'79 GS850 - One Year Ownership & Maintenance Summary

[emlivings]

Picked up this runner for $1,000 about a year ago and put 6,000 miles on it. Here's what I've done to get it properly sorted:

Engine/Fuel:

• Cleaned carbs, replaced all seals and gaskets
• Electronic ignition conversion (ditched points)
• Valve cover gasket (took a few tries to get it right)
• Oil filter and oil changes
• Complete clutch refresh - new plates and springs

Brakes (complete overhaul):

• Rebuilt both front and rear calipers
• Rebuilt both master cylinders
• Braided steel lines front and rear (replaced OEM rubber)
• New rear rotor
• Bled entire system

Suspension:

• Front fork seals with new oil and dust seals

Total parts investment: ~$828 All-in cost: $1,828
Miles: bought at 370000. currently at 43,000 miles and climbing.

Planning valve clearance check next as a winter project.

Bike runs great and I'm putting real miles on it - not a garage queen but a reliable daily rider. Anyone else doing similar mileage on their GS? What maintenance items should I be watching for next?

How'd I do on cost? I am happy to be on this learning journey yet sometimes I do want to throw a wrench when I'm learning these things from scratch!

Any way to get the money back on the bike if i ever decide to sell it?

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[rphillips]

I'd say an immediate valve clearance check is way past due, should have been done while valve cover was off. A tight valve can easily go unnoticed and quickly become very expensive. Looks really good but wondering if any scrapes or scratches around the instruments area, headlight bucket appears to have been replaced and headlight damage, many times, causes other bumps and bruises in that area... My opinion you're pretty much right in the price range though bikes sell for different prices in different places...

 

[emlivings]

Nice looking bike! I keep an eye on the charging system too, but you probably already are.

Haha I just looked at these today. pretty inexpensive to be honest

 

[emlivings]

I'd say an immediate valve clearance check is way past due, should have been done while valve cover was off. A tight valve can easily go unnoticed and quickly become very expensive. Looks really good but wondering if any scrapes or scratches around the instruments area, headlight bucket appears to have been replaced and headlight damage, many times, causes other bumps and bruises in that area... My opinion you're pretty much right in the price range though bikes sell for different prices in different places...

No damage around the instruments area. I had the windjammer on it when I bought it. I used a 1983 suzuki gs550 headlight bucket and wired it in. I like the chrome look of it seemed to match other parts of the bike pretty well. I know I am neglecting the valve shims a bit but i think i will do the full overhaul this winter (hopefully) using the shim club on this forum to help me out with the sizes that I need.