what did you wrench on today??

[1978GS750E]

Another tank painting episode!

Got the last coat of primer on the GS550 tank this afternoon.

IMG_0260.jpg

Tomorrow the humidity should be low enough to do the final wet sand and get down the first coat of blue.

Still looking for the decals for it. Can't seem to find them in any of the normal places???

[Buffalo Bill]

It was great to see you, Dave, and good to see you're on the mend.

And thanks for the opportunity to experience the Bavarian life from the saddle. (I mean, we had to test ride to make sure the repair was good, right?) I've ridden an RS from about the same era, but never an RT.

Ze Germans do know wind management; I personally don't like fairings and windshields, but this one is very effective if that sort of thing is the sort of thing you like. Way TOO effective with temps in the 90s, to be honest.

The brakes are, well, let's just say they're a little TOO interesting. Ze Germans love to over-complicate things, and several BMW models around that time used a power brake system with some... interesting quirks. Dave warned me the brakes were grabby, but once underway they seemed on par with any other modern bike with decent brakes. (My V-Strom in the background is modern-ish, but they're certainly not known for stellar brakes.) I'd say the RT's power brakes are on par with an FJR, Tiger, etc.

The problem with the brakes is that when you start the bike, the power brake system doesn't come online until the ABS system is online. And if you start the bike with a hand or foot on the brake, you get an ABS error message. And the ABS system only goes online after at least a couple of wheel rotations. So basically you have very little braking for about 15 feet after starting or with the engine off. This makes driveway maneuvering extra-interesting, and if you're parked on a slight slope (Tim's driveway gets fairly steep about 20 feet from the garage) I don't know what you're supposed to do, exactly. Knowing BMW, they probably just tell you on page 428 in the manual not to park or start the bike on a slope and that's that; no one would EVER need to do something that's prohibited in the manual, would they?

Not a huuuuge amount of "punch you in the back" horsepower, but very torquey. Gear selection doesn't matter much. A very serene ride; behind that fairing you have to look at the speedo to see how fast you're going.



Here I will confess to an evil, evil thought: I stopped after a few miles to make sure the replacement rear end was OK, and I strongly considered hiding just around the corner then calling Tim and Dave to tell them I was broken down about ten miles away with gear oil absolutely everywhere.

In the end I decided not to kick an injured man while he was down, but damn that could have been hilarious.

Such clean shirts you guys wore! Just for the camera?

[Guest]

Giant bags on a Kat? Sacrilege.

Hahahahaha yes well... anything to not have to use a tank bag is good for me (don't worry, the rack comes off when not in use!)

[Mig]

Hi guys and gals. I'm new here and I'm new with an 82 GS650g. I am working on the rack of 4 carbs. Fuel mixture screws. 2 on the ends were easy. Think they were newer carbs than the inner two by their overall condition and shininess. #3 has bad upper threads but I got a good fitting screwdriver and worked it out slowly with 3n1 oil. #2 is worse. Top of screw head is about 1/4 inch deep at this point and much tighter than #3 was and the screw slot is in bad shape. Anyone have any ideas on how to continue with removal of this fuel mix screw?

[gustovh]

Try heat on the carb body at the threads while trying to unscrew the needle.

V

Hi guys and gals. I'm new here and I'm new with an 82 GS650g. I am working on the rack of 4 carbs. Fuel mixture screws. 2 on the ends were easy. Think they were newer carbs than the inner two by their overall condition and shininess. #3 has bad upper threads but I got a good fitting screwdriver and worked it out slowly with 3n1 oil. #2 is worse. Top of screw head is about 1/4 inch deep at this point and much tighter than #3 was and the screw slot is in bad shape. Anyone have any ideas on how to continue with removal of this fuel mix screw?

[Guest]

Hi guys and gals. I'm new here and I'm new with an 82 GS650g....

Welcome to the GSR. GS650Gs are great bikes.

[Redman]

................
worked it out slowly with 3n1 oil. ............
..................... Anyone have any ideas on how to continue with removal of this fuel mix screw?

Seafoam Deep Creep penetrating oil. Is expensive, but works well, especially on carb parts.

WElcome to TheGSR. Might get more response if post in particular section of forum relative to topic.

[TowPilot]

Today was a good day. My GS1000G left me stranded this weekend. Lost power and couldn't keep it running. Would only run on choke this morning. Cylinders 1 and 4 where cold, had spark and compression so I knew it was carb issues. Loosened the drain plugs on all 4. #4 was dry, potentially found one problem. Pulled the carbs. Yep, #4 needle was stuck. #1 idle jet was clogged. I had recently gone through the whole thing following the instructions on this site.. Oh, well, 2 hours later and it is on the road again.

