81 650E Refurb

[MAJikMARCer]

Been doing minor things with the bike since I bought it last spring, but with the weather getting colder...and the fact that I was having trouble getting it to start, I decided to get to work on some of the long over due maintenance.

Started the valve adjustment. I broke a bolt. Ugh. Luckily a good 1/2 inch of the bolt is exposed. I've been putting off trying to remove it. I'm hoping some penetrating oil and vice grips will be enough. I've already purchased the bolt kit from Z1.

Checking the gaps was easier than expected, though the shim tool was a pain to use. It takes patients and practice. Needed 3 shims. Still waiting for them and the gaskets.

So while waiting for parts I decided to tackle a couple small appearance projects.

When I had worked on my R/R project I noticed how worn out the rubber grommets were on the battery box, as well as the bolts. So I ordered replacements of those. While doing that I realized I should clean up the battery box. It had quite a bit of rust due to a past acid leak (I think). The wire wheel cleaned it up pretty good and I was thinking about paint, but I decided to call a local powder coater instead.

I'm sure I could have manage the paint by myself and probably a bit cheaper, but I would fail as a graffiti tagger, so I decided to spend the money. I took in the air box cover too as it was a bit worn and rusty in a few places.

He's going to media blast and powder coat the two pieces for $55. Not bad in my opinion. The air cover was probably overkill, but I like the idea of a durable coating on the battery box. I'll post pictures when I get them back.

I also started doing a little polishing on the case covers. I'm not going for a mirror finish like some of you guys, but I was able to clean up one, so far, pretty well. (The picture below doesn't do it justice) I kinda want a little patina left on the parts. (definitely will have to get new labels) My engine isn't clean enough.

After the valve adjustment, it'll be the carbs. Nothing too crazy yet, but I have lots of time left in the off season and I know there are other important maintenance projects to do, as well as other small clean up projects. I'll keep documenting here as I progress.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

Got the new valve shims in today. Went smoothly. New gasket on as well. I got replacement valve cover caps too. Tried to find them used but with no luck. Glad I bought new ones, the chrome is clean and scratch free. I also got some of the new Z1 bolts in place.

Not all the bolts are tightened down. I need to get a hex driver socket still. I thought the little L wrench would work, but it would have taken forever up under the frame.

I also replaced the leaking seals around the tach gear. While I was at it I hit the polishing wheel. It was looking pretty poor before I got a hold of it.

Lastly I sanded and prepped my frame around the battery box for paint. The newly powder coated box is ready but I can't pick it up until Monday. The frame had taken quite a bit of acid and thus was rusty. It cleaned up nicely though.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Paint: I'll need to blend the edges a bit. This is just temporary. I hope to powder coat the frame next year.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

Got the powder coated parts back at lunch. They look great! I'll definitely be working with this guy again. He's starting to get into ceramic coating too. My pipes are good enough I don't need that, but it's nice to have that resource local if needed. I have lots of ideas in my head about what's going to be coated next. This could get as bad if not worse than the polishing.

I can't wait to get them on the bike. I'll get some pictures this evening.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

Here are the pictures. Sorry for the bad focus. Must have had the camera set wrong.

 

[GS650E_81]

Great post! Subbed.

How hard was the valve cover gasket replacement? Mine seems to be leaking pretty bad, I need to replace it this winter. Where did you buy it from?

 

[GS650E_81]

I am having some trouble removing the rear fender skirt. I have the license plate mounted on the left shock and want to remove the rear skirt. But, the rear light is mounted to it.

Have you dabbled with removing any of the rear components?

 

[MAJikMARCer]

Great post! Subbed.

How hard was the valve cover gasket replacement? Mine seems to be leaking pretty bad, I need to replace it this winter. Where did you buy it from?

The hardest part is getting the old gasket material off. I used Permatex Low-VOC Gasket Remover. No particular reason for that brand, it's just what they had at the store.

I had to let it sit over night and I still had little bits clinging. It did do a good job on the liquid gasket the previous over had used.

This is actually my second gasket. I changed mine in the summer because of the same leak you are dealing with. I foolishly didn't adjust the valves while I was in there. I highly recommend doing it at the same time.

This time I put just a little bit of liquid gasket (Permatex Blue) on the 'nose' of the head where the leaking has been problematic. Not sure if it'll help or not and I'll probably have to replace the gasket again when I open it next time, but hopefully it'll be awhile before I have to do that.

I bought my gasket from my local Suzuki dealer. As others have suggested Boulevard is great. Their prices are the lowest I've seen online. The only reason I deal locally is the shipping costs. But it's pretty close. Sometimes Boulevard even has the parts cheaper with shipping so I always check both.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

I am having some trouble removing the rear fender skirt. I have the license plate mounted on the left shock and want to remove the rear skirt. But, the rear light is mounted to it.

Have you dabbled with removing any of the rear components?

