As for your tacho, this is listed on ebay as a speedo, but he seems to be selling both, not a bad price if it all works.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SUZUKI-GS500-SPEEDO-SPEEDOMETER-KMS-KILOMETERS-GS-500-04-05-06-07-08-09-/140628820346?pt=AU_Motorcycle_Parts_Accessories&hash=item20be21817a

mm just need to put the gauge into your frame as the frame on that one is a little bent, i got a headlight off that guy last week

I had to work last night so I didn't get straight into it, it's just sitting there waiting for me to get a few hours off.  I came away from the wrecker with the motor, stator, carbs, starter motor basically all the bits, as well as a ventura rack for $640.  The guy I bought it off advised me to use the donor carbs, ignore the TPS, and use the '95 pulse sender. He suggested I may want to swap the diaphragm caps off the older carbs to simplify the plumbing. 

I can live without the tacho for the moment, and I may take this opportunity to start thinking about a custom gauge cluster, cos the two flower pots on the front of the GS have been annoying me for a while. 

Well the real world got in the way, and between working, a bit of travelling and having to sort out my car I left this project for over a month. 


I put the new motor in pretty much as soon as I got it, and then that's how it sat till the new year.

The donor engine was from a stat write off bike (never to be used on road again) so I hope the rider fared better than the bike.  It looks to have had a low side at some speed, into gravel by the side of the road.

So this was what I found under the rotor cover.  The bike must have really buried itself into the dirt when it ran out of road.  I really hope the previous owner was wearing leathers.  I got one of those awesome cyclone vacs for christmas that will suck up a pile of bolts, so I vacuumed it out as I  dissasembled.  The crash also slightly damaged the rotor bolt, so I had to file it down to get a socket around it.

The earlier twin magnet pulse sender is a straight bolt in, the rotor slots straight onto the crank and all the mounting holes are in the same place for the plate.  Nothing to drill.  I was pretty pleased when I then hooked up my CDI box, put a spark plug on the end of a lead and grounded it while I cranked the engine.  We have spark.

I used the 1995 carbs, and there really is a lot of daylight behind them as you can see here.  It's just crying out for twin K&N cone filters.  I hooked up the tank and gave it a go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LBPtRmGC88&feature=related
No idea how to imbed stuff in this forum

This is where the bike's at this morning.  I took it for a run last night, the revs hang a little, but it seems to be improving.  I'm hoping that's something in the carbs loosening up.  They're a PITA to get at if there's a leak around the boots, so I hope I can sort it out without taking them off again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjQW-6dMDqM


And of course a fork seal just went, which means I'm next to no chance of getting it over the pits tomorrow, so no putty run for me this weekend unless I want to ride with an illegal engine.

Looking good! Doesn't it feel great to get that shiny (dirty) engine in there and get your hopes up that your bike will soon be perfect?

Hanging revs is usually from an incorrectly set idle screw. The proper way to adjust is to ride it around for 15 minutes to get it warmed, then set the idle to 1200rpm. First things first, put your tach cable on!

Yeah it feels pretty good that something I put together actually runs, and hasn't set the neighbourhood on fire yet.

No tacho for me unfortunately, the 08 motor has a digital tach, so the spot where the tacho cable used to be is blanked off.  Because I chose to run the pulse sender and CDI box from the 95, I don't have a plug and play option for the later model tacho either.  The plan is to get an aftermarket tach and piggyback it in somewhere.  Just gotta either find one the right size, or make myself a custom cluster.

Does make tuning the carbs annoying.  I know the GS well enough that I think I can get pretty close by ear, but it'd be nice to see the needle.

I was waiting for a tach cable to come in when I swapped, so I went on to youtube to try and tune the idle when mine was hanging. It's not the greatest, but it works.

Well I managed to get the idle ok.  I think it may still be a little lean, especially on a cold motor but I have to be pushing it hard to notice any difference.  Once warmed it up it runs like a champ.  I'll keep the 1995 carbs on it for the moment, and keep the 2008 carbies for later tinkering. 

Things I have learned that we were speculating on.

1.  Yes you can fit an old 2 pickup pulse sender to the newer motor.  Just use the older CDI box and you're good to go.
2.  The older style carbs slot straight in on the later model motor.  No need to swap the boots.

Mission accomplished for now, although until I get the thing properly certified the new motor is technically an illegal mod.