Top ten things

[KiwiGS]

I have been repairing an 80 1000E which lived under a tree for a year or so.
The main stuff that had to be done is.
Plastics are primed and ready for paint.
I have been through the electrics with a fine tooth multimeter.
New battery and tyres etc.
Carbs removed and cleaned.(cvs)

My question is what are the top ten upgrades I can do to this bike to bring it in to the 2000s?
It is pretty much stock apart from the paint and pipes(4-1)
Any ideas?

 

[Smokinapankake]

Depends on what you want to do with it. For starters, consider new rubber, Progressive springs, maybe a pipe of some sort or another along with some pod filters.
If you want to go really nuts you can swap forks, wheels, swingarms, brakes, etc.. off a GSX-R, Katana teapot, or Bandit. Fairly easy swaps, I understand and easy to find on eBay.
530 chain conversions are a popular mod and very easy. Wider selection of chains, too.
If it were me I would look to fitting components that come with a pretty strong aftermarket support (GSX-R, Hayabusa, SV, etc...) Tire selection seems to me to be a bit limited - not too many folks are making 19 inch race ready rubbber these days....And those cast aluminum wheels are a nightmare to keep clean.
Just my humble opinion.

 

[Guest]

buy a 2000's bike, and glue a GS emblem to the side. The cheapest way.

 

[bonanzadave]

buy a 2000's bike, and glue a GS emblem to the side. The cheapest way.

I was going to say the same thing but then you would have just another boring o'l bike. Granted, it will probably perform better than the old 1980 machine. Lighter with better suspension and a little more predictable. But a dolled up old Bike will get more looks than that same old - same old that you see every day.

Case in point....

Get out your checkbook, CCs and some spare cash.

 

[KiwiGS]

Hey guys,
Thanks for the thoughts.
I didnt really explain my question very well.
I dont expect my 27 year old bike to be anything like a 2000s bike. Which is fine with me! Its oldschool cool.
Not just another yamahonduki like everyone else is riding.
I was more after little things that people have done over the years to improve their bikes.
Like alloy swing arm for lightness and wider wheel tyre choice etc, 530/520 chain and sproket conversion for lightness and chain choice, upgraded r/r, etc etc
Those are the sort of things I meant
There must be 100s of little things people have modified on their old GSs to make them more reliable and help with maintenance.

 

[koolaid_kid]

Most start with the basics.
Suspension: Progressive springs in the front, Progressive shocks with appropriate spring rates in the rear. (There is another brand as well, but I forget the brand.)
New brake pads (Vesrah & EBC come to mind).
The chain is a personal preference. There are a lot more choices if you move to 530. It also gives you the opportunity to tweak the gearing when you replace the sprockets.
An oil cooler is an option.
AFA power is concerned, many go with K&N pods since you already have a 4 into 1 header. This requires rejetting the carbs, but it can be done.
Some like to upgrade the coils and wires as well.

Hope this helps for starters.

 

[Dave8338]

I was going to say the same thing but then you would have just another boring o'l bike. Granted, it will probably perform better than the old 1980 machine. Lighter with better suspension and a little more predictable. But a dolled up old Bike will get more looks than that same old - same old that you see every day.

Case in point....

Get out your checkbook, CCs and some spare cash.

Yummy...is that an MSD ignition and NOS that I'm looking at there? Think so. There is nothing built today that compares to a set up like that! :shock: \\/

 

[KGB]

Most start with the basics.
Suspension: Progressive springs in the front, Progressive shocks with appropriate spring rates in the rear. (There is another brand as well, but I forget the brand.)
New brake pads (Vesrah & EBC come to mind).
The chain is a personal preference. There are a lot more choices if you move to 530. It also gives you the opportunity to tweak the gearing when you replace the sprockets.
An oil cooler is an option.
AFA power is concerned, many go with K&N pods since you already have a 4 into 1 header. This requires rejetting the carbs, but it can be done.
Some like to upgrade the coils and wires as well.

Hope this helps for starters.

That'll keep ya busy for a while

Another brand of shock is called Hagon
www.davequinnmotorcycles.com
Doubtful he''l ship to you, but you never know

 

[Suzuki mad]

Keep the GS as it was made. Go out and buy a bandit 1200, put a good pair of rubbers on her and an Ohlin rear shock.

Why you might ask. Its the modern day compromise of a GS1000ET and a GSX1100ESD of the 1980's.

How do I know.......I've got all three.

Suzuki mad.

