My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

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Hubbskiboy
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Bike owned: GK76A 1993 and 1990
Location: West Midlands
Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by Hubbskiboy » Thu Aug 30, 2018 8:56 am

Yep.
After all the work of stripping the engine down, you'd be very daft not to fit OEM rings.
They're a ridiculous price for a few metal rings, but time is more important to me.
I just vapour blasted the pistons as they showed hardly any wear.
New exhaust valves and valve seals.
Cleaned the intake valves as again they showed little wear.
Timing chain was well within tolerances.
Odometer was showing 62,634 kilometres when I bought it!!!! :o

moforockband
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by moforockband » Thu Aug 30, 2018 9:17 am

Were your valve guides ok after 60k?? I'm assuming they were. The book says something about wiggling them about and checking for 2mm play :? Thinking about replacing mine on my old chain smoker :)
BTW I have a set of 73a 76a gen rings here on the shelf if anyone needs a set.

Hubbskiboy
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Bike owned: GK76A 1993 and 1990
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by Hubbskiboy » Sat Sep 01, 2018 5:44 pm

I didn't specifically go out of my way to check for play in the valves, but I think I would've noticed if they were 2mm out.
I used some good qualty moly grease to lube them and I also re-seated them with a valve lapping tool.
They all seemed pretty solid to me and slid through the guides perfectly.
The more I think about it and based on the feedback I get from bike people and metal workers who have seen my engine parts, I suspect that this is not the original engine.
As I said, the pistons looked mint apart from carbon buildup.
The cams showed little if any wear and the timing chain had hardly any stretch.
Hopefully I've just lucked out and got a nice well looked after little ticker.
Did you say you've got a set of genuine Suzuki piston rings?
I'll need another set soon for the other bike.

wullie3xv9
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Bike owned: GK76a GSXR400R & TZR250RS
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by wullie3xv9 » Fri Jan 04, 2019 5:20 pm

Hi Hubbskiboy. Apologies for not responding sooner, work & family life got in the way too much last year.
Yesterday was the first time I've gone anywhere near my GK76 since last September ! :roll: More on that later tho'. ;)
Yours is looking & sounding fantastic, top job. 8-) I'm looking forward to seeing it with its repainted bodywork fitted.
Bet you're still smiling from ear to ear now it's finally a "runner".

As for mine, it hasn't done many miles again, ( a mere 1,016 Kms/ 631 Miles since its MOT on 23/4/2018 :oops: ), but there's been no major issues with it, it always starts & runs well & I do enjoy riding it. Yesterday I had the battery on charge during the day & today it ( eventually ) started & ran on the fifth stab of the button. Thankfully, it settled down quickly to a nice, steady idle which means the pilot jets & passages haven't gummed up wi' crap through lack of use! ( No, I hadn't drained the carb's. :whistle: ).
I was planning to take it out for a wee run over the weekend ... but the water pump has decided to spring a leak ! :(
I initially thought one of the two main hoses from the pump had a small hole/ split by their circlips, but it turns out it's leaking from between the two halves of the pump body for some reason. ( I'd fitted a new O-section seal when I checked /refreshed the pump during the main strip-down ).
Old bikes ... there's always f@ckin' somethin'. :roll: Anyhow, 'til next time .....

Wullie. :grin:

Hubbskiboy
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Bike owned: GK76A 1993 and 1990
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by Hubbskiboy » Fri Jan 04, 2019 11:52 pm

Yeah. Too right Wullie.
I put a brand new OEM O-Ring on the water pump housing after it got nicely vapour blasted to get rid of all the built up crud.
And like yours, it still pissed out some coolant, so I had to tighten all the bolts up a bit more.
Also leaked at the thermostat housing connection between the black plastic part and the aluminium piece.
Lost track of all the other places it's been leaking.
Good job coolant is cheap eh? :roll:

Hubbskiboy
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by Hubbskiboy » Sun Apr 07, 2019 4:29 pm

Hi Wullie, Mofo, et al.
Quick update on my bike.
I've got pretty much all the fairing panels finished now, apart from the nose cone which is a bit trickier, so that's going to the local airbrush chap on Tuesday.
Really pleased with the final results and how the colours work together.
The blue isn't the correct match for my year, but I wanted the Suzuki Triton blue that they use on all the latest GSXR's.
Not one for the purists, but I love it and makes it look a bit more up to date.
Image
Image
Image
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Image

Maelstrom
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by Maelstrom » Mon Apr 08, 2019 1:45 am

Looks great, I like the use of the more modern colours and it works with lots of the older bikes.
Carb seal kits in viton & other parts
https://litetek.co

moforockband
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by moforockband » Tue Apr 09, 2019 10:44 am

Looking good. :)

wullie3xv9
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Bike owned: GK76a GSXR400R & TZR250RS
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Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by wullie3xv9 » Fri Mar 27, 2020 2:14 pm

Woah ! ! ! :o Excellent looking paint finish on your fairing panels, Hubbskiboy. :grin:
Still looking forward to seeing photo's of yours completed with all it's panels refitted. ;)
( Please tell me you have it all finished & you're enjoying riding it by now ? ) :pray:

As for my '76, it's been SORN'ed since early last year patiently waiting for me to get around to overhauling the weeping coolant pump ! :oops:
Which, due to me being grounded like most people in the U.K. by Covid-19, has given me the free-time to remove, dismantle & clean up the pump assembly. I ordered a complete set of OEM seals & gaskets last month, ( including the impeller main mechanical seal assembly ).
I don't have a vice or pin punches at home so replacement of the impeller oil & mech. seal will have to wait until we're cleared to resume normal life
& I can return to work.
I replaced the engine oil & filter before the winter & now I'm chipping away at servicing the rest of the bike while I have the free-time. :grin:
I finally got round to shortening a spare pair of stock front fork spring spacers late last year so also planning to finally fit the pair of stiffer HAGON springs, but again, that task will have to wait until I get back to work as the L/H fork seal is weeping & needs replaced ... again. :roll:

Ch'o the noo. Wullie. :grin:

Hubbskiboy
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Joined: Tue Feb 02, 2016 8:57 pm
Bike owned: GK76A 1993 and 1990
Location: West Midlands
Re: My GK76a winter service/tidy-up project.

Post by Hubbskiboy » Sat Mar 28, 2020 12:01 pm

Hi Wullie.
Where ya been????????? ;)
We thought something bad had happened to you matey. / :cry:
I did ride the bike a couple of times last year to test it and I even had it booked in for it's first MOT for 10+ years.
Then the teething problems started to happen.
Battery kept going flat and I found out the original rectifier was completely dead .
Then I installed the one from my other GK76A as a quick fix but that one was killing the battery by giving out way too much voltage.
The rear brake lever piston has developed a leak and also like you, one of the fork seals is leaking again even though it's a brand new seal.
So I'm going to have to bite the bullet and send the forks off to be professionally rebuilt, possibly with new stanchions as they are quite pitted around the base, causing seals to fail almost straight away.
Anyone here used Firefox Racing?
I'm considering splashing out and getting my forks Ohlins-ized.
They offer a service where they can take any forks and make them look like Ohlins forks. Pretty cool eh?
I did a quick mockup in Photoshop to show what my bike would look like.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/i4tljr7kyymms ... s.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xzgi428ecetkq ... p.jpg?dl=0


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