1shot1kill
17-08-2008, 07:41 PM
New to this forum, but I've been active on other forums for kinages. Last year I bought an '84 GSX550EF for $500 and I finally got it home today. It's been sitting in a mate's shed since last March.
Before I bought it, it'd been sitting in the owners shed, unridden, for about 7 years and only started once or twice a year.
She's fairly rough, so my aim is to slowly get it road read. If not by this summer, at least by next summer. Canberra's too bloody cold for me to be riding around in the winter.
So here's my "ride" and my plans for it:
Okay, my plan is to have this '84 GSX550 that I bought last year up and running by Christmas. I may just have bitten off more than I can chew here, but we'll see how it goes. This is my first restoration of a vehicle, so it's all fairly new to me.
I got the beasty home today and managed to get it off the ute on my own. It was easier getting it off than it was getting it on. The Telstra exchange near my house has a retaining wall just the right height. No, Richo, I didn't just piff it off the back of the ute.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/008-1.jpg[/url]
My plan is to start with getting the electrics working properly. You can't see it in the 'photos, but the main fuse is just hanging in there. Apparently there's a short somewhere and rather than fix the short, the previous owner decided to bypass the fuse. Or some shit like that.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/014-1.jpg
Once I've got the electricals working, I'll get onto the mechanicals. The front brake is shot, it may only need bleeding. However, it's gonna get more than that. I'll probably replace the whole front braking system with good 2nd hand parts.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/015-1.jpg
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/016-1.jpg
The fork seals need doing, they're fucked, too.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/013-1.jpg
Once I've got all that done, I'll get some new tyres on it. They're not too bad, tread-wise, but they're about 10 years old. The most important bit is getting it past rego, the cosmetics can come later. The seat needs reupholstering, there's a ding in the tank from a previous tank-slapper and scratches up & down the fairing.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/009-1.jpg http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/012-1.jpg
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/017-1.jpg
Before I bought it, it'd been sitting in the owners shed, unridden, for about 7 years and only started once or twice a year.
She's fairly rough, so my aim is to slowly get it road read. If not by this summer, at least by next summer. Canberra's too bloody cold for me to be riding around in the winter.
So here's my "ride" and my plans for it:
Okay, my plan is to have this '84 GSX550 that I bought last year up and running by Christmas. I may just have bitten off more than I can chew here, but we'll see how it goes. This is my first restoration of a vehicle, so it's all fairly new to me.
I got the beasty home today and managed to get it off the ute on my own. It was easier getting it off than it was getting it on. The Telstra exchange near my house has a retaining wall just the right height. No, Richo, I didn't just piff it off the back of the ute.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/008-1.jpg[/url]
My plan is to start with getting the electrics working properly. You can't see it in the 'photos, but the main fuse is just hanging in there. Apparently there's a short somewhere and rather than fix the short, the previous owner decided to bypass the fuse. Or some shit like that.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/014-1.jpg
Once I've got the electricals working, I'll get onto the mechanicals. The front brake is shot, it may only need bleeding. However, it's gonna get more than that. I'll probably replace the whole front braking system with good 2nd hand parts.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/015-1.jpg
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/016-1.jpg
The fork seals need doing, they're fucked, too.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/013-1.jpg
Once I've got all that done, I'll get some new tyres on it. They're not too bad, tread-wise, but they're about 10 years old. The most important bit is getting it past rego, the cosmetics can come later. The seat needs reupholstering, there's a ding in the tank from a previous tank-slapper and scratches up & down the fairing.
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/009-1.jpg http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/012-1.jpg
http://www.samgropler.com/gsxworklog/017-1.jpg