The Green Turd - Suzuki GSF250 Project

[A_J_T]

Hi Folks,

So I've recently acquired a Ninja-Turtle Green GSF250, it’s in a pretty awful state and needs some work to say the least. I’m by all means no bike restorer but have had some experience modifying cars and have ridden Motocross bikes since I was 12 and have always been keen on the idea of having a road bike so this is the first of many I feel and I'm keen to start work on it.

I have several stages in mind but time will tell as to what actually happens to this beasty. Im not a fan of jumping on the Internet and listing off all the great and wonderful things that are going to be done and then it just never happening but I am a fan of coming on here and sharing the weird and wonderful things I do and having people’s advice and input so that’s what this is all about.

Stage 1
Get the bike road legal and enjoy it
New Tires
New fork seals
Possibly all new LED lighting

Stage 2
This will perhaps happen in the depths of winter when it’s not so much fun riding.
Strip the bike to a bare chassis
All new paint and colour scheme
Possibly a freshen up in the engine department, new rings, valve stem seals, clearances etc.

Stage 3
Suggestions Suggestions Suggestions


__________________________________________________ ___________________________

So far all i've done is clean the carbs and remove the wheels and am now looking for a shop to remove the rubber off the rims as id like to get them sand blasted and painted black. Anyone know of places near Mt wellington area? proving harder than i thought.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/654488C2-F18F-45C2-9BC0-63F32EC351DA_zpsottepagc.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/173C6C18-382F-42AB-8BE4-6B5E241A7DE6_zpstx9vsgd8.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/CA1F2C15-1607-4D98-B870-EACF57DA58C8_zpshxurjx1r.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/E7902B31-0279-4F9C-9E04-C15A05824D62_zpsy0bkxrk8.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/FF98A0B0-F740-4E32-9546-63EA2160B561_zps4xouya8r.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/9B8E58B7-23EB-4139-A433-F62FB66EC1C0_zpsw5vaaxqv.jpg

__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ _____________________________________
21st March 2016

Slow progress but i'm starting to get it looking more acceptable.

Also DIY balanced the carbs which has removed the bogging in lower rpm

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/508F5B63-B3D4-48F4-8B19-4A342889D94C_zpsjvqtqzos.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/5365614B-A228-4814-915C-B9DA6BE052EB_zpsbkoq86sq.jpg

[Akzle]

Stage 1
Get the bike road legal and enjoy it
New Tires
New for seals
Possibly all new LED lighting

Stage 2
This will perhaps happen in the depths of winter when it’s not so much fun riding.
Strip the bike to a bare chassis///

just be careful you get past this bit ^^

i know lots of people with lots of bikes in lots of bits...




as to painting and shit... get yourself a compressor and DIY...

[A_J_T]

just be careful you get past this bit ^^

i know lots of people with lots of bikes in lots of bits...




as to painting and shit... get yourself a compressor and DIY...

I'm pretty committed to something once its in bits haha, but yea ill be looking at the full rebuild later once iv had time to thrash the nuts of this thing as is.

[A_J_T]

Slow progress but i'm starting to get it looking more acceptable.

Also DIY balanced the carbs which has removed the bogging in lower rpm

[Intruder VS]

Nice work and quick to, the black rims suit it :2thumbsup

[A_J_T]

Nice work and quick to, the black rims suit it :2thumbsup

Cheers, Yea the black wheels and a little cleanup has transformed the bike imo.


Also yesterday i tried installing some LED indicators but the indicator relays don't detect the LEDs "I believe because they don't draw enough current" and the indicator light just stays on instead of flashing. so might just forget that or look into it further. If any one has experienced this id be keen to know how you got around it.

[Akzle]

Cheers, Yea the black wheels and a little cleanup has transformed the bike imo.


Also yesterday i tried installing some LED indicators but the indicator relays don't detect the LEDs "I believe because they don't draw enough current" and the indicator light just stays on instead of flashing. so might just forget that or look into it further. If any one has experienced this id be keen to know how you got around it.

50 odd buck will get you a tridon HD12, LED capable indicator relay.

[Akzle]

LEDs may or may not pass muster at WOF time, especially if you get your WOFs from a mini-hitler.

[Askor]

You can put resistors in parallel with the LEDs to draw more current and activate the flasher relay. Kind of defeats the purpose of using LEDs (low power consumption) but hey, they look "cool"

Even though most of them put out fuck all light.

Stick with the stock indicators.

[A_J_T]

Stick with the stock indicators.


Cheers folks, think ill take this advice

[A_J_T]

Another small issue sorted this weekend.

The thermostat housing has been leaking slightly so I stripped it down and found it had some nasty build up of old coolant and some corrosion on the alloy.

