JohnnyL's 1980 GS550L Cafe Build

[Rich82GS750TZ]

..... I don't remember who requested that info, but I'm of the opinion that a person's finances are their business only, unless they want to share. I've never been one to ask others about their finances, and I don't share my info with others. This is just my opinion though, I don't mean offense to anyone.

No offense taken. I'm the one who requested sharing cost on the build. It was more a thinking out loud kind of post. I'm sure we're all thinking it. And you're right. No-body's business but Johnny's. Heck, I try to not even tell my wife what I spend on the bike. And she doesn't tell me what she spends on shoes. It works out.

It is a labor of love, for sure.

[Spyder]

Ain't that the truth. I have close to triple of what my bikes are worth (resale) into them all told. I don't regret a penny of it. Love the bikes I have, and don't have any plans to sell them, ever. They'll be in my will...

[bwringer]

What would be ideal would be some mechanism where you flip a couple of levers to raise the rear for riding, then flip it back for display. Not sure I can envision how to do that in a strong enough way that would fit in the space available without some serious pondering. Hmmm...

Personally, I'm a big fan of crappy roads and all the suspension travel I can get and then some. But this project has different priorities. In any case, letting the rear tire hit the inner fender isn't really ideal. If you encounter a large bump it would be like slamming on the rear brake, which could get dicy.


I think it'll take a combination of things.

If you raise it a little bit (maybe make or buy some longer spacers for the ends of those shocks?) and limit the shock travel (add a bushing or bump stop to the shock shafts?), you could make it more rideable and safer while still mostly keeping the look you want.

Another tactic might be to use a 17" or 16" rear wheel, which would get you 1/2" or 1" of clearance. However, that big round 18" rear wheel is part of the aesthetic, and of course that's more expense and trouble... wheels can be had cheap, but there's powder coating, bearings, buying another tire, etc.

Switching to modern tires (110/90-18, I think?) might get you a little clearance as well. Not sure, but I think the older inch size designations on the repro tires are a bit taller. Then again, there may not be much difference. I don't know for sure.



And yeah, even though none of my bikes look great, I've got far more into them than they're "worth". Best not to think about it too much, really. Nobody rides for free, and I refuse to compromise safety and reliability.

I kept a spreadsheet when I bought and built my KLR650 after the first one was destroyed. The bike was a bargain at $2K - 12,000 miles, all stock, had never been on dirt. I deleted the spreadsheet a few months later when the total hit $4K... it was only making me anxious.

[JohnnyL]

Ok...you guys are making me feel a lot better about what I've spent on this little beast. Like I said before...I deleted the "Total Spent" box on my spreadsheet after it was making me ill looking at it. It didn't really matter what I spent. I wanted to build the bike the way I wanted and it was going to cost what it was going to cost. Obviously I was seeking the best deal I could get on quality parts. Cheaping out on the gaskets burned me.

I have the bike back on the lift today. I purchased some fiber gaskets for the bolts holding the fuel petcock on. I put the tank on a stand and put some gas in it and it seems to be holding without any leaks. I also pulled the carbs and swapped out the 110 mains for 117.5 mains. The bike ran great last weekend but it wouldn't run past 7000 RPM. I'm thinking it's fuel starved by the restriction of the main jet. I really want to feel that kick in the pants between 6000 and 9000 RPM everyone talks about on these bikes.

I also pulled the clutch release screw assembly. I went to put grease through the zerc and grease wasn't coming out where it was supposed to. I had the release screw in upside down so the grease wasn't getting into the groove like it was supposed to.

Last thing on my list today is to lift the rear of the bike and swap out the 280mm shocks for the 320mm shocks and tighten the chain. I want to see if I like the 320s on there or not.

[93Bandit]

No offense taken. I'm the one who requested sharing cost on the build. It was more a thinking out loud kind of post. I'm sure we're all thinking it. And you're right. No-body's business but Johnny's. Heck, I try to not even tell my wife what I spend on the bike. And she doesn't tell me what she spends on shoes. It works out.

