After not having a bike for many years, I bought a 2006 GS500F in March. It had been sitting for about a year. It was in rough cosmetic shape and OK mechanical shape.
I immediately started taking it apart and going through it. The bike wasn't in good enough shape for me to be comfortable riding it.
After a month or so of working on it, I happily put it back on the road. It's been fantastic having a bike again! I'm really happy with how the GS500F performs. I can see why it's such a widely recommended bike!
I'm looking forward to doing some tours around the Seattle area this summer :)
If anyone is curious, here's a list of most of what I did to it:
Add basket, tool kit, tire pump
Add windshield
Change mirrors
Reinstall tank and fuel lines
Install license plate
Balance carbs
Oil & filter rr (2022/04/18, 18,1xxmi Rotella conventional 15w-40 and k&n filter)
Top petcock: rr gasket, add fuel filter
Grips rr
Tail light bulbs rr
Rear wheel: torque brake caliper, torque axle nut, tension chain, rr cotter pin (redid chain tension)
Vacuum hoses rr
Airbox insulators rr
Reattach rear fairing
Carb parts: rr bowl gaskets, drain screws, bowl screws, all insulator screws
Bleed brakes, f&r DOT4
Headlamp - l beam out - fixed
Chain and front sprocket: rr (JT x ring chain & sprocket)
Register with WA
Charge battery. Put on battery tender
Headlight rr + bolts (10mm x 1.25).
Turn signals rr
Clean bike
Tail lamp running light out - fixed Wiring harness was routed so it was cut by the forks. RR wiring. Works now. Fixed Headlamp issue as well.
Carb parts: main jet o-rings replaced with Storehouse 4.8mm x1.9mm o-rings
Fork oil rr - done. Filled with 20wt oil to ~110mm.
Cleaned carb bowls and jets
Spark plugs rr. Stock replacements
Cleaned front sprocket area, cover, and sprocket, Forks, R sprocket and carrier, R wheel, F wheel, shifter, chain
R wheel bearings, sprocket bearing rr - All Balls units
Tires & valve stems rr - done, Kenda k671 f&r.
Top petcock: repair nipple
Front wheel: rr cotter pin
Brake lever rr
Front wheel: installed brake rotor, put on bike
Dash lights: hi beam and turn signal rr
Add rubber isolaters around fork legs for headlamp brackets
Good job keeping that GS on the road! It should have many miles of joy to give you after all that maintenance. The blue 2006 GS500F was my favorite color combo. Love that tank. Can I assume that the previous owner messed up the front plastics? 13 years after the last model year, its getting pretty rare to see a GS500F that still has fairings that haven't been scratched/cracked from a drop or crash.
I didn't see a valve clearance check on your list. With the bike new to you at over 18,000 miles you definitely want to know where the valve clearances are at. Always good to check the valves before balancing the carbs on a bike that's new to you.
If you decide you like the bike and milk crate enough, there are a few good rear rack options to get that crate off your rear seat and straps off those plastics. Hepco & Becker, Renntec, SW-Motech, Ventura.
Awesome thread! Thank you for all the TLC you've given to a GS. Looks great and I'm glad you didn't keep the F style headlight without the fairings (not one of my favorite looks but I understand other people like it that way.)
Quote from: Bluesmudge on May 12, 2022, 09:10:20 AM
Good job keeping that GS on the road! It should have many miles of joy to give you after all that maintenance. The blue 2006 GS500F was my favorite color combo. Love that tank. Can I assume that the previous owner messed up the front plastics? 13 years after the last model year, its getting pretty rare to see a GS500F that still has fairings that haven't been scratched/cracked from a drop or crash.
I didn't see a valve clearance check on your list. With the bike new to you at over 18,000 miles you definitely want to know where the valve clearances are at. Always good to check the valves before balancing the carbs on a bike that's new to you.
If you decide you like the bike and milk crate enough, there are a few good rear rack options to get that crate off your rear seat and straps off those plastics. Hepco & Becker, Renntec, SW-Motech, Ventura.
Thanks! I hope so. I'm planning on keeping it for many years and miles :) I love the color! The dark blue looks really sharp. The front fairings are definitely messed up by the PO. One is cracked and the other is missing. I'm OK with that, I really like the naked look.
It's next on the list! I just ordered a new valve cover gasket and Motion Pro holding tool. I've already balanced the carbs. That's a good tip, I wouldn't have thought to check that. I'll check it again after doing the valves. It was pretty easy on this bike. I added a bit of extra vacuum tubing to the left carb to make it easier in the future.
