Soo... what's the best way to test gear-specific problems?
To recap, I think there's some kind of problem (extra vibes on pegs) when I hit around 4k RPM, in 2nd or 3rd gear.
But if I pull the clutch... no problem.

Is the only way to pretty much just find a long straight empty piece of road and drive in gear? or is there a smarter way?


sad note: I'm a programmer by avocation. The "Bug Hunter" in me, is suggesting that I'm looking at possibly something stuck in the engine between the 2nd and 3rd gear wheeliedealies
But I'm stuck on the horns of a dillema here:
1. I'm not about to pay some yob $250 to take the engine apart, just to tell me, "nope sorry charlie, nothing in there"
2. I almost took the side cover (sprocket cover?) off... but then realized looking in the engine, is nothing like taking off handlebars.  It started to drip oil when I started to loosen the cover. I wasnt prepared for that. . At which point I realized "I'm not prepared for this at all!!" and put it back on quick.
I need a guide on what to expect and prepare for. But cant find one.  Anyone got some pointers to one?

I basically just want to be able to take off "easily" removable engine covers, take a looksee, and put em back on, without leaving a huge mess, or non-functional/dangerous bike when I'm done.

I do technically have a copy of the "suzuki maintance guide", but I think it's not mentioning things that are "obvious" to professionals. For example, it shows the bolts to remove the cover, but doesnt say anything about the rubber gasket that I think is there. I dont know what to do with that.

Hmmmm. Any oil leaking from your sprocket cover should be just chain grease/water. There's no direct connection to your engine oil under there. Know what I mean? If you plan on taking off the generator cover on the left side (stator, alternator, whatever) then you will probably need a new gasket. And oil should definitely leak from there. Same as the clutch coveron the right- need a gasket, it will leak oil.

As far as the vibration around 4k rpms, I'll let somebody else chime in on that one.

So, just to be clear, if you are going to play around under the covers Big Rich says will leak oil - you should probably drain the oil from bike first (and refill it after, obviously).

Lots of possibilities here.

Okay, Phil. Start with the easiest thing.... remove front sprocket cover and examine front sprocket. Wear on the front sprocket can cause odd sounds vibes as the chain tries to go onto the sprocket. Pulling clutch would release the Load and the sound would go. And it will not necessarily be in all gears or at all speeds. Quirky that way.

So, how is your chain? No kinks? Correct tension?

Also, how is your oil? Does this vibe happen all the time or just when the bike is cold? When did you last change the oil filter?

Have you started using a different gas?

have you experimented with the bike in neutral and revving at 4k?

Michael

Quote from: mister on November 13, 2011, 01:50:14 AM
Lots of possibilities here.

Okay, Phil. Start with the easiest thing.... remove front sprocket cover and examine front sprocket.

well that's exactly the thing: I'm worried about doing that, since i've never done that before.
What do I need to know?
Should I drain all the oil first like bombshell says?  Or just let it sit cold for (X?) number of hours first.

Is there a rubber gasket there? Is there a chance that I will need to buy a new one before replacing the cover?

Anything else that I dont know that I dont know?


Oh, and also, what about....

D'oh!
I just found this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGqUlKGby5U
"GS500F front sprocket cover removal"


:-/

This is definitely going on the wiki
(doh.. there was actually a page for it, but it was spelled wrong! fixing that too, or trying to)

PS: So, any recommendations for best way to do any needed cleaning? qtip?  or do I not want any kind of leftover fibres in there?

PPS: my messy moment, was because I was taking off the WHOLE thing. the left panel too, which I gather is NOT the sprocket cover now

For the ~sprocket cover~, no need to remove oil. I was previously referirng to the other covers.

Hm.
well that wasnt bad. 
Inside, a little bit of buildup. nothing major. cleaned it out.
The chain seemed to go smoooothly over the sprocket at all places, for its whole length.


One interesting thing is that http://wiki.gstwins.com/index.php?n=Maintenance.FrontSproketCoverRemoval  claims an adjustment of the clutch cable is needed.
I didnt do that.
might be due to my handlebars being at an unusual position.
But also, the instructions didnt make much sense either.

"Turn the clutch adjuster clockwise, releasing tension to the clutch mechanism. "
Err, what? 
I presumed it meant "the TOP big nut thing", even though the spanner is shown on the BOTTOM, thinner nut.
But the top one didnt want to move much. So I didnt move it.
The bottom one, if you turn it "clockwise", it tightens up to the case! So that cant be right.

arent the instructions backward? Dont you want to move the thin 12mm thing COUNTER_clockwise? !!

The lower nut it a 'locknut' - turning it clockwise moves it DOWN the shaft so it eventually jams itself against the casing below - this makes it harder for the top one to turn on it's own over time, from e.g. vibration.

The upper nut is the adjuster nut. Turning it clockwise moves more of the cable down into the mechanism, reducing the slack.

In order to turn the upper, adjuster nut, you must first 'unlock' the locknut by turning it counterclockwise - if you like, you can spin it up the shaft until it's directly below the adjuster nut to get it out of the way until you've worked out what position you want the adjuster nut to be in.

Then, once you've set the adjuster, you turn the locknut clockwise until it's at the bottom, jamming it against the case so that it will hold the whole thing in place and prevent it from turning on it's own.

Hold the adjuster nut with one spanner while you tighten the locknut, otherwise you'll probably turn both.

On the wiki link you've provided, the picture described where the spanner is on the bottom nut (locknut) corresponds to this part of the text on that page:

'Loosen the lock nut with a 12mm wrench, moving it up to the 10mm clutch adjuster.'

What you see in the picture is him using a 12mm wrench to loosen the lock nut (by turning it counterclockwise) and moving it upwards.

In the next picture, you see he has turned the adjuster nut (upper) clockwise, as it has now moved downwards.

As mentioned, on the wiki page you should remove all tension from the lever-end adjuster under the rubber cover on your handlebar first, before performing the adjustment at the sprocket cover end: the procedure here is exactly the same, the adjusters are just shaped differently: loosen locknut (CCW), bring in adjuster nut (CW), tighten locknut (CW).

Quote from: bombshelter13 on November 13, 2011, 10:33:14 AM
....
What you see in the picture is him using a 12mm wrench to loosen the lock nut (by turning it counterclockwise) and moving it upwards.

In the next picture, you see he has turned the adjuster nut (upper) clockwise, as it has now moved downwards.
...

except he doesnt say that. sigh.
oh. well, i guess he does, but it's in two parts, split across the picture.
I'll update the wiki to be clearer. thanks.

Back to my actual problem

Quote from: mister on November 13, 2011, 01:50:14 AM

Also, how is your oil? Does this vibe happen all the time or just when the bike is cold? When did you last change the oil filter?

Have you started using a different gas?

have you experimented with the bike in neutral and revving at 4k?

Michael

Oil was just changed.
Funnily enough, when bike was COMPLETELY cold today.. I didnt seem to be able to feel it.
For one brief shiney happy period, I thought my bike was all better!!

Then after about 5-10 mins of actual riding, I think I started noticing it a little

Vibe does not seem to happen when in neutral but at 4k revs.