brainrush
Active Member
Hi all, I've had my project for just over a year now, working on it in between school and such, I've been reading these boards on and off for a while, and at first was a little hesitant to join, but I figured why not. To get you up to speed on my project here it is:
a 1978 Suzuki GS 550E bought off a lein sale for $200
A true basket case with a motor whose #4 cylinder was frozen with rust, and a previous "mechanic" that did all sorts of horror stories to this poor old bike before I got it. Since it's in too rough a shape to restor properly, I'm converting it to a cafe style racer.
I took the engine apart, tore down the bike to a rolling chassis, sanded and rattlecanned the frame in primer, then satin "colonial red". to gibe myself some inspiration to work towards.
the cylinder only had a fairy thick coat of surface rust, but that went away when I honed it.
The major problem was the starter's stator had frozen into a solid globule of rust that needed replacing.
Got the motor back together but the carbs were filled with silicoln sealant that melted and fuel screws torqued into the carb body making all 4 carbs quite useless. I wasn't able to run the bike without choke but at least got it to a jogging pace around the block, new carbs are on their way,
at current the bike looks like this:
Registering the bike cost me $300
the paint scheme I'm going for is satin red frame/ flat black panels, with a gloss black air force roundel on both sides of the tank. Its a simple yet classic color combo that's been around since before the board track days of the 20's. I'm a real fan of the black on black paint jobs and am finishing the paint tomorrow.
if all goes to plan and the new carbs do the trick, I'm building some rearsets, a new seat pan and installing clubmans, shortening the rear subframe by about 6 inches and hopefulyl retaining the stock duckbill.
The Main theme of the bike is a cafe without all the gloss, sure I'm polishing little bits here and there, but the lines of the frame are too rough (the "mechanic's" favorite tools apparently were a welder and vise-grips!) to really want to draw attention to it. I'm saving the pretty stuff for my next build. I'm looking for a low Cg and polar moment of inertia to give the best roll transition and turn-in/track out capabilities I can.
a 1978 Suzuki GS 550E bought off a lein sale for $200
A true basket case with a motor whose #4 cylinder was frozen with rust, and a previous "mechanic" that did all sorts of horror stories to this poor old bike before I got it. Since it's in too rough a shape to restor properly, I'm converting it to a cafe style racer.
I took the engine apart, tore down the bike to a rolling chassis, sanded and rattlecanned the frame in primer, then satin "colonial red". to gibe myself some inspiration to work towards.
the cylinder only had a fairy thick coat of surface rust, but that went away when I honed it.
The major problem was the starter's stator had frozen into a solid globule of rust that needed replacing.
Got the motor back together but the carbs were filled with silicoln sealant that melted and fuel screws torqued into the carb body making all 4 carbs quite useless. I wasn't able to run the bike without choke but at least got it to a jogging pace around the block, new carbs are on their way,
at current the bike looks like this:
Registering the bike cost me $300
the paint scheme I'm going for is satin red frame/ flat black panels, with a gloss black air force roundel on both sides of the tank. Its a simple yet classic color combo that's been around since before the board track days of the 20's. I'm a real fan of the black on black paint jobs and am finishing the paint tomorrow.
if all goes to plan and the new carbs do the trick, I'm building some rearsets, a new seat pan and installing clubmans, shortening the rear subframe by about 6 inches and hopefulyl retaining the stock duckbill.
The Main theme of the bike is a cafe without all the gloss, sure I'm polishing little bits here and there, but the lines of the frame are too rough (the "mechanic's" favorite tools apparently were a welder and vise-grips!) to really want to draw attention to it. I'm saving the pretty stuff for my next build. I'm looking for a low Cg and polar moment of inertia to give the best roll transition and turn-in/track out capabilities I can.
alwys opening and shutting the dumb things cuz it rains for 10 seconds then stops, then a bit more, then not... always gray though. like the city's covered in a cozy blanket all the time. I miss the air...