I've been checking out the rack and luggage options. I like this crate a lot, I used it for years on my previous bike. It was looks like no one is making any side racks anymore. Sometime down the line, I'll have to build some. I like carrying stuff on my bike.
Quote from: ShowBizWolf on May 12, 2022, 03:59:48 PM
Awesome thread! Thank you for all the TLC you've given to a GS. Looks great and I'm glad you didn't keep the F style headlight without the fairings (not one of my favorite looks but I understand other people like it that way.)
Thanks! It was a lot of fun working on it. One of the reasons I got the GS500 is because of the old school design: air cooled, carbureted twin engine, minimal computers, no fancy components, etc. I like being able to do all my own work, so a simple bike is really appealing to me. It was a exactly what I was hoping for. After working on a 1985 CB450SC, everything on it felt pretty familiar.
Oof, yeah, I'm not a fan of that look. I like the naked, round headlight look it currently has.
It came to me with more modern looking turn signals. They were dim and ugly. I scoured ebay until I found some reasonably priced 1970's Suzuki units for the front. They really rounded out the 1980's UJM look I was going for.
I found a "before" picture of it here.
Oh, nice and that's the big milk crate too. Very nice. I welded to that grab bar to carry milk crate, then I'd put my riding suit in it when it was too warm in the evening. SFO summers were freezing in the morning and super warm and humid in the afternoon.
Cool.
Buddha.
Quote from: The Buddha on May 13, 2022, 05:29:48 AM
Oh, nice and that's the big milk crate too. Very nice. I welded to that grab bar to carry milk crate
Oh yeah! It's the double wide.:)
Quote from: Roofaloof on May 12, 2022, 09:47:43 PM
It was looks like no one is making any side racks anymore. Sometime down the line, I'll have to build some. I like carrying stuff on my bike.
Hepco & Becker will still make side carriers for your bike. I have them on my GS500F. Its a "we don't make it 'till your order it" situation for older bikes but if you order them from Motomachines.com in 4-6 weeks you will have a nice set of pannier racks that work with any of Hepco & Becker's nice side cases. I have the Junior 30 liter cases on mine.
They aren't cheap but they are very nice and made in Germany. I have one set of cases I swap between whichever bike I'm riding. You can often find used sets of cases on eBay and advrider.com. I've been using the same set of cases for 10 years, across many bikes and a few accidents/drops and they still look good.
Quote from: Bluesmudge on May 16, 2022, 10:11:40 AM
Quote from: Roofaloof on May 12, 2022, 09:47:43 PM
It was looks like no one is making any side racks anymore. Sometime down the line, I'll have to build some. I like carrying stuff on my bike.
Hepco & Becker will still make side carriers for your bike. I have them on my GS500F. Its a "we don't make it 'till your order it" situation for older bikes but if you order them from Motomachines.com in 4-6 weeks you will have a nice set of pannier racks that work with any of Hepco & Becker's nice side cases. I have the Junior 30 liter cases on mine.
They aren't cheap but they are very nice and made in Germany. I have one set of cases I swap between whichever bike I'm riding. You can often find used sets of cases on eBay and advrider.com. I've been using the same set of cases for 10 years, across many bikes and a few accidents/drops and they still look good.
Thanks for the tip, those racks look great!
Just finished adjusting the valves! I'm glad I did. Based on the shims I used, the exhaust valves were at 0.0mm and -0.02mm.
Before:
Left intake: 0.05mm, 258
Left Exhaust: <0.04mm, 272
Right intake: 0.05mm, 262
Right exhaust: <0.04mm, 262
After:
Left intake: 0.05mm, 258
Left Exhaust: 0.10mm, 262
Right intake: 0.05mm, 262
Right exhaust: 0.10mm, 250
Buttoned everything up and rebalanced the carbs. Ready to ride again!
My next project is to build some side racks. I don't have the budget right now for those nice German ones. I'm going to build some out of plywood and steel tube.
Getting ready for a few day long moto camping trip in July. There's a few things I need to take care of beforehand:
- Figure out charging system issue
- Build Luggage racks
- Better phone mount (optional)
- Make tank bag (optional)
I tackled the charging system today. The battery has been showing 13.2v @ 5000rpm. I used the excellent guide someone made here to diagnose.
All three of my stator output wires showed 1 ohm of resistance between them and 59VAC output. The rectifier shows 12v DC output. It's looking like a bad rectifier. I'm glad it's that, I wasn't looking forward to replacing the stator.
I ordered a new Electrosport R/R today. It should be here next week.
Now to build my luggage racks!
