My ebay win probably has goats (won't turn over - evidence of battery cable over heating), definitely had idiots working on it at some time (SAE screws in metric threaded parts), and was a victim of abuse or steep learning curve (broken rear section of side covers, slightly bent left side frame mount for foot peg).

Regardless of the problems, with time, skill, sweat and the help of new and old friends it will be better than when I obtained it.

Don't forget $. It always requires $.

I love projects like that.  Got any pics?  I bought a 94 Kawasaki ZX6E from a guy at work for $100, cause it was crashed on one side, and wife wanted it outta the house.  $1000 in parts and 4 weekends it was totally rockin.  Then I crashed it on the same side, totalling the bike and my wrist...  Oh, the insurance gave me $3500 for it, so I made out ok.  Good luck on the project!  Definitely get a Clymers manual if you don't have one already, and set up a BikeBandit account.  I LOVE BikeBandit.

goats?  eh. I battled with that


COPY AND PASTE THIS URL
http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/se7enty7/puller.jpg

I can mail you the gear puller I used... it's the easiest way to get the magnet off.  That thing is REALLY on there.....



other than that, order a magnet, a stator, a case cover gasket, and, (IMO) a case cover itself.  In mine, and one others (possibly) situation, it was the case cover itself that was bent.  I have an extra case cover you can have as well that shouldn't be bent.  I might have an extra (USED) stator as well.. pm me...

Got to love those project bikes. If you need any parts or help, you have my email address.

btw...I have a right side frame cover. Missing a piece that is covered by the seat and needs paint. You can have it if you could use it.

Thank you for all the fine offers and comments!  
Here's the "things wrong" list for this bike (so far):

-Rear section of both side covers and mounts for center broken off .
-Center section and hardware missing.
-Side cover screws were totally stripped, no threads, wrong screw type.
-Rear handle good shape, frame where it mounts bent up and nuts broken from welds.  
-Frame at left side foot rest bent in causing rest  to mount at angle.
-Both engine side covers with road rash, repainted previously, hmmmm.
-Tach mounting posts broken off of tach. Both tach and mph need new rubber rings.
-Evidence of battery section overheat/fire. New Pos lead. Neg lead was very hot and section is exposed. The rear brake reservior mount is melted and charred slightly. No leaks.
-Right side passenger foot peg stalk dented causing minor bend.
-Front fender mounting plate shot. Still taking orders srinath?
-Fork seals cracked. No fork oil puddles (any oil in there?)
-No handle end hardware. Left side empty, right broken off. Handle seems bent but may be optical due to crooked clutch mount.
-Choke lever won't move but moves OK at carbs.
-Tank seep left side at bottom. No major dents. Should be OK when sealed.
-Last but not least (and the reason it was sold), the engine won't turn over. I hope it is 'goat's syndrome'. It would be kinda cool to be one of the in crowd. I'd feel like a real GStwinner.

Previous owner was at least second. Clean title. He was learning with it when it locked up.

Looks like you really have your hands full. I hope you got the bike cheap.

btw...the dust shields are probably what you see that are cracked, not the fork seals. But you should replace them both along with replacing the fork oil.

Fortyfive minutes with a ball peen and a 3 lb. hammer and the rear handle mount and frame area look better. At least the handle looks in line with the seat and busted side covers. BAM-BAM-BAM!!  

The better deal for a running GS500 was while I was in Cleveland for a month. A nice black one had a starting bid of $750. I don't remember what the final value was.  I budgeted $450 for a fixer-upper and spent $416 for this one. At the same time, a front wrecked one outside of Cincinatti sold for almost what I paid. Mine is all there, just poorly taken care of.  :x

The only real show stopper is the seizure problem. I hope to open the side up Wednesday and see if "goat's" has struck again. Then I will have a better view of what I am up against.

Looking at the posts for the racing tail (boy from Columbus,GA) got my idea mill running. Perhaps these busted side covers would work for bases for molds. I do electronics for a living and have a idea for integrated LED side marker/turn signals. No "eye stalks" on the rear but slight bulges flowing into a rear section in line with the tail light. They could also double as red strobes when braking. Hmmmm. Gonna have to pace myself.

OK well I am making and taking orders for fork brace, how about you wait till the bike begins to run or atleast start up... no sense buying $$$ bits when the main aspect is still DOA ...
Cool.
Srinath.

fyi...Since JamesG ("boy from Columbus,GA") is being deployed overseas, I am going Thursday to pick up his molds and take over his fairing production while he is gone.

