My 81 GS450 Cafe Build

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Decided to see what it sounded like with the baffles unwrapped. Uh, yeah. They're staying unwrapped. ;D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_8KrMzkHVc

Also ordered a new headlight:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Universal-Motorcycle-7-Black-LED-Headlight-Fits-Triumph-Honda-Norton-Cafe-Racer-/180938181441?ssPageName=ADME:L:OC:US:3160

 

[gk45011]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

How has that effected your jetting? Are you running super lean? I am still working on hetting my pods remotely right. Are the pipe modifications with the stock airbox really a minor change in comparison?

Do tell please, I'm dying to know. I have thought about taking and drilling the baffles in the stock pipes. (shorter than your origibals, and in good shape).

GK

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

How has that effected your jeyying? Are you running super lean? I am still working on hetting my pods remotely right. Are the pipe modifications with the stock airbox really a minor change in comparison?

Do tell please, I'm dying to know. I have thought about taking and drilling the baffles in the stock pipes. (shorter than your origibals, and in good shape).

GK

After removing the wrapping, it actually smells a little rich now. It also feels stronger than it did, especially off idle and in the low to mid range. It kinda falls flat at 9k though. But, it is a 31 year old 450 with who knows how many miles on it. Plugs are about as good as you could hope for given my bodge of an air filter and exhaust. Most guys I talked to said modding the exhaust and using baffles would require very little to no carb changes. Looks like they were right.
With the wrapping, it was just a hair on the lean side. I think I was causing too much backpressure before, and the motor feeling stronger would support that in my mind. I thought about why it would appear lean with too much back pressure, and it makes some sense. Since the motor will only pull the fuel it needs given the vacuum in the cylinders, if they motor can't exhale, it also isn't inhaling properly, and not drawing enough fuel from the carbs.
In my theorizing anyway. ;D
What I've done is choke the straight pipes down to a 3/4" opening at the end of the pipe. This seems to work well in place of the factory mufflers as far as backpressure is concerned, but it sounds a million times better (but I like loud). It's still maybe only as loud as my neighbor's Harley with mufflers.

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Ordered a set of superbike bars and some new grips. I'm also going to remove the center stand (my neighbor has a frame lift that I can use whenever), and probably remove the muffler mounts. I just have to figure out where to hook the rear brake lever return spring.

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Been buying some parts.
Picked up a new headlight and mounts:

Superbike bars and new grips:

And a GS1100G tank:

I also removed my chain guard, and peg/muffler mounts. This really cleaned up the back end of the bike:

 

[gk45011]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Love that tank. Should make a huge difference in the overall look. How are the mounts in relation to your frame? How much work will it take to get it to fit?

GK

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Love that tank. Should make a huge difference in the overall look. How are the mounts in relation to your frame? How much work will it take to get it to fit?

GK

It should drop right on. The rear mounts are identical, and the front cushion mounts look to match up as well. I'll know better when I get it. Same model year, GS to GS.

 

[Big R]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Bill, I'm curious about the tank as well......

Can you post some measurements when you get it? I tried resting an 850 tank on my 450 frame, and the front mounts were perfect - but the tank was a couple inches longer in the rear.

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Bill, I'm curious about the tank as well......

Can you post some measurements when you get it? I tried resting an 850 tank on my 450 frame, and the front mounts were perfect - but the tank was a couple inches longer in the rear.

Will do.
It looks to mount the same, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's a tad longer. But, it also has a different shape, so who knows.

Repainted my front fender. I'm probably going to do all green on the tank, with black kneed dents, and an all green tail section. I just love this color!! I sprayed it over a gold basecoat this time.

 

[danejurrous]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Ha ha talking about all the zook guys sticking together there are more and more of us each day.

The GS1100 tank will be a bit longer as it is a 5 gallon tank and if I remember correctly you only have a 2.9 gal tank? You will more than likely need to fab up a rear mount to account for the length and adjust a tank pad underneath in the tunnel to have it sit correctly. The front mounts on the 1100 tank will sit further up toward the neck on the frame so you might need to pull the covers and put a bar through the hole in the frame to have it mount up right as the front mounts will be different for the 81' 1100 e series tank. I can take some pictures of my 1100 tank when I get home if you would like to show what I mean so you can see if your frame is the same?

