1980 GS850GLT - Getting her back up to riding condition

[redfenix]

Speaking from experience with that particular model, I would recommend an item for your to-do list. Verify correct function of the petcock valve.

Thanks for the heads-up. I already replaced the vacuum petcock with a standard pingel one a long time ago, so no worries there. I just don't trust the vacuum ones and I'd rather eliminate that variable from my system.

[redfenix]

Progress on carbs and started top-end

Last evening Carb #1 was finished with the dip, so I got it cleaned out and reassembled with new o-rings. The rest of the carbs are cycling through the dip. Since there was so much green, sticky fuel in them I'm leaving the carb bodies in for 6-8 hours each and the bowls/jets for 4 hours.

- Dipped #1 carb body overnight
- Dipped #1 bowl and jets 4 hours
- Checked passages, reassembled #1 carb with new o-rings
- Measured float height (no adjustment needed)

I bought new OEM carb bowl gaskets, but decided to use the existing ones since they're in good shape. I'll just hang on to the new ones.

Since now I'm waiting on the dip process, I started taking apart the top-end.

- Took the intake boots off, cleaned, replaced o-rings, coated in red rubber grease and put them in a ziploc for later
- Took the valve cover off, saved the gasket (I have a "Real Gasket"), cleaned off, put bolts/brackets in ziploc
- Took the crank cover off the side, so I can turn the engine

Next up:
- Continue cleaning and reassembling carbs
- Check tappet shim clearances before tear-down
- Remove camshafts, buckets, head, clean it all up
- Start on the valves

[alke46]

You say you bought a new can of carb dip. Is it Berryman's? If so, I also just purchased a new one and found the strength of the dip to be less than one I bought several years ago. Yeah, I now can dip two carb bodies at a time. Speeds up the process by two days.

Also, most of us leave our parts in the dip for at least 24 hours for complete cleaning.

[redfenix]

You say you bought a new can of carb dip. Is it Berryman's? If so, I also just purchased a new one and found the strength of the dip to be less than one I bought several years ago. Yeah, I now can dip two carb bodies at a time. Speeds up the process by two days.

Also, most of us leave our parts in the dip for at least 24 hours for complete cleaning.

Yeah, it's Berryman's. It's been working pretty well for me so far. I did have to clean out one bowl passage with some small music wire, but that's been it so far.
I've been dipping the carb bodies overnight for about 12 hours each, and then 4 hours for the bowls and jets. Then I check the passages with carb cleaner, and use some very fine music wire to clear out the holes in the jets, being very careful not to force or enlarge the holes. So far so good, I guess I won't know for sure until I get it all done and back together, which will probably be at least a week for the top-end rebuild (still waiting on an OEM head gasket to arrive to the local shop).

Thanks for the reply!

[redfenix]

Carbs 2 & 3 and removing the head

Last evening I continued on the carbs, and then went back to the top-end after that:

Carburetors:
- Carb #2 and #3 finished dip
- Cleaned off #2 and #3 with carb cleaner, sprayed thru passages
- Had to clear out #3's bowl passage with some music wire to get it spraying thru correctly
- Put on new o-rings, used silicone lubricant spray on them and the bowl gasket
- Reassembled carbs #2 and #3
- Put #4 carb body in dip for overnight

Top-End:
- Checked tappet clearances, all exhaust were .005-.006 (all good!), most intake were .004, but #4 intake was .003 (getting a bit too tight) I will check the shims I have in there and swap them out if I have them or order thinner ones
- Locked cam chain tensioner and removed it
- Removed both camshafts (I used the large vice-grip method to hold them as I loosened the blocks)
- Removed all head stud nuts (some were pretty tough to loosen, definitely no top-end work since factory)
- Cleaned up all parts removed
- Removed head and placed aside, head gasket was definitely leaking, top of pistons have a lot of carbon buildup

IMG_1184.jpg


Next up:
- Finish up carb #4
- Re-gang carbs and set aside
- Remove and mark tappet shims, valve buckets
- Measure/find marking on tappet shims to see if I have spares that can be used for the intakes that are getting too tight, or order them
- Clean up head
- Turn head upside down and fill with fuel to see if I had any leaks
- Remove valves
- Lap valves
- Reassemble valves in head

[salty_monk]

Do yourself a favor & replace the clutch springs now.. you will definitely need to if they are on low end of spec.

