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My third Suzuki: 1979 GS850G

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    My third Suzuki: 1979 GS850G

    (And also my third motorcycle. I can't seem to stay away from these old 'zooks!)

    Hi all. I've been scarce for the last couple of years around here, mostly because motorcycling took a back seat (if you'll pardon the expression) to a few of my other hobbies and my trusty L model continued to be, well, trustworthy. I ride it, feed it some gas and oil every so often, and it just keeps running without any drama whatsoever. I've come to refer to her as "old beastie." I did finally get her a new seat cover last year, however.

    But for some time now, I've had this hankering for something slightly nicer. Don't get me wrong, the 1980 L model fits me like an old glove... a dirty, somewhat rusted, battle-hardened old glove... and it's always been an absolute blast to ride, even if the suspension is about 30 years overdue for an update. I had been watching the local Craigslist for months to see whether anything caught my eye and was starting to become dismayed at the stunning lack of old Suzukis popping up for sale. I thought maybe the good ones had all finally been scooped up by collectors in Japan. Or maybe all the sellers wizened up and realized that these things are actually worth some decent coin when you don't cut them up and turn them into hardtail bobbers with ape-hanger handlebars and skateboard seats.

    I needn't have worried. On my recent trek through the CL listings last week, I found two decent deals: the one I bought and this one that I mentioned over on the marketplace forum: https://www.thegsresources.com/_foru...-NE-of-Detroit Now, there are those who will argue that a 1981 GS1000G with lower miles and a lower price is a better deal and they're not wrong. But I decided on the 850G because I was more sure of the condition given the photos and the great communication with the seller. And it came with a crap-load of spare parts that are probably worth the additional cost alone. And was only a half-hour away.

    Without further ado, this is what found its way into the stable Saturday evening:





    The guy I bought it from had only owned it for a couple years (2 or 3?). He bought from another guy who did a restoration on it. I think I know the name of the guy who restored it, and I'm sure he's a member of the forums but I don't know his screen name here. Anyway, the restoration was pretty thorough. Before it made its way to me, it looks to have had (at least):

    * aftermarket electronic ignition upgrade!
    * new head (old head had burned exhaust valves on 1 and 4)
    * new front and rear suspension (Hagon shocks!)
    * new airbox (old one had a fire in it, judging by the old airbox boots)
    * newish tires, Avon RoadRiders if I recall
    * drilled and machined brake rotors
    * a bunch of cleaning
    * the tank _might_ have been clear-coated
    * new rubber bits all over
    * new cables
    * new brake lines
    * new random bits here and there, like the kickstarter lever

    So we're off to a good start on this one! I did have to trailer it home because the battery was toast and the gas was 1.5 years old. I did manage to get it to idle on the old gas but it wasn't particularly happy about it. I was eager to give it a test ride so I cleaned the carbs, topped off the oil, and threw in a good battery. I went down to the corner gas station to get 5 gallons of fresh gas. Trying to dispose of old gas properly is a pain in the butt where I'm at so I decided to see if I could dilute the badness out of old gas by topping up the tank with new gas. It worked well enough for a test ride. It was no slouch but I'm sure it will wake up some once it's back on good gas.

    First impressions:

    * Man, this thing handles _well_. Cornering and swerving is just nothing short of excellent compared to my tired old GL and the suspension is (obviously) way way way better. Big bumps and potholes don't even matter.

    * The sound of the engines and pipes on the G models is GLORIOUS. Not loud at all, just the right amount of bass to make it sound... I don't know... maybe "woody" is the right word? My GL sounds completely flat and uninspiring by comparison.

    * The seat height is fine. This is one of the things I was worried about. I had an '81 750E that was a marvelous machine, but top-heavy and too high for me. I'm not a short guy but I don't like being on my tip-toes at stop lights either. The seat on the G is taller but not as tall as the 750E. Good deal.

    * The gas gauge is completely bonkers, it wanders back and forth between 1/4 and 3/4 even though the tank was fully topped up. Could be something to do with the electronics but also likely a bad fuel sender. I don't think I'm going to bother fixing it, I'll just use the trip meter and try to remember that now I have a petcock with a reserve setting.

