1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Retro, Wild, Cafe, etc. The stuff only your imagination can come up with.

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Grey_Ghost
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by Grey_Ghost »

ConnerVT wrote:Correct. I rather talk about early vs late model carbs, by identifying if it has external vent hoses, rather than going by year. Many of these bikes have bits on them which they never left the factory with. Mine is a 1971, with a 1973 motor, but with the 1971 carbs, intakes, and airbox. Always something squirrelly going on.

So a late model carb (the one with vent hoses) has a stock 97.5 Large Round Main Jet (Mikuni 100/604 Main Jet - N100.604-97.5). I would start at least 2 sizes up (102.5) and wouldn't be surprised if you go up another, given she is flat @ 4500RPM. Plus it is always better to err on the side of too much rich than being lean.

At $6 a pair of jets + ~$8 postage, you can have 5 sets from 97.5 to 110 of genuine Mikuni brass for about $40.

edit: Here is a link to Suzuki's Service Bulletin, which has the carb specs from 1971-1975. You can see the shift from the 150 to 97.5 Main Jet (as well as Valve Needle and more). What I found interesting is that from '71 to '72, they also had different Needle Valves spec'd. Me thinks they already knew they had issues with the homopressure carbs, and were tweaking as they went along. Come 1973, the specs stayed the same until the 2-stroke 500 was discontinued.

http://www.ozebook.com/compendium/techb ... %206-9.pdf
Thanks for all of your help, ConnerVT! So much help!

I picked up some new jets and needles, re-cleaned the carbs, and then sent the bodies out for powder coat. We put everything back together on Saturday and the bike fired up on the fourth kick! After some fiddling with the cable routing and some more tuning (again, thanks ConnerVT) we took it out on the street and it ran fabulous! The bike pulls smooth and strong from the bottom end up through the RPM's and through all gears! We also found one of the small orifices on the downstream side of the slide plugged, which I am sure also contributed to the earlier issues.

Some of you may remember the clutch pull on the bike was very difficult. While we had the carbs out we spent some time evaluating the clutch performance and spent a little more effort re-routing the cable up to the handle bars. While the clutch still requires a decent grip, it is significantly lighter than it was. I think any difficulty we have in pulling the clutch is primarily due to the new springs and discs!

I have a video posted on YouTube that you can view here if you want to see and hear it. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7s85RzmCWJI" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I should have some final photos put up in the next week or so.
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Grey_Ghost
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by Grey_Ghost »

Here are some final pictures.
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ConnerVT
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by ConnerVT »

Glad I could help, GG.

The T500 is a fun bike when you get them all sorted out. Yours is looking great, and great to hear it's now running as well as it looks!
sportston
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by sportston »

Looks fantastic! Glad to hear it is running well now. Your clutch problem could also be made worse by a poor quality cable. Sometimes aftermarket cables don't have a very smooth action. Genuine are better. I discovered that on my own rebuild. I ended up re-using the old Suzuki cable instead of the shiny new pattern part!
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by titan performance »

Top job, bike looks great and ready for miles of smiles....just one small criticism....your seat unit doesn't look mounted correctly, I'm guessing it's somehow perched on top of the stock seat mount. Just my opinion, but it would look better if you hammer those two tabs flat and allow the unit to rest on the frame tubes, maybe using some flat rubber as a cushion....great job !
Keeping old 2 strokes alive !
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Grey_Ghost
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by Grey_Ghost »

titan performance wrote:Top job, bike looks great and ready for miles of smiles....just one small criticism....your seat unit doesn't look mounted correctly, I'm guessing it's somehow perched on top of the stock seat mount. Just my opinion, but it would look better if you hammer those two tabs flat and allow the unit to rest on the frame tubes, maybe using some flat rubber as a cushion....great job !
Hi TP,

Thank you for the compliments!

Yes, there is a gap between the seat pan and the frame. During the build we did integrate (what was left of) the original seat pan into the new fiberglass pan to maintain original mounting points and keep things simple. The gap is a result of the fiberglass pan not "hanging down" like the original seat did, thus the gap. To mitigate this, we did trim down the rear mounting tabs about an inch or so to drop it lower, but it only does so much. Also, since we maintained the stock location of the voltage regulator the seat remained higher at the front. We also raised the rear of the gas tank slightly to straighten out the line between the tank and the seat. That was a maiden voyage on seat pan building and a lot of learning occurred!
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by titan performance »

I'm no guru...but did you use the seat void at all?...I think your seat "hump" is a tad smaller than mine, and I couldn't use the stock battery, but I shifted everything into the hump. It was vital for me as I wanted that gappy frame look, doing away with the side panels, so reg, rec, and smaller battery all went to the back, allowing the seat to drop in line with the tank.

You've done a real nice job, and made it your own...now get out there and enjoy it. Great scenery too by the way !
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Keeping old 2 strokes alive !
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jabcb
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by jabcb »

The stock voltage regulator does not do a very good job at controlling voltage. You should use a modern rectifier/regulator if you are using a modern battery (AGM, maintenance free, etc).
Also, a modern rectifier/regulator is more efficient. It will give you a bit more output & less heat.
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Grey_Ghost
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by Grey_Ghost »

Howdy,

Can anyone tell me if a '76-'77 kick starter drive gear would fit our '75? The correct part number is 26240-15002 ('75) but I found one with the part number 26240-15003. It looks this same.

Thanks in advance!!
dollydog
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by dollydog »

the later gear is a 20/10 teeth if that helps? what's your earlier gear? :up:
cheers, dd.
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Grey_Ghost
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by Grey_Ghost »

dollydog wrote:the later gear is a 20/10 teeth if that helps? what's your earlier gear? :up:
cheers, dd.
They both have the same number of teeth and look exactly the same. Based on that, I ordered it (it was the only new one I could find) and I guess I will see when it gets here. Keeping my fingers crossed!
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Grey_Ghost
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Re: 1974 T500 Father and Son Build

Post by Grey_Ghost »

Grey_Ghost wrote:
dollydog wrote:the later gear is a 20/10 teeth if that helps? what's your earlier gear? :up:
cheers, dd.
They both have the same number of teeth and look exactly the same. Based on that, I ordered it (it was the only new one I could find) and I guess I will see when it gets here. Keeping my fingers crossed!
Just to close this out...Received the new gear and it fits just fine. Got everything put together and works great.
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