Gs 250 restoring to riding condition

[pete]

Cool, good stuff!

Yeah, left hand cover at the front is the stator cover.

Oil is definitely under that cover so you need a good gasket there.

[1980Gs250]

Ok I guess ill be tracking down one of those while i am at it as well.

Cool, good stuff!

Yeah, left hand cover at the front is the stator cover.

Oil is definitely under that cover so you need a good gasket there.

[pete]

Just go genuine, it will be cheap enough but you'll get a good gasket.

[1980Gs250]

What do you mean by genuine exactly? like genuine suzuki or? I also found out the ignitor is dead... I tried it on a friends bike and no fire... tried his ignitor on mine and the bike fired right over... sigh..

Just go genuine, it will be cheap enough but you'll get a good gasket.

[mike_of_bbg]

Yeah, I definitely think he meant genuine Suzuki on that. They're still available, and not very expensive. Definitely you want to check your stator as best you can before you open the cover. No point in wasting a gasket...

Suzuki's stock R/Rs put out too much voltage and I think that takes a toll on igniters. Other than the R/R it's the only real "digital" electronics on your bike. Once you decide what to do about the ignition system getting your charging system straight should be priority #1 to prevent the loss of it again.

Pete is very well studied on ignitions for the twins, so I hope he'll chime in. You have a few options:

1) Get a new igniter. Pro: confidence it will be good. Cons: VERY expensive, risk that you'll blow it out if your charging system is bad.

2) Get a used igniter. Pro: much less expensive. Con: much less confidence that you'll get one that's really good.

3) Fix your igniter (usually it's the output transistors have gone bad). Pro: pretty cheap. Con: a lot of work, might not work.

4) Get a third-party ignition. This is where Pete can probably help most with some options. The Dyna DS3-3C might work, but at half the cost of a new Suzuki igniter it's still pretty expensive (comes with coils though). It's meant for GS400s, though Pete put one on his GS450 I think (and at least some GS450 models share the sig gen with your bike). The Dyna is known to be pretty reliable, and Dynatek is very helpful if you have issues. Pete might be aware of some other options.

Fixing your charging system will likely involve cleaning every single electrical connection on your bike, replacing the R/R with a more robust model (e.g. Shindengen), testing your stator and replacing if necessary, and probably devising a better ground system (central star ground).

This is probably a good time to think about how far you're willing to go to get that bike on the road. If you dump hundreds of dollars into fixing the charging and electrical systems to get it working again, what more will you have to do to have a safe ride? Tires? Chain/sprockets? Brake work?

[pete]

Yep, definitely meant a genuine Suzuki gasket, well worth the cheap price...

Bugger on the ignitor, but Mike's right that there are definitely some options there.

I've just had a look through the parts fiche, and the only part not in common with the 80 - 82 450's is the advance mechanism, but looking at the bolt to mount it and the ignition timing in the Haynes manual, it still looks all the same.

This means that the Dynatek DS3-3C is definitely an option and while less than half the price of a stock new ignitor, it's still not cheap...

That does open the door of other possibilities though... retro fitting a later model GS450 (83 and onwards) ignition setup including signal generator, rotor, and ignitor. These have electronic advance so you will need to remove the mechanical advance mechanism for this option.

You can theoretically do the same with the newer again GS500 ignition setups but their advance curve is slightly different but should be no big deal.

If you do go the Dynatek route, talk to the guys there first as like Mike said, they're very helpful. You will likely need the spacer they provide with the four cylinder kits as well (I did on my 450).

I have plenty of photos and details on fitting the Dynatek to the 450 too so if you have questions ask away...

Edit: Forgot to add to listen to Mike's advice re: charging system... it seems when the charging system fails that the particular ignitor model that our bikes share are quite susceptible to failing as a result. To make it worse, those ignitors are potted so it is not easy at all to expose the electronics to repair it without damaging it further. It can be done, just not very easily... I tried and damaged it even worse than it was...

