Hey guys, hope everyone is doing well!
I bought my GS500 about two years ago, and back when I first got it, I ran into an issue similar to what I'm facing now. On rare occasions when trying to start the bike, I'd hear a single, very loud, sharp "clack" noise coming from the left side near the starter motor area.
Since then, I've completely rebuilt the engine—replaced all the journal/shell bearings, did a full overhaul, and swapped out the stock flywheel for a sealed magneto (a very common and reliable mod here in Brazil).
When I tried to start it for the very first time after the rebuild, that same loud clack happened again. Right after that, the battery seemed to get drained almost instantly, and now the starter motor feels way too weak to turn the engine over.
Someone suggested it might be the battery, considering it's nearly two years old, sat unused for a long time, and is actually weeping/leaking a tiny bit. It's a Motobatt.
However, the starter clutch seems to operate normally by hand—it spins freely forward and locks up properly when turned backward.
I'm attaching a video to show how it behaves right after the loud clack.
Has anyone run into this before? Should
I start by replacing the battery, or should I be looking into a starter motor rebuild kit instead?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Is a sound pretty similar to this video in 1:19.