Suzuki GN250 Rebuild - Now running!

[Cigaro]

Well, here was my GN250 when I bought it:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2488/3998301760_7b9bb6b33a_b.jpg

Basically bought it as a non-runner - it actually does run but sounded like shit.

I adjusted the valve clearances, it helped a bit but not much. Also I noticed LOTS of rust on the frame, some frayed wires in the loom, etc.

So, I decided that this winter I would strip it down and rebuild it. My plan is to start with the frame - remove all the paint, get rid of the rust, primer and respray, and then do a full overhaul on the engine (just to learn).

Here is what I have sitting in my living room now:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2426/4052847917_891177a5c4_b.jpg

The pile of parts that I've taken out of it:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2648/4053618190_4cf556fa95_o.jpg

Eventually the tank will be painted gloss black, the downpipes de-rusted and painted with BBQ paint, most of the wiring replaced...

I will update this thread when progress is made. On Sunday I'll pull the frontend off and remove the last few little bits from the frame such as the rear brake pedal and sidestand, and then I can start removing the paint and priming it...

[Andy C]

Nice project, it is a single?

Should be nice by the end (though if it was me I would keep the red tank and just polish up the downpipes).

Look forward to seeing the updates
____________________
99 RS125 --> 02 SV650s --> 03 Speed Four --> 92 RXS100 --> 93 CB400sf --> 01 CB600f Hornet

[hmmmnz]

i think every man and his dog has had one at one point over here in nz (250cc learner limit)
not bad little singles
____________________
the humans are dead
I kick arse for the lord
Wiring Diagrams BIDNIP it bitches

[Cigaro]

Frame stripped.

https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3503/4061290816_062afb2eec_b.jpg

Sanding all the paint off tommorrow and giving it a coat of primer, watch this space.

[Howling TerrorOutOfOffice]

+1 for keeping the tank red. Otherwise it'll be a-rat-a-like bike.
How indepth is this project going to be?
Defo something i'll be doing when i get a 2nd bike.


Pat
____________________
Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[Cigaro]

The tank is fooked and does need a respray (and a dent filling up).

I'm thinking of doing the tank in candy-apple green, see the attached image...

'How indepth': basically I want the bike to be as good as new when I'm finished.

Full rebuild of the motor definitely planned.
Fork seals need changing.
Some of the chrome is pretty rusty and needs polishing up.

I've decided not to paint the downpipes, I will polish them instead.

And the whole thing needs tweaking and setting up properly.

[Howling TerrorOutOfOffice]

This is when a photo app comes in handy. Some people have the ability to fore-see how it'd turn out. I don't.

Happy sanding


Pat
Nice colour choice BTW
____________________
Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[Cigaro]

Most of the paint was removed using Nitromors, and then the worst of the rust was removed using a wirebrush:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2621/4063625827_a75cb38bc4_b.jpg

Beer + Powertools = GOOD!

Next, I cleaned the frame with some methylated spirits and wiped it dry. The first coat of primer was added:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2421/4065086434_c20d960320_b.jpg
https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3504/4065081832_563dbc0c48_b.jpg

[Cigaro]

After the first coat of primer had dried I realised that some dirt and rust were left on the frame and were showing through. So I decided to attack these spots with a wirebrush:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2625/4069164869_77888d0c55_b.jpg

The remaining rust is now off. After this I gave the frame another wash with meths and then wet-sanded over the existing primer with some very fine sandpaper.

I've now started to put the second coat on. Waiting for this side to dry now and then tommorrow I'll do the other side.

[Throttle]

Good work so far, should look good when it's done.

Nice to see you're a BFG graphics kinda guy

[rob_scott92]

nice little project m8.
the bike is where it should be too in the house, bikes get cold too .

Rob

[Cigaro]

Well, I popped home at lunch today and finished priming the frame. I went to Halfords today and picked up an extremely fine-grit sanding pad (and a rust remover pad which will come in handy for doing the swingarm, as even the wire brush was having problems on the frame).

When I got home from work I wet-sanded the primer with the sanding pad, wiping away any dust with a rag.

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2566/4072924320_41e4b688cb_b.jpg

This gave me a nice, reasonably smooth finish on which to deposit the colour coats.

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2694/4072936460_3bb56bd6c8_b.jpg
The old girl has new paint!

The can said to do thin coats and allow 10 minutes between each coat. The spray came out thicker than I anticipated so I've decided to only do two coats, and sand it before finishing off with a clearcoat.

Unfortunately the way my painting 'rig' is set up means that I have to paint the frame in two halves - i.e do what is accessible on one side, wait for the paint to dry and then flip the frame upside down and do the other side. So tommorrow it's two coats on the other side - then it's clearcoat time!

This weekend I'm aiming to get the swingarm and sidestand done, and start stripping the paint from the tank.

