Fun with Suzie blue

Day 1

So my plan is to get the bike in near new condition. This will take some time and is likely to end up like one of these government projects, over budget and delayed several times.

Luckily the bike is almost complete and runs. She doesn’t run well but she started and could almost hold a decent idle.

I decided to start by tearing down everything that needed to be polished re chromed or painted. As I take things off I get a better look at the inside to see what should be fixed in there.

First I got the tank off to get a better view of the engine and electricals.

Now the Ram air scoop comes off. This was very oxidized. The head is also looking mighty chalky. The plugs looked OK but the center plug was loose.

Next thing is the clutch cover. There is a nice oil leak coming from the kick start oil seal so this had to come off. This reminded me of how much of a PITA these japanese screws are. These dam JIS screws get chewed up by a Phillips driver in no time. I had to take a brake, go to Atlas tools on queen and get an impact screwdriver to save the day. Eventyaly all 9 screws came off. The clutch and all internal looked good. The bold on the right end of the crankshaft looked like it had been serviced ad some point.

I was on a roll so after removing the mufflers, I got onto removing the alternator anf the chain cover. Not problems here.

This entry was posted on October 23, 2010 by . It was filed under Cosmetic .

4 responses

  1. Sand Blasting

    Looks great, wish i had the time for a project like that.

    June 28, 2011 at 8:08 am

    Reply
  2. steve

    Just want to say that I think you did a wonderful job (far beyond my budget) on your restoration. Thanks for the photos as it will help me with my project bike, a 1972 GT380 that has been in a barn for the last 30 years! It polished up well, but the nylon breaker cam gear broke when we tried to get her running, and now the parts are starting to add up. But there is hope yet! Enjoy the ride!

    Steve

    October 24, 2011 at 4:39 pm

    Reply
  3. Dennis Piatt

    My son just bought a gt380 it looks much worse than yours though,I like how you showed all the improvments you had to do NICE.Is their a place that sells refurbished parts.And this bike has a speedometer that shows 150 mile per hour,and 4 pipes,and on the side of the engine it shows 1500cc ,that is a big size I take it.Dennis.

    August 12, 2012 at 9:54 am

    Reply
    • yanfossat

      Hi there.
      There are a multitude of suppliers that sell old GT parts.Suzuki themself still carry some parts although many have now been discontinued.
      eBay is a good place to start but this place is pretty good too: http://www.reproductiondecals.com/default_frameset.html?content.html~main
      Let me know if you are looking for a specific part I may be able to point you towards a place that has it.
      Oh and the 1500cc refers to the amount of oil for the gearbox. the engine is just a 374cc.

      Cheers.

      August 13, 2012 at 7:06 am

      Reply

Leave a comment