[mike_of_bbg]

Here are a few threads I had subscribed to or remembered/found which may be of some use to you:

Build your own igniter (schematics included, for the electrical DIYer):

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=182719

Some discussion of igniter repair/alternatives here:

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=177631

Discussion about an ignition available from PamcoPete, roughly $120. The link to gsignition.com does not appear to be working any more (if it ever did). However you may be able to contact PamcoPete himself and see if he can provide what you need.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=185222&highlight=ignition

Pete, one interesting thing I found researching the GS250 a bit is that it uses the same igniter as the 1980 GS550 models, which says the twin ignitions can't be far off from their 4-cyl brethren. The sig gen is a different part #, but was used on other twins. The mechanical advance was specific to the GS250. I'd personally be very temped to see if I could get a DS3-2 working, though I suspect that would require machining the back plate or maybe getting a new one fabricated.

Igniter, 32900-47020, used on:

1980 SUZUKI GS250T - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS450ET - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS450LT - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS450ST - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS550LT - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS550T & ET - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS250TX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450EX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450LX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450SX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450TX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450EZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450LZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450TXZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450TZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR

Sig gen, 33110-44120, used on:

1980 SUZUKI GS250T - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS450ET - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS450LT - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1980 SUZUKI GS450ST - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS250TX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450EX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450LX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450SX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS450TX - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450EZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450LZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450TXZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1982 SUZUKI GS450TZ - SIGNAL GENERATOR

Advancer, 33120-11410,used on:

1980 SUZUKI GS250T - SIGNAL GENERATOR
1981 SUZUKI GS250TX - SIGNAL GENERATOR

[pete]

Mike it looks like the only difference with the 550 signal generator is the shape of the mounting plate going by the parts fiche.

I have a DS3-2 plate here from when one of my original modules failed, so I could compare it with the stock signal generator plate.

I have to dig my stock rear guard and tail light out to run them while my guard and tail light have crash damage fixed, so if I remember I will grab the plates while I'm at it and compare...

[1980Gs250]

would this work?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Derestrict-Ignition-CDI-Unit-For-Suzuki-GS250FW-GS400FW-GF250-71A-/170919467765?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item27cb981af5&vxp=mtr

[mike_of_bbg]

It's not the correct part #. Alpha-sports.com's parts parts finder doesn't give results for the part # printed on that igniter. Also, the eBay one has one 3-pin connector and one 4-pin, whereas in the parts fiche for your bike it looks like it's a single 6-pin connector.

Your part # is 32900-47020.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1982-Suzuki-GS550-Motorcycle-Ignition-Unit-250T-450-T-/151025394533?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&fits=Make%3ASuzuki&hash=item2329d0a365&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1980-82-Suzuki-GS450-GS550-CDI-Ignition-Box-GS-450-550-250-Vintage-Unit-Ignitor-/330907813856?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4d0ba487e0&vxp=mtr

would this work?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Derestrict-I...981af5&vxp=mtr

[pete]

Yep, Mike's got you covered there, that's a no go.

I had a look the other night and the plate I have is for a DS3-1 rather than a DS3-2 unfortunately. It's quite a lot larger than the stock signal generator plate:

[mike_of_bbg]

I think, based on feedback from another member who bought the wrong one, that the only difference between the DS3-1 and DS3-2 kit is the included rotor. He bought the wrong one and they sent him a new rotor to correct it. So I guess this means the DS3-3 has a smaller mounting plate? Definitely a bigger plate there on the DS3-1. One could try transplanting the Dyna receivers to the factory plate. Though the GS250 mechanical advance is at least somehow minimally different from that of other bikes since the part # is unique. Could be the same physically but different springs, or you could end up never being able to fit a rotor to it. I doubt the latter from Suzuki but I'd be hesitant to try it with a new Dyna unless I had $120 burning a hole in my pocket.

[pete]

As long as the mounting bolt diameter for the rotor and the diameter of the hole in the signal generator plate is the same then it should be fine... however with the Dynatek guys I'm pretty sure if you talk to them about it they'll do what they can to help you out.

[1980Gs250]

I am still having 0 luck locating an ignitor box so i am really stumped as to what to do at this point. I do not really want to invest in trying to tune an aftermarket ignition if i am honest so idk.

[1980Gs250]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330914101088&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en#ht_82wt_1255