One of the better ones to restore I'd say, suzuki classic parts seems pretty good. You'll be at least be able to get bits.
I'm doing an RGV 250 at the moment and Suzuki classic spares are quite good. But don't expect bargain prices. If you have a complete unmolested bike you should have no problems. My bike on the other hand was owned by a chimp with a B&Q card so I am having to source a lot of correct fastenings etc. If you can do a lot yourself it will be worthwhile, I don't think RGV500 prices are going to drop any time soon.
The bike is complete but with a fair amount of cosmetic wear and tear from my using it as a daily transport. It has stood for 23 years with about 6 or 7 years of that being in a cold detached garage. It needs stripping, the soft/perishable/corroded parts attending to or replacing and then rebuilding. If it looks viable I will largely do it myself with the odd bit of specialist help. Good to hear about the availability of spares given the fairly small number of these bikes around. I don't expect to need any major parts but I do expect the costs to be significant for many of the usual suspects for an old bike. If lots of my time and a budget of a few thousand looks viable I will likely press ahead.
If it's stood that long I would think it's a full engine strip as you might find corrosion on the crank where the piston has been below the exhaust port. Seals will need doing anyway. The 250 engine at least is lovely to work on, like a watch.
Yes the engine will need to be part of the strip and rebuild. Quite what will need doing and what I have the tools to do myself I am not sure. Sending the engine away to someone competent will be expensive for anything major.
Thanks for the pointer. I guess I will have to join the modern world sometime and it might as well be now.
I tried to login to facebook. It accepted my userid and password from many years ago (joined but never used). It then asks me to confirm my identity without presenting me with any way to do so. The only option is the continue button which when pressed tells me my identity was not confirmed. It is clearly broken but is this normal? I thought zillions of kids used facebook?
Had a quick google and others are having the same problem. Unfortunately nobody I found posted how they solved the problem if they ever did. Looks like facebook will have to do without me as a genuine person. Next time some youngsters are around I will get them to set me up as a fake person so I can communicate with the RG500 group.
The RGV250 forum is a great source of info and bits. If you can deal with another forum in your life?
I’d recommend the RGV forum too, few years ago now, but when my wife’s RGV went bang there were a few on there that offered help and parts.
Thanks for the pointer to the RG subforum at RGV250 which does look useful and which I can access unlike facebook. In the past I used to make (greasy) notes and the odd sketch but not take pictures which were expensive. Times change. Can use my phone for a camera but does anyone make their notes directly into a computer bypassing paper? An ancient laptop perhaps? Budget is something I am pondering at the moment. If I keep the bike which I would like to do then I have little budget because it is needed in the near term to fix the rising damp, heating, roof, etc... for the "new" house. If I sell then funds could be found for a short period but would it be a short period if I need to track down various parts? The bike was used daily when put into store 23 years ago (6 or 7 years in a wet detached garage and the rest in a warm and dry undercroft). It has corroded. The wheels are stiff but the the engine turns. What is the potential harm in trying to get it running without first stripping engine, replacing the seals and checking the state of internal corrosion?
Engine rebuild from a specialist like Mark Dent will be north of 2K. It would definitely need the cranks rebuilding and from memory this is around £700. Before attempting to start I would take the carbs and disc valve covers off, check the Pertinax layer in the covers has not come away which could easily be swallowed into the motor. Carbs will obviously need a full strip and clean, along with any rust and gunk in the tank. But in all honesty I would not attempt to start it, not worth risking damaging the crank cases or a cylinder as they are getting almost irreplaceable! If your thinking of selling drop me a pm.
I'm am still pondering my options as I gather more information. The bike is as far as I am aware original, lowish mileage at 11k, cosmetically a bit tatty which should be fixable for a small amount of money and a lot of time, and was running nicely when put into storage. History is largely known: registered in 88 in the UK, owned since 93 when bought from a shop in the SW that had owned it for a year or two. In clean, tidy and original condition it might/could/should get more than this higher mileage stickered import? (which should look more like this which I believe went for £31,050). Anyway, thoughts like this are starting to put me off keeping it to have fun thrashing around. Corrosion and perished soft bits are a concern. If I am to sell for a good price without doing the full cosmetic treatment (not attractive but would do if unavoidable) I am fairly sure I will need to be able demonstrate it is complete and working (I am of course open to large offers from those that can take this on faith). Hence the desire to get it running but, as you suggest, I am coming round to thinking the prudent thing to do is to strip the engine, inspect and replace what is needed before attempting to start it. Does anyone know how important it is to use Suzuki labelled engine parts (e.g. pistons) vs pattern ones for a project like this?
Genuine gaskets and bearings (Japanese i.e koyo etc) are a must, however im pretty sure mark uses after market pistons and rods. Especially in his big bore motors. checking the Pertinax laminate on the disc valve covers is a biggie!
