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Project Rescue and Restore - Cafe-ish

Started by the_unknown, August 05, 2016, 07:44:43 AM

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the_unknown

I was in the market for a project bike and I found an old 1990 that didn't run for cheap on craigslist. I picked it up that evening and towed it home. The battery was dead and it wouldn't fire up but I figured it was just an ethanol issue since it had been sitting for so long. There was some light surface rust all over the frame and it hadn't been maintained very well. This is what it looked like before I got a hold of it.


I cleaned out the tank and cleaned the carbs and it fired right up. Engine seemed to be in good shape so I had a great starting point. Part of me getting this bike was to learn how to do some fabrication/skills that I didn't already have. So I started gutting it and cutting the frame up. I had an end goal of what I wanted it to look like which was based off a South American shop (Ace Custom Shop)


Sleepy bike is Sleepy


I have never welded before so I bought a cheap HF wire feed welder and went to town on the rear subframe.


I had never fiberglassed anything either so I figured that out and made a custom seatpan and used my SO's yoga mat as padding.



Here it is starting to come together. I polished the valve and side covers with a dremel. I didn't want a mirror shine so this worked perfectly.

A quick Mockup


I had to reroute the battery location and all of the rear electronics to just above the shock. I still need to build a new battery box which can hold the smaller LiFe battery I ordered yesterday and tuck the wires a little better. I plan on glassing in a cover that will hide all of it as well.

I wanted a minimalist look so I ordered an Acewell 52mm gauge and mounted it to the top triple.


This is how it stands now.



I just discovered that the tank had been previously coated and that there is a small pinhle leak on the left side. I just ordered a new tank on ebay that isn't coated and supposedly has 0 dents in it. I plan on coating and painting that tank in a mettalic-ish silver with either "SJK" on it or the old Suzuki emblem for the 50's Colleda.

I also need to glass some huggers for it and redo the suspension. I have the parts but I just haven't gotten around to doing it yet.


the_unknown

Overall Impressions so far.
This bike is ridiculously loud. It is uncomfortable. It vibrates like crazy and my hands go numb after 45 minutes. It is cramped in the legs. I f%$king LOVE IT!!!! I smile ear to ear whenever I ride it now. :laugh: It is an absolute blast to cruise around WOT wherever I go without breaking too many laws.

Torstein

bahaha, the beauty of the 500, WOT isn't very fast, lol

i like your bike man, looks nice, but uncomfortable  :laugh:

ShowBizWolf

Cool thread!

First thing that caught my eye is the stock seat in the "before" pictures... I was like  :icon_eek: holy poofy!! lololol  :laugh: Your custom seat looks pretty spiffy... and I do enjoy what you did with the engine fins and the side covers  8)

I love the simple dash area you made... and clip-ons woot!!

A hugger would be super great... I've always wanted one for my GS. They used to be made here on the site but that was before I joined/got a bike etc. Maybe someday I'll get around to making one too... but I've got to get my car project done first !!

The fact that you kept the stock look to the tank just blew me away, I really like that... so it sucks about the hole in it! But I totally understand and it sounds like your plans for the new tank will turn out great.

Thank you for sharing and I'm looking forward to more pics/progress!
:cheers:
Superbike bars, '04 GSXR headlight & cowl, DRZ signals, 1/2" fork brace, 'Busa fender, stainless exhaust & brake lines, belly pan, LED dash & brake bulbs, 140/80 rear hoop, F tail lens, SV650 shock, Bandit400 hugger, aluminum heel guards & pegs, fork preload adjusters, .75 SonicSprings, heated grips

mihkels

Looks great!

What brake master cylinder are you running on the front?

bazcarnegs


Endopotential

Nice work!  Looks like we were looking after the same aesthetic. 

I'll have to learn welding one of these days...

I got a lot of vibrations through my seat.  Putting some sort of gel pad like this really helped
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Small-Motorcycle-seat-Gel-Pad-by-Kno-Place-UpholsteryCo-/380450230346?hash=item589499d04a:m:mDzvCZZYVygPxdjXUxboW9Q&vxp=mtr
http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=70953.0

2007 GS500F Cafe Fighter - cut off the tail, K&N lunchbox, short exhaust, 20/60/140 jets, R6 shock, all sorts of other random bits...

Hupjai

Dope. Dope. Super Dope. Dope advice about the gel for the seat, will look into that for my own project. Just dope!  :thumb:

Mr. BIGGZ

Quote from: the_unknown on August 05, 2016, 07:44:43 AM


I have never welded before so I bought a cheap HF wire feed welder and went to town on the rear subframe.




The bike looks amazing, the minimalist look you've created gives your GS a lot of character!

Which HF welder did you purchase? They have a few different models and I'd like to purchase a welder that will work for the frame.


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