It is a labor of love, for sure.

Btw, I was not trying to call you out, or say you're wrong or "nosey" for asking. I was simply stating my opinion, and just trying to make sure he didn't feel pressured to share if he didn't want to.



But, I'd be lying if I said I didn't wonder what was spend on this project. I do wonder what was spent on JonnyL's project, but I'm a numbers kind of guy. I see dollar signs on literally everything, and it drives my wife nuts. I am quite the penny pincher. We live on a tight budget and apply grease when it squeaks, only if the grease is on sale... LOL.

Due to our tight budget, my wife knows about every cent I spend. So I have to be careful when it comes to my hobbies! But I know what she spends as well. We keep each other accountable. Many of my coworkers/friends cringe when they hear that we keep track of what the other person spends, but honestly if you have an agreed upon budget, it doesn't matter. My wife knows what I have available to spend each month, so it's no surprise. Same with her. Easy peasy.

We live like this because I am determined to retire someday WITHOUT debt, and hopefully a nice nest egg to enjoy pending no socialist takeover in America...

[Rich82GS750TZ]

It’s all good. We actually do keep a very accurate accounting of how much we spend on what. And understand each other’s hobbies. My wife and I also have the same retirement goals, and we live within our means. Probably why I may never buy a new bike, or build one to the degree than Johnny and some others have. I’m ok with that. There’s no envy here. Everyone’s gotta figure out what work for them.

[Steve]

I am another one that isn't too worried about cost. Not that I am rich and famous, or anything like that, it's just that 'this is what I want, let's make it happen'. Nothing extravagant, like gold-plated accessories, but simple, functional things, like a headlight. While there are many here that have gotten their 'new' motorcycle for $150 or less, I happily paid that much for a headlight. LED turn signals? Sure. $90 for the front pair and another $25 or so for clear lenses. Too many other things to list, but I like the way it has turned out, I am not too worried about the bottom line.

.

[JohnnyL]

Btw, I was not trying to call you out, or say you're wrong or "nosey" for asking. I was simply stating my opinion, and just trying to make sure he didn't feel pressured to share if he didn't want to.



But, I'd be lying if I said I didn't wonder what was spend on this project. I do wonder what was spent on JonnyL's project, but I'm a numbers kind of guy. I see dollar signs on literally everything, and it drives my wife nuts. I am quite the penny pincher. We live on a tight budget and apply grease when it squeaks, only if the grease is on sale... LOL.

Due to our tight budget, my wife knows about every cent I spend. So I have to be careful when it comes to my hobbies! But I know what she spends as well. We keep each other accountable. Many of my coworkers/friends cringe when they hear that we keep track of what the other person spends, but honestly if you have an agreed upon budget, it doesn't matter. My wife knows what I have available to spend each month, so it's no surprise. Same with her. Easy peasy.

We live like this because I am determined to retire someday WITHOUT debt, and hopefully a nice nest egg to enjoy pending no socialist takeover in America...

It sounds like you listen to Dave Ramsey. I graduated from his Financial Peace University. It helped me out tremendously. I tried to get my wife to watch the classes with me but as soon as I put it up in the TV...she was out like a light fast asleep. I find his strategies a little extreme as far as forgetting having a credit score or not utilizing any credit whatsoever but everything else is great advice. I budget every month but the bike wasn’t in the budget. I took a substantial side cash paying job and just basically took a large chunk of the profit for my bike.

Amen to the socialist comment. And hopefully the Corona Virus doesn’t kill my retirement fund. It certainly seems to be infecting the stock market.

