I am buying an immaculate '97 gs500...I just looked at it yesterday, it fires up great, already has a V&H and is rejetted...I am SO excited, I'm going to buy new gear tomorrow. My question is, since its been sitting, I guess I should probably go ahead and change the oil, I'll check the air filter, but do I need to drain the gas? Or should some sort of additive work since its been sitting for a while? Thanks for any advice to make sure this sucker is ready to go!
Try putting some carb cleaner in. The kind I will highly recomend(sp) is Greased Lighting Carb Cleaner. It costs around $8 for a quart but it works miracles. Much cheaper then a carb rebuild if you ask me.
Ask the previous owner what he has done to it and what kind of fluids he has used in it. What kind and weight engine oil, fork oil, brake fluid, gas...you kinda want to continue using what he used, unless it is a bad brand, then you want to change it. Definitely change the engine oil, though. If it fires up and runs fine, just run it out of the old gas until it's time to fill up again. No worries.
Check tire pressures. And ask when was the last time he changed the fork oil. Fork oil should be changed every other year. Also, check the color of the brake fluid; dark brown means it needs to be changed.