I didn't get much done tonight..
combination of 4 hours sleep.. 2 hours at the gym, pushing the weights to hard, full day of work..kids gone wild.. I lack the mental capacity to do anything useful

So I did something useless. I started out just trying to clean up the surface rust on the axle bolt so the spacers would slide on without the use of a hammer. I ended up polishing the axle bolt and spacers to a nice shine....
Really it's all I can handle tonight...

Just when I thought I was getting some where it looks like I'm going backwards.. But it's a good thing..

Most of the parts are in except the seat cover.

The Tires are in at the shop so I pulled both wheels off last night. Forks are also coming out for new seals.

I started putting the new bars on.. I have most of it figured out but it's going to take re-routing the the throttle cable and brake line.

Rear sets are on.. They are built for...

Once again I'm scratching my head trying to figure out what the hell the PO was thinking (or smoking)

What started this was the box sitting where the voltage regulator belongs. It's a CDI from a 1980 GS850 and it's wired into the bike somehow.. going over the wiring diagram shows the coil outputs are hooked up to ?? The wires run off into a ball of tape.. the pickup lead is just taped off and left hanging.. I can't see how the hell this thing is doing anything.
Voltage regulator...

I finally finished the carbs last night..

I didn't think they would drag on so long..

I replaced most of the fasteners with stainless, all new O rings and gaskets.







Next on the hit list.. petcock and tank...

I got the lathe working today so I made a few parts for the GS.



They are new fuel transfer tubes for the VM26 carbs.. The old rubber hat seals were shot and they dont make em anymore so I made some O-ring type tubes..

For the T fitting I just made aluminum hats to replace the rubber seals.. I'll epoxy them in place..

BOOM.. thats the first sign I got that the Suzuki has some life left in it..

I tore down and cleaned the handle bar switches last night.. they are all working prefectly now.. then I spent an hour or so chasing a bad ground.. Now that that is all sorted I can hit the button and spin the motor over.. So far so good.. Coils are gettin juce..
I fugure what the hell.. I squirt a tiny shot of gas down the carb boots and hit the switch..

she sputtered twice then BOOM!!!...

I figure for most old bikes left to rot in the corner of the garage there is a reason it was left there..

I found the reason on my GS1000 today..

I finally retrieved it's battery from the lawn mower today and replaced the MIA starter solenoid..

We got her all wired up, hit the button and she just rattled.... Not what I was hoping for..

OK pull the stator cover.. starter gear looks good, small driven gear looks OK, main gear OK.. Check the...

The last 2 days (nights whatever) I've been working on tearing down the carbs for the GS..
It was all looking really good until I got to the pilot screws.. It has Mikuni VM26 carbs.. They have 2 pilot screws each.. one for air and one for fuel.. One thing to note is Suzuki seals these screws in at the factory with paint.. This makes getting them out just that much more entertaining..

To start out I found the tip of one pilot fuel screw was missing.. I found it in the usual...

Last weekend I got to put my new trailer to use again. Handy thing it is..

A 79 Suzuki GS1000 turned up on CL for $100..
I was in Seattle that day so I thought I missed it but wrote to him anyway. Sunday afternoon I get the call.. It's still available and it has a title!

It's a no brainer..



She's got some electrical issues.. needs the carbs cleaned, fork...

The XS-400 need a little forkin work this week..

She blew a fork seal a few weeks ago..
Parts finally arrived so I took a little time to pull the forks, clean them out, install new seals, dust wipers and refill with fresh 30w oil..

Stock used 20w but I'm a big guy so 30w was recommended.. After a little 20 mile test ride I'm happy with the results.

Yeah this is a boring post