Suzuki GS673 Conversion — The Road Test.

 What'll it do mister?

There are no certainties in this life. All we can do is work with the best we've got, and to the best of our ability. When you work with old vehicles, you are left with a hell of a lot of choices. Replace everything for fear of something breaking down the track, or use experience to decide what will keep going, and maybe rely on a little bit of luck. It's probably fair to say we use all of these methods without a second thought.

It would be nice to change every bearing, gear, thrust washer, bolt, moving part etc., but that generally isn't viable. Instead we check, measure and work out what we can get away with. Lots of parts aren't even available anyway so sometimes we are stuck with far greater tolerances. When there is wear in vehicles, we immediately feel it when we ride or drive them but, as human beings, we automatically adjust to cope with the discrepancies. Some better than others.

Sure it's nice to be on a brand new bike, where everything is perfect, but they also leave me feeling somewhat robbed (not just with the cost of them either:). They let you get away with things, incredible brakes, plush suspension, tyres with more grip than you know what to do with. You may even think you're better than you actually are (oof, perish the thought!). 

But with old stuff you feel everything that is happening, hold the bars too hard through the bends and the weaving starts, fight it and things get worse. But relax and let it work everything out for itself and they usually settle down quite nicely. You feel that you're achieving something, that a living being is out for a blast with you, stirs the soul don't they say? (It does get tiring though...)

So ladies and gentlemen, just once, get on an old bike and be amazed at what they will do if you're just prepared to put in the effort...

The Steed — 1980 Suzuki GS550E with a 650 top-end.

Bear in mind this is still using its original brake hoses, is shod with tyres from the wrong end of the century, and whose seat is hard enough to leave bruised kidneys just popping to the shops. And that's just the good bits.

What we have here is a forty year-old classic bike, and I love this thing! The play in the gear lever does take a bit of getting used to... steel toecap boots help immensely, but it takes you back to when things were simpler. Where a bike could get properly out of shape when you pushed it, and that's where it all makes sense. It's fun, it's adrenaline, it's great when you start pushing people on their modern bikes. When you have a moment, just back off and breathe, and be thankful you're still alive. 

So, what's the craic? Firstly, I'm happy to say it runs sweet as a nut. I've upjetted the carbs to GS650E spec as I'm still using the original airbox and exhaust. I've yet to balance the carbs as I want to put a few miles on the pistons/bores etc. after the engine rebuild. I've also replaced the old points and condensers for a Dynatec Dyna S system. I really wanted to keep the old setup because I'm so old-fashioned, but finding decent condensers was proving impossible. With constant sparking across the points, it was time to upgrade. I have to say the kit was brilliant, timing it was so easy too. 

The gearing on the bike is pretty low, but is actually nearly standard for the GS550 with a 16T on the front (should be 15T) and a 50T on the rear. I changed the chain and sprockets before the rebuild so will stick with those for now. The first thing I noticed was how much more torque there was. It is so tractable and goes round the slowest of roundabouts in fourth gear without a hiccup. Big change!

With the old engine being quite lethargic, it struggled to go past 5,000RPM, there are no such problems anymore. It now flies through the rev range with ease, but as the power kicks in fully around 6,000RPM, the old clutch pack just gives up. Short shifting is the only way to ride it now, full throttle in sixth gear also halts forward progress. With heavy-duty springs already in place, a new EBC clutch kit is on its way.

New YSS shocks on the rear should help with holding things in line, but it is still pretty harsh for me. I put preload spacers in the forks a while ago, which is also too harsh so I will remove one in each when I change the handlebars for something slightly lower. The current ones make are a bit high for my taste, and the chrome has gone bad. Waiting for those to arrive at the moment.

The rear, 110/90-18 Barracuda, tyre from Taiwan was ok when she was struggling to make a few horsepower. It is now sadly lacking and, on a spirited ride recently, let go on a lefthand bend with the boys right behind. Considering they were chasing on a KTM690 and GSXR750, I didn't feel too bad and the bike straightened itself up well. The front, 100/90-19 Dunlop Arrowmax, was originally off a Harley so isn't used to spinning at these speeds, but is doing ok for its age. Avon Roadrunners or Metzelers will be going on next I think.

For a heavy bike it turns very quickly, probably because we're used to 190 section rears nowadays. Once the modern rubber is onboard, the little GS will be a lot of fun.

I'll keep updating the rough bits with new paint etc. — I did the front and rear calipers a few weeks ago and have now fitted new reflectors to the lower triple clamp so it's starting to look cleaner. Overall the bike is going much better than expected, and in a lightweight frame would be a real weapon. 

It really hammers when you open it up now. Up on the steep mountain roads it will actually pull hard in sixth gear from low revs. It just blows me away and I'm glad I did the conversion. Once the new parts arrive it's going to be even better. A new seat would be nice though, the bumps are killing me...

So... what'll it do mister? It'll do about half hour in ten minutes once that clutch is replaced!