Remove '05 GS500F Fairings

[My Name Is Dave]

Hey everyone. I bought an '05 GS500F with 1 mile on it last Thursday and am in love with it. The bike is such a great bike for a relatively new rider (had an 83 Honda CB125) and I have put over 150 miles on it in the past 5 days. I can't get off of it. And I do have gear and am obeying the break-in rules (I slipped to 5500 RPM once, but I think I'm ok   .)

So my question is regarding the front side fairings. I would like to take them off for two reasons:
1) I like the naked look a lot
2) If I am to get into an accident, I would like to not trash my plastics.

I see that the headlight fairing is connected to the front side fairings. Am I able to remove the left and right pieces without having to remove the headlight? I will leave it alone if it's not possible to remove them, but I would prefer having them off. Any tips/links to site detailing the procedure are greatly appreciated. It looks like a simple job, but I would rather know than guess.

Thanks,
Dave

[cheesy]

those obvious three bolts on each side, then on the inside of the fairing near the front tire there is a bolt, and on the top.


Pretty straightforward. Helps to have a friend hold the fairing up while you take it off

[groff22]

Hey Dave.

You can remove both the left and right fairings without touching the headlight. There are I think a total of 6 bolts per side holding the fairings on. Just remove them, pop those "plastic lock things" and split it.

Now you have a Bandit!!

HA!

Jeff

[My Name Is Dave]

Thanks. I have a way of making simple things much harder than they should be, so I can see myself working on this for 8 hours tonight  :dunno:

Is there any reason NOT to remove them? Of course the bike will look different, but not necessarily in a bad way. I also wonder if the insurance company would take this mod into account? I'll guess "no" for now.

I'm looking forward to hitting the 500 mile mark and getting the engine really going. I'm taking this time to get fully familiarized with the bike, and I am feeling really good about the ride and the bike overall. I look forward to posting future stories here, hopefully all involving positive experiences. Thanks guys (and gals)

Dave

[CanadianGS]

Maybe its just me, but if u want a naked bike u should have bought one.  Whats the point of worrying about busted plastic if u don't want it ne way.  Just ride it how it is, cuz it looks awesome, and then when u dump it and brake the fairing to sh!t, it won't matter cuz u wanted a naked bike ne ways.  See now u get the best of both worlds!

[My Name Is Dave]

I really like the looks of the bike, hence taking it home when I went to the dealership in lieu of a Ninja 500 (I debated both and really chose the GS when I saw it in the flesh).

I think I'm just worried that I may lay it down when I'm doing my practice drills in a parking lot. The weaving and slow speed turns are my main concern.

[cobalt135]

I just had mine off over the weekend for some work.  You can see what it looks like at http://www.gstwins.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=2 and choose "latest uploads" at the top.  BTW the images are larger than the gallery will display by default...just click on it again for full size.

[gazingwa]

Damn.. I like that look... hmm...  Sounds like a good project

[groff22]

Yeah the 05's look pretty good with the fairings off the sides. Are you leaving your bike like that Cobalt135?  If so you'll probably want to trim / sand / cut a little bit of fat off and take the black plastic off the top of the headlight fairing, since it's quite flimsy without the sides on...

I had mine off just last weekend and contemplated for just to leave them off entirely... Maybe a project for the future but for now the fairings are still quite shiney and new.

[cobalt135]

Yeah the 05's look pretty good with the fairings off the sides. Are you leaving your bike like that Cobalt135?  If so you'll probably want to trim / sand / cut a little bit of fat off and take the black plastic off the top of the headlight fairing, since it's quite flimsy without the sides on...

I had mine off just last weekend and contemplated for just to leave them off entirely... Maybe a project for the future but for now the fairings are still quite shiney and new.

No they were put back on.  I had noticed the winshield was rubbing/vibrating against the headlight fairing and dash like area so I pulled it apart to put some foam tape in a couple areas out of sight to keep them from rubbing together.  Did look kinda cool though...crossed my eyes and imagined it was an SV650S....definately my next bike I think.