New owner questions (jet kit, shim tool, rattle)

[TwistedKestrel]

Hi all, just got a 2005 GS500 with 60,000km recently and was wondering about a few things. I've had many other bikes, picked this one up for the cheap insurance but I am surprised by how much I like it already! Performed due diligence and searched but could not find straightforward answers to these questions.

1. My bike came with the K&N drop-in filter, but the restrictor is missing. I am 95% certain that the prior owner never touched the carbs, so I'm pretty sure it's running lean. I'm going to stick a factory paper filter in there for now, but since I was planning to re-jet the carbs anyway ... the instructions for the 3156 Dynojet kit don't specify any difference in jetting based on the air filter. Does anybody have any experience with this? Definitely going with the Dynojet kit for the fuel needles alone.

2. Is it even possible to get the factory valve shim tool anymore? Does anybody have a part number? I know the Motion Pro tool is out there, I'm just curious. I asked a dealer parts guy and he had no idea where to look. I already checked valve clearances via a dodgy screwdriver arrangement once, would prefer not to do it that way again.

3. My bike is making a weird rattle when rolling away from a stop. It's not the cam-walking knock I'm talking about (which my bike also does ) ... I checked chain slack and it seems fine. Only thing I could think of was something rattling around in the clutch, any other suggestions? Doesn't seem to really correspond to either engine speed or road speed.

[BockinBboy]

1.)  First, don't go with Dynojet, I'll explain in a sec.  K&N with restrictor ring is very similar to stock and most folks find it still performs well without rejet, but can benefit slightly with rejet.  However, without the restrictor ring, many members have found the K&N drop-in extremely difficult to tune correctly.  Its best to go with genuine Mikuni jets to replace your current setup if you are planning to jet.  Sounds expensive, but its actually cheaper, requires no drilling, and you can go always go back because they just screw in.  Contact member 'The Buddha' on this forum.  He sells kits for the 89-00 carbs for $25 a set, and they come with the jets you need, carb bowl allen head replacement screws (you will strip the factory ones upon removal), and O-rings for raising the needle for fine tuning if you desire to use them.  He can tell you exactly what size you need tailored to your specific setup (year carbs, intake, exhaust, and any other bits worth tuning for).

2.)  I'm not sure of locating the actual factory valve shim tool, but its the same for all years, so you can check parts fiches for newer models as well... but most of us use the motion pro tool as it works just as well anyway.

3.)  Honestly not sure on that as you mentioned checking chain slack which was my first thought... but should be about an inch.



- Bboy

[TwistedKestrel]

Thanks for the reply BockinBBoy. I knew someone was going to suggest Mikuni jets ... I understand that they will work well and solve lean issues perfectly fine, however I'm really after the titanium fuel needles in the Dynojet kit. I expect that part-throttle response & performance will be superior ... funny to talk about on a 500cc air-cooled bike, but from the limited bopping around town I've done on it it is happy without being caned all the time (unlike, say, a CBR125 I rode not too long ago). Plus the Dynojet kit was not very expensive either (they are currently on sale on Amazon) AND for the later model three-jet carbs drilling is not suggested in the instructions. Slide drilling is never even really necessary, it's only to slightly increase the opening speed of the slides, but I have enjoyed the benefits of it in the past. Interesting to note the difficulty of tuning without the restrictor though, thanks.

[mustangGT90210]

Why do more work, for the same outcome? I rejetted with Mikuni jets. Way cheaper than the DJ kit and no drilling stuff, making it impossible to ever return to stock

[weedahoe]

I have a oem valve shim tool if you're interested

[TwistedKestrel]

Why do more work, for the same outcome? I rejetted with Mikuni jets. Way cheaper than the DJ kit and no drilling stuff, making it impossible to ever return to stock

Tell me where you see that you need to drill anything (aside from the pilot screw blanking plugs): http://www.dynojet.com/pdf/3156.pdf

I have a oem valve shim tool if you're interested

I just pulled the trigger on a Motion Pro tool, I found a local vendor that sold them, sorry! How did you come by yours, though?

[007brendan]

The dynojets kits require you to drill the slides.  It's in the 89-00 instructions: http://www.dynojet.com/pdf/3128.pdf

I don't know why it doesn't include it in the 04-10 instructions, though I noticed that the 89-00 has a stage 1 & 3 while the one you posted only has a stage 1.  But I'll echo what others have said, dynojet is overpriced.

[twinrat]

www.factorypro.com    they have the kit you need adjustable needles as well... kit description is(GS500 01-08 CONFIG 10) i used this kit and it comes with a guide on how to tune the carb ...I GIVE IT A 10

[TwistedKestrel]

The dynojets kits require you to drill the slides.  It's in the 89-00 instructions: http://www.dynojet.com/pdf/3128.pdf

I don't know why it doesn't include it in the 04-10 instructions, though I noticed that the 89-00 has a stage 1 & 3 while the one you posted only has a stage 1.  But I'll echo what others have said, dynojet is overpriced.

The stage 3 jetting is for removal of the airbox ... K&N does not have an official fitment for the 04-10 for anything that replaces the airbox, so I suspect this is why it is omitted (though I hear the lunchbox filter fits fine anyway).

[The Buddha]

60Km is 40K miles ... watch for oil consumption. These buggers can use a quart in 500 km or so ... and still run passably well.
Cool.
Buddha.

[radodrill]

I just bought a 2009 GS500F last week; from running it around I found that the peak power band only went to about 6000 RPM.  Yesterday I put in a K&N drop in (no restrictor) and rejetted the carbs.  I went with 20/62.5/142.5 jets and it now pulls hard all the way up to the red line; just have to tweak the needle height and fine tune the idle/mixture.  I bought an assortment of genuine Mikuni jets for about $50, which is cheaper than the dynojet kit.

[Funderb]

dont do dynojet. I did. It was a waste of time. use the wiki jetting info and do it yourself.
http://wiki.gstwins.com/index.php?n=Upgrades.Rejetting

[radodrill]

dont do dynojet. I did. It was a waste of time. use the wiki jetting info and do it yourself.
http://wiki.gstwins.com/index.php?n=Upgrades.Rejetting

Exactly what I just did.  Gave me an excellent starting point with vastly improved acceleration.

[mustangGT90210]

Hell, just PM The Buddha, he has a jet kit for your bike for $33. Jets, washers for the needles, and new float bowl screws. I bought mine through him, he knows his stuff