Hey everyone, I don't think I've formally introduced myself. I'm Travis, from Ontario. I ride a naked '08 GS500. I bought it in June of this year, it's my first bike. I've been loving every minute of it :icon_mrgreen:
Not sure exactly what its story is; the used vehicle information package for it says it had two previous owners (one being the guy I bought it from), and it'd only done 3700km :dunno_black: Poor girl had sat for quite a while I suppose. Reading through the manual, I noticed it has a feature that isn't suppose to be on the North American model (the parking light selection on the ignition). It was made in Spain, if that means anything to any of you
ANYWHO, I have had a few things done to it already. So far:
- Race Tech .9 kg/mm fork springs
- R&G frame sliders
- Suburban Machinery SV650 Type 2 handlebars
- HEL Performance steel braided brake lines for the front and rear
Here's pics of her earlier today (I know it's pretty dirty, please don't judge me :icon_rolleyes:),
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-08195132-1.jpg)
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-08195157-1.jpg)
And here she is after I added the new bar-end mirrors ($50 for both)
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-08210012-1.jpg)
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-08210024-1.jpg)
I'm not sure if I'll stick with both mirrors, I might only go for the left side if I find out I don't really use the right one (I'm a compulsive shoulder-checker)
My list of things to accomplish by next season are as follows:
- Fenderectomy
- Zip tie 1/5 throttle mod
- Rear shock (Kat?)
- Rear tire (Kat? I'd like a 150 :))
- Integrated tail light
- Dominator/dual headlights
- Dynojet Stage 1 jet kit (I already have it, just gotta get it installed)
- Jardine Full exhaust
I'm also going to work on doing a bunch of maintenance this winter. I have a OEM air filter on it's way to me now, so I'm gonna change that out. I also want to check/change the spark plugs, valve clearance, etc... I might try to clean the carbs too. I am not experienced, and I have no one to mentor me, so it's always a learning experience. Hopefully I can accomplish my list of goals with the help of this site and my trusty Clymers manual.
I'll keep posting in this thread every time I get to wrenching.
See you later!
Add to list:
new brake lever
new clutch lever
They both look pretty bent. :technical:
Too bad you already have the Dyno kit. I have one I want to sell - cheap :icon_lol:
All bikes have the "park" position. Goes all the way back to 1989. For quite a few years, the GS500's have been made in Spain.
Quote from: adidasguy on December 08, 2011, 11:53:25 PM
Add to list:
new brake lever
new clutch lever
They both look pretty bent. :technical:
Yea, I noticed they have a strange shape. The bike looks like it's never been dropped though, no scratches or dents anywhere (including the bar ends) so I figured maybe they were aftermarket?
Good idea though, I might as well switch them out. I'll add them to the list of things to do :icon_mrgreen:
Nice mods already...I like the bars and the bar end mirrors... :cheers:
Where did you pick up the mirrors?
I don't have my GS anylonger, but the bar ends would fix my mirror issue on my current bike...
Later.
Quote from: madjak30 on December 09, 2011, 12:14:58 PM
Nice mods already...I like the bars and the bar end mirrors... :cheers:
Where did you pick up the mirrors?
I don't have my GS anylonger, but the bar ends would fix my mirror issue on my current bike...
Later.
Thanks, I like 'em too. I went for a quick spin (it's 32F here, so it was a VERY quick spin) and they seem to work fine. I can barely see any of the bike when I'm riding anymore, because the SV bars put me in a more aggressive position. And now no more mirrors in my way.. it's awesome :icon_mrgreen:
I hope there isn't a rule about posting external links on this forum - if there is, I apologize. I picked my mirrors up off of Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004KAG9J2
They can mount to a standard 7/8 bar, or come with a bar-end adapter. The adapter didn't work so well for me, so I just threw them on the end of my old bar-ends (ran the bar-end screw through the mirror mount) and they seem to be on there good.
I can never really figure why someone would go all goofy spending money to modify their first bike. With all the money you spend making your GS better, you could have bought a bike that was a lot better in the first place.
Quote from: SAFE-T on December 10, 2011, 11:07:54 AM
I can never really figure why someone would go all goofy spending money to modify their first bike. With all the money you spend making your GS better, you could have bought a bike that was a lot better in the first place.
