GS450s Build - Scrambler maybe? Let's get it running first.

[CDC]

I ended up ordering a set of OEM shocks for $40 shipped from ebay and they actually look ok. Some flecks of rust high up on the shaft but way better than what I had on there. Figure I'll wear these out while I look for that perfect set of vintage aftermarket race shocks.

Currently waiting on a rear brake light spring and a new and hopefully less wiggly shifter linkage to come in and she's more or less ready for the street.

This week saw white dirt bars installed, front brake rebuilt and bled, high dirtbike tail fashioned out of an old steel filing cabinet (it's ghetto fabulous), and more cleaning and de-rusting. I also por-15nd the tank and while I have yet to see if it actually holds gas now, it did seem to bond to the metal nicely. Vac petcock was gutted and supplemented with an inline cutoff valve so I still have reserve.

I also need to rig up some kind of rigid as hell fork brace, a front fender, and figure out what to do with the battery box area. I have only a left side cover and the crazy rats nest wiring and huge battery are just too much to hide elsewhere on the bike I think. Any ideas for something to put there other than the oem side panel? Maybe if I tuck everything in there tight to one side I could mount a pouch big enough to hold a sixer or some tools.

Edit: like one of these: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Leat...rcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3a648e9a1c

Also thinking about foot pegs and turn signals but those are relatively minor considerations.

 

[Guest]

Man I gotta see pic's, I can't imagine all that stuff

As to your battery and side cover situation, I'm thinking about moving to A123 batteries like a couple of others on here have done as they're tiny in comparison.

I'll probably still put them in the battery box, but they'll be low down and not so ugly, and I'm still thinking I'd like to put a weather proof secure enclosure in that area as a storage compartment too.

My side covers will be going away as well, the scrambler pipe will make the left one impossible to mount.

 

[CDC]

A123 could be perfect.

Here is a shot of tail:

 

[Guest]

Bit hard to tell from that angle but could be good. I like the 'bars too, I have similar black ones on mine...

 

[CDC]

Well, I'm getting to the part of the project where I actually get to ride and I must say I really enjoy this little bike. Took it on 2 4hr plus rides in addition to city jaunts in the last weeks and it's performed admirably, running nice and cool with great low end power and never giving me any trouble except for the still annoying intermittent headlight. I'm pretty sure now that the main connector on the wiring harness is also corroded, and I'm heading to radio shack for some contact cleaner and dielectric grease.

I still need to do something like an a123 battery for cosmetic reasons but last week, I relocated all the electronics from the tray on the left side and now everything's bolted to the top of the plastic inner fender. I need to wrap the wiring up nicely and then I can ditch the side covers completely.

Only major things I have to deal with now are the forks. They seem to bind up and get this extremely annoying harmonic bounce at about 35 mph, but at highway speeds they were nice and smooth. I have new steering head bearings to go in that may cure the problem, but I'm not convinced that I want to stick with these skinny things up front given their general condition. Does anybody know if the gs550 forks will bolt up without modification of the brake mounts/axle/wheel spacers? Any other alternatives that come to mind given the low budget objective here?

Also, I have a pic to share from my latest jaunt.

Very capable on gravel roads, and I think some real flat track tires (as opposed to the 30 y/o irc tires I have) would make it even better.

As you can see, I need to find some decent sheet metal tools to get the curve on the fenders right. It's going to look somewhat crude until I can shrink the steel properly, but they do keep the mud out of my face.

 

[Tim Tom]

cool little project! I would suggest mounting new rubber as soon as possible. 30 year old tires are dangerous on any surface. I'm sure you can find a modern dual sport knobby that would fit. Knobs on GS would be super cool.

 

[Guest]

Mate it's great to hear you're out and about on it! Do you have any side on pic's? Hard to see how the mudgaurd is in that one...

As for the headlight, the plastic holder for the bulb on mine was worn when I got it years ago and it used to work it's way out of the shell and then flop around, resulting in basically no light in front of me, and it would eventually blow the bulb. At the time I just duct taped it but I'll be looking for a H4 style 7" replacement soon. Might be worth checking that out on yours if it's doing similar things.

