Project Bike 2002 GS500

[campingonh2o]

A little background about the 2002 GS500 I purchased last month. I look at Marketplace and Craigslist daily, its my addiction. Always looking for a project or deal. I came across an ad for the 2002 Gs500. Seller stated don't know much about it selling for a friend. I scheduled a time to look at it, after insuring it had title. When I arrived I found the bike inside a pole building leaning against and the wall. It was covered in dirt and bird droppings, both tires flat, and stuck in gear (clutch stuck). Fuel tank had very little fuel and appeared clean, no rust visible inside. Tires heavy weather checking and appeared original with not much wear. Other than dirty it looked nice. Odometer showed 3753 miles, which appeared to be original. I was skeptical of it due to age. I struck a deal and loaded it up. Picture of it when I stopped to check straps.

[Bluesmudge]

Looks like a nice deal! Hopefully with a carb cleaning and fresh gas and battery it starts right up! Miles are so low you don't even have to do a valve clearance check yet!

New tires too I'm sure. What's the date code on them? Don't be too frugal like me. I purchased a GS1000 for a similar kind of deal (good shape cosmetically but sitting for a long time). The tires had 2006 and 2008 date codes but otherwise looked pretty fresh. I figured I would run them until I had everything else totally dialed in. Even ran them at 85 mph+. One day after ~300 miles on those old tires I noticed that the rear tire's rubber was starting to split all over the place. One more highway run and I think it would have failed catastrophically. I got lucky that I checked them that day. So beware of old tires!

[campingonh2o]

I pulled tank, flushed the little gas, varnish type fluid lol from it. Removed tank filter which was like new (pictures). I then opened up carbs to clean, had to easy out 5 of the 8 screws from float bowl. Replaced with hex head bolts. Inside carbs looked new(picture), but cleaned anyway. I did remove spark pugs and sprayed cylinders with fogging oil. I let that sit while doing carbs etc.. I also replaced the seals between the fuel supply and both carbs to be safe. Next step after fuel system was clutch. I removed cover and clutch looked new, however it was sticking at top from lack of oil. I installed new clutch only because I was money ahead and thought no sense having issue later. New oil and filter along with new plugs. Turned over a couple times quick with no plugs to lube cylinders before firing it up. Forgot new battery as well. Full choke fuel shut off to prime, fired right up. Ran like new bike, idol was perfect after warm up. quick ride around the block no issues. I then flushed brake fluids and installed new tires.

[campingonh2o]

I forgot to mention. It was at this point I realized the plate on the bike was a temp tag. I couldn't make out the date so i looked at title. The title date issued to the person i purchased it from was Sept. 10, 2006 and had 3748 recorded as mileage. With 3753 on it when i bought on July 2022 means 5 miles since 2006. My son (19) purchased from me, I lost a couple bucks on it  . Picture after cleaning and getting running. I got lucky was a cheap easy project, and my son cant stop smiling. He has put over 1000 miles on it the last month and a half. Is a blast to drive, and almost impossible to not just throttle it all the time. 

[campingonh2o]

Current picture, Son installed grips, bar ends, engine guards. Also has the new tires installed. Did a 500 mile recheck, found a few loose fasteners and lost the high beam indicator lens, and 1 bolt head cover at handlebar. No leaks or oil use. Runs great no noise but slight vibration in handle bars at 50ish. Installing the bar ends that were missing helped some. I think it looks good next to the other bikes.

[cbrfxr67]

What a great read!  Thanks for sharing!  Makes me want to go find another bike to fix!!