Because the quotes I received for 600+CC sport bikes were, at minimum, $10,000/year whereas my GS is costing me less than a third of that? :dunno_black:
For a 20 year old in Ontario, your first bike isn't what YOU want - it's what the insurance companies impose on you. The rates on the GS500 are among the lowest, so that's what I got. I genuinely love it, though. I won't be able to afford the insurance on a bigger displacement bike until I turn 25, when the rates get halved. That's another reason for me to mod the bike, it has to last me 5 years, so I might as well make it my own. Most of the mods I've listed are pretty cheap, too, I think all in all I can come in under $1000.. it's just the exhaust that's killer.
I've also been toying with the idea of tracking the bike when I get a new one down the line
Quote from: SAFE-T on December 10, 2011, 11:07:54 AM
I can never really figure why someone would go all goofy spending money to modify their first bike. With all the money you spend making your GS better, you could have bought a bike that was a lot better in the first place.
Because it is a lot of fun to do it and have a bike you can call your own :cheers:
Quote from: tricky on December 10, 2011, 01:29:51 PMMost of the mods I've listed are pretty cheap.. it's just the exhaust that's killer.
Check out the big brain on Trav :thumb:
Forget about the exhaust and don't completely hack off the rear fender. Get one of the fork braces from this thread, instead: http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=57028.0
Quote from: SAFE-T on December 10, 2011, 04:00:11 PM
Forget about the exhaust and don't completely hack off the rear fender. Get one of the fork braces from this thread, instead: http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=57028.0
Hmmm... you may have a point. One of the reasons I was considering a new exhaust was because my headers are looking a bit haggard, as you can see in the pic. If I strip them down and repaint, will the paint hold up? I hate rust, it haunts my dreams >:(
So why do you suggest I don't hack off the fender and replace my fork brace?
Use Rutlands Stove Polish in the tube on your exhaust pipes. Use a scratchy pad to remove lose rust than apply the stove polish.
Just curious: did they sell non-faired GS's in Canada?
It would make sense with bent levers and a lack of the fairing......
Quote from: adidasguy on December 10, 2011, 04:57:39 PM
Use Rutlands Stove Polish in the tube on your exhaust pipes. Use a scratchy pad to remove lose rust than apply the stove polish.
Will do, thanks for the tip!
Quote from: Big Rich on December 10, 2011, 10:04:36 PM
Just curious: did they sell non-faired GS's in Canada?
It would make sense with bent levers and a lack of the fairing......
I don't think they did, which is why I'm curious of its history. If you are suggesting it was in an accident and the fairings were removed, I don't think that's the case.. the UVIP and Carfax came back clean, and there are no indications that the mounting brackets for the fairings were ever there. The rest of the bike's rock solid apart from those levers
Also, adidasguy, I just broke out the owner's manual, and on page 2-6 for me it says "Canadian and Australian models of the GS500 do not have position light." in regards to the parking light. A little bit of a mystery then? I guess it's probably from the US
It might be referring to the tiny extra light in the headlamp. Most "E" model headlights (the plain naked round one) do not have it. European headlights have it. My 1992 is Canadian - has PARK but headlight had a dead end brown wire for the park light in the headlight. The "F" fairing headlight has a parking light in the headlamp.
All GS500's I have ever seen or read about have the "park" position of the key.
there were naked GS500's in Europe. I think in Canada and Australia, too. US had only faired models starting in 2004. 2001 and 2002 models were "F" style tank and plastics and were naked (everywhere in the world). There was no 2003 model (that I am aware of).
The fairing mounted to the frame. If there is no mount on the frame, your bike was always naked.
Oh, if the speedo has only KM, it is Canadian. My 1992 has only KM and a Canadian sticker on the frame. US models have KM and MILES on the speedo.
In Canada the naked version was sold straight through to 2009 (no pause in 2003), in the States the 2002 was the last year for the naked, then the fared version came out in 2004...so the 2003s are Canadian models...2010 was the last year for the fared version in Canada...kinda waiting to see if they come out with something to replace it in 2012...we'll see...
