I may be going paranoid !!

[wishbone]

Hi , I,ve had my 1200gs now for nearly 12months now and it'll be coming out of warranty at the end of june , its an 05 with about 22000 miles ,
the wife and I have just had a 9 day jolly up and around west Scotland , the bike bottomed out a couple of times while we were up there , we were fully loaded and two up (99% of the time i ride two up)
i dont know if Im paranoid but Ive noticed a difference in the rear shock , it feels spongy now and doesnt seem to handle as well , also i noticed lately a really rancid smell coming from the clutch when i work it a bit to hard ,
I'll be phoning Rainbow tomorrow to see where I lie but any advice before hand would be really appreciated , thanx

 

[Schtum]

22K miles - lots of it two-up and fully loaded. The rear shock could easily be due for replacement.

Smelly clutch - like fish? Are there traces of oil seepage on the join between crankcase and gearbox on the right hand side of the bike? If so, it's likely to be failure of either the rear crankshaft oilseal or a gearbox oil seal or quite possibly both.

HTH

 

[wishbone]

22K miles - lots of it two-up and fully loaded. The rear shock could easily be due for replacement.

Smelly clutch - like fish? Are there traces of oil seepage on the join between crankcase and gearbox on the right hand side of the bike? If so, it's likely to be failure of either the rear crankshaft oilseal or a gearbox oil seal or quite possibly both.

HTH

will they be covered under warranty do you think ??

 

[Schtum]

will they be covered under warranty do you think ??

You can but ask. Good luck with it and let us know how you get on.

 

[TeaPig]

I've had 4 times that milage from all the shocks on my GS's without them altering significantly. Sure the oil may thin with time but normally an extra click on the damping puts it back to where it was. If the bike is wallowing up and down after hitting a long bump then it may be underdamped. If you are bottoming out then check the preload, though two up in scotland, the odd clunk is to be expected. If you are already at the limit of damping adjustment then OK, it's probably had it. Also check for any signs of oil leaking from it which certainly means it's knackered

If when you say 'you work the clutch a bit too hard', you mean you are slipping it a lot then it will smell as it's a dry clutch (unlike the majority of bikes) and the friction will cause the plates to get very hot (and wear out fast). There's little good reason to slip the clutch on a GS as there's loads of torque at low revs. If you've come off a multicylinder sports bike and got used to slipping it away from the line for a fast take-off you need to consider modifying your technique, or put up with the smell and the bill for a new clutch.

If you are not doing that then as schtum says, look for any signs of oil mist around the gearbox-to-crankcase joint. Early 1200's had issues with oil seals, later ones seem much better

If it's still in warranty, then it's still in warranty.

 

[wishbone]

I've had 4 times that milage from all the shocks on my GS's without them altering significantly. Sure the oil may thin with time but normally an extra click on the damping puts it back to where it was. If the bike is wallowing up and down after hitting a long bump then it may be underdamped. If you are bottoming out then check the preload, though two up in scotland, the odd clunk is to be expected. If you are already at the limit of damping adjustment then OK, it's probably had it. Also check for any signs of oil leaking from it which certainly means it's knackered

If when you say 'you work the clutch a bit too hard', you mean you are slipping it a lot then it will smell as it's a dry clutch (unlike the majority of bikes) and the friction will cause the plates to get very hot (and wear out fast). There's little good reason to slip the clutch on a GS as there's loads of torque at low revs. If you've come off a multicylinder sports bike and got used to slipping it away from the line for a fast take-off you need to consider modifying your technique, or put up with the smell and the bill for a new clutch.

If you are not doing that then as schtum says, look for any signs of oil mist around the gearbox-to-crankcase joint. Early 1200's had issues with oil seals, later ones seem much better

If it's still in warranty, then it's still in warranty.

cheers , yeah i have the shock up to the limit , it certainly feels very spongy though , as for the clutch , yes i do slip it now and then i must admit , thanx for the advice , i dont want to fork out for a new new clutch so i think its low revs from now on , ive booked it into rainbow this weekend for a diagnostic so i'll let you know the outcome

 

[TeaPig]

cheers , yeah i have the shock up to the limit , it certainly feels very spongy though , as for the clutch , yes i do slip it now and then i must admit , thanx for the advice , i dont want to fork out for a new new clutch so i think its low revs from now on , ive booked it into rainbow this weekend for a diagnostic so i'll let you know the outcome

Ok, the shock may well be knackered, though are both the preload and damping up to the limit?

If you want to take off fast, practice letting the clutch out fairly quickly and only then give it a handfull, it'll normally wheelie in first and maybe second. If you are slipping the clutch in town to maintain a slow speed then don't, but allow the engine to plod along at low rev's. It'll pull like a diesel if you let it. It's often possible to keep going at walking pace just on tick-over in first, especially if the throttle bodies are in good balance.

It's hard to get your head round using bugger all rev's at slow speed if you are used to a jap sports bike for example, but it's worth the effort as it makes for a more relaxing ride.

 

[wishbone]

Ok, the shock may well be knackered, though are both the preload and damping up to the limit?

If you want to take off fast, practice letting the clutch out fairly quickly and only then give it a handfull, it'll normally wheelie in first and maybe second. If you are slipping the clutch in town to maintain a slow speed then don't, but allow the engine to plod along at low rev's. It'll pull like a diesel if you let it. It's often possible to keep going at walking pace just on tick-over in first, especially if the throttle bodies are in good balance.

It's hard to get your head round using bugger all rev's at slow speed if you are used to a jap sports bike for example, but it's worth the effort as it makes for a more relaxing ride.

when I first got the bike it was the first thing I did , I set both preload and the dampener to the highest setting as I nearly always ride two up ,
As for the clutch thanx for the advice I'll try and adopt this into my riding from now on , cheers
I have to park my bike round the back of my house which is up a passage on an incline and then up a ramp into my shed , its a bugger at the best of times and this is where I probably (now i think about it ) notice it more , what would you suggest ? low revs and less slipping ?
thanx for your help

 

[Monty]

Hi,

The shock on my GS was soft and crappy from day 1. I ditched it and bought an Ohlins, and it has been brilliant ever since. Apparently there is a lot of variation between individual units, but none of the GSs I have ridden were any good 2 up with the standard shock.

Cheers,

Matt

 

[TeaPig]

when I first got the bike it was the first thing I did , I set both preload and the dampener to the highest setting as I nearly always ride two up ,
As for the clutch thanx for the advice I'll try and adopt this into my riding from now on , cheers
I have to park my bike round the back of my house which is up a passage on an incline and then up a ramp into my shed , its a bugger at the best of times and this is where I probably (now i think about it ) notice it more , what would you suggest ? low revs and less slipping ?
thanx for your help

yeah, just use enough rev's to keep the engine from stalling, maybe 2000 max. Just don't jiggle the throttle like you are about to start the senior at the TT. You have to slip the clutch from time to time but let the engine do the work, it'll chug along easy.

If your shock really is soft with everything set on max' then it does sound poorly

 

[wishbone]

yeah, just use enough rev's to keep the engine from stalling, maybe 2000 max. Just don't jiggle the throttle like you are about to start the senior at the TT. You have to slip the clutch from time to time but let the engine do the work, it'll chug along easy.

If your shock really is soft with everything set on max' then it does sound poorly

thanx teapig , i'll let you know about the rear shock