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Ha ha talking about all the zook guys sticking together there are more and more of us each day.

The GS1100 tank will be a bit longer as it is a 5 gallon tank and if I remember correctly you only have a 2.9 gal tank? You will more than likely need to fab up a rear mount to account for the length and adjust a tank pad underneath in the tunnel to have it sit correctly. The front mounts on the 1100 tank will sit further up toward the neck on the frame so you might need to pull the covers and put a bar through the hole in the frame to have it mount up right as the front mounts will be different for the 81' 1100 e series tank. I can take some pictures of my 1100 tank when I get home if you would like to show what I mean so you can see if your frame is the same?

Mine has a 4 gallon tank (TX or Commuter model).
The 1100G tank I bought LOOKS to be identical to the GS450E tank, but I'm not sure if all the dimensions are the same. So, that has me hopeful that a swap willbe fairly straightforward.
GS450E:

But I'd definitely like to see your frame/tank to compare to mine. If even one set of mounts lines up, it should go on pretty easily.

 

[danejurrous]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Although the GS450E series tanks look similar they are different. I found a pic of my 1100 tank on my 750 so you can see the differences of the tank itself. This is still before I have fixed the mounts on my bike frame. I will sang ya some more pictures when I dig the bike out after work.

Even then the swap won't be too hard for ya if it doesn't bolt right up.

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Although the GS450E series tanks look similar they are different. I found a pic of my 1100 tank on my 750 so you can see the differences of the tank itself. This is still before I have fixed the mounts on my bike frame. I will sang ya some more pictures when I dig the bike out after work.

Even then the swap won't be too hard for ya if it doesn't bolt right up.

Thanks for the pic!!
Seeing the two side by side, I like the 1100 tank better. It also looks a lot easier to lay down on than the 450 tank. I see how it covers those front plates, and I like your idea of passing a mount through there.
Any interference with the handlebars?
Sharp looking bike!!

 

[danejurrous]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Thanks for the pic!!
Seeing the two side by side, I like the 1100 tank better. It also looks a lot easier to lay down on than the 450 tank. I see how it covers those front plates, and I like your idea of passing a mount through there.
Any interference with the handlebars?
Sharp looking bike!!

Thanks Sinister! Like anything else it is a work in progress and I have to fix a few things that I did previously but don't like the more I look at it. That and I need to get the 1100 aluminum swinger and 18" rear wheel mocked up.

With a solid metal bar and two washers welded into the hole in the frame where the covers are it will mount up perfectly for ya. I have a mount for the rear mount made up but not placed in yet as it was about 3" further back than my stock mount.

The handle bars are a different story. Since I have clip-ons I do have a little issue with turning and currently they hit the tank. What I am going to do though is lower the front end another 1/4" and then move the clip-ons above the triple clamps which should clear just fine. If you keep your clubmans turned up I don't see you having any issue, turned down you might since the tank is fairly wide compared to my original 3 gallon tank. The look fits perfectly for a cafe and although the 450 tank is nice I do like the 1100 tank better. One other thing you might want to check is where the petcock placement will be as well because the tank will more than likely hang a little lower than stock.

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Thanks Sinister! Like anything else it is a work in progress and I have to fix a few things that I did previously but don't like the more I look at it. That and I need to get the 1100 aluminum swinger and 18" rear wheel mocked up.

With a solid metal bar and two washers welded into the hole in the frame where the covers are it will mount up perfectly for ya. I have a mount for the rear mount made up but not placed in yet as it was about 3" further back than my stock mount.

The handle bars are a different story. Since I have clip-ons I do have a little issue with turning and currently they hit the tank. What I am going to do though is lower the front end another 1/4" and then move the clip-ons above the triple clamps which should clear just fine. If you keep your clubmans turned up I don't see you having any issue, turned down you might since the tank is fairly wide compared to my original 3 gallon tank. The look fits perfectly for a cafe and although the 450 tank is nice I do like the 1100 tank better. One other thing you might want to check is where the petcock placement will be as well because the tank will more than likely hang a little lower than stock.