[steve murdoch]

Only 2 hours?
Congrats on the quick diagnosis and repair.

[Jedz123]

Did my 40K mile service on my Bonnie... Here is how I checked the valves!

[Sandy]

Sorry, not motorcycle related but I did manage to finish a raised bed garden project for my wife. Now I just need to find 2 yards of top soil to fill it. ....oh joy.

Raised Bed

by soates50, on Flickr

[Carter Turk]

Sorry, not motorcycle related but I did manage to finish a raised bed garden project for my wife.

Sounds like time to go for a ride after a job well done.
What grows at the end of August anyway?

[GS1150Pilot]

I replaced the Vance & Hines slip-ons with a full Rinehart exhaust system on the Sportster. Loaded a new map on the efi controller but it's still not quite right on the bottom end, so I have asked Fuel Moto to do another map, after which, it'll be dyno time.

[Redman]

1979 chainsaw running again

How this for a 1979 chainsaw, after not running for a couple year?

Craftsman (Poulan)

Had not run in a couple years.
Found fuel line (from carb, into/thru handle, and then another into the main body into the tank, to a filter) hard and cracked, and broke as soon as touched it. Went to a couple hardware stores and didnt find any similar size gas line. Went to a small engine repair place and did find some replacement line.

And got it running

Hows this???
Note: 1979, 16:1 oil mix (8 oz per gallon)

https://youtu.be/jCPLCz_9NqQ

Another story about this saw: About 10-11 years ago, I had not used it for 5-6 years, and could not get it going. Took it to a local repair shop, they said cylinder was scored and not worth repairing. I was annoyed, compression felt okay to me thru the sparkplug hole. I fussed with it some more. Took it to a friend who said we should inspect the carb diaphrams. We took it apart and he said they were fine, all the little flaps were there and not wore off like can happen.

I posted here on GSR (2007? 2008?) with pics of the diaphrams, and a couple guys also said they were okay as long as the little flaps are intact, and the gasket edge is okay. Then along comes Ben 2BRacing, and says the diaphrams need to be replaced because they have a slight warp to them, they did do not lay completely flat. Said that Warbo carb is the same model as carbs in his go carts (although his much bigger). SO I get a replacement set of diaphragms, and verp-verp-verrrrwhaaaaaaaaaa.

I was so impressed.
Impressed with Ben.
Impressed with GSR.

[2BRacing]

How this for a 1979 chainsaw, after not running for a couple year? ?????..Another story about this saw: About 10-11 years ago, I had not used it for 5-6 years, and could not get it going. Took it to a local repair shop, they said cylinder was scored and not worth repairing. I was annoyed, compression felt okay to me thru the sparkplug hole. I fussed with it some more. Took it to a friend who said we should inspect the carb diaphrams. We took it apart and he said they were fine, all the little flaps were there and not wore off like can happen.

I posted here on GSR (2007? 2008?) with pics of the diaphrams, and a couple guys also said they were okay as long as the little flaps are intact, and the gasket edge is okay. Then along comes Ben 2BRacing, and says the diaphrams need to be replaced because they have a slight warp to them, they did do not lay completely flat. Said that Walbro carb is the same model as carbs in his go carts (although his much bigger). SO I get a replacement set of diaphragms, and verp-verp-verrrrwhaaaaaaaaaa.

I was so impressed.
Impressed with Ben.
Impressed with GSR.

Thanks Dave! Yes, I remember that very well! Must have been some of my earliest posts on GSR around January 2009!

Here is a photo where my son (#6) is struggling to stay ahead of the previous year's champion (#1) and nearly getting it crossed up into the corner!



The Walbro carb (very common on small 2-stroke engines) has 2 mixture adjustment needles (for low and high speed). On the 100cc engine in the go-kart the carb sits behind the driver and quite low down, so my son had to find the high speed needle "by feel" to adjust it when the engine started to get hot near the end of the races.

I strapped an old carb to a belt and made him wear it around the house, and practice to put his hand down and back to find the needle and tweak it slightly to make the mixture richer! I replaced the diaphragms after every race in order to ensure maximum performance, and we came second in the championship that year by 2 points, so I knew my way around those Walbro carbs!

Very glad to hear that your chain saw is running again Dave!