Uh-Oh, think I broke my bike in Columbus, OH. Help!!!

[Anonymous]

Hi y'all, my bike is making weird noises in low rpms(1500-2000), in all gears. It's like a klanking noise like something inside is banging, when the engine is slowing down. The noise seems to be coming from the left side towards the bottom of the motor (when sitting on bike) My best guess (not knowing harldy anything about my GS) is that I screwed up the clutch. I thought back to an incident that happened the same day I noticed the noise. I was coming home from a 2 hr ride and I accidently forgot to pull the clutch when I shifted from nuetral to first or second (can't remember). I was on 70west and stayed on the freeway until I exited Cleveland ave off 270, but then when I slowed to a stop is when I noticed the banging/klanking noise. It seems to be okay except for the noise. My questions are:

1. Is it safe to ride this thing if it's the clutch???
2. What kind of money am I looking at if I have to fix the clutch?
3. Is there anyone in my area willing to inspect if I ride over (assuming it's safe to ride)?
4. Just a general question, I thought I have a shaft drive bike, but it has a chain on it, so is it shaft or chain?

Bike specs:
1980 GS750L
22,000 Miles
Vance & Hines 4-into-1 Headers & Exhaust

 

[HiSPL]

It's not the clutch. Clutch is on the right side of the bike where the oil sight glass is. Is your chain real loose? Sometimes the chain can get loose enough to rub on the swingarm during deceleration, this noise would come from the left side and should sound like grinding or scraping.

It is a chain drive bike. Thats why it has a big chain from the motor to the rear wheel. Do you have a manual for it? Ever done any maintenence on it? Is it new to you?


I hope I don't sound too condescending with my questions, it's just that it's hard to believe that someone with such a limited knowledge of bike mechanics is driving that nice of a bike.

This being your first post with a question like this just smells of a troll. If it's a genuine request, then by all means fire away. We are here to help. The first thing we need is a history of you and the bike....

Thats a great looking bike.

 

[Anonymous]

yeah, this is a genuine request. I bought this about a month ago, before I read the "Used Motorcycle Buyer's Guide" so I just shelled out $1000 for a bike that I think looks and sounds real nice. (it's my first bike, so to me, it rides real nice too, but I have nothing to compare it to)

Unfortunately, I am not mechanically knoledgeable about bikes, or cars for that matter (I may very well be mechanically inclined if I ever gave it a try)

in any case, I bought it from an older fellow near where I live. it looked like it was taken good care of, and he took me for a ride on it and it had a lot of get-up, sounded nice, and shifted nice. but not knowing the basics of buying used, I didn't think of asking for the service records or manual or any paperwork except for the title.

well, it looks like this is going to be an educational experience, which I completely welcome, and thank the lord for this site (which is where I found the bike for sale in the first place)

i've never done any maintence except replace the battery

so you think it's the chain? how could I tell for sure?

 

[jtcrespo]

You went from neutral into a gear without the clutch? If you were at a red light and did this, the bike would have dragged you through the light and caused cosmetic damage as well, so I assume you were coasting and went from neutral into a gear. This is a big NO-NO! Now if it was an accident while shifting up or down, then I apologize, but I've never heard of that breaking anything on the first time. You would have had to move the shifter pretty hard to do the damage and you would have known you were breaking it then, not remembering it later.

I would say don't sweat the noise as long as it's in that rpm range. My bike also makes funny noises when it's in any gear above 2nd at 1500-2000 rpm. It's stalling. Get those revs up a little.

I smell it too HiSPL!

This being your first post with a question like this just smells of a troll.

If you want to know what we are talking about read the following thread

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/viewtopic.php?t=13043

We don't mean to offend you, but there are some very creative folks in here.

If you are genuine, I do recommend getting to know more about the bike mechanically before doing any long rides again. You never know what may happen and you need to be prepared for it. It would also do some good to practice riding away from traffic for a while to get used to the bike. Do you wear your helmet and safety armor every time you ride? If not, you need to no matter what your skill level is.

Last, but not least, make sure your engine is off before you check the chain.