[Cigaro]

Just thought I'd add a pic of the frame after the second coat:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2626/4072221505_1596fcf6ce_b.jpg

[transporter]

The paint on my GN frame wasn't too bad so i just sanded down the problem areas then blew them over with a £1 tin of black from the pound shop then blew that over with clear lacquer. You say youre going to paint the downpipes with BBQ paint,have you used this stuff before, does it cling to chrome OK ?,im looking to paint my engine casings in black to match the cylinder but not sure what paint to use,wondered if BBQ paint would be any good for that,Rich

[Cigaro]

I've used BBQ paint to paint the exhaust on my previous bike (the mighty Eliminator) and that worked OK. You might need to sand the chrome a bit to get it to 'key'.

I've decided to try and polish up my pipes, though - it'd be a shame to ruin all that chrome...

[Cigaro]

Frame now painted.

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2540/4075266195_17c9e6ae47_b.jpg

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2595/4075266191_4c568fe221_b.jpg

Just waiting for it to dry now, Friday I'll sand it and put a clearcoat on.

[ms51ves3]

What's the reasoning behind not taking the main stand off?

[Cigaro]

Good question! I couldn't work out how to get it off I took the splitpin out but it wouldn't come off, it seems to be held in by a rod which is flared at the end. Decided it would just be easier to paint it as-is.

[Cigaro]

Update!

Over the last few days I have been finishing the frame off - here it is painted and lacquered:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2715/4082594425_d577c30b4c_o.jpg

Next on the agenda is the swingarm. The brake torque arm was still attached, so I removed it:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2496/4083339016_d2910a5226_b.jpg

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2769/4082579217_90652d075e_b.jpg

I have no idea how to remove the swingarm bearings (one seems to be a bit stiff, not sure if it requires regreasing?) so I stuffed some newspaper in the hole instead to stop crap getting in...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2674/4083337814_005d310178.jpg

Next I attacked it with the wire brush to remove any rust.

Likewise with the rear brake torque arm. Here they are both prepped for painting (I only removed the rusty bits, any remaining paint I just sanded to give the primer a 'key'...)

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2530/4083354466_0be9374e5e_b.jpg

All primered up - tommorrow they get painted...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2767/4082578133_9385a9b68d_b.jpg

I then started on the tank. First I decided to use this stuff....

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2726/4083336662_0daa773065.jpg

It removed some of the paint, but I was using loads of it and the majority still wasn't coming off, so instead I used a sanding disc with some coarse sandpaper.

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2716/4082559855_a28e77465a_b.jpg

Half done, we're off out now so I'll finish it tommorrow. Then I'm going to fill the dents in, sand and primer it.

I also picked up this stuff at Asda, to polish up my shiny bits...

https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3517/4083320256_413de31366_b.jpg

[Cigaro]

Done some more today.

Finished sanding the tank (well, I know there is still some paint left on it, but it's pretty well sanded down and will hold the primer OK).

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2716/4086149284_3ca7b8e461_b.jpg

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2509/4086147886_467fe0903f_b.jpg

Also sprayed the swingarm and brake torque arm...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2753/4086148586_830cf47ec4_b.jpg

After sanding and cleaning the tank, the next job was to fill in the dents. I used this stuff:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2543/4085390275_38e5671300.jpg

Before...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2485/4085380777_793ed678da_b.jpg

After

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2708/4085379585_4e8159f552_b.jpg

https://farm1.static.flickr.com/71/4086136430_3363b85509_b.jpg

Just waiting for that to cure now, then it can be sanded down and finally the tank can be primed.

Had a look at the steering head too:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2696/4085392481_d7f6ea850b_b.jpg

The bearings look pretty good. The metal is a bit rusty though (as usual). It shall be attacked with a wire brush...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2761/4086183472_40a465fc38_o.jpg

[Cigaro]

Tank primed...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2593/4090928958_46fa4779f3_b.jpg

[ms51ves3]

Can I see the filler on that primed tank?

[Cigaro]

You can see it a bit, I had to resand and do it again but it's still slightly visible.

Decided to go for black around the edges and candy apple green down the middle. Here is the black coat on...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2513/4091101024_ee8f332749_b.jpg

[Cigaro]

Well, I decided I'd probably muffed up the tank, so I decided to sand before I went to work this morning I would put more filler on. Tonight I'll resand the filler to try and get it smooth, and then prime it again.

Decided to go for the green all over. Today I picked up a can of silver, so I'll use that as the basecoat and then a couple of coats of green. I'll post some pics tonight...

[Cigaro]

Right, did it again.

I *thought* it was totally smooth after sanding, but there were still a few small blemishes after repriming.

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2762/4093061065_ac6a6b3c84_b.jpg

Still, I decided to go ahead with the silver base layer. Here is the first coat:

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2769/4093062333_8c28912783_b.jpg

The filler does show through a bit more with the silver on, though isn't anything like as bad as this in the flesh...

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2788/4093059883_2c3e51992d_b.jpg

Tommorrow I'll give it another coat and then start with the green.