Maggie

Update, Thursday March 12 2015: Maggie is no more :( I crashed her into a car on the M1, fortunately escaping with just a sore elbow (all the gear, all the time!). She was today judged a total loss by the insurance company. A sad day, as we (meaning Mototecnic, really) had ironed out all of her reliability issues and she’d been running really well for nearly two years.

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Maggie is a 1982 Suzuki GS1100G; I purchased her in decidedly second-hand condition from eBay and had Mototecnic recondition her over a period of several months. She’s named Maggie in honour of the late, great Margaret Thatcher.

I’ve been using her as a commuter (my commute from Upwey to Richmond is around 40 minutes each way) and plan to do some touring & camping in the summer months.

There is a set of photos of Maggie on this site.

Work Done

• recoated four-into-one exhaust system with polished muffler
• new piston rings
• replaced flasher unit
• replaced switchgear
• Stebel Nautilus air horn (great mod, that)
• new rear suspension
• new clutch and throttle cables
• new brake fluid and pads
• indicator brackets to comply with Victorian road-worthiness standards
• carbs cleaned and balanced
• tank stripped and coated internally
• countless miscellaneous stuff like bearings, bolts, etc.
• replaced pillion footrests
• replaced centre stand
• reconditioned clutch actuator
• re-tapped rocker cover
• new instrument panel bulb
• rebuilt front suspension
• new HT leads and plugs
• new air filter
• new fuel filter
• professionally re-wound stator
• wiring loom tidied up
• new coils
• new aftermarket brake lever / master cylinder assembly
• braided brake lines
• rocker cover thread reconditioned
• sump plug thread reconditioned
• decent heated grips (Oxford)
• right hand mirror no longer folds in at speeds > 100km/h
• horn switchgear replaced
• indicator wiring fixed
• brake light switch fixed

Current Bugs / Glitches

• under 5000RPM rev counter oscillates around true value, +/- 1500RPM
• side stand warning light doesn’t work
• fuel gauge is unreliable now reliably dead back to unreliable again completely dead
• rear LHS indicator is held in position with duct tape
• odd popping sound and burning smell when cold-starting … possibly electrical?
• fairings are cracked through in places
• pack rack has broken (probably due to vibration)

Future Enhancements

• pitted fork legs really should be re-chromed
• replace OEM indicator switch with something kinder to human beings
• clean engine cases
• powder coat frame & swing-arm
• repaint tank & bodywork
• comfy high-rise bars
• rebuild new seat on aftermarket fibreglass base
• remove old brackets from front suspension
• replace all bolts that are cosmetically ugly
• Dyna ignition with rev limiter
• Wiseco big-bore kit