Got the new rectifier installed. 14.1v output at 4500rpm. I'm back in business!
The only issue was the new rectifier didn't have the correct output connector. No big deal, I cut the connector off the old one and soldered it on.
The luggage racks are slowly coming together. It's going to be a very low budget build. I'm trying to use as many parts I already have on hand as possible. Luckily I hoard materials, so there's plenty to choose from!
I made some cardboard mockups to find what size I wanted. After trying a few different ones, I settled on 12"x14" for the back boards. This will give about 12"x12" of usable space, as the bottom 2" will be taken up by some reinforceing ribs below the shelf.
The racks will be made of 3/4" plywood. The attachment brackets will be made of either 1/2" EMT (electrical conduit) or 1"x2" maple with 1/16" sheet metal. So far, the only things I'm going to have to buy are fasteners and d-rings.
I'm going to attach them to the luggage loops already installed on the bike from the factory and the passenger footpegs. I don't have a welder or the means to bend tubing, so I've had to design it with bolted connections and straight pieces of tube.
Bending and drilling holes in the EMT
Passenger footpeg attachment point. In the final version, it'll be bolted on with a fender washer and rubber washer on each side. This will make sure it grips well and provide some vibration isolation.
View behind the rack. EMT bracket to passenger footpeg and maple bracket to luggage rack visible.
There will be another maple bracket holding it onto the luggage rack and another EMT bracket attaching the two racks together.
Started working on the tank bag. This is a mockup made of paper. I got the basic size and shape I want m
Next, I'm going to make pattern pieces and sew up a test bag.
I applaud the DIY commitment and can't wait to see the results of these projects. But you know....you can just buy this stuff off the shelf. Especially tank bags.
Quote from: Bluesmudge on June 28, 2022, 12:32:39 PM
But you know....you can just buy this stuff off the shelf. Especially tank bags.
Wow! Really??? Please tell me more.
I like DIY stuff too and I'm pretty crafty... but I love my off the shelf tank bag.
If you can get them in your part of the world, look up what Nelson-Rigg has to offer... especially the magnetic ones.
Quote from: ShowBizWolf on June 28, 2022, 06:08:56 PM
I like DIY stuff too and I'm pretty crafty... but I love my off the shelf tank bag.
If you can get them in your part of the world, look up what Nelson-Rigg has to offer... especially the magnetic ones.
I looked at some off the shelf ones. There's definitely a lot of nice ones out there.
I have some materials I've been wanting to use for a while. This was the perfect thing for me use them for. Also, I found out a friend of mine has an industrial sewing machine. So it's a good reason to go hang out at his place.
I realize it's a lot of work for negligible cost savings, but I enjoy doing stuff like this :)
Carry on :cheers:
I think Roofaloof is joking. I was joking too.
Building the rack I totally understand since it costs hundreds of dollars to buy one and the DIY results can be similar if you are handy with metal tubing. Tank bags though are relatively cheap compared to the cost of fabric, zippers, magnets, etc., so you rarely see someone try to build one. I was really just curious what custom feature or cost saving measure or creative spark made Roofaloof want to make a tank bag. Having a friend with an industrial sewing machine is a nice benefit. I assume you are going to use some heavy duty vinyl or cordura to keep it water resistant for Seattle weather?
Quote from: Bluesmudge on June 29, 2022, 08:50:59 AM
I think Roofaloof is joking. I was joking too.
I was really just curious what custom feature or cost saving measure or creative spark made Roofaloof want to make a tank bag. Having a friend with an industrial sewing machine is a nice benefit. I assume you are going to use some heavy duty vinyl or cordura to keep it water resistant for Seattle weather?
Gotcha.
It's mostly that I've had some really nice materials to make a bag for a long time. I've been waiting for a project to come along worthy of them. That and finding out my friend has an industrial sewing machine decided it for me!
I also thought it would be nice to have a bag that fitted perfectly with the size and shape of the top of my tank. Making it myself allowed me to make the most use of the available space.
It's made of heavy (18oz) waxed canvas fabric. It's a material I love. It tends to hold up better over time than synthetics like Cordura. The wax repels water and can be easily reapplied. Synthetics have better water resistance initially because they have a plastic layer bonded to them. Over time, this degrades and can't be easily reapplied.
I'm also using a #10 zipper instead of the usual #8. Again, my preference. They're bigger and more durable.
This is the prototype of the bag. It's made of cheaper materials than the final one will be.
Overall, I was happy with the shape and size.
For the final one, I removed the pleats as I didn't need the extra volume. I also added a layer of grippy material (drawer liner) to the bottom where it touches the tank.