For the front forks, the first thing I'd do is stick the original front mudguard on and see if that fixes it. If you look underneath you'll see somewhat of a fork brace built into it.



When doing my mock ups, Flyboy picked up that my front guard was still too much "road bike", which is spot on, so I'm working on lifting it without compromising the built in fork brace. I discovered I can lift it the diameter of a Pepsi Max can (about 65mm) and I'm hoping some 3mm thick steel plate will be strong enough to make some plates that keep the fork brace doing its thing.



It should look something like this, which still is nowhere near as high as yours, but definitely less road bike:



It's quite a subtle lift, but should be enough.

The other alternative john82q suggested was to get a real fork brace and then I could do whatever I like about a front gaurd, which means what you have on now would be fine.

If you want to do the 550 front end, search around here, I'm sure at least two guys have done this already and swapped the whole front end on, I think the stem is a match.

Finally, for tyres, Shinko 244's have our OEM sizes (3.00-18 and 3.50-18) and are 50/50 road/trail, so that could be a good answer for you. They're too dirt biased for my needs, but if you want real dual sport tyres, then they're hard to come by for our front tyre.

I hope that helps... but definitely good to see you're getting somewhere

 

[Guest]

And if you don't happen to have your original gaurd any more, there's one for sale on here in this thread:

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=177954

 

[CDC]

Front fender was missing when I got the bike, and when I inspected the mounts, it appears 2 of the bolts are sheared/rusted off in the leg. However, a guy on CL has a 1980 gs550e fork/triple so I think I'll go check that out.

 

[Guest]

Cool, that could be the go. I'm sure it was a simple bolt on, but definitely search around here first before taking my word for it

 

[CDC]

So I've been out riding this bike instead of sitting at my computer, but now that it's cold and rainy here, I suppose I should update the thread.

I ended up doing a 550 fork swap, which overall went quite smoothly. Only issue was that the sheetmetal front fender no longer lined up and the angle for the gauge mounts was off a bit. They still bolted up but they're angled a bit more vertically now. Works ok, but I might do something to level them back out at some point. The forks feel much better, but I think the biggest difference was the All Balls steering head bearing I installed at the same time. So much better. More to come.

 

[Guest]

Glad to hear you've been enjoying it! Sounds like that 550 fork swap is almost a bolt on? Good stuff...

I wish I was out riding mine, but still a little way off yet...

Have you got plans for a front guard? I ended up making a brace/guard mount out of some aluminium but I have yet to see how it goes on the road.

 

[CDC]

Yeah, definitely a bolt on affair. Triples went right into the 450 bearings. Had to change fork ears and I think the 550 uses a bigger light so it's not totally square, but you wouldn't really notice just looking at it. Wheel spacing and axle were the same.

 

[Guest]

Cool, easy as! So you stuck with the 450 wheel then?

 

[djg42]

awesome stuff! Very interested in your bike! Did the GS550 forks you used have single or dual front discs? Anyone know which models had double front discs?

 

[CDC]

awesome stuff! Very interested in your bike! Did the GS550 forks you used have single or dual front discs? Anyone know which models had double front discs?

I'm running a single disc on the original wheel. Will have to look and see if there are mounts for a second caliper on the 550 fork.

Also, I'm contemplating a tire change. I have a set of IRC GS11's on the bike now, which I actually really like. It's just that they're starting to crack up a bit on the tread so I don't really trust them on the superslab.

I'm looking at some shinko sr241s that are quite affordable and fit with the look and intended use of the bike. I have ridden shinko tires before and was impressed by their quality. My only problem is that they don't make them in the stock sizes. I could do the rear in 3.5 x 18 like stock, but there is no 3.0 x 18 for the front. If I go with these tires, would it be better to run 3.5s front and rear or go 4.0 in back 3.5 in the front? Anybody have experience with this?

 

[Guest]

Actually check out the 244's... you can get the right sizes

If I could find them here in Aus I'd get them, but it looks like I'm going to have to get some universal block trials tyres...