D, I would like to see the mold set up. I helped a buddy do glass work on his restored BSA years ago. He was a real nut case. Stripped it down to the frame. Total rewire. Toothbrush clean.  Come to think of it, I kinda lean in that direction. Tsk, tsk.

It is a shame to get interrupted by deployment. My wish for him is to be safe and come home to build more bikes and parts.

Sri, Fine business sir. You are correct. I've got several tasks to accomplish before addressing the fork/fender plate. It is a barely adequate design. It certainly would not hold up in Haiti. Street machines are OK in Port Au Prince but not out in the bush. Dirt bikes and 50cc step-throughs rule where no asphalt exists. My last trip in Sept I saw 4 (yes four!) Haitians on a step-through "taxi".  What a site. Sharing cab fare is universal.

I found a tool kit on this poor thing.



What would I have gotten in 1980 if I had bought it off the showroom floor?

I am certain the binder clips are not Suzuki standard issue. They were in the kit, I swear! Further more, just to show my ignorance, what's the spanner on the lower right for?  The phillips screwdriver shank does not fit into any of the sub-items. The lower left item is a squashed tube that may fit over the box end wrenches.

The spanner wrench is for the shock preload adjuster. The screwdriver is supposed to fit in the spark plug socket but it may not be original issue.

Quote from: starwaltI found a tool kit on this poor thing.
What would I have gotten in 1980 if I had bought it off the showroom floor?

See JohNLA's  2002 toolkit HERE.

Quote from: starwaltwhat's the spanner on the lower right for?

That's for adjusting the preload on your rear shock.  (Good luck with it!   )

Well, well GSTwinners, no "goat's" here.
Here's my rotor for all to see:



And now my stator:



Is the oil normal in this area? I drained the oil prior to this. The lower two cover bolts had oil goop out while removing them. I am not accustomed to generators having oil slinging around the rotor and winding sections.

I think the problem is the starter motor. I tried to rotate that by hand with no joy. A socket and ratchet on the rotor bolt gave smooth turning and wheezing sounds due to compression or exhaust cycle (tranny was in neutral before starting all this). Which way is normal rotation direction from the rotor perspective?  If I get the starter motor out tonight, I will post some pics in this thread.

So if the starter motor is locked up, does that qualify me for a disease name?  

From the point you are looking at it in photo #1 ... the crank turns counter clockwise ... so the starter motor also goes counter clockwise, cos the idler turns clockwise ... and OK that starter motor being stuck ... will be Starwalt's syndrome ...  :lol: ... if it is that ...else no disease named after you ...  :lol:
Cool.
Srinath.

And yea oil in the stator/rotor is normal ...  even if you drained it.
Cool.
Srinath.

The mystery of the engine seizure has been solved. Here's the damaged component:



All the armature contacts have been ripped away from the shaft. The windings are spiraled and twisted like wicker furniture! The brush mount is severly bent. My guess is that a brush piece let go at speed. The previous owner said that he was cruising about 40 mph when this happend.

It just goes to show how mechanical advantage could stop a running motor. Maybe this explains some of the electrical damage I found. The Positive lead was just connected by this junk to ground.

Neat in a destructive testing sort of way huh?

That destroyed starter will explain the over heated battery cable. At least this is an easy fix.

Sorry to hear that you have a "disease" named after you. (Glad Srinath did not see the thread where I had some engine problems.    )

An easy way to remember the crank rotation is that it turns the same direction as the wheels.

OK that is now starwalt's disease ... or do you like syndrome ... Disease sounds better cos it goes better with Starwalt ...
BTW how would that even happen ... at 40 mph the starter doesn't spin ...
The crank turns but the starter clutch will prevent the gear on the back of the rotor from spinning ... if the starter clutch even worked ... whihc will be the next check... easy ... spin the gear on the back of the rotor counter clockwise, should not spin, spin it clockwise and it should free wheel... That's the gear ... crank will be opposite ...
Cool.
Srinath.

I thought it was unusual that the starter should be destroyed. Since there is no "Bendix" in this motor, I knew something would have to drop the starter out of the motor chain once ignition took off.

The gear on the back of the rotor does not free wheel in either direction. That would explain why the poor starter motor could not take it. If we knew the crankshaft rpm at 40 mph and the gear ratio for the starter gear, idler, and the motor train, we would probably be impressed at the rpm the starter motor was turning when it gave up.  

I have heard of industrial motors doing the same thing when their Do Not Exceed RPM was passed. The heavy metal parts, i.e. armature contacts, want to find the outside of the motor.

I may yet have to pull the rotor to correct this problem.