Waxing the pieces of the final bag before assembly. It's a lot easier to do it when they're separate and flat like this.
It's pretty easy. Just rub the surface of the cloth with the block of beeswax. Then hit it with a hairdryer to melt it in.
The wax acts as a water repellent coating and protects the cloth from wear as well.
Sewing up the final one on my friend's badass sewing machine! This thing has a 1qt oil pan, 1hp motor, and sews through 4 layers of heavy canvas like it's nothing!
Pix of finished bag incoming...
Quote from: Roofaloof on June 13, 2022, 11:03:57 PM
Passenger footpeg attachment point. In the final version, it'll be bolted on with a fender washer and rubber washer on each side. This will make sure it grips well and provide some vibration isolation.
I like your custom work!
Maybe you already plan to do it, but I suggest taking that metal piece to a grinder and rounding off all the sharp corners.
Quote from: kenmarsh on July 03, 2022, 07:38:07 PM
I like your custom work!
Maybe you already plan to do it, but I suggest taking that metal piece to a grinder and rounding off all the sharp corners.
Thanks :)
I am. Once all the pieces fit together like I want them to, I'm going to take it apart and finish them.
I plan on sealing the wood parts with polyurethane. The metal parts will get all the sharp edges broken and painted.
It's looking like everything is on track to be ready for my trip in two weeks! :)
Finished tank bag!
I'm happy with how it came out. It fits the top of the tank well and has a lot of volume. I'm guessing around 18 liters. When it's empty, it collapses to a nice, small size.
The 4 large magnets and drawer liner I used for attachment seem to keep it firmly in place.
I still need to go for a test ride with it.
The gas tank vents through the cap. Make sure you have that part breathable. Many tank bags have a rubber foam bottom to not scratch the tank as well as provide "grip" for not sliding (cos magnets will let it slide) and that makes a tight seal and you'll starve for fuel.
Cool.
Buddha.
Quote from: The Buddha on July 06, 2022, 06:58:41 AM
The gas tank vents through the cap. Make sure you have that part breathable. Many tank bags have a rubber foam bottom to not scratch the tank as well as provide "grip" for not sliding (cos magnets will let it slide) and that makes a tight seal and you'll starve for fuel.
Cool.
Buddha.
Thanks for the tip! I guess I got lucky with my choice of materials. My anti slip mat is perforated, so it'll allow the tank to breathe.
Oh I can't wait to compare luggage bag systems. It's not a competition, as you've already said you're doing yours on a budget and I've already put a lot of money and time into mine, but it will be a good comparison to what's possible on this bike.
Finished the luggage system in August. It's working great!
I've gone on a few short trips and one long, multi-day, 350 mile trip. On the long trip, I carried about 30# of gear on each side.
Another pic
I really like how the look of the wood goes with the rest of the bike.
After a long winter nap, my bike is starting to wake up!
I have a few things it needs to get ready for the season:
- Full carb disassembly, inspection, cleaning
- Replace air filter
- Replace fuel filter
- Find and repair electrical issue causing headlight to blow
- Oil & filter change
- Replace front brake hose
I only pulled the carb bowls after buying the bike last year. I cleaned them out, cleaned the jets, and replaced the gaskets and drain screws. It ran pretty well, but I want to know exactly what state they're in. I have a drop in the powerband from 6-7k RPM that I'd love to get rid of.
Late in the season, something was causing my headlight to blow. Both hi and low would blow out within 20 min or so of riding. I'm guessing it's a bad ground. I may also upgrade the circuit with heavier gauge wiring and relays. This has helped with headlight output on some other bikes I've had.
After moving the handlebars, I have maybe 1/2" of slack in the front brake hose. It's also likely the original one. Both of these lead me to want to replace it.
Looking forward to working on and riding it!
I pulled the carbs and started taking them apart yesterday. To my surprise, they were in good overall shape. The passages were pretty clean and even the diaphragms were in nice shape. They were still stretchy, with no cracks, folds, or hardening.
I replaced the jet o-rings when I pulled the bowls last year. They're still in good shape.
I did manage to lose one of the needle springs. Or maybe it wasn't there to begin with, I'm not sure. It appears that a previous owner shimmed the needles. There was an additional washer under the plastic washer.
I'm going to clean everything really well, replace what I need to, set float height, and reassemble.
Took the day off yesterday to work on the bike. Also got an unusually nice PNW day to do it!
Reassembled the carbs after cleaning everything. Replaced the lost jet needle spring with a pen spring cut to length and replaced the pilot air screw o-rings with some 3x1mm units from my Harbor Freight kit. The HF o-rings held up well after a year on the main jet, so I'm happy to save some $ over OEM ones. Plus, I was wanting to get it together and on the road.
