1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Moderators: oldjapanesebikes, H2RICK, Suzsmokeyallan
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- Yeah Man, the Interstate
- Posts: 590
- Joined: Tue Mar 10, 2015 12:35 pm
- Country: WALES
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: suzuki gt 550j
- Location: Wales
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Yes apparently rods were perfect but when he said pins were suspect i told him to change them. Too risky!
98 carb Blackbird and GT550j
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Starting to get back to work on this project.
Have the rebuilt crank & cylinders. The painter should be done soon.
Did a rather spiffy job with the motor covers. (We cheated & had forum member Sandman do the work.)
cafe-GT550-8914 by jabcb, on Flickr
cafe-GT550-8918 by jabcb, on Flickr
cafe-GT550-8920 by jabcb, on Flickr
Have the rebuilt crank & cylinders. The painter should be done soon.
Did a rather spiffy job with the motor covers. (We cheated & had forum member Sandman do the work.)
![Image](https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4775/40665809582_852750c99e_b.jpg)
![Image](https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4798/38898283440_1cb66d5b1a_b.jpg)
![Image](https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4801/40665807612_298984a7ab_b.jpg)
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
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- Expert racer
- Posts: 1120
- Joined: Wed Jul 10, 2013 12:04 pm
- Country: England, UK
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: FZ50, GP100, RG125 Gamma, GT380, Bandit 1200S
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Fine-brushed then clear-coated?
Looks very nice. Kinda wishing I'd gone that route myself. Might have saved me a lot of hassle trying to polish the darn things myself!
Looks very nice. Kinda wishing I'd gone that route myself. Might have saved me a lot of hassle trying to polish the darn things myself!
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
My skill level is really limited in lots of areas, so I farm out quite a bit of work.
I’m not really sure what all was involved in producing that spiffy result. Sandman has vapor blasting equipment that he uses.
We discussed the level of polishing I wanted prior to starting the project. The finish you see is what I picked.
I’m not really sure what all was involved in producing that spiffy result. Sandman has vapor blasting equipment that he uses.
We discussed the level of polishing I wanted prior to starting the project. The finish you see is what I picked.
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Next batch of parts done. The drum & sprocket carrier are for the T500 cafe build.
The ram air covers are just polished — am undecided on either sticking with natural or clear coating the covers.
cafe-GT550-9045 by jabcb, on Flickr
The ram air covers are just polished — am undecided on either sticking with natural or clear coating the covers.
![Image](https://farm1.staticflickr.com/790/40910858872_6fcc973527_b.jpg)
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- Alan H
- Moto GP
- Posts: 3172
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2012 11:50 am
- Country: England
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 4 x GT550s - J, M, A, B.
- Location: The Republic of South Yorkshire
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Silver metallic looks nice. I had the wheels powder coated on the 550 and the GSX1400, but rattle can looks good too.
Think of how stupid the average person is, then realise that half of them are more stupid than that.
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Interesting thought.Alan H wrote:Silver metallic looks nice. I had the wheels powder coated on the 550 and the GSX1400, but rattle can looks good too.
The frame is powder coated bengal silver. The body set will be color matched to aztec gold. The exhaust will be Jemco nickel plated.
The sprocket carrier is powder coated silver. That’s similar to the current look of the ram air covers, but the silver powder coat would knock off the sheen.
But how would the silver powder coat stand up to the heat on the ram air cover?
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- Alan H
- Moto GP
- Posts: 3172
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2012 11:50 am
- Country: England
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 4 x GT550s - J, M, A, B.
- Location: The Republic of South Yorkshire
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Powder coat is baked on and the ram air doesn't get that hot.
Think of how stupid the average person is, then realise that half of them are more stupid than that.
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
I don’t know what Suzuki was thinking.Alan H wrote:Powder coat is baked on and the ram air doesn't get that hot.
The early ram air covers have cooling fins & the cylinder head has a surprisingly skimpy amount of cooling fin surface area.
The later ram air covers have no cooling fins & the cylinder head has a lot more cooling fin surface area.
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- Alan H
- Moto GP
- Posts: 3172
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2012 11:50 am
- Country: England
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 4 x GT550s - J, M, A, B.
- Location: The Republic of South Yorkshire
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Mine are slightly different.
Standard - ish, with extra metalflake bling.......
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=12751" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It's coming on steadily - while keeping the other Suzukis - 550, 750, 1400 and me running...
Look through my older posts - search for Earwig, Yeti and Hippo.
Standard - ish, with extra metalflake bling.......
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=12751" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It's coming on steadily - while keeping the other Suzukis - 550, 750, 1400 and me running...
Look through my older posts - search for Earwig, Yeti and Hippo.
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Think of how stupid the average person is, then realise that half of them are more stupid than that.
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
The color of my parts is closer to yours than the pics suggest. The ruled mat that is under the parts is a lot greener than shown in the pics. Some of the color shift might be from the lampshade.
My 71 T350 is aztec gold. The sidecovers on that bike are prone to crack so I got some NOS spares. The colors are surprisingly different. My painter explained it as being due to the two layer paint. The final color varies based on the application of the second layer.
My 71 T350 is aztec gold. The sidecovers on that bike are prone to crack so I got some NOS spares. The colors are surprisingly different. My painter explained it as being due to the two layer paint. The final color varies based on the application of the second layer.
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
Back to working on this build. Hopefully my mechanic/friend will have the motor done soon.
cafe-GT550-0827 by jabcb, on Flickr
![Image](https://farm1.staticflickr.com/981/42129663422_5b98e58db0_b.jpg)
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
- jabcb
- Moto GP
- Posts: 4241
- Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:32 pm
- Country: USA
- Suzuki 2-Strokes: 69 T350 thru 75 GT750
- Location: southwestern Pennsylvania
Re: 1972 GT550 cafe build - new topic
BAS (Bike Acquisition Syndrome) - too many bikes but have room for more
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE
Suzuki:
GT750 2x75
GT550 72 & 75
GT380 72
T500 69 project & 73 project
T350 69 & 71
Honda 85 CB650SC & 86 CB700SC
09 Triumph Bonneville SE