78 GS750E in Indiana

[oldrookie]

also got to go by Cycle-Recycle while I was over there. I picked up some mirrors for my fairing and switched out the plugs for the right kind. Decided to get some new throttle cables while I was at it.

The guy who runs that has been there, I think, for about 30 years. Has more than one warehouse and he knows just about everything about every metric bike and every part. He is amazing.

It all went back together pretty well. When I put the rear wheel back on I stripped the axle bolt and went to my local mc junk yard and found one that works. One of these days I'll get a Suzuki part and change it out.

Rob, at Cycle-Recycle II, always gets interested in telling me about the GR650 he used to have when I stop in for parts. Apparently had a "built KZ1000" at the same time, but almost always rode the GR. Friends gave him a lot of grief about it, but he like the old GR better.

Anyway--- We have motorcycle scrapyard near us? Where?

 

[wedoo2]

I can never remember the guy's name, but I like him. I mentioned something about a Windjammer fairing and he starts asking about Windjammer 1, 2, 3s and shows me the mount for it up on the ceiling that would fit my 750. Like a hippie / biker computer. It's almost intimidating. Maybe hippie is going too far.

You're not going to ride today are you? I had to go to the store for grocery shopping and did it before the crowds formed today and I froze my can off in the car.

Any idea why my shifter won't move?

 

[oldrookie]

Sorry, didn't see your question until now. Very much a newbie wrench, so not a lot of advice re: shifter issue.

Seems to me that the clutch cable issue and the adjuster (not exactly sure what you mean--the part on the clutch lever that adjusts the cable pull maybe?) are related to the lack of shifting. Something sure doesn't sound right there and I know from experience that the clutch adjustment procedure can be a bit tricky to set properly.

 

[wedoo2]

Well, going to bring my project up to date here. I work from home running a physician billing service and I picked up a couple of new clients in December. This has put my motorcycle time on the back burner. Then when I run into a problem I tend to procrastinate.

I had an issue with the shifter locking up. It turns out that I had to remove the clutch basket and put this back into place.

Got that fixed after removing the basket and pulling out the shifter shaft and re-aligning the piece with the gearing behind the basket. Easy to do once you know how. Thanks to the experts here I got that done.

Now, I have some new springs from Boulevard and am ready to put the clutch back together, get the case back on and refill the oil.

While I was in there, I was able to check the plates and all of them looked good. They all measured out fine, so hopefully the clutch will be okay. I am still at loss as to why I can't get the cable to fit right and will tackle that next week.

I also had my tank dent repaired at a local shop. They did a great job of fixing the large dent and some smaller ones as well. Primed it for me too. The tank is very smooth and the whole thing cost me $60.00.

I got paint for it and will be painting today. Gonna use a gun I picked up at a garage sale a while back. I need to paint a file cabinet too, so here goes. I got SprayMax 2K gloss for the finish.

Hard to see in the pic, but I got some shiny bling from Boulevard for the caps on the air filter box.

Still to do:

Clean up this mess.

The starter is not yet hooked up right. The front brake light is still MIA. But this will clean up nice and tidy and I'll figure out the electrical issues.

Then I need to figure out where all of the tubing from the back of the carbs go. I did not take a picture of that when I was taking them off and can't find a good picture / diagram of where things go. If someone does, let me know.

But I did have time to fix up an old toy for a friend that had a baby. Bear fan, of course.

Gumby, or ferocious Bear?

 

[chuck hahn]

The vent tubes go up over the sides of the airbox..right alongside the frame. ( Actually right between the top of the airbox and the frame ) Picture throwing a towel over your shoulder. Then they run down the backside of the box and get stuck between the rear of the tranny and the swingarm. The 4 bowl drain hoses run the same place..down under the airbox along the top of the tranny and then between the tranny and swingarm..Let them hang down about flush with the bottom of the oil pan and then trim them to length.

 

[wedoo2]

Thanks Chuck. Looks like three vents and the fuel line, correct?

Painted the tank today. Will put on the vinyl carbon fiber tomorrow and apply the Spray Max. Paint looks ok, no bad spots or runs after four coats. I did not like the suction type gun. Threw it away.

 

[chuck hahn]

NO...2 vents. Carb 3 nipple goes to the vacuum port on the petcock to supply it the vacuum it needs to operate. If you went with a pingle ON/OFF setup you will put a rubber cap over numer 3 or youll have a seriuos vacuum problem on that cylinder.

 

[wedoo2]

Thanks again Chuck. When are you coming to Indiana? All this ticky-tacky stuff wears me out. The bike is about 95% ready but the little stuff I am not familiar with takes me forever.

BTW Nathaniel Greene was a true patriot and a very unsung hero of the American Revolution. Went from buck private to Major General. Not bad. My favorite quote:
"Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful".

Sometimes describes my motorcycle resto skills.

 

[wedoo2]

I painted my tank, but when I went to apply the carbon fiber vinyl I ended up lifting some paint and I had to sand it all down. I was reading another project post from Bomber and just decided to change the color. Not to his blue, but a silver and some pin stripping I can manipulate better. Will go to the paint shop tomorrow and see what I can find.

On the plus side I put in the clutch cable and put the side cases back on. Hopefully I'll get along enough this week to start her back up.

 

[wedoo2]

I painted the tank and plastic pieces. I need to get a shout out to 66 Auto Color in Joplin, MO. They mixed me up a great SprayMax metallic silver that I think looks great. Shipped it out in just a couple of days. If you are thinking of painting with SprayMax, call them. I love SprayMax. I haven't put on the clear yet. I bought some red pin stripes for it but I think that they clash with the GS750 side panel emblem. I'm going to the paint store Monday to see if they have something that matches the color of that.

I mocked things up to see what I thought. What say you?

Got myself a real Suzuki GS goin here.

 

[Ledyard]

I like the clean, classic color palette. Looking good!

 

[wedoo2]

Almost Done

Almost Done

I have done a lot on the bike since my last post. Had some issues with the electrical that I had to sort through, lights, turn signal and starter. Still have not got the electric starter going, but it kicks over just fine. Finished the painting and pin stripping and that looks pretty good. Still needs a good buffing but I might take it to a pro to do that .

I still have a couple of things to work out:

1. As I said the electric starter does not work. I have had the switch off and I think it is working fine. It may be a ground problem but I would think that would show itself in other electrical problems and everything else seems to work fine. So I have narrowed things down to the relay. I tried another used one and that did not fix it so I guess I'll have to buy a new one. I even took the old one to the dealer but they were clueless.

2. The top end is making a lot of noise so I need to get the valves adjusted and get the carbs synced, but it does run nice.

3. I cannot get the clutch to adjust. I'm out as far as it will go on the handlebar, and top of the cover adjustments It as if the cable is too long. Clunks into gear, no funny. Is there an adjustment behind the cover side? I have had the clutch apart and the rings are good and it has new OEM springs and new cable. Help!

4. The seat is off kilter and does not want to shut right so that needs some work. Otherwise I have a good running, (though not actually moving) GS750

I have an old Shoei faring on it for now, which is kind of era true, but they are weird. I will keep it on there until it warms us though. I have a Vetter Rooster that I am sanding down to paint to match. I had one back in the day with a radio, but I want to find some type of deal that will let me plug in the iphone and output through the speakers. If anyone has an idea let me know. I will post something in the Electrical section.

So here it is. Been a fun winter working on it. Thanks for the help I've gotten here.