Not yet. I will at some point as I want to hit them with some bumper paint to bring them back from the oxidized gray look.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

Put the battery on the charger this morning to see if I could get the bike to fire up over lunch. Pffft! I think I have to face the fact that I have a dead battery. I was looking at the SHORAI LFX14L2-BS12 this morning. Lithium-Iron but also $160! That's not cheap, but I'm guessing a traditional lead-acid battery is still going to be at least 50% of that price.

Pro/Con on lead-acid vs Lithium?

 

[GS650E_81]

I have never adjusted the valves on anything before, lol. If I had the shims I may give it a go. Any suggestions?

The hardest part is getting the old gasket material off. I used Permatex Low-VOC Gasket Remover. No particular reason for that brand, it's just what they had at the store.

I had to let it sit over night and I still had little bits clinging. It did do a good job on the liquid gasket the previous over had used.

This is actually my second gasket. I changed mine in the summer because of the same leak you are dealing with. I foolishly didn't adjust the valves while I was in there. I highly recommend doing it at the same time.

This time I put just a little bit of liquid gasket (Permatex Blue) on the 'nose' of the head where the leaking has been problematic. Not sure if it'll help or not and I'll probably have to replace the gasket again when I open it next time, but hopefully it'll be awhile before I have to do that.

I bought my gasket from my local Suzuki dealer. As others have suggested Boulevard is great. Their prices are the lowest I've seen online. The only reason I deal locally is the shipping costs. But it's pretty close. Sometimes Boulevard even has the parts cheaper with shipping so I always check both.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

I have never adjusted the valves on anything before, lol. If I had the shims I may give it a go. Any suggestions?

Email Steve and get his shim spreadsheet. It helps you figure out which shims you need.

You'll also need a digital caliper, Metric feeler gauges, and a shim tool. Then just follow the instructions in the manual. It's not too difficult. You can get the manual from BikeCliff if you don't already have it.

You have to take each shim out to measure it. Enter the data in Steve's spreadsheet and put it back. Order the shims you need (Z1 was the cheapest I saw) and then replace them when they arrive.

It can't be done in one session, unless you have a box of various shims ready.

 

[BigD_83]

And don't forget about the shim club here. You can trade for/donate funds to the club to get the shims you need.

 

[GS650E_81]

Thanks guys!

 

[SVSooke]

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/images/gs850valve_adjust.pdf
http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/images/valve_tool_zip_tie.pdf
Haven't done a shim valve adjust in 30 years till I did it this year on my 78 1000.These helped get over the fear.Not as bad as my mind made it out to be.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

May get a new bike next year

May get a new bike next year

It's looking more and more like the wife is going to be good with me getting a new bike next year. That means this bike may get more project time. We'll see. With 35K miles I'm sure she needs more of a tear down than I'm doing right now.

The plan, thus far, has been to get it running safe again for Spring. Taking care of basics like the carbs and brakes. I really miss riding. As cold as it was this weekend, I found myself standing in the garage just staring at the bike longingly. (I know I have it bad) The wifes bike was right there too, but meh, it just doesn't do the same for me.

I've already decided that the 650E is going to be a long term project bike. I was just going to keep it rolling as much as possible. With a new bike on the horizon, do you think I should go ahead and dig in further?

The back of my mind is saying, "don't count your chickens before they are hatched". In other words, don't dig in too deep until you have the second bike.

What do you all think? It's not like there are not plenty of existing projects that can be done and still have it rideable in the Spring.

Oh and for the new bike, I'm eyeing a VStrom 650 or a Honda NC700X. Both bikes feel really good under me. I've not had the opportunity to ride either though.

 

[BigD_83]

Here are the pictures. Sorry for the bad focus. Must have had the camera set wrong.

Wow. Those look great! I wish I had access to relatively inexpensive powder coating here. It, like everything else in this city, will cost a small fortune.

 

[MAJikMARCer]

Wow. Those look great! I wish I had access to relatively inexpensive powder coating here. It, like everything else in this city, will cost a small fortune.

These cost me about $60 total. It would have been cheaper to rattle can them, but I'm glad I did this.

 

[BigD_83]

The nice thing about powder coat, in general, is that it is normally priced on a per run basis rather than per piece, or at least that is what I have seen in the US. The guys in the Lakes area seem to get better pricing than other areas (CA is brutal), probably due to greater demand/more providers.

I'll have to look in our shop at work to see if the guys have the ability to powder coat. At worst, I can always use the spray booth and lights to paint when it comes time for it

 

[MAJikMARCer]

The nice thing about powder coat, in general, is that it is normally priced on a per run basis rather than per piece, or at least that is what I have seen in the US. The guys in the Lakes area seem to get better pricing than other areas (CA is brutal), probably due to greater demand/more providers.

I'll have to look in our shop at work to see if the guys have the ability to powder coat. At worst, I can always use the spray booth and lights to paint when it comes time for it

My guy does a lot of little jobs, but that's not all bad. He really seems to take a lot of pride in his work. He even does stencil work so I can have powder coated lettering if I want...I have some ideas swimming in my head.

 

[BigD_83]

I've been searching for the black 1983 case covers with the TDCC logo on them for over a year. You just gave me an idea for an alternative if the search proves fruitless.

Thanks Marc!