Here's a thread I posted when I changed the tires on my Ulysses, but same method I used while doing the Tempters. A little hint, get front tires without the center groove or rib, they like to follow any kind of groove in the road like it's on a rail whether you want to go that way or not. :eek1 http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=329135
That's good to hear from another GR650 owner. Never heard one, other than on the 'net and wasn't sure I should think it was as good as I believed. Reassuring that you think I've got it close.
I was working for a Suzuki-0nly dealership when the Tempters were new, and really liked 'em! There is no starter-interlock on the sidestand, just the clutch lever...... and that one can be disabled almost instantly Simply disconnect the polarized connectors from the switch to the harness, and plug the two harness connections together. Thanks for sharing this restration!
A friend is supposed to bring his sync tool over tomorrow, so that should be the last of the engine work for now. I think, if I can get the tires on, that I'll have a good running, safe, ride for the few weeks that I'll have time to get some riding time in. Over the winter I'll work on the cosmetic and less urgent issues with the bike. Thanks for all the comments. Oh...I figured out how to disable that clutch interlock pretty quickly. I just wrapped some fine copper wire around the two lead at the switch and shorted across them. Worked well. May eventually replace the switch, but no worries if I don't. May have a little leak at the base of the cylinder heads, so a head gasket teardown may be in the future. Got about 10 miles on it the other day, but I want more when I feel like it is safe to go.
Got the tire on. Well, an adv member, bwringer, got the tire on. I ruined two tubes in my first attempts. Seemed a bit much, so a he stepped in. Appreciate it. Next up, looks like the tach needs some attention. Started screeching on my last ride. Lubed the cable and it stopped the noise, but it runs really slow in comparison to throttle input. Apparently the lubrication used 27 years ago has a life span of about 27 years. Two schools of thought about how to fix it. One involves prying off the bezel and cleaning it, the other involves cleanly cutting the case open, cleaning the mechanism and then gluing the case back together.
Let me offer a third option...I just dealt with a dragging speedometer on my Nighthawk by pulling the cluster out of the housing and squirting WD40 into every little weep hole and opening I could find. It didn't completely eliminate the problem but it did reduce it significantly, enough to satisy me for my daily rider.
I got really lucky! Finally! The GR uses a different instrument cluster than the GS's. I started taking the cluster a part and found as I got deeper into it that it all just unscrews down into the instruments. I took it down as far as I could, cleaned what I could reach and then lubed everything. Attached my drill to the tach and it works perfectly. Now I just need a couple of bulbs (tach light and 5th gear indicator) and I can put it back together.
Broke the speedo needle while working on the gauges, so spent some time gluing it back together. I did put it together for a little riding time last night. New tire on the front, thanks to a gsresources board member, and it really felt good. I'll probably start, and maybe, finish changing the rear tire this weekend.
Okay, so THAT ain't gonna happen. I had to take a hacksaw to the rear to get it off and now can't even get one side of the new tire over the rim lip. Just not happening. Looks like my bike will have to set until I can get it to a shop this next week to get that freakin' tire on!
Getting decades old rubber OFF the rim can be a huge effort but presuming that the tire and rim are the same size getting the new tire on should be a lot easier. The hardest part about getting the new tire on is being very careful that you have the portion of the bead already on the rim in the depressed center of the rim. That is what provides the "slack" needed to get the rest of the tire bead over the edge. If you think that you can stretch the steel bead wires over the rim like a cheap bicycle tire you are going to be disappointed, those beads are tough. I am a big believer in using Yamaha Tire Mounting Lube because it stays wet long enough and then really does dry but many will say dish soap and water or WD-40 will work as well or better. Use what you like or have on hand but use something! There are lots of little "tips" that can make the job go better, taping the edge of an old car wheel and using that to set your bike wheel on can give you a more stable work piece while protecting brake rotors, hubs, bearings, etc. Using real tire irons rather than screw drivers and pry bars helps a lot as well. I usually just work on a couple of 4 x 4 blocks on the tailgate of the truck, If I have a second set of hands to hold the rim, the tire can often be "screwed" on to the rim once it is half way. Some combinations can be a challenge but usually, at least when installing tires - 'If it is hard, you are doing it wrong' Bruce
I agree with everything you said. Watched another forum member, bwringer, do my front tire and it is clear that technique is the issue. I just haven't figured out the technique. Have proper motorcycle tire irons, lubed everything and tried very hard to keep the tire in the deep part of the rim. Would love to figure it out, but time is short now that the semester has started and I'd like to ride it at least a bit this summer. Local-ish to Cycle-Recycle II in Indy and they'll mount them for $12. Seems worth it at this point.
Bwringer got in touch and offered to help with the rear tire, so we put it on Wednesday evening. Futzed around with the brakes for the last two days, but all seems good now. Could it actually be time to ride a bit--in between rain showers? Which we haven't seen for months? Oddly the last real good rain we had was the day I went to get the bike.
So, got the tires mounted and still had a shake a 50 mph that made me not want to go any faster. Options: 1) Drive below 50. 2) Fix the issue. Tore the front off the bike and found the lower race was badly scored from the bearings. Still need to remove the pressed on race from the steering stem and reinstall the new bearings. Injured my back on Friday and wasted most of the weekend laying on the floor hoping it would get better. Still have to remove the race and reinstall the bearings. Found that front caliper was dragging on the disc while I was tearing it all down, so that diagnosis and repair will be next up. Prediction re: riding time-- May should be a lot of fun.
Exactly what I ended up doing. Still haven't installed the bearings, but a fellow forum member is coming over tomorrow to show me how to install them. Am a least a little bit hopeful that the brake issue will work out to be a simple matter of setup.
So after the steering head bearing change (thanks to adv forum member bwringer,) the bike is generally rideable. Turns out that I did bend the disc trying to change the tire, but bwringer had a couple off a GS850 that fit. Tried the correct one for the left side, but this one appears to have been the reason he took them off his bike. Pulsates under braking, so I'll take it off and put the one for the right side on the 850 on the left side. The holes in the disc will look odd, but considering the cost of the discs...I'll ride with it looking a bit odd. The road test in '83 said their test bike really benefited from a sprocket change and I can see why they decided to change them. Just feels like it is running too hard to achieve 60-65 with the stock sprockets. Something to work on over the winter. I intend to ride it for now while the weather is good and enjoy the results of a summer spent trying to get it to this point.
I replaced the disc yesterday and the pulsation is gone. Doubt if anybody will ever notice that the holes drilled in the rotor are backwards. The braking is significantly better and I think I can finally move on to other items that need my attention. Over the winter... rebuilding the caliper is high on the list. Need to check the oil in the forks as well. I'd also like to change the chain and sprockets and replace the valve cover gasket. The biggest item will be the paint work. The other time consuming item will be polishing the engine side cases. None of this starts until I for sure can't ride anymore this season without significant expenditures in winter gear.
Took me a while to figure out what size socket I needed, but finally got the nut off the sprocket. (It's a 30mm, for you other GR riders out there who haven't changed their sprocket yet.) Had my son stand on the rear brake pedal and used a long breaker bar on the nut. Got it off relatively easily. Now I have to figure out what size spacer I need to retain the 530 chain with a 525 sprocket.
