New Member

[Rydar]

Hello.  My name is Ryan, I live around Philadelphia, PA, and i recently bought a 2007 GS 500f.  However, i'm a bit backwards and as such i don't have my permit or license yet.  I plan to get the permit and take the MSF course soon tho, considering i bought a bike and all the gear to go with it. 


That pic was of my bike when I first got it.  Unfortunately, i'm new to motorcycles, aka an idiot, and since then i have managed to drain the battery and drop it on my driveway while trying to put it on the center stand.  The extent of the damage was broken plastic where the turn signal is mounted.  Silver lining: i found the pieces inside the side fairing.




So that's the current extent of my issue.  The battery should be ok, i'm thinking i'll buy a battery tender since I probably need one anyway, and hopefully i'll learn how to charge it even given my next to nothing knowledge of bikes.  My only question would be what to do about the the broken front fairing?  I'm not exactly excited by the idea of taking it to someone to repair, but obviously scotch tape won't do the trick either.  Any comments/ideas/opinions would be helpful.  Other than that, i have lurked around the forums for a few days and everyone seems like positively delightful and wonderful motorcycle scoundrels.  Thanks for all the info i've already learned from your posts.

[redge]

Welcome buddy, i say get flush mount turn signals.

1. it looks better
2. cover up that hole

[Kijona]

That's actually a pretty common injury the GS500F receives. The bike falls over and then hits the turn signal and punches it through the fairing.

There are a bunch like these out there: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Motorcycle-Turn-Signals-Blinker-Flush-Mount-Smoke-Black-/170359866268?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr&hash=item27aa3d439c

One thing to note is that LED ones do not draw the same load as stock incandescent, so if you replace them with LED signals, they may cease to blink. P/O of my 2007 F model did that and sometimes it takes a second or two for them to start blinking.

[BaltimoreGS]

If you have all the pieces you can take the fairing off and melt a zip tie with a lighter (redneck plastic welding) to hold all the pieces back together.

-Jessie

[tt_four]

Welcome!

How did the notary let your transfer the title without a license/permit? Don't worry about dropping your bike. It won't be the last time. I've dropped most of the bikes I've owned a couple times each. Definitely get a battery tender. Get one of the ones with the disconnecting cable that bolts to your battery, that way you can just plug it in whenever you get home and keep it in good shape.

Another option for the whole, and I'm not sure how well it'll stick to the bodywork, is to go get some fiberglass and resin from home depot, no more than $10-15 and you'll have extra to spare, and patch those pieces back in from the back side. You might need to rough it up with some sandpaper. Getting some bigger flush mount signals might be the easier way to go though!

[Funderb]

I'm not going to lie, im a super-glue addict.
No not sniffing.
You can puzzle the pieces back into place, and glue, using super glue (i recommend loctite) and use the glue sparingly! clean up any hazing or excess carefully with a carb cleaner dampened q-tip.

Welcome to the forum!

[adidasguy]

You can repair it.
Turn signals always punch through the fairing when the bike falls over unless you have crash sliders. You do have to drill a hole in the fairing for them - but I've found they are worth it. Saved my fairing when it fell over a couple times in the driveway.

[Rydar]

Welcome!

How did the notary let your transfer the title without a license/permit?

i bought it from a dealership, and they needed my state id card.  I just wasn't able to license it or anything, and it had to be trailered off the property.  I'll worry about the rest of the deal after the winter once i'm licensed and all.

I'm not going to lie, im a super-glue addict.

Isn't super glue combustible?  The reason i haven't just done that is that i thought it might be dangerous for a motorcycle.  I saw fiberglass repair products that i thought might work as a glue, but i figured you guys might know a better product or a better procedure alltogether.

I've considered sliders, but not sure i'm comfortable drilling holes in my bike at this point.  Does that slider actually come out past the turn signal?  it obviously protects the engine from hitting the ground, but would the bike balance on the handlebar end and the slider with the turn signal off the ground?  Don't test it or anything, just curious.
Thanks for the suggestions and welcomes.

[Funderb]

Yes, super glue is combustible, but only as a liquid. So while you have the container open dont squirt it into a pool and light it with a match.

Super glue is very very strong and quick setting enough to use sparingly and do a good job. If you are worried about strength, soak a square of construction paper in super glue and stick it to the inside of the fairing under the broken area, it will stiffen it up a lot.

your only other options will be JB weld (ugly and not clear) or epoxy resin.
Epoxy is great, however:
Using epoxy and fiberglass without experience glassing will land you in ugly town, smack in the middle of mess-ville. Not ragging on you, but glassing is better practiced in places that wont be easily seen, for everyone. Finish glassing is not easy.

Try super glue if you feel up to it, and if it doesn't work out very well, before it sets up hard clean it up with some carb cleaner.

[adidasguy]

The fairings are not fiberglass. So fiberglass is not the best option.

PVC plastics and plastics cements are what you need. While the cements are combustible, as mentioned that is only while they are a liquid. Once they set up, it is just plastic again. The cements melt the plastic and weld it together.

You can glue plastic scraps on the inside to hold everything in place. Avoid getting cement on the outside.

MEK is a great plastic cement, as is toluene or a mixture of the two.

[Kijona]

The fairings are not fiberglass. So fiberglass is not the best option.

PVC plastics and plastics cements are what you need. While the cements are combustible, as mentioned that is only while they are a liquid. Once they set up, it is just plastic again. The cements melt the plastic and weld it together.

You can glue plastic scraps on the inside to hold everything in place. Avoid getting cement on the outside.

MEK is a great plastic cement, as is toluene or a mixture of the two.

JB Weld makes a plastic product as well. In my experience, it has worked WONDERS on plastic.

[Rydar]

Ok, well i'll see if i can find JB weld to look at and decide between that and superglue for now i guess.  Down the road might be new turn signals and sliders.  Thanks for the help.

[fleshpiston]

  I plan to get the permit and take the MSF course soon tho, considering i bought a bike and all the gear to go with it. 

Good for you... doing it right! 

[xunedeinx]

Welcome!

Stay geared up, take that MSF course, spend 300 miles worth in a parking lot, than STRIP THAT SEXY LATE MODEL GS500 DOWN!

[Kijona]

I forgot to mention that you can purchase that JB Qwik stuff from Home Depot.

[XealotX]

Did you ever manage to get the bike on the center stand? If not, there are good videos on you tube that will help. If so, the videos might help your technique. Worked for me.

[Kijona]

Adidas has a video for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWi7zgBYEsU&list=UUfopOgFUP9aRZNHRZ8GAXeg&index=3&feature=plcp

[Rydar]

Well, the bike IS on the center stand.  However, i was not alone in putting it that way.  I may have sort of kinda held onto the bike when it dropped and gotten a quick reminder in the mechanics of how a catapult works.  Cut up the back of my hand on the driveway and wrenched my arm, which has complained for a few days.

The problem I was having was that i had locked the wheels by putting it in gear before trying to put it on the center stand.  I'll look at the vids tho and get some practice with it once my arm is back to full strength.  Thanks for the posts.

Oh, and i bought the JB weld down the street at the true value.  Lowe's had it aswell, and yeah i'd bet home depot has it.  So far i've only used it to fix my watch tho.  Bike repair had to wait while i built my bike its very own hibernation box.  I don't have a garage, and tho the weather's been warm lately, a freak blizzard would have pissed me off leaving my bike in it.