"Please allow me to introduce myself..................."

[nhsteve]

Good Day all from New Hampshire!

Latest acquisition is a 1978/79 (??) GS850G. Manufacture date is 11/78, hope to pin down exactly which year it is. It came from a friend who purchased it a few years ago with a charging issue. He has passed it on to me after giving up on it with a new (Ha!! second-hand eBay purchase... new... rigghhtt) stator and evidently an aftermarket regulator/rectifier. But... a good battery (so far anyway).

As the bike seems pretty unmolested despite it's year and mileage (25K), I intend to address the issues as they crop up, starting with the charging (provided I can get it to start, so I may be starting there?!?). Have downloaded and printed out "The Stator Papers" and started to read them, also got a reproduction service and parts manual from a man in New Zealand, as well as a Haynes, so I'm pretty well armed for over-the-counter literature anyway.

Awesome introductory link in the FAQ section- thanks to whoever set that up!

Looking forward to taking part in conversations on the forum!

[dorkburger]

Hey Steve, welcome. Nice looking bike.

[steve murdoch]

Good looking starting point.
Welcome aboard, nh.

...."I'm a man of wealth and taste"....

[Steve]

Welcome.

Even though it has a build date of 11/78, it was made for the '79 model year, the year the bike was introduced.

Be careful when shopping for a stator, as your bike should use a 12-pole stator, not the more-common 18-pole unit found in newer bikes.

Since you are also looking at the R/R, you should be aware that there is a MUCH better unit available from a Polaris Razr or Ranger. It is an SH775, which is a series-type unit, not the standard shunt-style, which tends to overheat the stator.

.

[posplayr]

See GS Stator in my signature.

If you want to eliminate and trials and tribulations just replace the (probable) SHUNT R/R with a SERIES Unit. The SH775 is most popular for its cheap price and overall reliability. Actually, there are not that many options. The Compufire is also available, much smaller but much more expensive.

You could do a Quick test to see if it is even charging. The Stator Pages Phase B leg to leg and leg to ground tests at 5K are the most important for diagnosing the stator.


BTW there are a whole lot more Series R/R's available from Shindingen.

http://www.as-thyristor.com/products...%20Series.html

[2BRacing]

BTW there are a whole lot more Series R/R's available from Shindingen.

http://www.as-thyristor.com/products...%20Series.html

Are you sure those are really all "Series" meaning the design type, and not just a reference to the type number as in "XY123 series"?

Reason I say this, is because near the bottom of the page is "FH020 Series", which is a MOSFET shunt design type as far as I know, but I may be wrong?

[Vmass]

Great looking bike and welcome to the forum. You are in goods hands here, lots of knowledgeable members will help to quickly diagnose your issues.

[Redman]

nhsteve,
Welcome to GSR.
Are you a man of wealth and taste.....?

Yes, as others have said, that will be a 1979 model year.

You have a volt meter? You will want one, and know how to use it.

Looks like nice condition bike in the photo.

You have a Haynws manaul... I suggest you keep looking for a Clymer.

.

[Steve]

You have a Hayn[e]s manaul... I suggest you keep looking for a Clymer.

.

Even better, click HERE and get a gen-you-ine Suzuki manual.

.

[Guest]

I told you we were in the End Times, now he's here in GSR.

[nhsteve]

Thanks for confirming the model year for me, and also info on the R/R. Maybe I'll post up a pic of the "new" one my friend included, and someone can maybe figure out what it might be. I do know that he was also on this forum for awhile. Not sure of his 'handle' though.

Welcome.

Even though it has a build date of 11/78, it was made for the '79 model year, the year the bike was introduced.

Be careful when shopping for a stator, as your bike should use a 12-pole stator, not the more-common 18-pole unit found in newer bikes.

Since you are also looking at the R/R, you should be aware that there is a MUCH better unit available from a Polaris Razr or Ranger. It is an SH775, which is a series-type unit, not the standard shunt-style, which tends to overheat the stator.

.

[nhsteve]

Thank you for the link, I have downloaded it. The Haynes was available right off and cheap. I know what you mean, though. I have one for a Yamaha RD250/350 we have, and it is pretty slim on facts.

Even better, click HERE and get a gen-you-ine Suzuki manual.

.

[Steve]

There are three generally-accepted manuals for our bikes: Suzuki, Clymer and Haynes.

Most of us rank them in that order.

Clymer and Haynes are somewhat written for the shadetree mechanic. They might have a tidbit or three that the Suzuki manual does not mention, but I would rather go for the accuracy of the Suzuki manual.

.