A wire brush, some sand paper and a little silicone sealant and its all sorted.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/4A383775-19C8-4875-8565-26EEA739EF0C_zpsyjprmnmd.png
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/2C01348E-E7AD-4AAF-80CF-850E3D42A005_zpsijxxwn8j.jpg

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/734CB70D-FE59-4D8B-B439-10099D3238DA_zpsknssa6it.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/C265CB68-C402-474C-A52E-D8F0AB6F96AB_zpsvk2ehoth.jpg
Yes i did put the mounting bracket on upside down ^

Took it for a ride down to Thames and back Yesterday... I've come to the conclusion that a larger bike is imminent.

Also the clutch is now slipping pretty bad when cold and just slightly when warmed up. Will be looking into this soon, i think it will just be sad springs, hoping plates are all ok

[Banditbandit]

50 odd buck will get you a tridon HD12, LED capable indicator relay.

I have one lying around somewhere. If you're still interested in changing the indicators I can find it you can have it ..





Took it for a ride down to Thames and back Yesterday... I've come to the conclusion that a larger bike is imminent.



:rofl: ... yeah ... that's the problem with restoring small bikes ... once you get it going well, flick it and put the money into something else - rather than spending it on this one ... it will only ever be a 250 learner bike ..

[A_J_T]

I have one lying around somewhere. If you're still interested in changing the indicators I can find it you can have it ..



:rofl: ... yeah ... that's the problem with restoring small bikes ... once you get it going well, flick it and put the money into something else - rather than spending it on this one ... it will only ever be a 250 learner bike ..

Pm'd about the relay, keen as.

And ya, when it comes to bigger bikes i always thought id go R6 or zx6r but seriously considering just picking up a bigger bandit in the near future.

[A_J_T]

Thanks to Banditbandit i now have a relay to try out the LED indicators. Will be interesting as they might look aesthetically pleasing but if there not bright thats no good.

[A_J_T]

So made the last minute decision to go up north and visit the parents, longest ride the little bandit has done 187km each way and all went good. Still trying to find out what the range is on a fuel tank on this little thing. and still finding out if the reserver tap works <_<. Anyway while i was up the old man and I had a play around with the exhaust for a bit of a laugh and managed to make something that looks pretty much exactly how id like it.

With it strait pipe it sounds glorious but the volume is next level painful and blood will start to flowing from ear cavities before long so we attempted to fab up a nice looking pipe with some internal baffles.

This is what we came up with.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/91831580-B214-4649-9118-92CC76E8F1FA_zpsusza4apt.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/D11D8777-EA28-4993-B6B1-5590EB4414DB_zpscowd9xho.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/AC2CE459-FD7B-4827-BB7C-38A54C182C97_zpsdayfdkx6.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/D351C808-68CD-434F-B9B1-38671F738148_zpsdeejzkzj.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/B295B284-08A6-4FD6-8186-DC8358ED285C_zpsqmn7gsxj.jpg

Looks clean and tidy "Although my welding could do with some practice".

The problem now is.... its still way to loud, even with the baffles which makes it bearable on idle but when she opens up its beyond legal haha, so in the end i made up a slip on fitting for the old OEM muffler so i can easily swap between the two if i wish. maybe in the future ill come up with something that is a little quieter but has the same aesthetic

Also stripped down the forks and replaced the seals and oil. Looking at them and the state of the fork oil that came out i should have tried to find a full rebuild kit with replacement bushings and all but nvm at least they don't leak now :cool:

[sugilite]

Looking great - I like it! :niceone:

[A_J_T]

Eh! haven't been doing much other than riding it lately! Added a LED headlight which is useless so staying with normal lighting all around including indicators for functionality and keeping it looking normal not confused as to what year it belongs to.

Cleaned up the exhaust manifold in the weekend. Instead of leaving it shiny stainless which is nice but not the look im after Ive opted for a lower maintenance option. blaaack :yes:

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/DF27F4EC-E0FB-4881-9C15-87A5EE38C71A_zpseve10dcn.jpg

Picked up some new studs and copper washers from Mitre10
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/44B978B2-69D6-4DA0-8DC3-DCA9AAF3CCEE_zpsciq6brg2.jpg

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/045E369B-F295-46D6-A790-49EE7186E071_zpspz1xy2q4.jpg

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/37559D79-AB59-4415-AA1E-B7E86ACA97F0_zpsv8xfifpx.jpg

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/7334ED6B-AF6B-4E7D-A0D3-6C0F95BE314E_zpspuwsro8d.jpg

Also painted the clutch cover just to see how durable this paint is as id like to do the entire engine at some point. might opt for a high temp clear over the top or just pickup some gloss engine enamel, mat looks nice but unsure of the mat and then gloss wheel combination.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/54c299ca-6e11-491d-ae07-ae5e277ef67e_zpsmsmurgjm.jpg

[nzspokes]

Nice work.:woohoo:

[A_J_T]

Ok, so whats new.

