What Nerobro did this weekend. (or, what insanity he's come up with this week)

[nerobro]

It's been done.

Skreemer and I have made the GS650 head, block, and pistons fit on a GS550 crank and block.

There's a lot more involved than originally thought.

First, the block wouldn't fit down into the crankcase. The cylinder liners don't actually touch down in thecrankcase so it was a matter of trial and error to find out where the interferece was.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00880.JPG

As you can see... some of the interference was pretty severe.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00883.JPG

Look carefully and you can see where we ground casting flash off of the inside of bore 2, and Skreemer is working on bore 3

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00881.JPG

Super Scary... Skreemer with a dremmel. He's not quite the artist as I, but he's competant :-) And look... I let him inside my engine with that thing.

It involved a LOT of grinding. none of it was all that deep, just a lot of it. If I did it again, I'd split the cases, pull the headstuds, and have a machine shop bore the crankcase. But that was well beyond my budget ;-)

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00882.JPG

Testfitting. This was probally our 4th or 5th fitting of the block.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00885.JPG

This is one of our last goes at making clearance. An artist at work... you can't see the work. ;-)

Seccond, much to our chagrin, the headgasket is different on the 650 and 550. so I had to reuse the 650 headgasket. I will be buying 650 headgaskets from here on out. Here's the reason why... The 550 uses an o-ring to seal the chaincase. The 650 just uses the soft fiber gasket. the 650 headgasket also has integrated oil gallery seals. The 550 uses seperate seals.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00889.JPG

[nerobro]

Finally, the timing chain was a pain in the butt. I did not realize that the 650 crank has more teeth on the crank sprocket, so that the camshafts use larger sprockets as well. Well, thats' not the whole story really. Lets just say that the discovery process led to me almost bending a valve. And that's an "I hope" I didn't bend a valve.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00890.JPG

We swapped the sprockets from the 550 onto the 650's camshafts. And after following the directions in the book, managed to sucessfully time the 6/550 motor.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00891.JPG

As it stands, the engine is now in my 1980 GS550E, and will crank over. And makes spark. Attaching the carbs is anotehr story. The carbs I'm tyring to put on are the carbs that came WITH THE ENGINE, but appear to be almost 1/2" to narrow. We're chalking that up to time hardening the carb boots. And the boots appear not to match up well with the ports in the head. We're going to put my 550 boots on it and see if that corrects the problem. My 550 boots are also much softer and more supple.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00889.JPG

We found out that the boots that came on that head. are NOT gs650 or 550 boots. We aren't sure WHAT they they really are. They're damned simmilar though.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00898.JPG
http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00899.JPG

If you can identify these, we'd like to sell them. They're in good shape if a little stiff. No cracks at all.

so.. yeah. You CAN fit a 673cc top end onto a 550 bottom end.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00887.JPG

549cc piston versus 673cc piston

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00888.JPG

Aw.. .look It's all dressed up.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00892.JPG

working furiously last night before we discoverd the carb boot issue.

[nerobro]

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00894.JPG

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00895.JPG

Two words.


It runs.

http://zodnetworks.com/~nerobro/Nerobro/DSC00896.JPG

Post shakedown runs.

The thing pulls like a freight train now. I'm excited :-)

[Muzikman]

Greg, I said it last night... You guys are nuts.

But I guess as long as it's running all is good. I would avoid long road trips until you are sure that you will not have problems.

I do have to say, you are the first person I know who did quite an engine overhaul with a dremel.

[Indignant]

Word to that. Taking a dremel to your engine, gotta have balls for that.

[BobTheCow]

My 550 boots are also much softer and more supple.
Mmm, that's what I like to hear...

[bofh]

That is awesome...

I'll need to document my 750 to 1000 engine swap, I suppose.

[nerobro]

Bofh, 750 to 1000 cc what? :-) if it's a GS..... Well that's documented. I think this is the first ever 650 on a 550 ;-)

But I'd love to see it.

[bofh]

Bofh, 750 to 1000 cc what? :-) if it's a GS..... Well that's documented. I think this is the first ever 650 on a 550 ;-)

But I'd love to see it.

VF750f to vf1000f.

It'll be a boring entire engine swap, and not a dremel will be in sight.

[Skreemer]

Was a bunch of work but after getting all the parts together it still took us only about a day and a half to get it all set up.... I think with good components and everything together we could get another one done in just a day.

[Target Practice]

Damned if I know what you were talking about, but I'm impressed.

You're awesome, Greg.

[Big'n slo]

Makes me love my simple V-twin that much more.

But my hats off to you two for an awsome job :cheers:

[Army]

Just Don't Wreck The Dang Thing This Time!!

[nerobro]

well I don't plan on it. :-)


Mmmmm 80 horsepower *grins* yaknow if your chevy smallblock made as much horsepower per cubic inch as my little bike does you'd have an 800 horsepower chevy!

[hardr0ck68]

when i get my kz650C1 up and running we got to go for a trip! and once im ready for more power with it i plan on putting a 750 top end on it.....then maybe once my 650 fits a 750 top end i will get a 835 big bore kit for the 750 :p. But first i need spark on the old 650.... :p

[nerobro]

Well, this weekend I put 130ish miles on the bike. And other than a developing carb problem. The bike ran like a champ. It is however, time to correct that carb issue ;-) (lets put it this way, I got 10mpg on the way home... thing is, most of that fuel wasnt' burnt, it was "misplaced". The carb was pissing fuel out a vent)