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    do you like safety switches?

    im sure its been known that ive had another project for a good bit of time now, i picked it up right before i started school so i dont work on it too often, and i already have a riding bike im not afraid to take anywhere so the motive to get this one up and running isnt as present this time around.

    ill just give a "brief" description of what it is doing and what i have done to try and get it going. right away the first thing i did was take off the carbs, i couldnt even see where the jets were because this mudlike substance was caked over them, and gas resin was all over the inside of the carbs, but its nothing an ultrasonic couldnt take care of and now the carbs look brand new. i figured id get a battery right after because if i have spark and i have a pair of clean carbs, well the thing should run. i hooked up a battery and everything electronically turned on and worked except the headlight but thats not a big worry to me, i figured id press the starter button to see if it can spin the motor by itself and $#!% it all turned off, i clicked the key back and forth a bunch of times and still nothing, so now i have to do a bunch of testing. i checked all my fuses and ran resistance tests on all of them and they all passed, i tested my relays and they all worked ($75 a piece i damn sure hoped they worked), i skipped the solenoid and my starter motor worked, i tested the solenoid and it worked, i also tested the headlight bulb and it worked both normal and brights, so far this is going great as i havent needed to replace anything on the bike. i also changed the main ground for the battery as recommended by another owner and i put the battery back on the bike and now i had working brake lights, working turn signals, a neutral light, and horn, but everything else still wasnt working, and this time when i pressed my starter button nothing happened so atleast i didnt get myself back to stage 1. i started doing resistance testing along the headlight module and also my starter/killswitch module and all of the testing is coming back great so nothing seems to be broken, i was about to start screwing with these bit of jerry-rigged wires in the headlight loom that i assumed were all ground circuits (basically i was about to mess with crap i didnt need to touch) but i finally got a reply from somebody on the virago forum that said he is having the exact same issue and it turned out he had a faulty kickstand safety switch causing all this trouble, wala.

    this being said, either from a mechanic or just a riders perspective, do you like having these safety switches? i know its just one more from the GS since they both have clutch switches but this thing almost had me doing stuff that i never would have needed to do. now its gonna be one of the first things i check with other future bikes but it almost caused me a long lasting battle of what the hell is wrong with this bike.

    i think the GS wiring is so much better than the viragos, this one draws alot more amperage and it is a good bit more confusing to follow than the GS, the thing has like 7 or 8 relays on it.

    also school is going good, i always seem to have extra time on my hands and am starting up motors that have never been started before, and im also building display boards for the class for the future years, i just recently built an ignition system display board and its able to be hooked up to a drill to spin the rotor opening and closing the point causing the spark, adding that in was extra but is alot better than just manually opening the point by hand. all the things we've done in class have been very easy for me to do, and alot of it is because the GS so im very glad i ended up picking up somebody elses project and finishing it because without that i probably wouldve never ended up where im at and i say that in a positive way no doubt. i guess this is a bit off topic from the post but plenty of posts end up going off track anyways.
    Ian

    1982 GS650GLZ
    1982 XS650

    #2
    - some comments I have for you:

    - the advice you got from Virago (1990s ?) folk does not apply to our GSs (70s 80s).

    - our kickstand switch only lights a light on instrument panel. Is not an interlock to ignition or anything.

    - our netural switch (and gear position switches) only light light(s) on instrument panel. Do not interlock anything.

    - our clutch lever switch only cuts out the starter button/ starter solenoid, does not cut out the ignition.

    - ( other note: the sidestand / clutch / transmission interlocks that can cut out ignition even after engine is running became more common in the 90s)

    - my opinion of our clutch-starter interlock is that I find it annoying when it is unreliable, and I want to bypass it, but I resist that temptation and just wiggle the clutch lever till the starter goes, till I do get around to adjusting the switch (is adjustable) or clean it up (it gets crudded up) or replace it ($19). Else can try to start it without having both hands on bars. Has been a few times it was in gear when I thought not, and bike jerked when not expect it, and if had not had a hold of bars could have been a lot more of a surprize/problem than it was.
    Last edited by Redman; 11-18-2021, 05:55 PM.

    Had 850G for 14 years. Now have GK since 2005.
    GK at IndyMotoGP Suzuki Display... ... GK on GSResources Page ... ... Euro Trash Ego Machine .. ..3 mo'cykls.... update 2 mocykl


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      #3
      The carbs that were so crudded up, ever get that running? I think that would require complete disassembly and 24hour carb cleaner dip (not just spray carb cleaner here and there).

      Had 850G for 14 years. Now have GK since 2005.
      GK at IndyMotoGP Suzuki Display... ... GK on GSResources Page ... ... Euro Trash Ego Machine .. ..3 mo'cykls.... update 2 mocykl


      Comment


        #4
        its an 82 not a 90s virago but im sure its got alot of the same things going on, on the virago the kickstand switch completely disables the bike from starting but im glad its that and not something else that i would have to really mess with the wiring to get to.

        i had no clue any of the GS bikes had a kickstand switch i only have the neutral light and the clutch switch but i do have a pretty basic model as far as a GS goes. find it crazy that these 2 bikes i own are from the same year but they got a good amount of differences that really set them apart, aside from the obvious layout of the motor.

        no i havent got the virago going, the carbs look nothing short of superb as for the cleanliness of them. the whole issue ive been having is i wasnt able to get power to the starter button on the virago aswell as lights not operating, but its all because that stupid kickstand switch, it probably wont be today but once i confirm i have spark to the virago it will be up and running very soon after.


        cant seem to upload the photo of the virago that really shows its shape.
        Ian

        1982 GS650GLZ
        1982 XS650

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Redman View Post
          The carbs that were so crudded up, ever get that running? I think that would require complete disassembly and 24hour carb cleaner dip (not just spray carb cleaner here and there).

          i did a complete rebuild as i would with the GS, full disassembly and in the ultrasonic for however long it was, full rinse and wipedown of orfices and body itself. i am a good bit adjusted to how things should be done lol.
          Ian

          1982 GS650GLZ
          1982 XS650

          Comment


            #6
            Oh, the crudded up carb was virago. I don’t know if that is 1 carb or 2.

            yah. Only interlock on our bikes is the clutch switch cuts out the starter button/solenoid circuit.