 

[bonanzadave]

Keep the GS as it was made. Go out and buy a bandit 1200, put a good pair of rubbers on her and an Ohlin rear shock.

Why you might ask. Its the modern day compromise of a GS1000ET and a GSX1100ESD of the 1980's.

How do I know.......I've got all three.

Suzuki mad.

Could he put the old school body works and tank on the new Bandit ? :-s

 

[KiwiGS]

Keep the GS as it was made. Go out and buy a bandit 1200, put a good pair of rubbers on her and an Ohlin rear shock.

Why you might ask. Its the modern day compromise of a GS1000ET and a GSX1100ESD of the 1980's.

How do I know.......I've got all three.

Suzuki mad.

Firstly thanks for the ideas and keep em coming!
Suzuki mad I hear what you and others are saying and I understand it.
The thing is, as I said, I dont want just another modern bike. I have a CBR1000 for when I want to be one of the crowd.
I have wanted one of these big old muslce bikes since I was a kid.
I know it is 80s tech, I know my CBR will do everything the GS can and more. Except make me smile like the GS does
I have neither the cash nor the time to do all of the things that people are recomending here right now. But if I make a wish list then as time goes on and I spot things on that list I can cross them off.
I am not trying to make the GS into are modern bike.
I dont want to change the character of the bike. Just improve on some its weaknesses.

 

[Guest]

Kiwi GS

Kiwi GS

Goodday mate,paint her up and keep her close to stock.I've recently done up a '79 GS1000S and spent over $5000 Aus so I know how much you CAN spend.Getting your forks hard chromed and progressive springs fitted is a good move and will cost you about $400.Less if you dismantle/reassemble yourself.I got a chromed set of 4 into 2's from a mob in Brisbane called Tranzac for $800 and am very happy with them.4 into 1's should be cheaper.Other than that,I'd keep her pretty much stock and just clean up what's there and you'll have old school cool that's reliable and DOES stand out anywhere.Cheers,Simon

 

[rphillips]

There weren't many weaknesses, The "80" pet cock was the worst petcock ever, but still better than a manual pet cock. Front springs & rear shocks were OK 28 years ago, but are surely used up by now. as said, Progressive. Clutch baskets were weak, especially if it's been abused. You can have yours beefed, or maybe find a beefed one on e-bay. A GS 1100 E swingarm was lighter, had less flex, & is a bolt on swap. Reasonable riding though, you'll never know the difference. Electrics are talked about a lot, but all GS's don't give problems. I've owned more than a dozen GS's, down to three now, & with all of them, I've replaced 1 stator & no r/r. One more thing, but just my opinion, The closer you can get to the original "80" GS 1000 E blue color, the more attention it will get. Gosh they were beautiful, I wish I still had mine

 

[Suzuki mad]

Hi kiwiGS,

I the right hands a GS1000 is a great tool to ride and certainly puts a smile on my face each time I ride her in standard trim.

Rear shocks were always a problem as was getting the correct air pressure on the front end. An old conversion was a put a swingarm from the GSX1100 (box sectioned aluminium) straight in which made a little difference.

You can swap the whole front end out with a GSXR1100M/N version and have upside down forks for handling if you want to. You would also need to play with the yokes (tripple tree's in the USA) to get them to fit but modern calipers would go straight in. It would also allow you to run bigger tyres and modern day rubber.

You can put newer calipers on (not sure which one's) and also put braided hose's which will improve braking on the original forks.

Muck around with the engine, 1085cc big bore kit, sportier cams, and play with the fueling will give you more power. The bottom end crank will take it as its roller not plain bearings.

Throw away the old coils and put a dyna system in will cure a lot of the old ignition problems.

Take the original vacuum fuel tap out and put a pingle tap in. Gives better fuel delivery and won't fail so often but remember to turn it off after riding your bike.

Now drastic measures. Remove the rear swingarm and fit a mono shock conversion. The frame will need bracing near the battery box to fit the upper mount. I suspect that you could get a Bandit swinging arm or any from the GSRX1100 (1986-1992) in there with a bit of machining the width of the arm and bearings.

Done sensibly it will still look like a GS but be a very different machine.

The world is your oyster as modding goes.

I would have to say why, but then I am a classic and thats how I like them.

Suzuki mad.

 

[8trackmind]

My question is what are the top ten upgrades I can do to this bike to bring it in to the 2000s?
It is pretty much stock apart from the paint and pipes(4-1)
Any ideas?