“Live like no one else so that you can live like no one else.”
-Dave Ramsey

[Cipher]

4-5 grand excluding value of personal labour

[JohnnyL]

4-5 grand excluding value of personal labour

I wish. I have $1200 just in the paint job. Over $400 in the M-Unit, $450 in the gauge, over $500 in the handlebar assembly and we haven't even started on the powder coating, tires, seat, rearsets, exhaust, brake discs, air pods, braided stainless brake lines, polished stainless bolt kits, electronic ignition, lithium battery, reg/rec and all the engine parts. OEM top end gaskets only were $200. All this stuff adds up quickly. Could it be done for less than I spent? Of course but I spared no expense on quality components that should make this a good looking and reliable bike for years to come.

[erki52]

If you end up with a bike that you love looking at and rides how you want it to....who cares how much it costs. I have no idea how much my beasty cost to transform from stock to how she is now. All I know is your bike looks fantastic and if i ever get around to doing another GS your build will be an inspiration, however it turns out.

[93Bandit]

It sounds like you listen to Dave Ramsey. I graduated from his Financial Peace University. It helped me out tremendously. I tried to get my wife to watch the classes with me but as soon as I put it up in the TV...she was out like a light fast asleep. I find his strategies a little extreme as far as forgetting having a credit score or not utilizing any credit whatsoever but everything else is great advice. I budget every month but the bike wasn’t in the budget. I took a substantial side cash paying job and just basically took a large chunk of the profit for my bike.

Amen to the socialist comment. And hopefully the Corona Virus doesn’t kill my retirement fund. It certainly seems to be infecting the stock market.

“Live like no one else so that you can live like no one else.”
-Dave Ramsey

So I was actually raised with the "dave Ramsey" mindset without actually knowing about him, which he often calls common sense. So I've always been budget minded and have worked hard to pay off any debt I've accrued (new car, student loans). It wasn't until I graduated college that one of my professors gave me Dave's money makeover book. I read it in a few days and used a lot of his advice. The new car I bought was technically a bad decision per Dave's book, however I had just relocated to MI from KS after graduating, and had an incredibly unreliable old truck that was a money pit to keep running. I didn't know anyone here and had no help if I broke down, so I decided I needed a new reliable car, so I bought a new Cruze and paid it off quickly. I paid it off in 26 months, rather than the 60 month loan term. And that was after paying my wife's Cruze off early, and paying cash for a wedding, and a honey moon, and having a child... Ugh, I've spent a lot of money in the last two years lol.

But now we're working on my student debt, which fortunately isn't very high. We should have it paid off by the end of July this year.

We're living within our means, and get a lot of weird looks and rude comments from people, including family, when we turn down certain things. It's discouraging sometimes, but we keep focusing on the fact that we will own our house, cars, everything, and have retirement money while all those people who looked down on us are still working and don't own a thing. I'm not keeping score with these people, I just don't want to live like that.

And concerning my bikes and other hobbies, I always pay cash. Which makes project progression very slow... But I'm determined to complete the 3 bikes I have now. One doesn't need much, one needs a lot, and the last will be a cafe racer type build so it'll require the most work. That one will likely be last. I should be able to complete the other two in a few years, so I can enjoy them while I build the cafe racer.

[Grimly]

I tend to view transportation expenditure as like a hole in my backyard that I have to keep topped up with coins.
Sometimes the level gets low and I have to toss more in.
Once they're in, the earth claims them and I never get them back.

[JohnnyL]

If I go with Sonic front springs .90kg/mm, what weight fork oil should I use? I'm 5'-9" and 165 lbs.

[chris]

I would like to congratulate you on a successful build. It seems like all you have to do now is ride the bike and set up the suspension. As far as the talk about cost, I think you have done a good job. I never did a accurate tally on my build but I would say it's at least 8 grand in parts alone but the end result is a bike that performs much better than the day it left the factory. I can't wait till spring when I get to ride my beast to work on the 70k long mountain pass. I just need to wire up my lazer detector. The road is infested with police. It makes me very happy that guys like us are restoring this old bikes, it's a tribute to the engineers that designed them. When done properly, they can be just as reliable if not more than a new bike. Enjoy