Last of the 77 GT 750B's

T350guy · Post by **T350guy** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 11:13 am

After riding my 74 Gt and now wanting a 77 Gt 750B like I had in 78, I have found a late 77 that is untouched and it has MPH speedo.
It seems this one made it into Canada without the speedo in K's. I wonder if others managed to squeak in

The bike

Post by **Suzsmokeyallan** » Mon Sep 16, 2013 11:54 am

Thats a very nice find Ian, you've got the bike I'm having to create out of a 75 since I could not find one. The 76 model I've got in Calgary also had on some B model gauges and none of the previous owners admit to changing them.
That speedo was also in mph so its possible those gauges came into Canada as well in mph. Since then its been upgraded to a kmh unit.

Post by **oldjapanesebikes** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 12:27 am

As Allan says - nice find !

Actually, most of the B models sold in Canada appear to have been fitted with MPH speedometers and KPH units are comparatively rare, and did not appear till mid to late 1977 here - I have some data in the Field Guide at this link. What is your frame number ? My '77 frame number is 80104 so fairly late production (the highest frame we have on record is 80508 in Europe) and it has a KPH clock.

T350guy · Post by **T350guy** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 8:47 am

Mine is a tad lower at 78463.
I can't remember if my old Gt 750 was in K's or not..been so long..lol..
My 750 didn't make it to the showroom until Feb of 78.
This GT is registered as a 78 .

Post by **oldjapanesebikes** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 3:19 pm

T350guy wrote:Mine is a tad lower at 78463.............This GT is registered as a 78 .

That frame number fits with other Canadian ones I've seen having MPH clocks. Interesting about the registration - the stories these bikes could tell eh ?

Post by **Suzsmokeyallan** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 8:46 pm

Whats always surprised me is why the Canadian Buffalos did not get the dual scale speedo that was used on the B models in the UK.
Probably because even the UK did not get this version of speedo consistently for 77. Some bikes had it while some had the mph only version.

T350guy · Post by **T350guy** » Sun Sep 22, 2013 9:22 am

Brought the bike home on Saturday and yes it is registered as a 77 NOT a 78 as I was told.
Although he did fill the tank Full , some gas did make it's way into the carbs...smelly
Removed the SRIS valves only to have smelly gas come out BUT no oil..Oil tank still full after 13 years storage.
Decided to check the points and clean..using a dial gauge I noticed the propeller marks are way off unlike the 74 which are off but close those marks are after the line , the 77 are before about 2-3 mm on all 3..new marks will be scribed.
The front fender has chrome peeling and the rear fender has spots, the taillight bracket is rusty.
Is the rear fender the same as all GT750's or just 76/77
is the tail light bracket only fitted to the 77 GT 750?
needs some TLC for sure BUT still decent must say.

T350guy · Post by **T350guy** » Sun Sep 22, 2013 5:39 pm

Cleaning the carbs and noticed goo on the gaskets and 47.5 pilot plus 1 1/2 turns out on the mixture screw.
They are 77 carbs with 110 slides.
also they were running B7Es not 8's

Suzukidave · Post by **Suzukidave** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 12:35 pm

If the timing is way off on the 3 bladed thingy itcould mean the key that holds the points cam has sheared , if the engine was hydro locked due to maybe fuel the starter has enough power to sometimes shear the key #12 http://www.oldjapanesebikes.com/mraxl_G ... erclu.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Post by **Suzsmokeyallan** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 10:43 pm

Good catch there Dave, it needs to be inspected to confirm the parts there in one piece.

Ian, 76 and 77 fenders have an extension at the lower front edge for a frame rail mount and no holes in the frame loop section. Some 76 bikes didn't get this feature in the early numbers and used 75 and earlier type fenders.
The 77 light bracket is a one off item for 77s only with the square tail lamp, so you may want to consider rechroming yours if keeping it correct is the theme.
I hunted for awhile on ebay to find one for my 77 build, its not perfect but good enough to pass without rechroming.

Early GS 550 and 750 models used the same 77 Buffalo front fender and again Ebay does show them now and again. There are two types looking close to each other, one has slight indents by the fork lowers and one does not, you need the one without the indents.
Heres one on ebay to give you an example of whats out there. Most if not all will need rechroming as the ones I've seen are in below average shape for chrome.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/121005804081?ss ... 1423.l2649" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

T350guy · Post by **T350guy** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 10:55 pm

Thanks Guys

I never thought about the key being sheared as the owner said he rode it to his buds place, filled the tank full and fogged the motor and there it sat for 13 odd years with the owner and the guy who owns the house where it was stored would kick it over. Chris told me he never tried to start the bike over the years .
Could have been the previous owner? I'll check it out for sure , better to see if Nothing is wrong or if indeed it is a sheared key.

I did find a document on my old GT 750 that had a tune up at 16,000 K's but no serial number..now I'm curious was it near the last of the 750"s..Won't know until I find my sale document..

Suzukidave · Post by **Suzukidave** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 6:32 am

It asks the same question .. but .. when i said the key holds the points cam in position i said it a bit wrong , its the starter clutch that the key really holds and the points cam is driven off the starter clutch . It causes the same problem with the timing being off but i didnt want to confuse anyone reading along .

Post by **Suzsmokeyallan** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 1:05 pm

The little pin on the points propeller and cam section usually does not break, but its a good idea to check it out anyways.
I know what you meant Dave and assumed everyone was following along too. Just as well you re-clarified it to be the woodruff key on the crankshaft under the starter clutch needing inspection. Either way, the water pump gear needs inspection as well so its best to check both items.

T350guy · Post by **T350guy** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 9:59 am

had some time this morning and pulled the points plate off first and the little pin was OK.
Then off comes the cover and I could see a little wear mark in the slot for the points cam shaft..Hmmm?
pull water pump gear and it's cracked..pull starter clutch and the key is good.

Sure glad I pulled it ..Thanks guys

New gear on order from Knalnaarpotz

Suzukidave · Post by **Suzukidave** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 1:52 pm

Thats water pump drive gear is something i am surprised Suzuki didnt improve on over the years as i havent opened even 1 engine that i didnt find that gear cracked like that , the plastic must get brittle over time and when the core metal gets hot during operation it must expand till the crack happens . I have seen special order all metal gears made and home fixes to repair the center section as they do fail .. i had one fail at startup before . I see your in Canada .. its funny some hard to get GT parts here in the US can be purchased through Suzuki Canada , i seem to remember someone in Canada saying they ordered one .

Last of the 77 GT 750B's

Last of the 77 GT 750B's

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