As for the "why build mod a GS...", I totally understand the insurance issue for guys under 25...as long as you stay under 650cc and it isn't a supersport your insurance is reasonable (incomparisson)
Later.
Cool - glad that's all settled :thumb:
A little update, I have ordered my integrated tail light (Clear Alternatives). While that's on its way, I'll be planning out my fenderectomy so I can get the tail section done in one go. My issue is I don't have access to any metal or metal working tools (and I do all my work in a condo parking garage :icon_lol:), so I can't easily fab a new license plate mount. I'll have to double check the GSTwins fenderectomy tutorial and see what that suggests.
I think tomorrow or the day after is when I'll be doing the zip-tie throttle mod, so I can soon cross that off my list.
Maintenance-wise, I am still waiting for my air filter and oil filter to get here. Once they arrive, I am going to swap 'em in and change my oil.. it'll be my first time doing both so it'll be a learning experience. After that, I'm gonna be cleaning the crap out of the bike in preparation for winter storage. I gotta pick up some fuel stabilizer soon and kerosene to clean the chain.
I was reading up today on cleaning the carbs, I don't know when I should do that. Is it a big deal if I do that in the middle of its hibernation? Also, I was having trouble finding a carb kit for an '08. Any suggestions?
Just to give you a heads up- search "broken oil filter stud" or similar. They do break from time to Tim and its really not that big of a deal.
If you put stabil in your tank and take the bike for a spin, you shouldn't need to clean your carbs at all (unless you feel it's needed). The one thing I do recommend is taking the float bowls off and making sure there are no particles hanging down there.
Quote from: Big Rich on December 11, 2011, 05:57:51 PM
Just to give you a heads up- search "broken oil filter stud" or similar. They do break from time to Tim and its really not that big of a deal.
If you put stabil in your tank and take the bike for a spin, you shouldn't need to clean your carbs at all (unless you feel it's needed). The one thing I do recommend is taking the float bowls off and making sure there are no particles hanging down there.
I read about the broken studs a while back, so I've ordered a few extra (they are coming with my air filter) as well as a few new gaskets so I should be good to go for oil changes in the future. I figured better safe than sorry!
The main reason I want to check out the carbs is because my choke has been acting up a bit in the past few months. When I bought the bike, whenever I started up on full choke it would take me to 3500 rpm right away and then I could adjust it from there. But in the past months, starting on full choke leaves me at just under 1500rpm.. I have to twist the throttle a few times to get it to rise up above that. Any suggestions?
Sticking cable/ assembly? Maybe a little tear down and clean is a good idea.
An update.
Today, I got a text in the morning, my friend's Vulcan 500 had somehow sheared a bolt in his shifting assembly, so he was stuck in third gear. He road it over to my place because he knew I had some work to be done on my bike. I changed the oil, and swapped in the new air filter. I was a little worried taking the tank off, but it was a breeze and I'm much more confident accessing that area now.
I ended up taking the rear plastics off as well to see how hard it'll be to remove the fender and swap in the new integrated tail light. Seems like it should be pretty easy. I ended up diggin the look without the rear plastics on it.. maybe I can find a way to make it look more natural in the future, and keep it that way. It gives it a more streetfighter-ey look, which is what my bike has been sort of drifting too gradually.
I ended up buying a dremel today, so I'm getting set to do the fenderectomy as well as the exhaust. My new plan is to take the exhaust off, strip it, prime and paint with VHT header paint and then cut it, and run with a slip-on exhaust (probably a Yosh because they are common).
Will I need to rejet if I put on the slip-on? I'm hoping not.. otherwise I'll have to wait till the summer when I rejet :cry:
New to-do list:
Strip and paint exhaust (install slip-on?)
Change spark plugs
Clean and adjust chain
Install integrated tail light
Fenderectomy
Probably one or two other things I'm forgetting :icon_mrgreen:
Pics,
After the maintenance. I switched to just the left side mirror, I like the look better. I also gave it a quick wash, I gotta go back tomorrow and finish cleaning everything for winter storage
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-15221741-1.jpg)
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-15221755-1.jpg)
Here it is without the rear plastics... I will try to plan a way of cleaning it up and making it look neater. For now, though, the plastics stay on
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/2011-12-15222912-1.jpg)
Let's play the HELP TRAVIS game! How much of this crap at the rear end is necessary?
