Hi All,

So my GS500F has been in hibernation all winter but this weekend I am planning to reintroduce it to the wild  . I've kept it covered and sheltered for the most part the last few months but despite that the rust has gotten to it. Disc brake rust I have seen from other posts in this forum is not an issue and will go with use. What about chain rust?

I bought the bike in the fall of last year and its only seen 250 miles, so all bits are still pretty new. Despite this, and the fact I did spray-lube the chain, it does have a fair amount of rust on it. Is it ok to ride it like this? I feel I might be being paranoid equating rust with danger - but of course I would be careful when first taking the bike out to be sure.

To be honest I'm not a great mechanic and don't really want to have to remove the chain - I doubt I would even do it right even if I were wanting to get my hands dirty. 
My plan is to get it up and riding again and to make up an extra 250 miles pretty quick so that I can then at last take it for its long overdue, 500 mile first service! Hopefully I could address the chain then, if its an issue.

cheers
Andy
London, UK

hey, ya man, chain rust sucks, happened to me, you don't have to be very mechanical to remove a chain. Just take the bolts out of ur clutch cover, the cover over your front sprocket. Find your master link, which is a clip on ur chain, just pull that off, and slide the thing off, and the chain will come apart. then just put the bike in neutral and pull on ur chain. I took mine off, and had some old motor oil around, and soaked it into a container for a couple of days, or over night, and take it out and hang it up for a while and put it back on, should do the job, you will have to loosen the tire up first before takin the clip off your chain forgot about that
hope it helps

Rust on the outer plates is pretty normal and not really anything to worry about.  Rust on the rollers and inner plates should be cleaned off to prevent wear on the chain.  Try hitting it with some WD40 and a wire brush to clean it up and then lubricate with your choice of chain lube.  If you really want to get it clean you can remove it from the bike and soak it down in a pan of parafin (lamp oil) and then lube it. 

Note that the factory chain does not have a master link; the only way to get it off without destroying it is to use a chain breaker tool or remove the swingarm.

-M