            Had 850G for 14 years. Now have GK since 2005.
            GK at IndyMotoGP Suzuki Display... ... GK on GSResources Page ... ... Euro Trash Ego Machine .. ..3 mo'cykls.... update 2 mocykl


            Comment


              #7
              project 5.jpg

              dont know why its sideways lol
              Ian

              1982 GS650GLZ
              1982 XS650

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by Redman View Post
                Oh, the crudded up carb was virago. I don’t know if that is 1 carb or 2.

                yah. Only interlock on our bikes is the clutch switch cuts out the starter button/solenoid circuit.

                yeah GS carbs are fine as of now, its a 2 carb bike but people seem to convert them to single carb bikes, not sure the main reasoning but it is a common mod.
                Ian

                1982 GS650GLZ
                1982 XS650

                Comment


                  #9
                  The kickstand "safety" switches on my old V-Strom and on my KLR failed and were disabled. More than one rider has ended up on the ground or stalled in traffic at a dangerous intersection because of these damn things. When you're bashing along off-road or on primitive roads, it's common for the kickstand to bounce a bit and cut the engine at a delicate point.

                  The clutch lever switches also failed on my KLR, my GS850, and my old V-Strom, and were also disabled.

                  I think the idea of kickstand safety is fine. There have been many accidents from leaving them down. Same for clutch switches, but overall there's far less need. The problem is that the design, execution and quality of these systems are absolutely terrible.

                  Cheap, shoddy unsealed switches and connectors are placed down where they get blasted with muck and generally doomed to fail. On the KLR, there's a crack-brained contraption with a little cable and relays. 100% of these stupid things fail, and rather quickly too. And clutch switches are also unsealed, low-rent junk, blasted with weather, and fail far too quickly.

                  The best kickstand system I've seen was on quite a few Hondas. I don't know if they still do this. It's a rubber finger mounted to the back of the kickstand. In normal use the finger bends out of the way on the ground. If you try to ride off with the kickstand down, the finger drags the ground and flips your kickstand up for you. There's a startling KLUNK to help you pay better attention next time, but no harm done. Simple and reliable.

                  I have not yet needed to disable these switches on my 2015 Yamaha. In some late-model bikes (like later model V-Stroms) you can't just jumper the connectors and remove the switches because the ECU needs the signal. I'm not sure what the process is on the Yamaha, so I'll just keep them clean and hope for the best.
                  1983 GS850G, Cosmos Blue.
                  2005 KLR685, Aztec Pink - Turd II.3, the ReReReTurdening
                  2015 Yamaha FJ-09, Magma Red Power Corrupts...
                  Eat more venison.

                  Please provide details. The GSR Hive Mind is nearly omniscient, but not yet clairvoyant.

                  Celeriter equita, converteque saepe.

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                  Comment


                    #10
                    I hate all that stuff. That's why I prefer the older, simpler bikes. Part of my ritual before letting the clutch out is checking helmet chin strap, side stand etc. I don't need big brother.
                    1986 1150EF
                    2008 GS1250SEA

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by Big Block View Post
                      I hate all that stuff. That's why I prefer the older, simpler bikes. Part of my ritual before letting the clutch out is checking helmet chin strap, side stand etc. I don't need big brother.

                      i thought it was an older simpler bike! lol
                      Ian

                      1982 GS650GLZ
                      1982 XS650

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Ha, ha: I almost don't have enough hands/fingers to cold start my 1150.
                        1986 1150EF
                        2008 GS1250SEA

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Big Block View Post
                          Ha, ha: I almost don't have enough hands/fingers to cold start my 1150.
                          i wish i had a fuel enrichment knob installed on the rail on the bikes carbs since i never re-installed the "choke" cable that runs to the left hand module, it would really make this bike a turn key and go but holding it out for a minute or so until its idling nice and clean isnt too much of a hassle.


                          just looked up the bike, 560 pounds wet and still does an 11.1 quarter mile, pretty dang sweet! i cant believe how light bikes are nowadays, a new 1000cc is right under 450ib which is wild to think they were able to shave off that much weight.
                          Ian

                          1982 GS650GLZ
                          1982 XS650

                          Comment


                            #14
                            I can remember suavely standing next to my bike, gearing up suavely. Suavely turning the key. Suavely hitting the button and watching the bike suavely launch itself without me aboard. Good times!
                            1982 GS1100E V&H "SS" exhaust, APE pods, 1150 oil cooler, 140 speedo, 99.3 rear wheel HP, black engine, '83 red

                            2016 XL883L sigpic Two-tone blue and white. Almost 42 hp! Status: destroyed, now owned by the insurance company. The hole in my memory starts an hour before the accident and ends 24 hours after.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Rob S. View Post
                              I can remember suavely standing next to my bike, gearing up suavely. Suavely turning the key. Suavely hitting the button and watching the bike suavely launch itself without me aboard. Good times!
                              movie scene type of stuff lol, you seem to have alot of those, maybe ill make a short film with these lol.
                              Ian

                              1982 GS650GLZ
                              1982 XS650

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