The green will be removed in the fenderectomy
Orange: What is this bar, and is it essential? Seems to be connected to a bracket at the rear (for the light, I think)
Red: Gotta find a way of moving the light under the seat. Any suggestions? I don't think it will be rocket science really, I will go back tomorrow and try to figure something out
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/rear.jpg)
The rear fender actually keeps the rear wheel from flinging stuff at you, but if you are OK with getting extra wet and dirty in the rain go for it.
The rear taillight on the GS sticks out in a pretty ugly way ~ Suzuki must have just been digging through the spare parts bin that day. I saw a pic of a GS in Quebec that had the taillight recessed ~ will send it to you.
What kind of mirrors are you using on your bike? Are those the generic ebay bar-ends? Post up a link if you have one.
Update!
The integrated tail light is in, fenderectomy done (I might do another cut later, it's cut at a strange angle because the fender was off the bike when I cut :icon_lol:). Pics to come later!
After a month or two of thinking about it, I just ordered a Jardine full system and K&N lunchbox (I hope it fits an '08...). I'm now shopping around for jets. I am a carburetor newb so I have a lot of reading to do. I'm trying to figure out which jet sizes to go for, I think it'll be something like 20/65/145 or thereabouts. Any input from you would go a long way :thumb:
Also, I'm in Toronto. It's pretty cold out there right now. Will I have an issue rejetting it in the cold so I'm ready to ride in the spring? As I understand it, the cold will make it run richer then it normally would in warmer temps?
Quote from: tiburg on February 01, 2012, 06:47:08 PM
What kind of mirrors are you using on your bike? Are those the generic ebay bar-ends? Post up a link if you have one.
These are the mirrors http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004KAG9J2 I put mine on upside down. The bar-ends were on the bike when I bought it, so I can't help you out there, sorry! They have no markings or anything, I think they are just a cheap generic brand.
I was looking for some like those. They look like they will just clamp on. Thanks for the quick response man.
Quote from: tiburg on February 05, 2012, 11:46:58 AM
I was looking for some like those. They look like they will just clamp on. Thanks for the quick response man.
No worries. The mirrors came with bar-ends, but I didn't end up using them (don't know if they'd fit). The screw from my original bar end was long enough to run through both the bar end and the mirror, and still screw in tightly inside the handlebar.
If you don't want to do it that way, they can clamp right onto standard 7/8 inch handlebars, I believe
Hey man, looks really good so far and we're glad to have another eager wrench on our board!
Quick question...what is the zip-tie throttle mod you speak of? Is this some sort of throttle limiter or something or what? Never heard of it!
Quote from: Kijona on February 06, 2012, 11:34:18 AM
Hey man, looks really good so far and we're glad to have another eager wrench on our board!
Quick question...what is the zip-tie throttle mod you speak of? Is this some sort of throttle limiter or something or what? Never heard of it!
Thanks for the kind words! :icon_mrgreen:
The zip-tie throttle mod is a very cheap solution to shortening the throttle twist, it can change the throttle from 1/4 turn to 1/5 (best!) or even 1/6 if you want. Just superglue zip ties to the round bottom of the throttle tube so it grabs more cable with less twisting. It'll make the GS feel like it has more power off the line, and you won't have to readjust and regrip the throttle to get it open wide, which makes it great for highway.
Here's one tutorial http://www.kawiforums.com/2003-2004-zx-6r/66460-zip-tie-throttle-mod-pics.html but there are a lot out there if you google it. I think the forums on ninjette.org had the best tutorial with pics, but you have to register to view it.
I gotta go back into my throttle assembly to fix mine, my zip ties were too long and aren't that effective. I'll try to post pics soon to help explain what I mean... but essentially, at closed throttle, you don't want the cable touching the zip ties. you want them to be on bottom of the housing so when you twist it, the radius of the housing increases and you grab more cable.
Alright, spent a lot of time yesterday working on the bike. Got the rejet done, put on the K&N lunchbox, and the Jardine full system, as well as NGK iridium spark plugs.