I'd forgotten what a PITA the airbox is to get back in place. After much shoving and cursing, it all came together nicely. I also replaced the insulator o-rings with Suzuki ones. As expected, they were flatter than pancakes.
Got pretty much everything else checked off my list. Changed out the air filter & fuel filter. Gave it an oil & oil filter change (Rotella FTW!). Sorted a few electrical gremlins.
To my delight, it fired right up on the first try cranking! Always a great feeling after pulling everything apart.
I didn't have much time to ride, but did a quick 20 minute outing to see how it felt. The engine is running better than ever after all the carb work! I'd previously had a noticeable hesitation from 6-7k RPM and a somewhat erratic idle. Now it pulls smoothly across the board and idles very well, even before it's fully warmed up.
I still need to replace the front brake line and take care of a few other small issues before it's ready for long distance rides, but it's at least rideable for the time being.
That's a lot of work. Good job getting it running right!
Nice, for the headlight blow one possibility is that your new r/r throws more voltage than before. If the connections are nice and tight with no intermittency i would simply put a diode (Common 1n4007 or others like 1N4004, check datasheet) that will shave off around 0.6v, you can put 2 in series.
If the problem is in the connection path or you want to test it:
You are in luck I I'm just rebuilding the connectors on my bike so I have everything fresh on my mind after looking the wiring diagram so many times.
Battery-->fuse->RED wire to ignition.
ORANGE is the ignition switched power: battery fused power (RED) with key in ON position on the orange wire.
If you have a RH SW right hand light switch, will feed from the Orange, and the headlight switch will send that through a Yellow with white tracer to the LH SW left hand HI/LO beam switch. Then to headlights : Hi Yellow, LO White
If you don't have a RH SW right hand switch the head lights are fixed from the orange , so you can only change high beam to low beam on the LH SW.
Hi lo beam switch connects to HI (yellow wire) or LO(white wire) that goes to H4 connector for headlamp.
B/W black and white wire goes to battery negative and is grounded.
Yo can run a wire from the ignition orange to headlamp HI/LO to bypass all the switches.
Quote from: Bluesmudge on March 17, 2023, 12:14:11 PMThat's a lot of work. Good job getting it running right!
Thanks! I like to do multi-day tours, so I want to make sure everything is well sorted :)
Quote from: Armandorf on March 19, 2023, 04:17:14 PMNice, for the headlight blow one possibility is that your new r/r throws more voltage than before. If the connections are nice and tight with no intermittency i would simply put a diode (Common 1n4007 or others like 1N4004, check datasheet) that will shave off around 0.6v, you can put 2 in series.
If the problem is in the connection path or you want to test it:
You are in luck I I'm just rebuilding the connectors on my bike so I have everything fresh on my mind after looking the wiring diagram so many times.
Battery-->fuse->RED wire to ignition.
ORANGE is the ignition switched power: battery fused power (RED) with key in ON position on the orange wire.
If you have a RH SW right hand light switch, will feed from the Orange, and the headlight switch will send that through a Yellow with white tracer to the LH SW left hand HI/LO beam switch. Then to headlights : Hi Yellow, LO White
If you don't have a RH SW right hand switch the head lights are fixed from the orange , so you can only change high beam to low beam on the LH SW.
Hi lo beam switch connects to HI (yellow wire) or LO(white wire) that goes to H4 connector for headlamp.
B/W black and white wire goes to battery negative and is grounded.
Yo can run a wire from the ignition orange to headlamp HI/LO to bypass all the switches.
Thanks for the help! I think I have it fixed at this point.
I have a voltage gauge on the handlebars, it never shows more than 14.5v when I'm riding. This should be no problem for an H4 bulb.
Over the winter, I worked on this issue one day. Of course I didn't take any notes on what I did. From what I remember, the ground and voltage all tested good. I think I found a dirty connection in the ground circuit and cleaned it. I also put dielectric grease in all of the connectors in the headlight circuit.
On my quick test ride recently, the light did not blow out. Last year a 20 minute ride would have been enough to blow the bulb.
I'm going to keep an eye on it and see how it holds up before doing any more testing. Maybe it's fixed 8)
The ground thick cable from the battery negative to the crankcase is vital. Check that.
Quote from: Armandorf on March 21, 2023, 10:51:01 AMThe ground thick cable from the battery negative to the crankcase is vital. Check that.
Will do! I haven't checked that one yet. Is it the main ground?