First Ride Impressions..............

[gymply]

Well, as posted previously I picked up a 2002 GS that had been sitting for 2 years for my brother who wants to learn to ride.  I pulled the carbs and cleaned them last weekend (pics are here:  http://www.ronaldfranks.com/gs500.htm )  and took the bike out for its maiden voyage.

First impression:  This bike is very flickable.  It feels and is very light compared to my other bikes.  I was able to carry a pretty good amount of corner speed.  Very stable.  However, if I was keeping it the first thing I would go is upgrade the fork springs and rear shock.  I weigh 200 lbs and the suspension felt soft to me.  Second would be to rejet the carb and add a K&N filter and aftermarket exhaust.  The bike felt down on power but I have to remind myself that it is compared to what I normaly ride.  I put about 100 miles on it Sunday and had a good time.  The seat was comfortable.  This is really a fun bike and I think it is the perfect machine for my bro to learn on.  Fast, but not intimidating, and has great handling.  I think he will like it.  He's coming to pick it up on Saturday.  I'll be sure to tell him about this forum.  Lot's of good info here.              

~gymply
Current rides:  2000 Kawi ZX-12R, 2005 HD Softail 
Old rides:        1983 Honda V-45 Magna, 1994 Honda CBR1000F, 1998 HD 1200 Sportster, 2001 HD Road King Classic

[scratch]

Glad you liked it!   It is going to be underpowered to what you're used to.  Are you going to respring it for your brother, after you're done with it?  See: www.peterverdonedesigns.com/introduction.htm

[gymply]

I guess I will leave that up to him.  We are about the same size so the suspension will probably be soft to him as well.  One of the things he's looking forward to is learning to work on the bike. 


~gymply
Current rides:  2000 Kawi ZX-12R, 2005 HD Softail 
Old rides:        1983 Honda V-45 Magna, 1994 Honda CBR1000F, 1998 HD 1200 Sportster, 2001 HD Road King Classic