Also if you don't want to get the APE clutch hub nut, the 1150 one is an upgrade to the other models (it's a different socket size & a different material).

[redfenix]

Do yourself a favor & replace the clutch springs now.. you will definitely need to if they are on low end of spec.

Also if you don't want to get the APE clutch hub nut, the 1150 one is an upgrade to the other models (it's a different socket size & a different material).

That's good advice, thanks. I think I'll at least wait until I get the engine back on the bike, as I think can do this just as easily with it on the frame. But next time I order parts, I'll make sure to add the springs to the order, and replacing the springs will be at the top of list of things to do after the first couple of rides.

For the clutch hub nut, do you really think I should replace it if it's in there 100% solid right now?

Edit: After looking a bit closer, I guess I'll have to remove the exhaust to get to the clutch cover? If that's the case, maybe I'll go ahead and order those springs now and get them in before I put the exhaust back on.

[redfenix]

Big Update: Lots of work over the last week

Sorry it's been a while since I posted. Had a lot going on over the last week.


Anyway, I've made a lot of progress in the last week, but almost 75% of it has been just a lot of cleanup. I'll post the list below and then comment on the high points below that:


Completed:
- Cleaned out #4 carb and reassembled
- Re-ganged carbs and set aside
- Removed valves and springs
- Cleaned up head completely
- Cleaned up jugs completely
- Spent 3 evenings on getting base gasket removed from bottom of jugs. (whew!)
- Brought head and jugs to machine shop to get head gasket surface skimmed, picked up 2 days later
- Tried installing vesra valve seals, too cheap and broke on installation
- Ordered viton valve seals (from ebay, as per advice on the forum)
- Lapped valves
- Picked up head gasket from local dealer
- Measured piston ring end gap to ensure spec. All good there.
- Removed old piston rings
- Cleaned carbon off of pistons


Carbs are all ready to go. No big trouble there.


The base gasket (thankfully) came off completely with the jugs when I removed them. Cleaning off the 40 year old base gasket was the most difficult gasket removal I have ever done, and I've been wrenching cars since I was a kid. The only way I was able to get it off was a combination of brake cleaner, a carbide scraper tool, razor blade, and a yellow 3M Roloc Bristle disc on an air die grinder. After I finally got it off, I did go over the surface with some 320 grit aluminum oxide sandpaper. I was very careful to clean all of this off the surfaces and surrounding area.


I measured the head gasket area with a precision steel ruler and feeler gauges and found more gaps than I liked (most in the .003-.004" range), and since I'll be using a multi-layer steel gasket, which is less forgiving than the original, I opted to bring both the head and jugs to a machine shop to get both mating surfaces completely flat. The head had almost a mirror finish after it was done.

IMG_1224.jpg

Anyway, I also decided not to remove the pistons from the rods, because the service manual says you have to replace the circlips when you do. So I just kept them in place and stuffed towels around them while I cleaned them off.

Up next:
- Hone cylinders
- Add new piston rings
- Reassemble valves in head
- Put jugs on crankcase (with oem gasket and generous hylomar)
- Put head on jugs (with oem mls head gasket and very thin coat of hylomar)
- Put valve buckets, shims, camshafts back on
- Put cam chain tensioner back on
- Check tappet valve clearances now

[redfenix]

Progress stuck on cylinders #1 and #4

Well guys, I messed up big-time and got my #1 and #4 pistons jammed in their cylinders. I'm at a standstill here and not sure what to do.
I'm pretty upset with myself as things were going along swimmingly until I decided to try to use some force where I shouldn't have. Looks like this will be an expensive lesson for me.

More details on the thread here: https://www.thegsresources.com/_foru...d-on-reinstall

[redfenix]

Pistons unstuck, parts ordered

I got the pistons unstuck from the cylinder block last night and there are minor scratches on the side of the pistons and in the cylinder sleeves. Nothing that some filing and honing can't solve though. I got lucky!

