Bandit Alley
MODEL SPECIFIC => SUZUKI BANDIT 250 & 400 => Topic started by: mapes on September 26, 2005, 04:50:13 PM
-
Hello everyone.
Recently my wife has gotten intrested in learning how to ride. A buddy of mine is willing to swap his B400 for one of my other bikes. I'm hoping that you folks can help me with some questions. The bandit has forks from a GSXR. I don't know the year or what CC the forks are from. The reason this becomes relevant is the speedo is not working. It looks like the there is a cable and a front wheel pickup and it looks like everything is a attached. My question is does the stock speedo work with a GSXR front end as a direct bolt on app? Also the bike seems not to idle. After reading some posts on this board it appears that this fairly common and requires a carb clean and sync. Is there anything else to look at or be wary of in the carb exhaust system? Lastly it has a GSXR rear shock. Again no idea what year bike it came off of. Is there anything there I should be aware of. I'm a pretty good wrench and I'm no stanger to cult bikes as I rebuilt and tweaked on a extremly modded hawk. Anyways thanks for any info
-
You should try to find out what years the GSXR parts are from. You may need this info for future maintenance. Some GSXR forks do bolt in (there's info in the FAQ), some require some slight mods. The earlier GSXR's did have cable driven speedos and they should work with the B4's cable and speedo head, so if the speedo isn't working, there's something broken in the system - usually the cable breaks or the ends wear and it slips, but there could be something wrong with the drive or the speedo itself.
-
Ooooh - a modded hawk? Cool!
Generally speaking, the Gix suspension parts should be a big upgrade. That assumes they are in good shape and installed correctly, of course.
Look around here a bit. Carbs and electricals are the biggest gremlins.
:welcome: and good luck!
-
The best upgrades to a B400 are GSXR forks and rear shock. If he has done the mods well, then you are getting a great bike. Seems like carbs always need cleaning and syching. The only other big problem that I know of is the black box. Those are fixable.
-
The only other big problem that I know of is the black box. Those are fixable.
Not all of the time, but a few people have had good luck. I'd say it's 1 in 3 that don't, but it's hard to say if thats because of the unit itself or errors in the process.
Carbs are the other big weak point, as previously stated. They are small and tend to clog up easily, doesn't help that the stock 400 doesn't have a fuel filter. It's really recommended to add an inline one, it really does help.
GSXR forks and rear shock are the way to go! The big question I'd be asking is if the front was swapped just for the upgrade, or if it was swapped because the bike was wrecked. Wrecked bikes aren't always bad, but they do mean you should really pay close attention to all the welds and the frame alignment.
-
"jcmjrt wrote:
The only other big problem that I know of is the black box. Those are fixable."
"maniac wrote:
Not all of the time, but a few people have had good luck. I'd say it's 1 in 3 that don't, but it's hard to say if thats because of the unit itself or errors in the process."
Have you heard of anyone who sent theirs off to the Netherlands for pro repair who hasn't gotten back a working ignition? Some people who tried DIY failed...of course, some succeeded and saved some bucks. I just paid the pro for it figuring I didn't want to risk a valuable item...especially in my case with a California ignition!!
-
Have you heard of anyone who sent theirs off to the Netherlands for pro repair who hasn't gotten back a working ignition? Some people who tried DIY failed...of course, some succeeded and saved some bucks. I just paid the pro for it figuring I didn't want to risk a valuable item...especially in my case with a California ignition!!
Nope, never heard of anyone having it not come back from the Netherlands fixed. But then, I've only heard of two that sent them out that I can think of...
It's not exactly cheap to send it off to be fixed, most try it DIY. If I could find my second box I'd probally try to DIY, but I'm not sure where I put the stupid thing. :duh:
-
Ooooh - a modded hawk? Cool!
Heh yeah I love my hawk! Heres a pic
(http://www.mapes-net.org/albums/album04/aan.sized.jpg)
Hey thanks for the responses. I got a couple more questions
1. I belive the front forks are off of a 91 750 GSXR (USD). I think the fork springs are too stiff does any have any suggestions for for fork spring rates rate. The rider is my wife errr I don't know her wieght but shes slim 5'8" tall woman.
2. I noticed a few things with the electrical. Namely that the blinkers are odd. One side blinks faster that the other. However both sides blink really slow if the bike is off and when the bike is on both sides speed up and slow down the blink rate to the bikes irregular idling. Is this normal? I know its an old bike...just curious.
Thanks for any more info
-
2. I noticed a few things with the electrical. Namely that the blinkers are odd. One side blinks faster that the other. However both sides blink really slow if the bike is off and when the bike is on both sides speed up and slow down the blink rate to the bikes irregular idling. Is this normal? I know its an old bike...just curious.
Thanks for any more info
Voltage regulator, maybe? How's the bike turn over when turned off, is it sluggish? Could be a bad battery as well. Is the headlight getting dim/bright along with the blinker speed?
-
If you have a suspension specialist in your area that would be the best bet. If not, then you might want to call racetech and see if they could help you out with spring rates, spacers, etc. The Bandit 400 is much lighter than the GSXR750 and your wife may be lighter than the standard rider (around 160 lbs?) than the forks are generally set for. Let us know what you find out. There may be others who benefit in the future.
-
Luckily I have a friend who is racing for Aftershocks (suspension shop) maybe I can swing a deal
-
Mapes - I see your in Cali. This thing doesn't have pod filters, does it? (For those who have been around here a bit - even back to the old, old board days - I'm wondering if it is Stout510s old bike.) He had put a Factory stage III jet kit on it.