    So for sure it's a great bike and I'm 90% certain at this point that it's a keeper. There are some things that need to be addressed but I'm going to talk about them in separate posts as this one is getting quite long and they deserve deeper consideration. Even though I've been here for a few years and know quite a lot about these machines, I'll have some questions for the experts coming up so stay tuned!
    Charles
    --
    1979 Suzuki GS850G

    Read BassCliff's GSR Greeting and Mega-Welcome!

    #2
    Some nice colors in the headers!
    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


      #3
      That's a good looking bike! I saw both of those during my CL surfing. Glad to see another GS enthusiast bought it and will take care of it.

      Whereabouts are you in SE Michigan?
      - 1983 GS850L ~ 30,000 miles and going up - Finally ready for a proper road trip!
      - 1977 GS750B - Sold but not forgotten

      Comment


        #4
        re: old gas, cars eat that stuff right up, and you rarely are putting much in there so.....
        1983 GS 1100 ESD

        Comment


          #5
          Congratulations, the bike looks to be in great condition and what a score on all the previous work done to it. I wouldn't be surprise if you find an upgraded Reg/Rec and stator on her as well. Great bike. My 1st GS was the 79' 850. I upgraded to the 1000G but it was never as smooth as the 850.
          Rob
          1983 1100ES, 98' ST1100, 02' DR-Z400E and a few other 'bits and pieces'
          Are you on the GSR Google Earth Map yet? http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...d.php?t=170533

          Comment


            #6
            Beautiful bike! Glad to see you back at the GSR too.

            1983 GS750ED-Horsetraded for the Ironhead
            1981 HD XLH

            Drew's 850 L Restoration

            Drew's 83 750E Project

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by 93Bandit View Post
              That's a good looking bike! I saw both of those during my CL surfing. Glad to see another GS enthusiast bought it and will take care of it.

              Whereabouts are you in SE Michigan?
              Yep, it will be well cared for and well ridden. I'm in Ypsi. If you ever come out this way, make it a Tuesday evening, that's when all the bikes show up to hang out downtown. I've met a couple of GSR forum members already this way.
              Charles
              --
              1979 Suzuki GS850G

              Read BassCliff's GSR Greeting and Mega-Welcome!

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by azr View Post
                Congratulations, the bike looks to be in great condition and what a score on all the previous work done to it. I wouldn't be surprise if you find an upgraded Reg/Rec and stator on her as well. Great bike. My 1st GS was the 79' 850. I upgraded to the 1000G but it was never as smooth as the 850.
                Surprisingly enough, it's rockin' the factory R/R. And just as surprising, it actually still works. But I'm not going to chance it, one of the items on my todo list is to swap it out for a new SH775 that I already have kicking around the parts bin.

                I wouldn't mind a 1000G at some point, I know a number of shafty enthusiasts here seem prefer them.
                Charles
                --
                1979 Suzuki GS850G

                Read BassCliff's GSR Greeting and Mega-Welcome!

                Comment


                  #9
                  Things I've fixed so far:

                  * new side cover grommets
                  * broken tach cable (the forked bit came uncrimped from the cable, I re-crimped it. It's working for now but if it doesn't hold, I have two extra cables...)

                  So I've been riding the bike to work and there are two things that are starting to bug me.

                  1. Something in the rear-end of the bike is resonating with the engine at certain RPMs and it's driving me bananas. I can hear it over the engine and exhuast. Sounds like it could be plastic. I thought it might be the side covers since they jiggle a fair amount but I shimmed them up with creative engineering (read: zip ties) and the noise is still there. Maybe not quite as bad. It's not the license plate. The tailcone (for lack of a better word) seems solid and I wrapped up the tool pouch inside with a towel. My next guess is maybe the plastic wheel fender is rubbing some of the frame. I'm not super concerned about it, just amused at how hard it is to track down. I'll find it eventually.

                  2. I really don't prefer the VM carbs. The dual cables and slides make the low-end of the throttle feel heavy and imprecise, maybe even a wee bit sticky. Which is problematic when trying to match the engine speed to the road speed for smooth shifting, particularly on downshifts. I don't think the large grips on these handlebars are helping. I've read a bunch of posts and consensus around here seems to be that the VM carbs are great for track and spirited riding while the CV carbs are better suited for average street usage. Based on my limited experience so far, I tend to concur.