So I ordered another set of piston rings and base gasket, along with other parts (some tappet shims, clutch springs, other gaskets/seals I needed), and I should get the parts in a week or so (hopefully!)

In the meantime, I've got some more cleaning to do on the frame and wheels, I've got new tires to put on, and an airbox to clean and re-seal.

[redfenix]

Front Wheel + Brakes

I ordered another set of OEM parts to get the engine together, but I expect it will take over a week to get here (with the holiday and all), so I've turned my attention to the rest of the bike and what needs to be looked over and done.

Monday, I tackled the bike head on and removed the front calipers and front wheel. After lots of cleaning, I then got out my spoons and wrestled with a very old tire that did not want to let go. The rim made it through with minimal scratches, I'm happy to say. After that, I continued to take disassemble one of the calipers and inspected the rest of the brake system. I've never had any trouble with the brakes on this bike, however, I know the fluid hasn't been changed like it should have. So I made the decision to replace all the brake lines and rebuild both master cylinders and all the calipers. After scouring the forums here, I went with an Earl's setup, and I'll be replacing the brake switch wiring with a couple of hydraulic banjo bolt switches.

Now I 'm waiting on even more parts.

At least I have tires to put on the wheels while I wait.
In addition, I got some wiring and components in order to make a bench starter system. More on that later, but the plan is to test the cylinder compression of the engine while it's on the bench before reinstalling it into the frame.

[redfenix]

Back wheel, brake, fender

While waiting for more parts for the engine, I tidied up, organized more parts in ziploc bags, and got a few other things done:

- Mounted tire on front wheel, temporarily mounted front wheel on bike so I can work on back
- Removed back wheel and brake
- Cleaned back wheel, removed old tire
- Cleaned back brake assembly, put in ziploc bag
- Removed back fender and cleaned
- Rewired brake light, license plate light, turn signals
- Reassembled rear fender

The rear wheel area was the last part of the bike I hadn't deep cleaned yet and boy was it dirty. Layers of oil, grit and grime inside the fender and on the wheel. Engine degreaser, brake cleaner, scotch brite pads, shop towels, small brass brushes and the trusty old toothbrush were the best tools to get it all. Whew! My old jeans were so grimy I had to change them before reassembling because I was getting everything dirty just by placing it on my lap!

In other news, I've decided to start rewiring the bike from back to front. I've worked on this wire harness piecemeal several times and I figure it's just time to replace it all. I'm very comfortable with this kind of work, so I don't anticipate problems here. I'm being careful to use matching colored wires when possible and marking the ends of each wire with colored electrical tape that matches the wiring diagram (e.g. a piece of black tape and white tape next to each other for the common wire, etc.)

Also, this is the first time I've changed my own tires, and that front tire was really old so I struggled a bit, but I'm developing my own practices with the spoons and getting the beads broken, so I'm learning a lot there.

[neo]

I have broken my carburetor of the gs 850gl 32mm, and I could not find it, someone knows where I can get it or if I can replace it with some other brand, thanks

[redfenix]

I have broken my carburetor of the gs 850gl 32mm, and I could not find it, someone knows where I can get it or if I can replace it with some other brand, thanks

Hi neo, I think you'll want to make this a new post. Not many people will see it here. Also, make sure to include the year of your 850, it matters.

[redfenix]

Progress on wheels, tires, electrical

I spent a couple more hours Monday evening on the bike:

- Mounted new back tire
- Balanced back and front tire, (6 weights on back, 2 weights on front)
- Tested tail light wiring (just used alligator wires and the battery from the bike)
- Re-mounted back wheel
- Took off left-side electrical panel for mounting new fusebox

IMG_1377.jpg
Nice and clean!

I had some difficulty with getting the rear tire to inflate. I ended up wrapping a ratchet strap around the thing and tightening it down to make it seal against the inner part of the wheel. This allowed me to air it up and get the beads to pop into place.

That's about it. I'm getting some parts in now and should have plenty to do over the next few days!