Gforce18, 1982 GS1100E

[Gforce18]

Hello all, I'm happy to find this forum. I owned a 82' GS1100E in the late 90's and recently found out I had the opportunity to get it back. That will happen! Unfortunately it's in pieces and needs a lot of tlc. Maybe a blessing in disguise, I'm a wrencher so it's probably gonna be a fun project. I'm 44 years old and a Mechanical Engineer, married with a beautiful pregnant wife. I hope to have the bike back in my possession with in 2-3 weeks. That will give me the winter to get her ready for next spring. I'll keep a thread with tear down and rebuild pics.. This will be my first bike build so I will probably have a lot of questions about locating parts and different mods that should or should not be done. Really glad this forum is here and will be a regular attendee. This is a pic of me on the bike when I had it in the 90's. I'm gonna say, it probably won't be the same color when I'm done.

 

[steve murdoch]

Welcome to the site.
Good to hear another GS being restored and not parted out.
The bike coming back to a previous owner is a bonus.

 

[dorkburger]

Welcome. Cool that you're getting your old ride back. Good luck.

 

[Guest]

Welcome to the site, cool story. Looking forward to the build thread but I have a bad feeling it's going to slowwwwww right down as that wife of yours gets bigger....and likely be sold all together when the beautiful baby is born but don't worry, you're in the exact right spot for lots of cheap hoarders to take it off your hands while you're in your blissfully happy, mindless state So like I said, welcome...and watch out!

 

[dorkburger]

Wow, thats harsh....... But not necessarily untrue. I must admit though, that the same thought crossed my mind as well.
Gforce, i wish you well with the growing family and the GS project. Cycle therapy is a wonderful thing when family life gets crazy.

 

[Guest]

Wasn't meaning to sound harsh at all, just poking a little Don't take me seriously Gforce18, I only say all that stuff as I've been down that exact road, albeit a bit younger than you. You can tell your wife what I tell mine, "well honey, it's a 'relatively' cheap hobby, cheaper than golf or cars anyways, and it keeps me on the property". Again, looking forward to the build.

 

[dorkburger]

Rob, i was also joking about your being harsh... Since having #1 child 13 years ago, riding time has has gone from pre marriage 5-7k miles a year - including sharing time with a beastly old El Camino, to maybe 1-2 k a year, with 2 being a good year. I relish whatever time I can get.

 

[Gforce18]

All good guys, I'm under no illusion that I'll be wild and free. I do think the bike will be a preferable substitute to my current hobby of skydiving. Your right, at least I'll be in the garage or close to home as opposed to being at the airport, so that should keep the wife happy. Its got to be a cheaper hobby than jumping. The bike is currently 2 hours away and I'm trying to coordinate with the current owner to go pick it up. The waiting is brutal! I'm a little scared of what I'll find when I see her again but, nothing a little time and money won't cure. My biggest concern right now is how much rust will be on the frame. If that's in decent shape, then I can deal with everything else. Wish me luck.

 

[Guest]

Aahhhhh.......now we see why you're into the 1100's....adrenalin junkie. I've always wanted to do the skydiving, it's on my bucket list for sure, not as a hobby of course but as a one off for sure. I can't imagine there's any frame issues unless it's been crashed. The worst thing is when the tank is rusted inside or the exhaust is rusted out, both some of the harder parts to get but not impossible. The frames can always be painted or powdercoated if there's a lot of surface rust.

 

[Spyder]

Welcome to the circus! So cool to hear you're getting a long lost baby back (as well as a new baby (UHG, at 44, can't imagine it...)). Where in the world are you located? There may be one, or some of us lunatics near you that could help out when needed. Would at the very least save a LOT on shipping parts...

And there is nothing wrong with adrenaline. It's free, legal, and the body has a never ending supply of it...

 

[Gforce18]

Spyder, it looks as though we may be in the same neck of the woods, I'm in Louisville Ky. Yes, the thought of being a first time Dad at 44 is concerning but, I'm all in. azr, I recommend you do a tandem for your first skydive. I'm a tandem instructor and it is my experience that this is the best way to be exposed to the sport. All the fun with less training and less risk. You have an experienced jumper on your back. I'd wait until summer, jumping in the cold sucks! Here's a pic of me doing a tandem as the instructor.

 

[Gforce18]

When I'm not working at the dropzone, I get to play. This is what I like the most. This pic is of a headdown formation, speeds in this flying position are
around 165-170mph.I'm toward the center in the same white and black jump suit as in the tandem pic.

 

[dorkburger]

That is so cool.

Back in the 50s and 60s my late uncle was a regular jumper with hundreds of jumps logged. Im not sure if he got involved if freefalling (if thats the correct term for a high altitude jump) though. He had some good stories. A friend in his group was a pilot with a plane who would take them up wherever / whenever they wanted. Apparently the pilot was as nutty as the jumpers. They did jumps at night, and would literally drop in at friends houses, etc. Years later he was still a little miffed about when he did a jump for a local politicians campaign. It was at the beach, and the plan was for my uncle and 2 others to land at one of his rallies. A last second wind gust pulled my uncle over the water. He said he had to cut his chute loose so he wasnt pulled under, and he ultimately lost the chute. The miffed part was that the politician did not pay to replace his parachute....

 

[wymple]

I became a dad for the 7th time at 45. Don't sweat it. I got a family full of musicians and machinists out of it!!

 

[Spyder]

Yeah, about a 4+ hour ride. That's a pretty long neck, lol... But, not out of the question. Back broads in Ky. are some of the prettiest trips I have ever taken. Especially in the late summer / early fall. Would love to take the bike down there some year...

 

[Guest]

Spyder, it looks as though we may be in the same neck of the woods, I'm in Louisville Ky. Yes, the thought of being a first time Dad at 44 is concerning but, I'm all in. azr, I recommend you do a tandem for your first skydive. I'm a tandem instructor and it is my experience that this is the best way to be exposed to the sport. All the fun with less training and less risk. You have an experienced jumper on your back. I'd wait until summer, jumping in the cold sucks! Here's a pic of me doing a tandem as the instructor.View attachment 41986

Very cool. Thanks for the good advice, I will remember that for sure.

 

[Gforce18]

Great news, I finally got the bike in my garage! She looks a little rough but, not as bad as I was expecting. Azr, you were correct, the frame is fine, the tank is the area of rust concern. I've been watching lots of videos on tank restoration and I'm encouraged,I believe I'll be able to salvage the tank. This bike requires a full tear down and rebuild but, all thing considered, I'm feeling really good about how this will go. I'll start a rebuild thread and keep up to date pics posted. I do have a busy schedule so the work will probably be fairly slow but, I will post as progress allows. Here are a few pics of how she looks now. I still need to get the seat and plastic, it was in another location. I also had to just sand and prime the tank to feel like I had gotten started. Wish me luck.
.

 

[Gforce18]

Fresh off the back of my truck

 

[Gforce18]

I can only upload one file at a time, so its just post by post. ??

 

[Gforce18]

A little sanding and primer on the tank just to feel like I've started the rebuild.