Reverted back to the stock headlight thank goodness for that. looks better works better. gone off the idea of LED for now.

added some pod filters to give it maximum street appeal. i know i know this was/is a bad idea due to the fact taht its near impossible to jet/set the carbs up for them but i thought id give it a go.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/EC7AD7BA-145A-45C2-9370-91B16D030F84_zpsvshfzxsv.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/4B9F3CCC-DD4B-406E-9668-111A259E04F4_zpsqs1wuqau.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/322F1496-5D38-4481-A120-2168810C2BDC_zpsbauexegb.jpg

And you would have never guessed but it now runs like an absolute dreeaaaaaadfulnightmare

yea, nah, bad idea haha. on stock 105 main jets it bogs at anything over 1/3 throttle. i went up from 105 main jets to 107.5 and the issue is the same. due to the fact that i like tinkering im going to keep trying. have a play with the needle hights etc but im almost certainly going back to the stick airbox once im done playing around.

[OddDuck]

Wideband A/F ratio meter?

[A_J_T]

Wideband A/F ratio meter?

I do actually have an AEM Wideband in my car, have been tempted to retro fit it to the bike to see whats going on haha.

But as said i don't think its a fueling issue at this point. it seems to be starving for air, thinking the sliders are not lifting up as they are lifted by vacuum which does not exist with no air restriction on the pod filters.


You can see the sliders in this picture. Very new to carburetter stuff like this so still trying to understand how they actually function when given different amounts of throttle etc.
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/80F7A7A2-4C8C-42E8-8772-02654683DA03_zpsvu7dhcv8.jpg

[A_J_T]

Little update since i haven't posted in a while.

I had a brilliant idea of dropping a 400 engine in... was all going to plan until i found that the engine mounts are all around a cm wider on the 400 frame.

For the time being i'll take this opportunity to tidy up the 250 engine a little and plop it back in and continue enjoying. I'll then fab up some revised engine mounts and work on the 400 conversion at a later stage when the weather is not so appealing. At that point hopefully i will have found a gsxr front end for it also.

In regards to the 400 running on the 250 loom and electrics its all good. i have started the 400 while its sitting on the pallet beside the bike connected to all the plugs and it fired right up :cool:

If anyone has a dead Bandit 400 lying around though lmk and i'll take it off your hands!

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/54E68151-9AA1-4388-A5DE-9A10BC89FAD0_zpsuvqkcyrc.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/0FBB5B3A-B877-48D1-9591-A40AD4F04505_zpsbpa0k9rs.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/969AE637-7535-4199-BCDE-9BD773A07137_zpsvhoh2cum.jpg



Side note, fitted a CRF250F muffler which sounds perfect, flows similar to the stock muffler so no jetting issues and has a nice compact look :banana:
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/FDE662DA-31AB-4F24-A542-2E1BC2D9837F_zps8o8att6p.jpg

[A_J_T]

Managed to cleanup the 250 engine ready to go back in.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/2EFDBB70-C503-430E-82FF-47B584D59CC1_zpsjmcbz48j.jpg
http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/316862ED-C23B-43EE-A7A1-A9E4C4D08367_zpsk2lmpvif.jpg

Pics are mid progress, the Shiny silver clutch cover and other covers are all going black also. I used VHT Wrinkle Plus, love the textured look.

[A_J_T]

:2thumbsup

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/AA778D0A-9842-400D-B471-5550A893F4E8_zpsnysouhua.jpg

[Maha]

The Green Turd theme aside, did it ever cross your mind to have less green? swing arm and trellis frame primarily.
Still, a great job done and I bet you're pleased with the outcome.

[sugilite]

I like the green! Awesome job dude! :headbang:

[A_J_T]

The Green Turd theme aside, did it ever cross your mind to have less green? swing arm and trellis frame primarily.
Still, a great job done and I bet you're pleased with the outcome.

Haha yea absolutely, if i keep it much longer it will be going a completely difference color but chances are i'll be focusing the time and money on a bigger bike. I've warmed to the green, it is a factory color which just makes me laugh so much. with the black wheels and now the engine tidied up i'm pretty happy with where its at.

[A_J_T]

I like the green! Awesome job dude! :headbang:

Cheers, it is good fun

[A_J_T]

I swapped out the rear chock for a GSXR250 fully adjustable last night. will have a play with the settings and see how things go.

The stock one is warn and soft so hopefully this will firm the rear up a little.

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k468/aidintaylor/The%20Green%20Turd/240E82F1-585A-490F-92E4-6A57452F4035_zpsiootlza1.jpg

next is sorting out the front end