Hello everyone, my name is Ante (Anthony) and I live in Croatia. I own a '05 GS 500E, bought in the May of 2013.  I've put about 2.5k miles since then and recently garaged it due to cold weather.

The bike:





The bike was in great condition when i bought it, with about 20k miles on the clock. The only part not working properly was the ignition lock. The lock mechanism was ok, but there was no signal in the ON position. The previous owner bypassed this and instaled a switch below the seat, but the wire he used to do it was the same as the ones a stereo would use, very very thin. This resulted in wire heating, which almost proved fatal as I was riding on the freeway when there was a break in the circuit, which closed a few seconds later and there was a BANG from the excess unignited fuel. It scared me for life... After i got home I rewired the bypass with a much thicker wire, a better switch and everything worked fine from then on.



After garaging, the first thing I did was to remove the ignition lock and see if there is any hope of bringing it back to life. Suprisingly, it lives once again, a piece of copper and some soldering fixed it. If anyone wants I can  explain the problem after i get some pictures.  With imense joy I tore off the bypassing wires, mourning the two batteries it destroyed(i forgot to turn the switch off) . The bike as I was working on the ignition lock:





I'm getting ready to take the engine off in a day or two, sand off the chassis, and get some painting done, followed by more cosmetic stuff.

It would help me if anyone knows:

- I'm 6'3'' and weight about 240lbs, I've put some weight on recently and my friend said I look like an offspring of a bear and a tank... The bike used to be a bit  small for me now it's even smaller. Is there anything that could be done regarding that. Would swapping the front end help, and if so is it possible to swap for just any or there is a fixed number of fitting models. To be precise, there is 06' YZF600 and '91 GSXR for sale in parts in my area. 

- After installing the K&N lunchbox, will there be enough liberated space to house the battery, I plan to make underseat storage compartament.

- Are there any options of elevating the seat by an inch or two?

In the end, I want a bit sturdier bike to commute, take a few longer trips, that will look nice and be a bit safer and more stable when cornering.


P.S Thank you adidasguy, I can't find my other post, but you corectly diagnosed my battery problems this summer.


Thanks for reading, I'll keep you posted.

Ante.

My ancestors are from the Isle of Vise... (is that how its spelt) lolol...
Love the black frame, tempted to do that to mine also.

Hello again, I was busy over the last week so the bike was put on hold. I did manage to get my hands on the front end of the 750 Suzuki GSXR.  The swapping process took two trips to a friend that works as a turner. Pics below:

Taking measures to insure it will fit the middle fork on the GS frame.






Turner magic I supose 



Testing everything to fit before going home. Since my technical English is bad, I have no idea how to name most of the parts. The thing that rests on the lower fork triangle is from the GS500, it fits this GSXR tube perfectly, i believe the diameter is 30mm. That was easily swapped. The tube connecting the upper and lower triangle was too long for the middle fork of the GS, so we shortened it by 17mm and transfered the screw threads accordingly. The upper conus wheel turning thingie is the same on the GS and GSXR, so that was also swapped with minor adjustments in regard to the upper triangle resting point. If anyone would be so kind to name propper english names for the parts, thanks in advance.





The guy that sold me the front end also threw in this handlebar, it is just resting on the triangle now but I like the looks of it already.






Everything fits, I may take it to the turner one more time since there is a 2-3mm space between the upper triangle and the upper conus wheel turning thingies screw.



The bike as it is now, time permiting, I'll take the engine off towmorow, would have done it sooner but I  need a special key to remove the crash bar, the tools i have can't reach the nut inside.



Thanks for reading.

Quote from: Golly on February 01, 2014, 07:21:11 AM
My ancestors are from the Isle of Vise... (is that how its spelt) lolol...
Love the black frame, tempted to do that to mine also.

When the bike is done, I'll take a trip to the hill over my town and take a few pictures, on a sunny day I can see the island from there (the name is "Vis" in Croatian). 

Nice mate

Sent from my GT-I9210T using Tapatalk

Quote from: Feanor on February 09, 2014, 12:25:06 PMIf anyone would be so kind to name propper english names for the parts, thanks in advance.

The machine is a lathe; the guy running it is a machinist
semi-triangular brackets holding the fork tubes are the triple trees
the center rod that connects the front end to the frame is the stem
the "conus wheel turning thingies" are cone bearings

Just a quick update, I've spent the better half of the day in the garage. The engine is off the frame, hoping to get it sanded tomorrow and put some primer on it.

@Radodrill Thanks for the info, I'll try to remember everything. 

Good luck on your build!    what type of windscreen is that on the bike in the first pic?

Here in Europe those parts are commonly known as the upper, or top, and the lower or bottom fork yokes and the spinning conical things are known as Taper roller bearings.

Leave the American descriptions for the Americans........most people on this side of the Atlantic wont have a clue what they are if you describe them that way!

....... talking of taper roller bearings, please tell me you plan on replacing them, particulalrly the lower one 

Nice project

Engine removed and cleaned. Did the best I could but the oxidized aluminium proved a bit too much for me.





In the end I didn't sand blast the frame, I just sanded with sanding paper, 220 grit dry. The primer, and the first coat of paint (two in total)





The frame needs to be polished with a fine grit paper, but I like how it came out. Bolted the engine back surprisingly easy, I guess it helps when the frame is not attached to two moving wheels 







Also my '97  GSX600F rear shock came a few days back. The feel is incredible, I can't wait to test ride it, easily the best money I've spent lately. Bolted on perfectly, since I've read alot of threads and never came across any exact info,  the measures for the shock bolt spacing are: W: 3cm L: 33 (same on 05' GS) 

Quote from: sledge on February 15, 2014, 10:21:38 AM
....... talking of taper roller bearings, please tell me you plan on replacing them, particulalrly the lower one 

Thanks for the info, my bottom taper roller is not as bad as it seems, I used a rusty tube I found laying around the garage to force it down the stem. The rust painted the grease i used to bind everything together after rebuilding the roller. So it looks rusty but it runs pretty smooth.

Quote from: Merc110 on February 13, 2014, 08:46:41 AM
Good luck on your build!    what type of windscreen is that on the bike in the first pic?

Thanks man. The windscreen was on the bike when I bought it, it has a sticker saying PUIG racing screens. No serial number or something to help indentify the model.

Quote from: dB-tje on February 19, 2014, 09:03:15 AM
Nice project

Thanks. While I was studying for my build I came across your thread more than once . Awesome build, great looking bike. Hope you have alot of fun with it 

Did you put any clear coat on the paint to help protect the finish?