(http://www.bikepics.com/pics/pics/suzuki-bandit400-92-bikepics-200300.jpg)
That hawk is great looking. Very clean! They are so trick with the single sided swing arm. :bigok:
-
USD forks are sexy... must hunt on E-bay...
-
Mapes - I see your in Cali. This thing doesn't have pod filters, does it? (For those who have been around here a bit - even back to the old, old board days - I'm wondering if it is Stout510s old bike.) He had put a Factory stage III jet kit on it.
That hawk is great looking. Very clean! They are so trick with the single sided swing arm. :bigok:
I belive we have a winner. It does have pod filters and a bunch of stickers on the front fender. The only diff I see is that front turn signals have been incorporated into the headlight brackets. Do you have a pic of the other side? The left side foot peg has been broken and rewelded and is slightly bent. I belive it's the same bike. The stickers look right and the exhaust is the same. Good to know there may be some history on the bike around here!
The story is my friend Lon bought off of someone for his "wife". In reality he was looking for a CB-1 which he finally found.
-
2. I noticed a few things with the electrical. Namely that the blinkers are odd. One side blinks faster that the other. However both sides blink really slow if the bike is off and when the bike is on both sides speed up and slow down the blink rate to the bikes irregular idling. Is this normal? I know its an old bike...just curious.
Thanks for any more info
Voltage regulator, maybe? How's the bike turn over when turned off, is it sluggish? Could be a bad battery as well. Is the headlight getting dim/bright along with the blinker speed?
The blinker prob was fixed by soldering an open and new bulbs. However why yes the headlight gets dimer/brighter along with the irractic idle.
-
Mapes - I see your in Cali. This thing doesn't have pod filters, does it? (For those who have been around here a bit - even back to the old, old board days - I'm wondering if it is Stout510s old bike.) He had put a Factory stage III jet kit on it.
That hawk is great looking. Very clean! They are so trick with the single sided swing arm. :bigok:
I belive we have a winner. It does have pod filters and a bunch of stickers on the front fender. The only diff I see is that front turn signals have been incorporated into the headlight brackets. Do you have a pic of the other side? The left side foot peg has been broken and rewelded and is slightly bent. I belive it's the same bike. The stickers look right and the exhaust is the same. Good to know there may be some history on the bike around here!
The story is my friend Lon bought off of someone for his "wife". In reality he was looking for a CB-1 which he finally found.
Hey - they didn't make me an Admin around here for nuthin'!!! :monkeymoon:
I'm on my way out the door so I can't go into the whole story that bike should be pretty hot if you get it tuned correctly. IIRC, Marc Slavisburg (who is a great guy) from Factory Pro set up the custom Stage III kit and tuned it himself. For a few more pics, go to bikepics.com and look through the B4s (92, I think) for Stout510 or something like that.
-
That hawk is great looking. Very clean! They are so trick with the single sided swing arm. :bigok:
I'll gloat just a little bit
(http://www.mapes-net.org/albums/album04/aad.sized.jpg) :banana:
-
Nice! Love the custom stand, too! :lol:
It looks like the old board (http://p076.ezboard.com/fbanditalleybbs400bandits) is pretty well blown up. I can't find any of Stout's old posts. Sorry. If anyone else remembers details, bring it!
Here (http://www.bikepics.com/members/stout510/92bandit400/) is Stout's bikepics page. You mean the bracket is welded like this one:
(http://www.bikepics.com/pics/pics/suzuki-bandit400-92-bikepics-200301.jpg)
-
So, didja get it???
-
Yep I sure did. However my wife lowsided it just two days ago. She's ok just bruised. The damage is minor.
Left rearset bracket
clutch lever
and blinkers
Speak of blinkers I bought some after market one and hooked them up . they light up all bright and everything it's just that they don't errr well blink. She fell on the left side. Is it possible the relay is toast. It looks like the body work took a hit right on top of the relay. The relay looks fine and the cables look ok too. Is there any thing else I should look at?
It's a pretty sweet bike....minus some small parts now.
-
Yesp it's the relay. What I thought was the relay was something else (above the seat lock). I just took another look and noticed this silver thing that says flasher. It has a nice half round smushed into it where it got pinched between the ground and the grab rail.
-
Once you get it fixed, how about an updated pic of that bad boy? :bigok:
-
Sorry 'bout her get off. Glad she and the bike are reasonably OK. You fixed the rough-running, I assume?
-
Sorry 'bout her get off. Glad she and the bike are reasonably OK. You fixed the rough-running, I assume?
Yeah the rough running prob is pretty much sorted. I put in new plugs and sync'd the carbs. It does run pretty good when warmed up. It runs a bit rich I'm assuming thats because of the stage 3 jet kit, pod filters and race exhaust. When its cold it's a bit of an iltempered bitch. Other than that It's great.
Hey what are my rearset options? I'm not looking for full race bling stuff here just cheap and works well.
-
Rich? Sounds like it might be lean. I'd try backing out the fuel screws a bit.
-
Hey what are my rearset options? I'm not looking for full race bling stuff here just cheap and works well.
Not really what I'd call cheap, but Wild Hair (http://www.whaccessories.com/Suzuki%20Bandit.htm) has Gimbel rearsets for the B4.
-
Oh yeah, the rearsets... search this forum. KillerB found some somewhere. Looked cool. I'm not sure if he sold his old ones or not. hopefully, he'll see this.