Was My Suzuki Bandit 1200 A Good Buy? | Part 1
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- čas přidán 9. 07. 2024
- I bought a cheap road legal 2003 Suzuki GSF1200S Bandit project that initially wasn't running.
In this series I will take you on a journey of how I'm going to get this bike looking and running great on a tight budget.
This is the way we New Zealanders do projects!
Enjoy!
00:00 Introduction.
00:49 The fun of motorcycle projects!
01:39 The Bandit 1200.
02:24 The history of that monster Suzuki 4 cylinder engine.
03:43 My GSF1200S K3 Bandit look over.
07:24 Crank up the engine.
08:46 Thanks for watching!
Credit to my lovely daughter India-Rose for the intro!! - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Brilliant bike , easy to work on, no computer or sensors to go wrong - screw & locknut tappet adjustment. Sort out carbs & upgrade suspension and it's the only bike you need ! Ohh & it will go up in value if kept standard !!
Totally agree with you. I've already started pulling out the carbs and taking footage obviously. The ease of maintenance did attract me to the Bandit, what with being a former owner of 3 Italian V-twins!
@John Cummins, got suspension upgrade suggestions?
@@JDnBeastletohlins for aggressive knee touching down turning , race tech for medium 50/50 sport/touring , and any used gsxr 750 or k5/k6 rear shock but will need few mods to fit snug
Have a 2000 GSF1200S. It should be a fairred model but it is naked. Has a stage 2 Holeshot kit with the 17" exhaust. I bought it in totes sans wheels and carbs. The motor was disassembled in the guy's living room and the guy's wife was very happy about the sale.
I picked up a '92 DR250S project purportedly with low compression. Someone had converted it to a 350 kicker. It wouldn't run good without the intake after the valves were adjusted. I put a DR350SE engine in it and added kickstart from the old motor. It has a dirt shock and a pumper carb. I put an RM250 front end on it. It's really close to done.
I bought an RF900RV last year. It had several issues. The biggest one turned out that I didn't seat orings under the jets properly. That bike rocks except when you are moving it in the driveway.
I bought my first Kawi for a friend. It's a 2000 ZR-7. Kid said it likely had a warped head because his compression test numbers were bad on the center two pistons. He tore a lot of it apart before moving on. I think it might have just needed valve shims. Haven't gotten into that project much yet.
The B12 sound through the 17" holeshot, OMG! Everyone turns and looks. The PO's dad tried to swap exhausts with me.
The Bandits have so much low end torque. I was matching a charger 392's acceleration pulls a couple weeks ago.
@@wesleyedwards2764 Thanks for sharing your input with owning a Bandit. Back in the day, they were considered a cheap workhorse and very ordinary styling. Pretty much a pack mule! Nowadays, I reckon people are appreciated just how good they are. Bang for buck you got a lot for not much money. I had a 1991 DR250S which I raced in Vintage Moto-X. Lot of fun. Nowadays of course I have my XR200R. Remember, with the DR250/350, being a dry-sump engine, always check the oil level when hot not cold. Never had an RF900 but had an RF400V with the variable valve timing. I'm a fan of the styling, it's a love or hate there though! The 900 is also a good value bike. I don't know a heap about the ZR-7 only that they are a very simple engine and easy to maintain. People that have them love them. Thanks so much for watching my video(s). Hopefully there are some tips in there that you may find useful. Ride safe :)
Arr a Bandit 1200, brings back great memories. Bought mine new, kept it for years, and super reliable. It's so good that I named my CZcams channel after one. 🤣
@Banditmanuk you've got a really cool YT channel going there. Yes mine is a cheap but really interesting and fun project 😎 Thanks for having a look at my video.
Bandits are great, been looking at a 2002 1200 to replace my 05 600 that I've owned for 10 years and done 53,000 miles on,she's done 65,000 in total and has never,ever let me down in any way. Those are hard miles as well,my only transport and ridden through 10 British winters in all weathers. Long story but ended up costing me exactly nothing, so cheaper than yours even . She's a bit tired now and I don't have the time to sort the things that need sorting for the next MOT,same as your WOF , or the inclination to throw money at it with so many nice much fresher bikes going cheap these days. In my younger days I used to change my bikes every 3 months,seriously,in later years the good ones last a year or so before I wanted a change so says it all that I've kept my little Bandit for a bit over a decade.
That is an awesome story you shared about Bandit ownership. The 1200s are such great value for money and as you saw in my video, so easy to work in. Thanks for watching 👍🙂
I too just bought a 2002 1200s a few months ago all factory stock low miles. 27k miles. Finally got it sorted. Had to acid and line the tank, clean the carbs and drill out the EPA plugs and run out the screws to 3 full turns. Installed a Delkevic Can and removed the rubber tunnel ram on the air box to open it up. And wow!! 1st 3 gears are amazing even here in Colorado at 6000 feet and up!! I am running 20w-50 oil. Installed new JT rear sprocket and DID chain. Installed EBC pucks in the rear. Tip on pulling the carb bank is to loosen the plastic throttle and unload the 2 cables there. This will allow you to pull the carb bank out far enough to then remove them from the carb bank. Way way easier for sure.. Whew!! Also. Installed a simple gravity feed old school fuel valve to an mikuni type diaphragm fuel pump. The vacuum type EPA mandated fuel valves do not work well at all and when they go bad, and they always go bad, will leak and can cause a hydraulic. A gravity feed can do the same if you forget to turn it off when you are done riding. They do make electric fuel valve cut offs. I may install one of them if I keep forgetting to shut my fuel valve off. So far so good. The Vacuum fuel pump is good for replenishing fuel to the lines and carbs after a hot ride and from heat soak the carbs and fuel lines to them no longer have any fuel. Simple gravity feed would take forever to get all the fuel back into the carbs. The only thing I still need to do is the front fork seals as the left one is leaking. I may install fork boots when done as they work the best for keeping fork seals good and fork boots look cool to me. Old school again. They really do protect fork seals the best. And.. Putting in EBC pucks up front as well. The only non factory item on the bike when I bought it was the stainless braded brake lines for the front. Front brakes are good for sure. O yes. Had to replace both levers as the ball tip was cut off on both of them.. Why? Who does this? Also.. I have the bike running on the fat side which is good as I may install a NOS bottle and simply do a dry shot blow into my intake. Another 25-50 hp boost would be a hoot. It would have to be 3rd gear and up as 1st and 2nd are brutal enough as it is.. Enjoy the ride..
