Ok, call me crazy, but I actually paid for this non-running, parts missing, faded bike. OK, it's a wreck, but it's all mine! Wish me luck.
Is that a Tempter? they were never sold in the uk but I did read a test of an import and it was a nice bike...grunty and revvy. There was some cleverness with a clutch on the flywheel, I think, to let it rev. I have bought and saved worse than that
Thanks Twinrider, btw, my brother owns a nice 92(?) TDM, well, it's red. Stray, yes, it is a Tempter, just found a site that mentions the "Tempter" name was never used in the UK, but instead the GR650 nameplate. Have a look. Hope mine could look this good. http://www.davidreiss.com/Tempted.htm
Ok, it's worse than I thought. I charged up the bad battery and tried to crank the engine. It had the sound of no compression, uh-oh...:eek1 This is what I found...or didn't find.... See something missing?:huh (oops, how can one see something missing?) Upon further inspection.......and fishing..... Funny little pieces.....and.... Do you see the bent exhaust valve? Being the lazy guy I am, I removed things in situ.... I think I can salvage the piston. Even the jugs look pretty good, hash marks still there. To be expected from a 13K bike, but what the heck happened to the cam chain???? So, it's either is going to be a labor of love or a parts bike, what do all you hardy souls think? Probably could make a few bucks on ebay and cut my losses, or fix it and dump loads of money into getting it nice? It's not like a special bike, although it's a bit unusual with the variable weight crank, air front suspension and "Full Floater Suspension".
I'd fix it, but that's just what I like doing, pouring money into bikes that are definetly not worth it.
I never had one, but I've admired these bikes. Cycle evaluated one in the early eighties and found nothing much to dislike except the name. The bike was good for commuting and touring and got nearly 70 mpg if memory serves. There was one unusual feature of the bike--it had a clutch of some sort that brought a heavier flywheel in at low revs and then disengaged to free the engine of excess inertia at higher revs. You may be able to fix this thing for very little $ if you can do all the labor yourself. The bike will never be worth much, but it could be a very nice commuter or touring bike.
Thanks all for your suggestions, it's appreciated. I think I'll disassemble it further to judge what it will take. If it doesn't need much more than the chain and an exhaust valve, it may be worth salvaging. To be continued.....
I would cut bait and part that out to people trying to make theirs nice. Or in reality what I would do is buy another one, and *then* use it as a parts bike. But I am sick that way. Broken cam chains happen I guess, but I'm thinking the bike was under a bit of stress at the time, maybe? --Nick
Ok, life's been getting in the way and cash is way too little to spend on this little orphaned bike. But I have been slowly getting things for it. Not perfect, but a lot nicer looking tank and really great seat. The sad thing is the engine will need a little welding. The little towers that hold the chain guide for the tensioner was broken, probably when the chain went south. I also broke a little tab while trying to separate the cases. It helps when you finally find two hidden bolts above the oil filter! The debris you see is from the chain tensioner plastic I think, because the rest of the engine is pretty clean. Saw a replacement engine on ebay, $750+shipping, yow!:eek1 I think I'll try to see if that little part can be brazed or something, it doesn't get subjected to too much pressure, just acts as a pivot for the chain tensioner.
I have one of those Tempters out in my barn. My Dad bought it new in '84 (I think) and rode it for a while. He gave it to my Nephew, who fried the electrics jump-starting it from a car. It got pushed into my barn,and there it has stayed. I started to look at it last summer,and picked up the necessary parts on eBay,along with a shop manual. I'm going to get it running after I finish the Triumph that is the main project now. It has wire wheels, and a solid red tank.
I've kept this picture for a long time; one of the prettiest cafes I've seen allegedly based on a Tempter.
Well, shoot- they don't look anything alike, do they. Maybe a Japanese and American version? What the heck's going on? I've actually seen one here in the 'States that had the word "Temptor" on the tank, but supposedly it was grey-market. Well... nice picture, anyway.
You've probably have a GR650X. It came with the single color, wire wheels and non-air adjustable front suspension, otherwise it's pretty much the same as mine. If you check out David Riess(?) he has one just like it. Some pretty neat stuff about the bike. Mono rear shock, centrifigal crank weight that lightens as the revs build, balance shaft, fuel gauge. Pretty cool. Parts are pretty scarce for this bike, but you won't see one on every block.
Yeah, it's the base model "X". It is in very good condition,even though it was last run in '95. It has been stuffed in a corner of my barn all this time,covered with a sheet. The mufflers have been plugged to keep mice out. The engine sidecovers have become badly tarnished -they will need some serious polishing. Seeing this thread made me go out and spray some PB Blaster in the spark plug holes,and turn it over a few times. I think it will be a fairly straightforward operation getting it running again-hopefully by the end of this summer.
Jeep, check out the Suzuki GR Forum, pretty quiet site, but the only one I've found that's really dedicated to the GR650. Good luck with yours.
