New here - gs450l budget build

Emptygrace

Emptygrace

Im young but im ready for any challenge
Hello everyone, i am new here to the site. I purchased a suzuki gs450L last summer for really cheap money, probably due to the fact that the bike was not running. Got it running after cleaning it up, adding fluids and doing some other essentials. Now that she is starting, i would like to make the bike look and perform how i intended it too. I will be posting pictures of my progress and i hope you guys can help me out with info and ideas.

Thanks, Empty


1980 GS450L by Emptygrace9, on Flickr
 
Wow welcome onboard now thats a clean starting point man 8) and a running motor total bonus you gonna get ya caferacer up n running in no time gonna watch ya project mate take plenty of pics and we're here if ya need answers or advice ;)
 
Ahhh I wish that was my starting point man, this was the image i grabbed from the previous owner. When i managed to snag her, he had put roughly 5K on the bike until he had a small dump which left him with a bum knee :'(, causing him to sell it ;D. With a couple of small scratches, a cracked tach and a non working blinker the bike still easily caught my eye. Getting the bike for $350 a state away was a dream come true, now just to see what i can come up with :D

Thanks, Empty

ps will be posting plenty of progress pictures soon
 

photo (2) by Emptygrace9, on Flickr


DSC00088 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

A set of black ace clubmans in the garage work perfectly.

After stripping the rear section of the bike, i put the good ol' angle grinder to work de-lugging and chopping the rear.
Now that leaves the task of fabricating a seamless rear loop. Without a metal shop to work with, this could be a tough task for one man and his garage tools.
 
Used the Dime City Cycles fiberglass mat tutorial on youtube. Got the supplies from a small hardware store down the road for around $45 (i believe it was 8sqft. or mat and of cors the resin). After 3 layers of mat, still had supplies left over for another job ;D.

Ohh and dont mind the zip-tie license plate job, just used for test drive purposes :)



DSC00091 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

Instead of using the foam blocks mentioned, i used some styrofoam sheets laying around the garage. Worked nicely.


DSC00090 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr


DSC00092 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr


DSC00095 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

After a couple hours of carving and shaving with some random ass tools, the shape was coming together.


DSC00098 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr


DSC00100 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

First try. Happy with the results


seat by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

After about a week of bondo sanding and priming the mold was no longer a rinkled mess. Luckily a very nice man i work with is also a motorcycle fanatic (used to build and race Kawasaki drag racers). He helped me out huge when he gave me a spare peice of "wackie board" if i remember correctly. Worked brilliantly when attaching my leather.

Used some leather and foam padding i found from a torn Yamaha seat.


DSC00108 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr


DSC00107 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr
 
Looking good man keep up the good work. Nice 450 ya have and the L series bikes are good candidates. When you do the rear hoop make sure you put a lug in both sides of the frame for support.
 
with the rear frame loop problem slowly being sorted out i thought i would turn my attention to the "triangle".

I would like a clean looking triangle space, so ordered a set of pod filters, a smaller agm battery and the neccesary cables to go along with the battery relocation. Made a bracket for the battery, probably mount it low on my brass fender or under the seat hump and tuck the electronics under the seat as well.


DSC00243 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

Will post pics of progress
 
danejurrous said:
Looking good man keep up the good work. Nice 450 ya have and the L series bikes are good candidates. When you do the rear hoop make sure you put a lug in both sides of the frame for support.
Click to expand...

Thanks dane, my first motorcycle, and a dang sexy one if i may add. I plan on transforming her 8)
 
Welcome again Empty. Nice to see you and the 450 made it over. There are a few GS450 builds going on right now so there is some good inspiration to pull from.

I'll be following along for sure. Dane, Big Rich, Pete and countless others are great with the Zuks, and the general knowledge and experiance on DTT never fails to amaze me.

There is always the GSresources for the tecnical side of things. The site is mostly purests (which you know if your a member already), but the information on the site is priceless.

GK
 
gk45011 said:
Welcome again Empty. Nice to see you and the 450 made it over. There are a few GS450 builds going on right now so there is some good inspiration to pull from.

I'll be following along for sure. Dane, Big Rich, Pete and countless others are great with the Zuks, and the general knowledge and experiance on DTT never fails to amaze me.

There is always the GSresources for the tecnical side of things. The site is mostly purests (which you know if your a member already), but the information on the site is priceless.

GK
Click to expand...


Thanks GK, I am really excited to be here. I have already seen some outstanding looking builds out there and grabbed a ton of awesome info from here and the GSresources to help me progress with my build :D I'm excited to show you guy the progress and see what you think for a first time builder.

-Empty
 
Getting a little side tracked but had to see a quick mock up view. I had a buddy of mine weld a 1 1/2" riser for my gas tank today to level the lines a bit. Used the angle grinder on the front fender to trim it down, then painted it black.

Happy with results


photo 3 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr


DSC00238 by Emptygrace9, on Flickr

Just waiting on some goodies to come in the mail ;D
 
danejurrous said:
Looking good man keep up the good work. Nice 450 ya have and the L series bikes are good candidates. When you do the rear hoop make sure you put a lug in both sides of the frame for support.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the heads up dane, ill make sure to put some slugs in both ends of the piping
 
Okay so, i am in the process of taking the carbs off and cleaning them thoroughly. With the purchase of the shorties and pod filters, i felt i would need to rejet. Ordered a pair of 132.5 mains? I am sure someone out there went the route that i am going haha i do feel good about my choice of 132's, but am curious about the response i will get.

Can anyone tell me how there project turned out?

Thanks, Empty
 
I haven't quite started yet but I'm in the process of re-jetting for pods and a free-er flowing exhaust on the same bike.

I was wondering what made you choose 7 sizes up for the main? I'm not saying you've made a mistake or anything I just wondered what steered you to go with 132.5's. I've read a lot of conflicting information for the CV carbs and right now I'm thinking anywhere from 4-8 sizes up for mine should do it.
 
jeffasaurus2 said:
Also, good looking bike so far! I like the direction you're taking.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the comment Jeff,

As for my decision on the jet sizes, i spent alot of time doing research on this subject, looking at the post' here on DTT and also the gsresources (great info. site). I eventually found a thread here on DTT posted by "gk45011" titled "Stuck..please help. carb issue...". http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=43343.0.

They get into deep discussion on proper jetting for the 450, and especially with the pod filters and flowing exhaust mods. I feel pretty confident with this thread and also with my decision on the sizing, now just to see how she performs ;D
Will keep you posted

Thanks - Empty
 
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