                  I'm strongly considering swapping the carbs on my GL with those on the L. As far as I'm aware, the following things will have to be moved over:

                  * carbs (obviously)
                  * head
                  * choke cable
                  * throttle cable
                  * right switchgear and throttle tube

                  I haven't priced out all of the gaskets and seals and crap but I don't think it will be overly cost-prohibitive. I just did the top-end on the GL a couple of years ago to address a head gasket leak so I'm familiar with the process.

                  Anyone want to try to talk me out of it? I've seen members here spend far more time and money on more trivial improvements so don't let that be your argument. :P But if there's some reason this can't work or is not at all recommended, let me know before I start buying parts...
                  Charles
                  --
                  1979 Suzuki GS850G

                  Read BassCliff's GSR Greeting and Mega-Welcome!

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Great looking bike. Congratulations and enjoy.
                    sigpic
                    When consulting the magic 8 ball for advice, one must first ask it "will your answers be accurate?"

                    Glen
                    -85 1150 es - Plus size supermodel.
                    -Rusty old scooter.
                    Other things I like to photograph.....instagram.com/gs_junkie
                    https://www.instagram.com/glen_brenner/
                    https://www.flickr.com/photos/152267...7713345317771/

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by eil View Post
                      I'm strongly considering swapping the carbs on my GL with those on the L. As far as I'm aware, the following things will have to be moved over:

                      * carbs (obviously)
                      * head
                      * choke cable
                      * throttle cable
                      * right switchgear and throttle tube

                      I haven't priced out all of the gaskets and seals and crap but I don't think it will be overly cost-prohibitive. I just did the top-end on the GL a couple of years ago to address a head gasket leak so I'm familiar with the process.

                      Anyone want to try to talk me out of it? I've seen members here spend far more time and money on more trivial improvements so don't let that be your argument. :P But if there's some reason this can't work or is not at all recommended, let me know before I start buying parts...
                      Absolutely no reason for it not to work fine - just like the factory did, after all.
                      I liked the characteristics of the VMs and at first I didn't particularly like the CV carbs, as they seemed to be fractionally wooly in comparison. However, that impression soon got lost as the CVs made up for it in other ways.
                      ---- Dave
                      79 GS850N - Might be a trike soon.
                      80 GS850T Single HIF38 S.U. SH775, Tow bar, Pantera II. Gnarly workhorse & daily driver.
                      79 XS650SE - Pragmatic Ratter - goes better than a manky old twin should.
                      92 XJ900F - Fairly Stock, for now.

                      Only a dog knows why a motorcyclist sticks his head out of a car window

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Well, I did some research and if I Do It Right and buy every gasket and o-ring, the cost of the carb swap comes to right around $300, putting it in the cost-prohibitive category. If I pare it down to just the bare minimums (base gaskets, head gaskets, copper washers, exhaust gaskets), I'm still around $155 but with the moderatre risk that I'll have to stop mid-way to replace some disfigured o-ring or ripped gasket that I don't already happen to have in my parts hoard.

                        So, I'm starting to think, gee, maybe the VM carbs aren't all that bad and I think I've been getting used to them over the past week. The very bottom end of the throttle range is still annoying and imprecise but maybe new OEM grips would help. On the theory that being able to wrap two of my fingers around the throttle tube while the other two squeeze the front brake would give me more control.

                        I've got to make up my mind fairly soon since I don't want to hang onto the GL much longer, even though parting with it will be a little tough. First bike and all.
                        Charles
                        --
                        1979 Suzuki GS850G

                        Read BassCliff's GSR Greeting and Mega-Welcome!

                        Comment


                          #13
                          In my opinion, I'd leave the VM carbs on the bike and enjoy it how it is. I say this however without any experience on a VM carb bike, so take that with a grain of salt.

                          Maybe my opinion will change when I get my 750 running. Who knows.
                          - 1983 GS850L ~ 30,000 miles and going up - Finally ready for a proper road trip!
                          - 1977 GS750B - Sold but not forgotten

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