My newest addition to the family

[JTGS850GL]

A few weeks ago I picked up a 1998 Honda ST1100. Had about 72K miles on her and needed some cleanup and carb work. I rebuilt the carbs and upgraded them to per-emissions Canada spec. Replaced a couple scuffed panels, the seat and a complete service including a valve adjustment, new coolant hoses, sync newly rebuilt carbs, replace all fluids, new front and rear tires (Metzler z6's) and new HH brake pads front and rear.

Total invested is about $2350 including the initial $1800 purchase price. She runs like a scalded dog. Very different from either my GS850 or my GS1000/1100. Much more bottom end torque. Got to be much more careful about speed since 80mph comes up very quick with little fanfare. All you can hear at speed is the sound of the wind. Engine is very quite at RPMs. Took her out for a 150 mile round trip just to stretch her legs. Definitely a highway rider. At 85mph she only turns 4k with an 8k redline. I have the rear luggage but prefer to ride her without the rear bags unless I need them. Definitely a keeper.:

 

[bccap]

Congrats Julius. Great looking touring bike.........

 

[Burque73]

Yes, congrats, nice bike indeed! Boy you didn't waste any time getting all those updates and repairs done.

Hey Julius, the 2001 ST I looked at had a mod you may consider. There's a gap between the plastic side panels right under the engine that apparently catches strong crosswinds and can make the bike hard to keep on track. This particular ST had a piece of perforated aluminum that spanned the gap. The owner said it made a huge difference and improved handling on windy days. He also said without the perforation the engine ran hot and that other guys who used solid stock had to remove it and drill holes for some air flow.

Hope you enjoy this new addition!

 

[dorkburger]

Nice.... for the third time today. Congrats and enjoy.

 

[Brendan W]

Great looking bike - enjoy.
Gotta ask.........Trailers are for boats ?

 

[Guest]

Smokin' deal, congrats. Those and the Concours, amazing touring machines so I've been told. I would guess if I ever trade the ol' 80' 1000G in for another touring bike it'll be one of those.......maybe.

 

[Guest]

How's the thing for working on? looks like lots of plastic on her.

 

[JTGS850GL]

Great looking bike - enjoy.
Gotta ask.........Trailers are for boats ?

The sticker came with the bike. I guess it's a touring thing.

 

[JTGS850GL]

How's the thing for working on? looks like lots of plastic on her.

Takes about 15 minutes to undress the ole gal. Once the majority of the plastics are off, everything is pretty much exposed. The good thing is that there's not a lot of maintenance that's required under there that needs to be done at any frequent interval. The valve adjustment is pretty much the only thing done on a regular interval but usually doesn't need any adjustment. The carbs can be accesses by only taking off the seat and tank cover. The timing belt needs to have much of it undressed but that only happens every 90K miles

 

[JTGS850GL]

This is what she looked like once the plastics and carbs were removed.:

That huge black thing in the center is the fuel tank. It holds a whopping 7.4 gallons. At approx. 40 MPG that gives you a 296 miles run between fills.

This is what the carbs looked like after I did the rebuild:

 

[srsupertrap]

This is what she looked like once the plastics and carbs were removed.:

That huge black thing in the center is the fuel tank. It holds a whopping 7.4 gallons. At approx. 40 MPG that gives you a 296 miles run between fills.

This is what the carbs looked like after I did the rebuild:

The carbs look just fantastic, ultrasonic clean them? You're ready for another decade

 

[JTGS850GL]

Yes, ultra sonic cleaning and dipping the hard parts.

 

[Cipher]

looks factory fresh

 

[JTGS850GL]

OK, had some time to give her a good ride and have some comments on the ST1100. This is a highway bike for sure. Around town, not so much. Just for the sake of parsing information, here are some observations.

The ST1100 has some quirks that anybody interested in one should make note of. First is the shifting characteristics. The shifting is a little clunkier than any of my GS's. Smooth once in gear but shifting from 1st to 2nd is a little harsher than I'm used to. Guess Suzuki did a little better job there. Might also be a longevity tradeoff. The ST has been known to go hundreds of thousands of miles without a major tear down.