I'll keep the petcock placement in mind, thanks.
I'll be switching to a set of superbike bars, so they SHOULD still be above the tank, but probably just.
I googled "GS750 tank" to see where you started mount wise, and my tank mounts differently. It uses two protruding tabs at the rear, just like the 1100 tank I bought. They all seem to use the cushion mounts in the front, but the 750 tank slots look to be further forward than the 450. I'm betting the rear will line up, but the front will be further forward. It's weird that a 750 four came with a smaller tank than a 450 twin. I guess being a model designed for traffic/commuting, they figured a larger capacity tank was a good idea.

Here's my 81 GS450 frame:

And a 82 GS1100 frame like this tank came off of:

And a GS750 frame, for reference:

Here's a GS1100G tank:

And a 450T tank:

So, since the cushion mounts on the 450 tank are shallower than that of the 1100, it MAY work. They even look to use the same filler cap. Also, if I'm seeing it right, my front mounts are closer to that of the 1100 than the 750. Of course, without dimensions given, I could just be mentally playing with myself. ;D

In any event, I'll MAKE it work!!

 

[danejurrous]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Ah I didn't realize you had purchased a 82 year model tank, I thought you had said it was the same year as your 450 being an 81, sorry about that bro. That will change things as you know the rear mounts are the two bolt vs the single mount bolt like I have. The tank on the 82 GS1100G looks very similar to mine in style with a few minute differences. It is a little further set forward in the knee dents and the bulk of the tank. Although as I said I would, not sure if it will help much at this point, but here are a few pics of my tank and front mount.


IMG_6935 by Mlyman, on Flickr

IMG_6933 by Mlyman, on Flickr

IMG_6934 by Mlyman, on Flickr

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: The Lucky Bastard lives!!

Ah I didn't realize you had purchased a 82 year model tank, I thought you had said it was the same year as your 450 being an 81, sorry about that bro. That will change things as you know the rear mounts are the two bolt vs the single mount bolt like I have. The tank on the 82 GS1100G looks very similar to mine in style with a few minute differences. It is a little further set forward in the knee dents and the bulk of the tank. Although as I said I would, not sure if it will help much at this point, but here are a few pics of my tank and front mount.

I mistakenly may have, actually.
Thanks for the pics, they're still a great reference!! Looks like even if it had been an 81 tanks, it would have not been too difficult a swap.

 

[danejurrous]

Re: My 81 GS450 Cafe Build, renamed "Nancy Whiskey"

Who knows maybe the 82' tank will bolt right up which would be awesome. I have had is stuck in my head this morning and was looking around on eBay and found an 82' gs1100g tank that has some decent pictures on it that might help better than mine.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/suzuki-82-83-gs1100g-gk-1100-looks-very-very-nice-gas-tank-brown-box-nos-/300834400595?hash=item460b20a953&item=300834400595&pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Re: My 81 GS450 Cafe Build, renamed "Nancy Whiskey"

Who knows maybe the 82' tank will bolt right up which would be awesome. I have had is stuck in my head this morning and was looking around on eBay and found an 82' gs1100g tank that has some decent pictures on it that might help better than mine.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/suzuki-82-83-gs1100g-gk-1100-looks-very-very-nice-gas-tank-brown-box-nos-/300834400595?hash=item460b20a953&item=300834400595&pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr

After looking at the pics in the link, I bet it will be damn close!!
I'll have to fab a blockoff plate for the sending unit, but I knew that.
That 2 tone brown, WOW. ;D

 

[KaaoSkitzofreniK]

Re: My 81 GS450 Cafe Build, renamed "Nancy Whiskey"

Mr. sinister, if you go with some rearsets instead of resting your feet on the stock sets, you would probably get a much better position to ride the bike with the clubmans back to their original position. Just a suggestion, not sure what other plans you have for the bike. Great looking bike!