Long trips anyone?

[danny01975]

I have an 82 GS1100GK that is very well maintained with about 35k miles on it. It runs perfectly without issue now, after about a solid year or working out issues.

I normally only take it on shorter rides. Less than 100 miles or so, on a "longer day". I would like to take it out for longer rides, maybe 200-300 miles, but I'm so paranoid something will break and I'll be stranded.

I've replaced the rear spline already, valve shims were done around 5k ago, and I think I've got my clutch cable issue sorted out. The only other worrisome part I've never touched is the stator. I sure don't want that thing going out on me on a long ride!

Anyone else here take their 40+ year old bike out for long runs? Am I just worried for nothing?

 

[Rich82GS750TZ]

Verify the health of your charging system and its wiring. If you have the original Reg/Rec on there, you’re on borrowed time. IMHO, YMMV.

 

[danny01975]

Verify the health of your charging system and its wiring. If you have the original Reg/Rec on there, you’re on borrowed time. IMHO, YMMV.

It's got the original regulator on it. (Correction.. I suspect it's the original. But I'm not 100% certain) I can check the stator, and rectifier. If all check good, should I still preemptively replace it?

 

[Rich82GS750TZ]

I can't tell you what to do, but, mine stranded me. Luckily I was only a few miles from home and could phone a buddy with a trailer. Knowing what I know now, I would have replaced stator, RR (with SH775), and cleaned up/centralized all grounds preemptively. It's been 7 years since I did all that and still charging strong.

 

[danny01975]

Understood. Thanks for the advice! I don't want to get 3 hrs away from home and end up stranded!

I looked under the battery, and while I can't be 100% sure it's original, it sure looks like it is. I think I'll just go ahead and replace it before taking any longer trips.

 

[Rich82GS750TZ]

Plenty of instructions and stories here on the forum on how to go about this.
This is mine:
Charging System Sorted​

 

[storm 64]

After rebuilding my 1979 GS 1000E in 2017, I took it out for 6,500 mile cross country ride. Ignition system, charging system, wheel bearings, brakes, chain &sprockets... All got upgraded. The only problem I had was the speedometer gear in the front wheel seized up. A quick stop in Nebraska, a forum member/friend had it replaced in no time. I could have made it home, but without the odometer it was difficult calculating my fuel consumption.

I'd suggest getting AAA that will at least get you off the highway just in case. Do you have a friend with a truck? Maybe let him know about your planned ride.
I say go for it! The GS is definitely a capable touring motorcycle.
Keep us posted on how it went.

 

[rphillips]

"Am I just worried for nothing"?... Yes, probably... But you can always find something to worry about if you try hard enough. I'd think a flat tire 2 or 3 hundred miles from home would be way more apt to happen or worry about than the charging system. But that's just me.

 

[trevor]

I've ridden my 1980 gs1000s British Columbia to California and back.....two times. Never an issue....do the maintenance and you'll be fine

 

[danny01975]

Rich82GS750TZ , or anyone else that might know.. After further inspection, I DO think the PO may have replace the r/r. The one that's on there now appears to be slightly larger than the stock one. Also it has 5 wires coming out of it. 3 yellow, 1 black, and 1 red.

Also, all of these wires go into a single sheath which transitions at some point to a flat 4 wire plug.

What do yall think?
​

 

[Rich82GS750TZ]

Rich82GS750TZ , or anyone else that might know.. After further inspection, I DO think the PO may have replace the r/r. The one that's on there now appears to be slightly larger than the stock one. Also it has 5 wires coming out of it. 3 yellow, 1 black, and 1 red.

Also, all of these wires go into a single sheath which transitions at some point to a flat 4 wire plug.

What do yall think?
filedata/fetch?id=1775890&d=1756395147 ​

All you know is that someone, at some time, replaced the stock R/R with an aftermarket one. Is it a good one? I don't know.
That certainly bodes well. Maybe. Not everyone does it right.
You should at least check some numbers so you know what the bike is doing.
Check your voltages at the battery and verify that you are charging well.
1) Key Off -
2) Key On -
3) idle 1500 RPM -
4) at 2500 RPM -
5) at 5000 RPM -
6) Key off - ​

 

[GS1150Pilot]

I rode my 1150 on several 12-1500 mile trips with only a flat and a speedometer drive unit as casualties.

 

[Nessism]

Keep in mind, our GS bikes are all 40+ years old at this point.

I created the newbie mistakes thread to inform people about some common problems with these old GS bikes, but truth is, any vehicle of this age needs a ton of maintenance before it can be truly trusted.

Wheel bearings, steering neck bearings, swingarm bearings, chain, sprockets, O-rings in the carbs and intake boots, tires, tubes, stator, R/R, wiring in general, cables, on and on. You must go through all these items before you can blindly take off for a road trip and expect to make it home without issue.

Thus, the reason that vintage bikes aren't for everyone.

 

[danny01975]

All you know is that someone, at some time, replaced the stock R/R with an aftermarket one. Is it a good one? I don't know.
That certainly bodes well. Maybe. Not everyone does it right.
You should at least check some numbers so you know what the bike is doing.
Check your voltages at the battery and verify that you are charging well.
1) Key Off -
2) Key On -
3) idle 1500 RPM -
4) at 2500 RPM -
5) at 5000 RPM -
6) Key off - ​

Just checked it.

1) Key Off - 13.1v
2) Key On - 12.7v Drops steadily because lights are on
3) idle 1500 RPM -13.8v - 13.9v
4) at 2500 RPM - 14v
5) at 5000 RPM - 14v

 

[Rich82GS750TZ]

Seems healthy, for now. Would be nice to see bit over 14, but that's probably about where mine is.
Truth is, we can suggest all the things (and Ed posted a lot more things). You have to ask yourself a question:

 

[lizzywhite45]

Hey man, totally get the hesitation. You’ve done solid work on the bike, and if it’s running great now, that’s a good sign.

I’d just double-check the charging system, stator and reg/rec can fail without warning. Quick test now could save a headache later.

Go for the ride, just prep smart. Maybe let a buddy know your route, just in case. Once you do it, you’ll feel way more confident.

Let us know how it goes. Love seeing these old GS bikes still out there.
​

 

[danny01975]

Lol! I guess that is always the question! After reading the stator papers, these voltages are right in spec. The only unknown here is exactly what kind of r/r it is. I may take it off just to get the info off of it. And go through the connections to make sure they're all clean.

If nothing else, this has been a good experiment and at least I know the r/r has been swapped out.

 

[Steve]

If you are going to go through the effort of removing and inspecting the R/R, why not just source a GENUINE SH775 and install it? Once you determine a location for it (it's a bit larger than stock), installation is rather quick and easy.

.

 

[Burque73]

We used to use Google earth which had locations for lots of members, just in case you're on the road and need help somewhere. I've had a couple of folks come through Albuquerque that needed something. One was from I think New Orleans. mrhedgeswho needed a valve cover gasket. I had it shipped to my house and swapped it when he came through town. You'll hear many stories like that from this forum.

I've had the charging system crap out in two GS's. Just had to push start after shutting off the engine on one. The other I was on a dirt road and couldn't do that. Fortunately my phone had service and my wife came a couple hundred miles to the middle of nowhere to my rescue.

In spite of those issues, I wouldn't hesitate to hop on my 850 and go anywhere right now if time would allow. It's proven to be quite a great bike. Hoping ti get my GK sorted as well soon to be my long trip bike.

 

[danny01975]

Install a volt gauge on your GS to give you peace of mind.

I had this exact thought. Trying to find one locally as the ride is in two days. No luck yet.