79 GS1000 Bobber Build

[thirdgen60]

So iv officially fallen off the deep end and decided to start a bike project.... its bad enough that i put money into a thirdgen .

Picked it up friday afternoon. 79 Suzuki GS1000L....yeah its got the chrome package


Gotta love that sissy bar.


The goal for this bike it mainly to build something that looks decent, isn't horribly slow, cheap to build (hence the jap bike), something different and most importantly keep me busy because i finished my winter project to early. Ill be going for a bobber look and probably a few cafe styling cues.

I bought the bike knowing it burned oil and had been sitting since 2010. So i knew a rebuild was in order but i wanted to get it fired up to check for any other issues. Only took a few hours to get it running so took it around the block and then parked it to start tearing apart.


Anybody need parts


No going back now ;D


Got the engine/trans out and started to mock up for the hardtail conversion. The bike will be lowered about 3" and stretched about 6" in the rear.



Also got the engine torn apart this weekend, expecting to find some obvious issues due to the large amount of oil it was burning. But there were no obvious signs of wear in the cylinders or damage to the rings, which has me thinking valve seals. Either way since it is apart it will be getting honed, new rings, valve seals, the works.


Thanks for looking
Tyler

[notchbackfox]

that thing will definitely be fun!

[LT1 ANDY]

Tyler, should have just pm'd me, I have plenty of things i could use some help with!

Andy

[nomrlz]

love the old GS and KZ styles

[89novi2000]

nice, clean, and organized work bench that sells it rite there,good job.....

[thirdgen60]

Apr 3, 2012 6:56:50 GMT -6 LT1 ANDY said:

I have plenty of things i could use some help with!

Andy

Isnt that the truth

[thirdgen60]

Apr 3, 2012 8:31:06 GMT -6 89novi2000 said:

nice, clean, and organized work bench that sells it rite there,good job.....

Thanks, I actually just rebuilt the workbench the weekend before with my brother-in-laws old counter tops. No better way to break it in

[jeff1803]

Here is an end goal for you...but might want to add a little more cushion to the seat (this one looks a little thin)

www.pipeburn.com/home/2011/5/23/1979-suzuki-gs1000.html

[thirdgen60]

nice, iv actually seen that one. Id like to use the clip on handle bars like that but the overall look is much more cafe than the direction im going

[ieatz28]

those had a problem with the valve stems going bad...also if it sat for quite some time could be the rings were slightly stuck causing it to smoke..cool project

[thirdgen60]

Finally had some time to get the frame tacked together. I also drew up some axle plates in Autodesk Inventor to fit in the frame so now i just need to figure out where to get them cut.

[noslowzee1]

Looking good!

[ieatz28]

call kris swinburn at moline welding he can cut those out on the laser for ya

[thirdgen60]

^^Thanks for the tip on the laser cutting but i actually already got a universal set and just modified them.



And on that note i have some updates

I picked up a set of axle plates with the correct slot size to modify for my needs.


Its a bit hard to tell whats going on in this pick, but i machined a set of plates to fit in the slot of the original swing arm (which is still in place in this pic) and also fit in the slot of the axle plate. This allowed me me ensure the axle plates got welded in according to the original geometry of the bike frame and not to the geometry of my garage build frame


I cut up the stock handle bars to make some temporary ones to get an idea of the look. With the bike back in rolling form, i rolled it out and gave it a bath.


And finally a shot after grinding the new frame welds, with the tank set on it and after shortening both the side and center kick stands.

[ieatz28]

lookin killer

[paulford8]

Nice work, looks good! Those old Suzuki GS bikes were not to bad. Is it a 6 speed trans?

[thirdgen60]

Thanks guys.

It's just a 5 speed trans.

[thirdgen60]

Well its been a while since iv had an update, mostly due to being out of town for 3 weeks.

I found out that the cylinder head had a broken valve guide so the head is over at Klemmes in davenport for the repair. Meanwhile i got the new rings installed, cylinders ball honed, and reinstalled.


Rear fender and seat are tacked in place.


Fork seals were seeping a bit so i decided to do a rebuild on them, which was surprisingly easy.


Got most of the front end pieces painted up while the forks are off.


Made up a bracket for the license plate and taillight.


Finally, this is the way it sits as of now. Im working on mounting the wiring and battery. Once thats done the frame should be ready for some paint and the bike can start coming back together.


thanks for looking

[ieatz28]

awesome!!! whats the red bike?? appears to be a 2 cyl..maybe a 2 stroke??

[thirdgen60]

The other bike is a 67 bridgestone 175 2stroke. Runs like a champ and makes for a nice little cruiser

[jthiede07]

wow this is gonna be tight as fuck!

[thirdgen60]

^^^^ your truck looks sick as hell

[thirdgen60]

Out of town again this week for work but i have a small update.

Got the cylinder head back on the engine and a coat of paint put on it.


Also got the battery and wiring panel mounted up, just need to weld tab to the frame for the seat shocks and the frame should be ready for paint.

[ieatz28]

Jul 14, 2012 18:01:24 GMT -6 thirdgen60 said:

^^^^ your truck looks sick as hell

x2

[ieatz28]

lookin better every time..cant believe u painted the ultra rare chrome package though

[thirdgen60]

All the hardlys guys would have paid thousands for all that chrome i painted

[ieatz28]

lol....chrome don't get ya home, but the ladeez love it

[Koble]

Looks good so far

[ieatz28]

you should sand the edges of the fins with 60 or 80 grit

[thirdgen60]

I actually took the file to them on one side but didnt like the way it looked and painted right back over it