Whenever I start upgrading my GS1000, the first thing I ask myself is, could this have been done "back in the day"?

To me, the best mods to perform on an old GS are are either invisible, subtle, or something that could have been done in the early "80's". If you stay in the "pre GSXR" mindset when performing your mods, it'll perform better, and still look period.
If you need idea's, simply look to the bikes that were raced in the superbike series back then. fork braces, piggy back shocks, oil coolers, various bits painted black etc. Even with all those mods, they still scream "80's"....

Btw, this is what my idea of what a 1978 GS1000 would have looked like circa 1980.
It goes, stops, and turns better than stock...That's good enough for me.

 

[rphillips]

Keep the "GS 1000 E" a "GS 1000 E". Keep the original looks, A monoshocl & upsidedown forks will make it a custom bike, & make it look like a custom bike. If that's what you want, let someone have the old GS 1000 to keep it a GS 1000, & build somekind of custom. Can you tell??? I really hate to see old GS's butchered. You have a CBR for a modern bike, keep the GS for a classic. It's amazing, the looks & comments you will get from a 25 or 30 year old slick original GS.

 

[Guest]

Here's what I did to mine:

K&N filters
Dynojet stage 3
Vance & Hines Megaphone
Dyna coils and wires
Dyna S ignition
New clutch plates, fibers, and heavy duty springs
Lockhart oil cooler with braided lines
VDO oil pressure gauge
VDO oil temperature gauge
Progressive springs
Daytona fork Brace
Russell braided brake lines
Drilled rotors
Rebuilt calipers and master cylinders
Pirelli Sport Demons
New wheel bearings
Mostly all new cables
New bearings for swing arm and steering head
Sylvania Silver Star headlight
Aluminum short stalk signals
Bar end weights
Allen heads almost everywhere
Braided hoses all over
Lots of NOS stuff (whatever I could find)
Lots of polishing

Still to come: powder coated GS1100 aluminum swing arm.

That will keep you busy for a while!

 

[8trackmind]

Keep the "GS 1000 E" a "GS 1000 E". Keep the original looks, A monoshocl & upsidedown forks will make it a custom bike, & make it look like a custom bike. If that's what you want, let someone have the old GS 1000 to keep it a GS 1000, & build somekind of custom. Can you tell??? I really hate to see old GS's butchered. You have a CBR for a modern bike, keep the GS for a classic. It's amazing, the looks & comments you will get from a 25 or 30 year old slick original GS.

Exactly. I hate too see 'em cut up too. :-|

Renobruce and I seem to be working off the exact same list. I must be on the right track. :-D

By far, the most useful upgrades were to the front end. Even a stock GS has plenty of go, but not near enough whoa. :-D

1. Progressive fork springs. (The single best purchase by far as many here can attest)
2. 20 wt fork oil.
   
3. Lower "Superbike style" handlebars. (Helps to get your body weight over those new springs)
   
4. Larger brake rotors.
5. Kawasaki dual piston front calipers
6. Master cylinder with a 14mm bore.
   
7. Galfer SS brake lines.
8. My big clunky "80's" fork brace. (not shown)
9. GS1100 aluminum swingarm
10. 18" rear wheel
11. K&N Pods, jetting
12. R.C. 4 in 1 pipe with a modified baffle.
    
13. Heavy duty clutch.
14. All the other normal maintenance stuff I can't remember, like bearings, cables, levers, tires, seals, etc.
    

 

[tkent02]

If it's a nice looking complete bike:
Best suspension you can find.
Better brakes.
Best tires available.
Brighter headlight.
Modern ignition.
Redo the seat.
Think about what you want to do power-wise. Stock engines running perfectly go pretty good. The perfectly part eludes most.

If it's old and ratty and missing pieces:
Cafe it, chop it, race it, make it a big dirt bike, streetfighter, whatever your heart desires.

I like to fuel inject everything, but that's just me.

 

[mskiwi]

I'm restoring a 80 GS1000S (GS1000530920) and suggest keep it simple:

- GSX1100 alminmium swing arm (fits straight in)
- Koni folk springs and rear shocks Honda CB900 (Ikon as they are known now)
- OE 15/42 spockets
- EBC floating 3014 disks with FA38/36 Front/Rear pads

Also, if you powder coat the wheels black they look great. Check out the following 4 part UK Classic Bike mag Sep-Dec 2007 issues(www.classicbike.co.uk) for a full GS1000 step-by-step rebuild.

Cheers and good luck ...

-----------------------
78 GS1000E
80 GS1000S