1982 GS650G First time builder

Definitely time for an update! Last time I posted, my bike wasn't even running. I guess my wife having a baby is an alright excuse....but I still should have at least gotten an update on here!

I replaced the reg/rec and it didn't fix my problem. I still had no power. I went through and found a bad ground. I cleaned up the connections and applied a little dielectric grease and power was restored! But the bike still wouldn't start. I ran some basic troubleshooting on the starter switch and solenoid; they seemed like they were working.

As I sat in my garage with a Klymer manual and YouTube as my guides, I realized that I was in over my head. The thought of taking out the starter motor with my limited tools and even more limited skill was a little daunting. I called a local vintage shop, and they were able to get me in. Starter motor was fine. There was some bad wiring. Imagine that. Bad wiring on a 30 year old motorcycle where some N00b installed LED turn signals, created one bad ground and then found an even worse one under his battery.

$200 in parts and labor later...the bike is running like a dream. I will post later today about some of the upgrades I have made since getting it road ready again. New bars...new muffler...exhaust wrap.

I should clarify that last post...I am the N00b.

Good to see your still out there, even better that your up and running! We've got Vintage Days at Mid-Ohio coming up the weekend of 7/19 and Cleveland Mods vs Rockers the weekend of 8/09. Check out the thread on bike nights in the area as well. Some local rides going on monthly as well with some other groups if you are interested.

Matt

Matt,

I'm glad to see that you are still following these posts. I'm definitely going down to Mid-Ohio on that Saturday. I will probably be heading out early in the morning. I'm going to be meeting my brother-in-law from Columbus down there. What days are you planning on going?

And now for some photos of the muffler:

OLD ONE

I have no idea why those posted upside down, but if you click on them, they are correct. Weird.

So basically, I had an old 4 into 1 exhaust that the previous owner had added (after the 2 original 2 into 1's that were on the stock bike). The muffler wasn't rusted through, but it was big, had some rust, didn't sound great, and was really heavy.

I did a little research and found a universal shorty muffler from DCC that I thought looked really nice, was light, and from the one youtube video I saw of it on a GS650, was louder. That video did have the original pipes, so there were two shorty mufflers on that bike, but I figured it might still work on the 4 into 1.

Once I got the bike running again after the electrical issues and saved up a little more cash (which took longer than usual with a baby on the way), I went to a local car muffler shop and asked them to do a little custom work for me. They were able to weld an extension onto the muffler that would allow it to fit over my enlarged 4 into 1 exhaust. From there I took off the old muffler, attached the new one with a little help, and used the original clamps to hold the muffler in place.

At this point in the process, it didn't look pretty. The weld was messy. I purchased a dremel bit for my drill, but that didn't have enough power to clean it up. The weld is nice and thick, so I don't need to be concerned about sanding it smooth. I just don't have any tools with the power to get the job done. SO...I took the cheap way out for now, and I will do it the way I want a little farther down the line. The pipes had some discoloration, were exceptionally dirty, and there were a couple of places I was pretty sure I couldn't get them shining again.

What do you do with ugly pipes? Replace them, paint them, or wrap them. I chose to wrap them. My brother-in-law was in from CBus, so he and I spent an evening cleaning and wrapping the pipes...only to discover that I didn't have enough wrap. So I ordered more. In a few days I was back out in the garage with my latex gloves on wrapping the REST of the pipes. Once the pipes were wrapped and dry, I used the recommended HT silicon sealant to cover the wrap. They recommended putting multiple coats on. I put on two at the time. I will most likely wash the bike and add another coat here in the next month or so. They recommend curing the pipes once they are sprayed. The only way I had of getting that type of heat was to run the bike...so that is what I did. Overall, I am very pleased with the way that the pipes and the exhaust have turned out.

Picture Time:

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I want to apologize for the quality of this one. I took it on my phone and didn't realize it was blurry.

In the next couple of days, I will get more photos of the exhaust and the new bars/mirrors. I'm pretty pleased with where my bike is right now, but that only means I've started dreaming of what I want to do over the winter.

I don't think I mentioned this anywhere, but the 4-1 with a shorty muffler has a MUCH more aggressive throaty rumble than the exhaust that was previously on the bike. The addition of the exhaust wrap also resolved a minor issue that I had with backfiring in the period when I was running with the shorty muffler and 4-1 pipes. I love the way it looks and the way it sounds. City riding has become so much more enjoyable. I can now hear my exhaust reverberating of the buildings. It is loud enough to turn heads but not loud enough that those people aren't smiling as they see me go by. Perfect.

LovingtheCLE said:

Matt,

I'm glad to see that you are still following these posts. I'm definitely going down to Mid-Ohio on that Saturday. I will probably be heading out early in the morning. I'm going to be meeting my brother-in-law from Columbus down there. What days are you planning on going?

Click to expand...

Right now planning on Friday and Saturday, maybe Sunday too. Bought the weekend package deal already. Whole bunch of DTT'rs going. Watch the thread- should be meeting back in the infield. Will be riding down Saturday for sure - again watch posts. Let me know if you want to ride with.

Matt

Matt,

Shoot me a DM with the details of when you think you will be going down on Saturday and I'll see if we can connect.

So a while back I got some clubman bars on Amazon that were designed for Suzuki GS models, new grips, a new "racing style" clutch lever from DTT, and bar end mirrors. All in all, it was enough to significantly change the look of the front profile of my bike. I have really enjoyed both the new look and the increased handling.

All-in-all my new bars, grips, and mirror cost me less than $100. The $25 clubmans were a bit of a risk, but I was really impressed with the quality once I received them. They have held up well over the last few months of riding.

The brake lever and master cylinder are going to get a coat of black rattle can so that they more closely match the handle bars and the rest of my blacked out parts.

First the exhaust...then the bars.

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Can anyone tell me why some of these photos are posting upside down? They look fine when you click on them. The thumbnails on my computer look fine.

It drives me crazy, but at least the photos are up.

A little more rattlecan work to finish blacking out everything on the bars.

At this point, unless I am gripped by some odd desire to paint more things black (which may happen), I am done until the winter when I will be cutting the frame, adding a custom seat and removable cowl, fixing the small leaks in the tank and removing as much unnecessary weight as possible.

Good deal- coming to Mods vs Rockers this weekend?

Just saw your post.

I was nearby and tried to make it for a hot minute on Saturday...when my phone died while I was looking up McCarthy's on maps. I saw a few bikes headed there as I was leaving downtown, but I was tight on time and couldn't follow them.

Missed a good one - quite a few bikes - I've heard everywhere from 300 to 500 total. Already looking for a new, bigger venue for next year!

Tonight is the 3rd Two Wheel Round up of the year at Prosperity Social Club in Tremont, and the weather looks perfect. It's also cheap steak night there- good deal. Unless something happens, I plan on being there around 7:00ish.