Having a fling with a 22yr old

[T.W.R]

Well after a bit of thinking & pain in having move the GS1200 on; I got myself a new toy

A very tidy & well looked after 88 GSX1100F

I'm only the 3rd owner and @ 43k it's got plenty of life left in it yet

Got it a couple of days before the Woodstock Rally so that was it's maiden voyage and it went bloody well to be honest. A bloke on a 1200 Bandit did a big :shit: when he realised what had been hussling him along for a few kms from Otira to Kumara :whistle:

It's a fair bit thirstier than the GS but is a lot comfier (bloody arm & knee issue gave plenty of grief on the GS when on the long haul).
Fully loaded up @ 350kg+ the old school suspension gets a bit confused but she's still a pretty pleasant ride.

[gsx katana]

nice little bike..

[golfmade]

Looks good. That the original paint job?

[nudemetalz]

Ah,.. the ole' 1100FJ's. I remember them. Does the screen still go up and down, Bill?

[T.W.R]

Looks good. That the original paint job?

Yeah it's 100% original, couple of stone chips & a small scratch and that's it. Has got the original seat plus all it's documentation from new.


Ah,.. the ole' 1100FJ's. I remember them. Does the screen still go up and down, Bill?

Ha yep it still works, had a play and found the sweet spot so there she stays ;)

Big old Tank:cool: Though it's more civilised than the Yammy FJ11 I had 15yrs ago. Still got a fair bit of stomp on tap too.

[crazyhorse]

Well she's a good model................ I'm sure she won't let you down :rofl:

[98tls]

Hey stranger hows things?shes a beauty mate and no doubt as you say bloody comfortable.Coming down for the Hare?The Hondas come along a bit though things have ground to a halt as the other old thing decided she wanted a set of these,will be here in a week or 3......mutton dressed up as lamb eh;)Hope to catch up soon mate.Gidday to Mrs TWR from us eh.

[robinm]

I had one of those for a few years, bullet proof. Try and find a koni rear shock for it, transforms them. Also progressive springs in the forks, or put another inch spacer above the fork springs. These two mods will totally transform the handling of the old girl. Ikon in aust still had some konis for them in the recent past, they might be worth a try.

[T.W.R]

Well she's a good model................ I'm sure she won't let you down :rofl:

:bleh: only ever been let down by Yamahas, never had an issue with any of the Suzis I've had in the past.....even got the GS to run on diesel once ;)


Hey stranger hows things?shes a beauty mate and no doubt as you say bloody comfortable.Coming down for the Hare?The Hondas come along a bit though things have ground to a halt as the other old thing decided she wanted a set of these,will be here in a week or 3......mutton dressed up as lamb eh;)Hope to catch up soon mate.Gidday to Mrs TWR from us eh.

Age & a half knackered body are catching up with me :weep: old limbs don't bend like they used too.... just lounges along on the open road :yes:
Still waiting to see this wee red terror at some stage :lol:
yikes 98tls the master of pimp my ride TL style huh......pretty sharp looking hoops bud :niceone:

Home alone at the moment... the boss is away at a conference for the week then home for a week then off to the states for another week long conference :crazy: will be back in time for the Hare so will be attendance for that all going to plan.

[T.W.R]

I had one of those for a few years, bullet proof. Try and find a koni rear shock for it, transforms them. Also progressive springs in the forks, or put another inch spacer above the fork springs. These two mods will totally transform the handling of the old girl. Ikon in aust still had some konis for them in the recent past, they might be worth a try.

It's already got a set of Progressives in the front, but I'm sure by the way it handles they're in upside down so will be investigating that shortly. Got a mate doing a hunt at the moment for a rear shock ;)

Ther only real quirk I've noticed with it was the night I brought it home and I gave it's head a few kms from home....it started to float around near full noise, the half knackered rear tyre seemed to be the main culprit (new BT45 fitted on the Monday after the rally)

[RDjase]

Ah,.. the ole' 1100FJ's. I remember them. Does the screen still go up and down, Bill?

The Mighty Power Sheild !

Did any other bikes have anything like that?

[Dadpole]

I had one of these things new. I flogged it off six months later (house buying) but never sorted the handling. A new shock was the answer, but pre-internet the price was eye-watering. The screen was a neat toy to play with at the lights though. An endless fascination for onlookers.

[YellowDog]

I thought you were talking about a woman and I was going to say, get her checked out before you jump on her..

Many congrats to you. She's a bute and looks to be in grat condition. Love the red piping.

Enjoy jumping on her :)

[nudemetalz]

The Mighty Power Sheild !

Did any other bikes have anything like that?

BMW's and Goldwings (I think) have something like it nowadays but back then it was revolutionary and no other bikes ever featured. I don't believe it was that successful (the power shield), just like no other bikes had a pop-up headlight like the '85 Katana 750.....

[T.W.R]

BMW's and Goldwings (I think) have something like it nowadays but back then it was revolutionary and no other bikes ever featured. I don't believe it was that successful (the power shield), just like no other bikes had a pop-up headlight like the '85 Katana 750.....

It's basically the same mechanism that drives the screen that is used for the pop-up headlight on the SE & SF Katana :yes: plastic bead chain driven by plastic pullys.
I remember reading one test from a magazine and the said the screen was most effective in the fully down position and when completely extended in the upper position it caused more turbulance.

[T.W.R]

but never sorted the handling. A new shock was the answer, but pre-internet the price was eye-watering.

The 89 model onwards apart from a few motor improvements, Suzuki made the swingarm a bit longer as well as a couple of other chassis changes to improve a few of the quirks of the bikes.