For the rejet, I went with 20/65/145 with nothing else in the carbs touched. I didn't drill out the brass plugs on the idle mixture screws. It was pretty easy to do, I just had to pay attention to the routing of the hoses when I disconnected everything. The REAL pain was the screws holding the float bowls to the carbs. They used some sort of softer metal.. it was a nightmare. I stripped every single one, even though I had the perfect bit for the job. I had to break out the dremel and cutting disks, and cut flat heads into all 8 of them. Changing the jets was a breeze, as was putting the carbs back in. K&N went on with no issues, I just had to re-route some of the hoses. I do have two hoses who aren't being filtered now.. one is for the PAIR system, and one goes to the valve cover. Should I buy filters for those hoses? I heard the valve cover has it's own mesh filter inside it. I don't know about the PAIR system though.
After that, I threw in the spark plugs. My old ones are still kickin around, I'll post some pics at the bottom in case any of you GS gurus see an issues with them. They only have about 9500 km on them.
The Jardine was a little bit of a hassle to put on. The headers were a bit narrow, so I had to screw one in and then pull on the other pipe to get it to fit. I don't know if they did that on purpose or not. The can was the real trouble, getting that metal strap around the can and screwed in to the mount was a pain. It took a bit of modifying the rubber washer in the exhaust mount to fit the bolt through. It's on there good now, though.
I told my friend who was helping me that I thought it'd be a miracle if it turned over, with all the work I did, and the fact that it was the first time starting it up in a few months. I thought for sure I'd made a mistake. I turned the key and went to fire it up, and it wouldn't quite turn over. My heart dropped, and then I looked at my friends face and he was looking at me like I was an idiot. He pulled the choke lever and it fired up right away :icon_lol:
The Jardine sounds GREAT! It's a little loud for my taste, so I think I'm going to order the QMI. For the GS RT-1, does anyone know if it's the 2 or 2.25 inch insert? I think it's the 2 inch one. Another thing, the description for the QMI says it might require a rejet. I don't really want to have to do that just yet.
The bike seems to run great. The warmup times are ridiculously lower than before! I can't believe it. Also, I don't feel any flat spots, or any popping under acceleration or anything.. I think it's running just right. I guess I'll have to keep paying attention for the lean or rich indicators though. It's hard to tell how much of a difference the rejet made because it was my first ride in months, but it seems to pull great under 5k now, which is good, because the Jardine is pretty darn loud at the higher RPMs, and I live in the city so I like to keep it quiet.
Pics of the bike will follow, next time I ride. It looks pretty much looks the same, just with the Jardine instead. I can't remember if I posted pics after my fenderectomy and integrated tail lights.
And, here are my old plugs. I think they look OK, but it's hard to tell because I'm new at these kinds of things
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/IMG_20120329_140853.jpg)
(http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy198/tricky884/IMG_20120329_140904.jpg)
I did the Jardine, lunch box and rejet on my 89, and love the difference. I didn't think that the Jardine was that loud tho, not nearly as loud as the Vance and Hindes on a bike that i looked at.
Clip-on woes....
I managed to pick up a set of Woodcraft clip-ons for pretty cheap. My original plan was to throw them on while I send my Suburban Machinery Type 2's out to be bent back into shape (after my lowside, the right hand side of the bar hits the tank on full lock, that's how the tank got dented). And then when they come back, I would decide what to keep on the bike.
I like the idea of mounting them under the triple, I know that's extreme but it's what would float my boat. I picked up generic fork mounts for the headlight, but now I don't know what I'll do with the turn signals :dunno_black:
The other option, of course, being mount them above the triple.. but then would I keep the top plate or not? Keeping the top plate with the bar mounts wouldn't be aesthetically pleasing, but I would keep the option of reverting to my SM2 bars. If I didn't keep it, I would need to find some way of mounting the speedo and tach. If I do keep the plate, then I need to lower the front a bunch to mount them.
It's becoming a bit of a hassle :cookoo:
I live in a condo, so I don't have any access to proper equipment... not even a jack. I was thinking I might ring a guy who did a lot of work on my bike with the mods, and see what he can do, but that would involve a few hundred bucks in labor. Any magic advice from you gurus?