 

[Anonymous]

First of all let me explain this chain the other guys are talking about, there is a large chain that connects the engine to the rear wheel. This is the way the rotational power is transfered to the rear wheel. It will be on your left side as you sit on the bike. A large sprocket the size of a dinner plate resides on this left side of the rear wheel. The front sprocket(which is smaller) is hidden & out of sight rather inside the engine. When they are describing "checking" the chain what they are talking about is they want you to check how tight this chain is.
First locate the chain, notice how it is somewhat accessible on the lower side of the rear sprocket ,eyeball a spot some foot or so forward of the rear sprocket & physically push the chain UP...it should move only about an inch...if it moves more....two inches, it is really out of adjustment, more than two inches and it really could make alot of noise.
Rick........

 

[Anonymous]

Okay, so I checked the chain this morning, and it's real loose.

here are some pics:

chain down...

chain up...

looks like it is a little too loose.

well, I am going to turn those bolts that pull the wheel out some, a half-turn on each side repetitively until the chain has about 1" slack...

is that right? 1" is good???

 

[HiSPL]

Sounds like a genuine cry for help to me.....

OK, the first thing you want to do is buy a manual like this one.

http://garagecompany.com/bsuzuman.html


This book will go a long way in answering your questions about the workings of the bike, as well as good suggestions on tools that you may need to complete a given job. It gives you all the torque specs, fluid levels, and maintainence intervals that you need to know.

Having said that, I doubt you did any damage to the bike by downshifting without the clutch. These transmissions are built like Sherman tanks. As long as you don't make a habit out of it it'll be fine.

I also agree with jtcrespo. I keep my 750 above 3000 rpm while riding. If your cruising around at 1500 rpm you won't have the power available to get out of trouble if you need to. This is a high reving engine, not a slow turning V8. 3300 rpm is only one third of the duty cycle of the engine. Remember it will comfortably rev to 10,000 rpm.

Since you are new to riding, Ill suggest a few other things to check out. First is the Motorcycle safety course given by the MSF. This is invaluable to new riders, and could save your life, or at least your skin.

Second is Proficient Motorcycling by David Hough. You should be able to find this at your local bookstore or library. What ever it takes, read this book. It may save your life, or at least your skin. Noticing a trend here?

Third is proper gear. Full face helmet, jacket, gloves, boots, and pants (optional, but worth it). Never wear shorts, flip flops, and ball caps. A good place to shop is www.newenough.com . This guy is great and has great prices too. Going down on the road is like taking a belt sander to your skin. The proper gear will save you the intense pain and disfigurement that you could experience. Everytime you get ready for a ride, just think about what it would feel like to hold your palms, elbows and knees against a belt sander for 5-10 seconds. It can save your life. It can save your skin.

Good luck and welcome to the club. Thats a fine bike you've got there. Treat her right and she will reward you with thousands of miles of pure enjoyment. Treat her wrong and she can cut you open like a wet sack of groceries and dance on your sticky bones.

We welcome any questions about your bike here. We live to keep these machines on the road....

 

[HiSPL]

Yep. I usually do about 1 and a quarter inches. My bike likes a little slack in the chain. Turning the adjusters half a turn at a time is the right way to do it. You don't want to cockeye the wheel in the swingarm. Oh yeah, Don't forget to loosen the axle nut. Its on the right side and has a cotter pin through it. Take out the pin, loosen the nut (don't have to take it off), adjust the two bolts that tighten the chain.

Then tighten down the locknuts on the adjusters, tighten the axle nut till its pretty tight AND one of the holes lines up for the pin, then replace the pin.

Then go for a ride and see if you fixed the noise. 8)

 

[Jethro]

Whoa yeah, that chain is way too slack. Just to make sure you do the right thing here:

1. Remove the big cotter pin that should be through the axle holding the large axle nut on.

2. Loosen the axle nut so that it spins freely on the axle.

3. Loosen the nuts that hold the adjusting bolts in place.

4. Turn each adjusting bolt clockwise one full turn at a time until the chain has 1" (you were right) of up and down movement. Make sure you check the indicator lines to ensure you have equal placement on each side of the axle.

5. Tighten the adjuster nuts on the adjustment bolts, tighten the big axle nut and replace the cotter pin.

Just want to make sure you loosen the axle nut and adjuster nuts.

