I have heard of various techniques for putting a better front end on the GS500. TO get the bike where I want it, I know this is going to have to be a step I take. My main goal is to replace the front end with one that allows for both easy dampening and rebound adjustments, and inverted, if possible. So I wanna ask, what front end is the most common replacement? I want to do more than just rebuild the suspension, I want to add clipons to it as well. What bike are you guys pulling the front end off of to replace it? Also, what kind of mods are needed to make this switch? Any welding/cutting involved? Does the triple tree need to be replaced as well or just the tubes. Also, do the clip ons cause any clearance issues with the tank?
Related question would be rear suspension. I am assuming a shock replacement is all it needs or is there a different swingarm that will allow it to handle better?
Try here there is alot of great info about suspensions for the GS500
http://pantablo500.tripod.com/
www.peterverdonedesigns.com/introduction.htm
Not sure what is in those links.
No matter what front end you get, you will need the complete triples (but with GS bearings), wheel (except Katana), rotors and calipers for it.
I have done a 96-99 GSXR750 and a couple of Katana f/e swaps on the GS as well as a 96-99 GSXR750 on a SV. There is my write-up in the FAQ on the Katana install.
Most any f/e can be made to fit. The main issue is the bearing size since you will need to use GS bearings.
For GSXR (Showa) and TL (KYB) USD forks, they have an aluminum triple and the stem is .5mm larger than the GS. The stem is also aluminum and is a lot lighter than the GS steel stem. Doing a stem swap would require welding the GS stem to make up the difference. Turning the GSXR stem was easier for me. I just had 2 stems turned for 96-99 GSXR750 forks, werase643 has the other one. But the shop must be able to cut metric threads, helps to work in a tooling shop. I have a drawing of the modified stem if needed. Also,a thin spacer (.5mm) was needed in the top triple clamp where the stem connects.
Steering stops will need to be modified. I can go into more details of what I have done later if needed. Both cutting and welding was required.
There should not be any issues with clip-ons hitting the tank. Most GSXR USD forks use 50mm clip-ons.
As for rear, the stock swingarm should be fine. I am in the process of fitting a 04 GSXR1000 swingarm, got a 01-02 750 as well which is the same size. They are about 5-6mm wider so the swingarm would need to be trimmed. I did a RGV swingarm swap which was fairly easy with a couple of bushing/spacers since it was narrower than the GS. Good luck finding a RGV s/a though.
I hope my late night ramblings made sense.