The clutch is a hydraulic actuated. I would have thought that the clutch pull would be easier than the GS's cable pull but not so much. The clutch disengages very quickly and doesn't re-engage until the last 1/4" of travel. Makes take off a little more finicky until you get used to it. Clutch is not adjustable in stock form but I think I've found a modification that can help change the engagement point. I'm using a clutch lever from a VFR750 that is adjustable. Should arrive today so I'll have more on that. The good thing is that Honda used the same master cylinder on many models. The ST was the rare one with no adjustment. Go figure.

This bike is a little tall at 31.5" seat height. I tend to be a height challenged rider so my 5'6" frame and 30" inseam make the bike a little tall. Looks like some adjustments are in order. The seat is being sent to Sargent Seats for a custom modification to lower and narrow it. I've mounted a 60 v/s 70 profile tire and will be working on some handlebar risers. Basically your general personalized tweaking is in order.

The stock windshield leaves a little to be desired as well. With little to no exhaust note, the only sounds you hear is the wind blowing past you and at HWY speeds there's a lot of wind. The windshield is a little short to be of much use. Even at city speeds the wind can be a little annoying. Obviously, the aftermarket is plentiful for options here.

On the plus side, once moving, this baby is like silk. No vibration and VERY little sound other than the wind. The power band is broad with a ton of torque. The gearing takes advantage of this as 80mph comes up quick and is just shy of 4k RPM, with an 8K redline and a 150MPH speedo, it was meant to move and move quickly. It's a heavy bike but, once moving, it's very nimble. Both slow and high-speed maneuvers are light and precise. Leaning her over is natural. The new Metzler Z6 tires have almost no chicken strips on them after just a week of getting used to her. Brakes are better as well. Although mine is not an ABS model, I've been told that the ABSII version has even better stopping power with its three pot front and rear calipers and traction control. Obviously, styling is a personal preference thing. I like the sport-touring style myself. Funny, since I also like my L model 850.

Just thought that some may be interested in the comparison of an 80's bike rider on a late 90's ride. Suzuki did a phenomenal job with the GS series bikes and we should be proud of them.

 

[DaveR]

Thanks for observations JT.

An ST has been my 'next' bike for some years now and with the power and the 'once moving, this baby is like silk. No vibration and VERY little sound other than the wind' qualities it is a natural for the big, wide open, minimal traffic country around here. But with 63 years on the clock and the 81 GL Silverwing 500I doing the job fairly well, it might not happen.

I'm envious. Good luck!

 

[bccap]

What do you think of the riding position Julius ? I've only ever ridden one { not sure of the year but it's in the picture below }. The thing I remember is it was very comfortable but very upright { I'm six foot two inches }

 

[JTGS850GL]

To me it's not as upright as your impression. Might have something to do with my height only being 5' 6". Mine actually came with a 3" handlebar riser and I still would like to have another 1/2" to 3/4" rise. Most would love the riding position. A little sporty but not leaned over crotch rockety. Probably the best compromise position.

 

[GSXR7ED]

What do you think of the riding position Julius ? I've only ever ridden one { not sure of the year but it's in the picture below }. The thing I remember is it was very comfortable but very upright { I'm six foot two inches }

Garth,

Is that you in the pic? You didn't say but I was leaning towards maybe...

Nice bike, btw. I'm also 5' 7" and shrinking so I'm not one for high seated bikes. Good observations in the analysis too.


Ed

 

[bccap]

Garth,

Is that you in the pic? You didn't say but I was leaning towards maybe...

Nice bike, btw. I'm also 5' 7" and shrinking so I'm not one for high seated bikes. Good observations in the analysis too.


Ed

No. That's the owner of the bike. He was a member here but hasn't been active in a few years now { NormK }

 

[JTGS850GL]

From what I've seen in the picture, it looks like the seat has been lowered and the handlebars are raised and offset. Pretty much what I'm looking to do as well.