 

[Anonymous]

alright thanks for the instructions y'all

I just have one more question before I start this "project"

what's the best way to do this procedure, should the bike be on the center stand, or is the kick stand okay?

once I get off of work, I'll be able to work on it, then I'll let you all know how I did, and how the GS is doing

 

[jtcrespo]

You'll need it on a center stand with the rear wheel off of the ground. This will help to assure proper alignment, as well as safety. I usually have a buddy or two hold the bike steady while I make my adjustments to assure I don't pull or push the bike off of the stand.

While you're back there, make sure your chain is lubed as well.

 

[HiSPL]

Make sure you check the indicator lines to ensure you have equal placement on each side of the axle.

I wouldn't put too much faith in those marks on the swingarm. They are notorious for being off quite a bit from side to side.

 

[Anonymous]

Make sure you check the indicator lines to ensure you have equal placement on each side of the axle.

I wouldn't put too much faith in those marks on the swingarm. They are notorious for being off quite a bit from side to side.

I agree.I use a steel rule to check the distance from the chain adjuster supports to the rear of the adjusters.I once adjusted the chain using the swingarm marks then measured each side.WAAY off! 8O

 

[first timer]

the best way to center your chain on your rear sproket is to get the chain set to proper tension. then sit right behind the rear wheel looking at the side of the sproket head on. you will see the inside of the chian is rubbing up agianst the right or left side of the sproket.

what you need to do is center the chain so that you see some space between both sides of the sproket. (don't let the chain rub on the left or right) you will need to rotate your tire in the drive direction and look to see if there is any spaces. if the chain is pushed to the inside left of the sproket then you need to tighten up the right tension bolt or loosen up the left tension bolt. if the chain is pushed to the inside right of the sproket you will need to tighten the left tensionbolt or loosen the right tension bolt.

this takes some time and practice and you will sooner or later get all the bases covered with haveing the right tension in the chain and the chain being centered on the sproket. rember to rotate the rear wheel ALOT AND OFTEN to let the chain settle in the see if it is centered keep checking every thing as you do this because you can screw up your chain tension as you try to center the chain

-ryan.

 

[Anonymous]

I bet the chain just needs lube or possible a new chain depending on the life. if not, a chain adjustment is definitely in need!!!

 

[Guy]

Is it possible you've spun the generator rotor on the crank?

 

[Poot]

damn...for $1000, that wasnt to badd of a deal at all!!

Clymers manuals are the best I find, as my friend who bought a haynes manual, found it a slit bit more confusing.


Make sure, of all things as well, that you keep your chain well lubricated with good chain lube....dont go for the cheap stuff....

Although I've got a shaftie, they sell a lot of PJ1 brand spray at the suzuki stores I go to..

 

[Redman]

Oh, yeah, by looks of your photos, chain really needs adjusting, like others have said.
Also, you should get familiar with lubing the chain, and inspecting the sprockets. If you dont keep the chain lubed it will wear out faster and need adjustment more often, and wear out the sprockets too, and take up all the adjustment, and chain and sprockets need to be replaced.

In addition to possibly taking care of the klunking noise, adjusting the chain will take the drive train slack out of it, make the transition from from on to off the throttle smother.

$1000 dont sound bad for that bike.

Welcome to GSR.

 

[Anonymous]

Adjust and lube - definetly - yea, definetly. 8)

 

[crc1214]

Big Dog!!!

This is Chad, the guy you contacted about the 78 550 I had for sale in Columbus.

Man, I have all the tools and know-how to walk you right through this process. Even have cotter-pins for your axle nut. And a torque-wrench to boot. Could probably even spare some of my chain lube if you don't have some already.

You have my work e-mail, or just get back to me on this post.

If you can wait till this weekend, I can even drive up to your place or meet somewhere CLOSE to your place to do it. I say CLOSE because your chain is WAY to loose to be driving a significant distance. But who knows..... you could be right in my backyard........ I'm just east of Blacklick on Waggoner Rd.

Anyhow....... we'll get it done in about 30 minutes. We'll also check the length on the chain to see if it needs replaced.

If so........ I'll lead you to "the shrine" - The Rice Paddy - A salvage shop specializing in vintage Japanese street bikes - right near campus!!!!!

Let me know.

Chad
Columbus, OH 1978 GS550E