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GS850G tank swap and side cover question

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    GS850G tank swap and side cover question

    Hello folks. This is my first official post here at GS Resources. I recently purchased a 79 GS850G, in great shape. This is my first GS. I had a couple questions, let me know if I've posted in the wrong area.

    Question #1
    My 79 GS850 doesn't have the letter G on the side cover emblem. Am I right in that the G showed up on the side cover emblem on the 1980 model?

    Question #2
    Will a 1982 GS850G tank fit directly onto my 1979 GS850G? I'm a fan of the knee dents in the 82 tank, wondering if a swap is an easy change.


    Thanks in advance
    Ryan

    1979 GS850G - currently undergoing a major overhaul
    1986 GSX-R750 - I'm figuring it out

    #2
    Hey Rusty.

    Check out the main GS Resources page. Under GS info you'll see what the letters stand for.

    The tanks unfortunately will not swap easily. The 82 and 83 tanks are different than the 79.

    You can pull up a parts fiche like the one from Parts Outlaw and see some of the differences.

    1979 850

    1983 850

    I'm not sure about the rubber stops in the front but the mounting bolt in the rear is definitely in a different location.
    Roger

    Current rides
    1983 GS 850G
    2003 FJR 1300A
    Gone but not forgotten 1985 Rebel 250, 1991 XT225, 2004 KLR650, 1981 GS850G, 1982 GS1100GL, 2002 DL1000, 2005 KLR650, 2003 KLX400

    Comment


      #3
      Thanks for the info Burque73. The resources page is a good...uh...resource
      I know what the G stands for. I was asking if the G showed up on the side covers in 1980. From what I can tell it wasn't on the 79 side covers. Doesn't really matter, not an important question. I was just curious.

      Bummer about the tank swap. I'll look into it further though and see if it can't be done. Someone's probably tried it!
      Last edited by RustyTank; 09-21-2018, 09:39 AM.
      Ryan

      1979 GS850G - currently undergoing a major overhaul
      1986 GSX-R750 - I'm figuring it out

      Comment


        #4
        The "G" is Suzuki's indication that it is a shaft-driven model. The lack of the G on the side cover only shows that it is a '79 model.

        Suzuki's first shaft-driven bike was the '79 850. It was also the first year for the 850, itself. I think that Suzuki might have figured that it was not necessary to make note that the 850 was a shafty, since it was unique. However, in 1980, they came out with a 1000 shafty. They needed a way to differentiate it from the other 1000s, so they added the "G" on the side cover.

        Along the same thought, it is interesting to note that the shaft-driven "L" models (the ones with the "chopper-esque" look) did not have a G on the side cover, either. Their full designation should have been GS850GL and GS1000GL, but only showed GS850L and GS1000L. It did not matter too much, as your choices for Ls were a bit limited. In any particular size bike, you would have a chain or a shaft, but never both of them in the same size engine.

        .
        sigpic
        mine: 2000 Honda GoldWing GL1500SE and 1980 GS850G'K' "Junior"
        hers: 1982 GS850GL - "Angel" and 1969 Suzuki T250 Scrambler
        #1 son: 1986 Yamaha Venture Royale 1300 and 1982 GS650GL "Rat Bagger"
        #2 son: 1980 GS1000G
        Family Portrait
        Siblings and Spouses
        Mom's first ride
        Want a copy of my valve adjust spreadsheet for your 2-valve per cylinder engine? Send me an e-mail request (not a PM)
        (Click on my username in the upper-left corner for e-mail info.)

        Comment


          #5
          Steve, I sincerely appreciate that breakdown.
          Ryan

          1979 GS850G - currently undergoing a major overhaul
          1986 GSX-R750 - I'm figuring it out

          Comment


            #6
            Not quite the King of GS Trivia here, but I'm working toward that.

            Especially concerning 850s.

            .
            sigpic
            mine: 2000 Honda GoldWing GL1500SE and 1980 GS850G'K' "Junior"
            hers: 1982 GS850GL - "Angel" and 1969 Suzuki T250 Scrambler
            #1 son: 1986 Yamaha Venture Royale 1300 and 1982 GS650GL "Rat Bagger"
            #2 son: 1980 GS1000G
            Family Portrait
            Siblings and Spouses
            Mom's first ride
            Want a copy of my valve adjust spreadsheet for your 2-valve per cylinder engine? Send me an e-mail request (not a PM)
            (Click on my username in the upper-left corner for e-mail info.)

            Comment


              #7
              I think your only straight swap would be an early GS750 tank.
              Regards,
              Jason

              ______________________________________
              1978 Suzuki GS750 EC

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