Hey Guys. I'm New Here

[TOMIMOTO]

Hello Everyone. I just stumbled upon this message board. I recently (Saturday 7/10) purcahsed a 2004 Blue Suzuki GS500F. This thing is like brand new. I went in and they told me they didn't have any in blue. They had a yellow one built already, but we went out back with the salesman and we found a blue on still in the crate!! They got it 2 days prior. Well I ended up buying it. They built it for me that day. I got it home with 3 miles on the odometer. Now I didn't even have my license or permit or anything so I rode it in my yard (grass) for a day until I got my permit and put 8 miles on it. on Monday I got my permit and I already put 60 miles on it. I love this thing. The weather has been really crappy though and it's supposed to be crappy all week. I also got a HJC Helmet with it and some nice gloves. I also got a padded Suzuki Jacket. Well here's some pics. It's nice and shiny because I already put on a second coat of wax.


That's my Jeep in the background too. Also I'm only 18 and I paid for this fully by myself. So don't go off calling me a daddy's boy or anything.

[tdan553527]

Welcome to the board, I bought a yellow one in march and love it. If you have any questions, this is the board for you. Lot's of knowlegable people here.

Enjoy your new bike!!

[john]

Welcome to GStwin.com.  You momma's boy  

You'll find all sorts of good information here and very knowledgeable people...and we don't mind if you ask silly (what you think is silly) questions.  There are many new bike owners here.

Don't forget to take the survey!

[girlracer]

congrats, i got mine back in june. mine is in my sig with my cars

ride safe

[Edsel]

Welcome to the forum... i'm a Newbie too, just got my bike(black) at the end of June.

[stephan]

Daddy's boy!!!   :lol:

Oh man that's fun!  Just kidding!  Congrats and welcome to the club.  I'm glad to see you went for the GS500.  A lot of folks go after the fastest 600 they can find, but the GS500 offers tons of fun without the killer insurance price of the other sportbikes out there.

Also the GS500 pretty well handles typical newbie mistakes.  Many 600cc sportbikes will throw you to the ground if you do the wrong thing.  The GS500 seems to take them in stride.

You may want to consider the MSF course if you haven't taken it yet.  I learned a TON of great information that has made me better on a bike and in a cage.

Ride safe!  

[96gs]

Sweet bike. I wish I could just get the plastics, seat, tank, rear plastics, and taillight assy, for my 96. I love the new 500Fs. And how do you like your gloves. I've been looking for a pair exactly like yours but all of them are in th $60 range. Ride safe.

[oppy00]

GReat choice of bike.  I understand what you did in the yard.  I had my bike a couple of weeks before I took the MSF course, which after completing I got my liscense.  I put over 100 miles on my bike just going up and down my driveway and street ( roundtrip aabout 300 yards)  Oh, by the way the MSF course lowers you motorcycle as well as your car insurance.  HEre in GA the state sponsers several classes a year, so they only cost $50.  By the way I saved something like 4X's that in one year of insurance       .

[yamahonkawazuki]

here in tn after msf you get a MANDATORY 10% (or is it 20 % ) insurance discount.

[TOMIMOTO]

The gloves fit really well and they're really comfortable. The knuckles on them are rock hard. I want to try punching a wall with them but there brand new and I don't want to mess them up. There made by a company called Rocket I think. I'll have to check them later. I got them for 40 after 10% discount with my bike. So they were 50 normally. They do leave this weird green residue on the palms of my hads after I take them off. I don't know what it is. I'll have to look inside the glove later.

I'll also get pics of my Suzuki Jacket when I get home in the morning. Working right now. 3rd shift.

Here are the gloves. 45 bux. Not bad.

http://www.tonker.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/joe_rocket_phoenix_2_glove.html

[70 Cam Guy]

Sweet ride man and welcome to the site  

I'll also throw in the suggestion for the MSF ( http://www.msf-usa.org/ ) course.  Its a great way to learn the basics and give you a great foundation.  It also waives the driving portion of the M1 test when you pass the class.  Here in CA its mandatory if you're under 21.

I'm glad to see you picked up the gear basics.  

I'm not sure how the wind noise is on the faired bikes but I find that wearing ear plugs really helps relieve fatigue and keeps my ears from ringing.

One more bit of advice is ride your own ride.  Go at your own pace and don't worry about keeping up with more experienced riders.  Its easy to get in over your head.  When you're riding at 100%, there's nothing left to make emergency maneuvers like line changes.  Good luck and have fun!

[500rider]

Welcome to the board!  Thanks for all the pics.  The F is a cool looking bike.  I was looking at them at the dealer last week (not to buy one ... just to admire).

Have fun dude but ride safe!  I remember when I was 18 that I didn't always excercise the best judgement.  However seeing as you paid for it with your own money I'm sure you'll be careful.  

Also, go easy with the corners (I'm sure you will anyway if this is your first bike ... is it?).  The tires will still have mold release on them from the tire factory.  Gradually work them in  ..  or better yet use some degreaser that's safe for your tires (dish soap might work ... rinse well).  

Check out the board for performance mods!  I realize money may be tight since you just bought but when you are ready there are a few things you might consider doing.  Firstly, I would recommend progressive springs for the front end.  If the stock springs on the 04 are as bad as other years, you will find out soon enough that your suspension will bottom out under hard braking or even medium size bumps.  You will not believe the difference this will make.  Much more stable in corners too.  

Rob

[TOMIMOTO]

This is my first bike. Also money isn't tight at all. I got a sweet job that my dad hooked me up with and I still live at home and get everything else I need for free. The bike should be paid off by the end of the summer.

I did notice that the front is very bouncy or floaty feeling. That will probably be the first thing I'm going to work on with this bike. My dad has raced motorcross for many years a while back and he can do all the work on it for me. He told me that we can add more oil to the forks to make them a little stiffer.

The weather is really crappy and has been all week and it's supposed to be pretty shitty all the way through the weekend. It's driving me nuts. I get home every day and start the bike and let it get all nice and warm for a while then turn it off just to keep everything running nicely. It's running in the garage right now.

Well I'll get those pics of my jacket soon. Need to get something to eat and go to bed. Just got home from work.

[cernunos]

Hey, tomi, dontcha just love that GS500??  You'll love this forum too. Remember to browse all the forum/postings and feel free to throw in yer 2sense (sp) ever now an' then. Lovin' that GS500 an' the forum.

Cernunos

[96gs]

The green residue is probably from the leather in your gloves. I like to call it new glove glory. Your hands will sweat and some of th dye on the leather will wear off into your hands. It won't be that bad after awhile.

[pantablo]

welcome and congratulations Tomimoto!
As has been said, lots of good people and lots of info here, just ask...Dont forget to check out the main page here and my site as well for loads of good stuff about maintenance and upgrades.

I would suggest you NOT overfill the forks with oil. ONly use the amount prescribed. You CAN put in heavier oil but really the best thing, and the most noticeable difference is going to be spending $65 on progressive springs and installing them. Later you can swap out the rear shock with a katana 600 shock (when you start to push the bike in the twisties).

Now go cut that fender...
http://pantablo500.tripod.com/pablosgs500page/id48.html

[Kerry]

It's running in the garage right now.

Be careful with that air-cooled engine; you don't want to let it run TOO long while it's standing still.  Many a front fender has wrinkled because of the heat emanating from an idling engine.