap and I cut the engine. I assumed I was just an idiot for not tightening the nuts up enough, so I went to take them off and put them back on. No go.

The nuts are now stuck to the stud bolts where the oil filter cap attaches and I cannot get them off, even with an impact gun (was careful).

I need to know where to go from here, idk if the stud bolts are bugged or if it was my dumb fault for not completely replacing the nuts with acorn nuts. If the studs are messed up how would I go about fixing them?

Any help would be great!

Go ahead and look through the album, it's got all the pictures of the bike so far.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151407990348223.537954.674248222&type=3#!/photo.php?fbid=10151426176228223&set=a.10151407990348223.537954.674248222&type=3&theater

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Also, I am putting up pictures of the speghetti mess that is the electric system so if anyone wants to give me an idea of where to start that would be great.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151407990348223.537954.674248222&type=3#!/photo.php?fbid=10151424061278223&set=a.10151407990348223.537954.674248222&type=3&theater

Thanks guys!

[pete]

Bugger! Those studs are replaceable and are known to be a little fragile... but you'll need to get those nuts off first. I've been so paranoid about tightening mine up without stripping threads... so far so good!

Did you put a new O ring under the cap as well? I've pinched mine installing it a couple of times which has caused oil to drip out as it's quite easy to let it slip out of the groove.

A bit of grease on the side going into the groove on the cap will stop it slipping out.

That wiring looks like a bunch of fun... not!

[Tim Tom]

Have you tried using a big cheater (long handled socket, or a pipe slid over the socket handle) to increase the moment arm and get a lot more force on the nut? Many times this will work.

Also invest in PB blaster. Or some other good penetrating oil. It's essential for working on older bikes, and will help prevent breaking stuck bolts.

Finally when re-assembling stuff, cover the threads in anti-seize. This will prevent them from fusing to the block, or nut, or whatever, and make removal much easier.


IF you need to remove the studs, one way to do it is to cut a slot in them with a dremel and use a hand impact driver with a big flat head bolt. A few good hits should be enough to loosen them.

[Steve]

Go ahead and look through the album, it's got all the pictures of the bike so far.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151407990348223.537954.674248222&type=3#!/photo.php?fbid=10151426176228223&set=a.10151407990 348223.537954.674248222&type=3&theater
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Also, I am putting up pictures of the speghetti mess that is the electric system so if anyone wants to give me an idea of where to start that would be great.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151407990348223.537954.674248222&type=3#!/photo.php?fbid=10151424061278223&set=a.10151407990 348223.537954.674248222&type=3&theater

Thanks guys!

I would love to look through your album, but it seems to be on FaceBook.

Believe it or not, there are actually three of us left in the world that do not have a FaceBook account and have no plans of getting one.

.

[PhillyCafe]

I would love to look through your album, but it seems to be on FaceBook.

Believe it or not, there are actually three of us left in the world that do not have a FaceBook account and have no plans of getting one.

.

Steve, I left my album open to the public so I thought . I will try and upload some photos to photobucket ASAP.

[PhillyCafe]

Bugger! Those studs are replaceable and are known to be a little fragile... but you'll need to get those nuts off first. I've been so paranoid about tightening mine up without stripping threads... so far so good!

Did you put a new O ring under the cap as well? I've pinched mine installing it a couple of times which has caused oil to drip out as it's quite easy to let it slip out of the groove.

A bit of grease on the side going into the groove on the cap will stop it slipping out.

That wiring looks like a bunch of fun... not!

How would I replace the studs once I get the nuts off? I did put a new O ring on, however I believe my other issue was it slipped off so when I do get the cap off I'll three bond the O ring to the groove so it stays put.

[PhillyCafe]

Have you tried using a big cheater (long handled socket, or a pipe slid over the socket handle) to increase the moment arm and get a lot more force on the nut? Many times this will work.

Also invest in PB blaster. Or some other good penetrating oil. It's essential for working on older bikes, and will help prevent breaking stuck bolts.

Finally when re-assembling stuff, cover the threads in anti-seize. This will prevent them from fusing to the block, or nut, or whatever, and make removal much easier.


IF you need to remove the studs, one way to do it is to cut a slot in them with a dremel and use a hand impact driver with a big flat head bolt. A few good hits should be enough to loosen them.

Thanks for the help! I've got a few things to help as preventative measures but unfortunately I fell into this issue. So once I cut the studs out, do I just unscrew them or is there another side of the engine I need to get to?

[Tim Tom]

Thanks for the help! I've got a few things to help as preventative measures but unfortunately I fell into this issue. So once I cut the studs out, do I just unscrew them or is there another side of the engine I need to get to?

Unscrew the studs. There is nothing on the other side of the engine holding them in. Simply force of habit.

When you get the nuts off, carefully inspect the threads to see if they are damaged. If they are then remove and replace them.

Rather than using 3 bond, smear some heavy grease over the O-ring to hold it in place. The three bond may give you a more permanent bond than you'd like and interfere with the sealing surfaces.

[pete]

Tim's got the right idea... I haven't had to do any replacing of those studs (yet) so can't really add anything there...

I would love to look through your album, but it seems to be on FaceBook.

Believe it or not, there are actually three of us left in the world that do not have a FaceBook account and have no plans of getting one.

.

There's actually four of us Steve