Wow that is some awesome advice!!! They seem to be a popular engine for turbos due to the toughness! I'm considering getting rid of the vac tank tap. I hear conflicting advice about the intake boot and where I live is sea level so will do some testing. Thanks for watching my video 😎
@@motorcyclingkiwistyle Not much to find on location of the EPA plugs to drill out so you can get to the slow jet screws. Also, the carbs have 3 jets. Slow, middle, and fast. Let me know if you need any info on this as I am now in possession of a lot of it on these carbs. I pulled my carb bank 5 times before I got it where I wanted it. :)
@grabir01 yes I've got mine out twice. I can see that happening many more times! While they're out I'll pop off the cam cover and do the tappets. Silly not to.
@@motorcyclingkiwistyle Have not checked mine yet. Will have to give them a jiggle soon and see if they need any adjustment.
@grabir01 Luckily they're screw and locknut. My bike seems relatively quiet there but will check anyway.
Just bought a bandit 1200s k6 model with 8724 miles from new and I have loved riding her this summer. I can't see me getting rid as there is plenty of power and she is so smooth through the gears. I think it will be a bike for life.
That is awesome 😎. Our summer here in NZ is still 4 months away. Motivation to get it running and ready for the big trips. Enjoy your Bandit and thanks for watching 😊
I bought a gsf1250 bandit k8 on an 09 plate with 7k on the clock absolutely fallen in love with it will never sell it and its going to be well looked after does everything you ever need a bike to do trust me get one 😊😊😊
@pob1335 - yes I know a couple of people with the 1250s. Love them to be bits. Watercooling and 6 speed apparently makes them just that little bit better than the 1200s. Thanks for watching my video :)
Hey Chris, as a fellow Bandit owner AND commonwealth resident it's great to see this video. Mine's a little older (1999) and little fresher (93,500 km). But it's a great bike, easy enough to work on and lots of fun to ride. More power than I will ever use. Greetings from Ottawa, Canada and I look forward to more content. Subscribed!
@grosbeakmc Thanks so much. Yes, mines an old and abused lady (my Bandit that is!) but still got plenty of life ahead of her. It's more a fun project than anything else. BTW, your channel is great. Subscribed also!
Man, i had an XR200R almost EXACTLY like the one at 1:12 when i was 15, except mine was an 81, with black instead of white stickers on the side panels. It was road legal despite having only a kill switch, no horn (it had a rubber bulb squeezy horn🤣) and knobblies. On a friday night in the early 80s, outside the burger joint in New Plymouth there would be a line of XR's and TT's (plus some weirdo on an ER185😆), guys doing wheelies along the main drag, fun times.😁
Your one would have been an '81 model. I go into a little detail with the XRs on my first video. Essentially identical apart from colours.
@@motorcyclingkiwistyle They are great bikes, and lighter and more maneuverable than the 250, The later 4 valve one wasn't as good, in my humble opinion🙂, i was i could find another 81 200R, (for a decent price) the dollars people are asking for them is outrageous😆.
Very nice Chris
Thanks Noah :)
I got a 2004 1200s silver and black i can do all my own work on it with ease never had a problem with it and i love racing these big sports cars off the line until it starts fish tailing 😂 but even then its not hard to control out of it and get grip again, i would say there bomb proof 👍
@oldbag3043 - absolutely totally agree with you. As I do more and more work, I appreciate the simplicity of it. My next step is pulling the headlight apart and cleaning the fogged projector lenses, a common problem with the 2nd Gen "S". Thanks for watching my video :)
@@motorcyclingkiwistyle yea I had to pull the front clear plastic of the head light and get in with a bottle brush when I first got mine as the bottom bulb had blown and blacked it but it has never done it since I have owned it
@@oldbag3043 I'm going to split apart the clear lense from the reflector housing and clean inside and outside of the projector. Can be done with a bit of heat to unbond it. I'll showcase that in the next video.
Subscribed!!!
Thanks Moose :)
She looks like my 1255, called her Big Blue, had the hard bags and a double bubble screen. Kick myself for letting her go.
Mine is definitely no minter but everyone who has had one loves them. They're pretty cheap nowadays.
2:28 Ive got one of those in my shed, same colours. Anyone in NZ have an original exhaust for one??? 😆...fat chance, but worth a crack.😄
@uhtred7860 - I'm thinking you have to go farther afield than NZ to find a good 1100 pipe that's in good condition. Most of the 86's I see if they're not museum pieces almost always have pipes on them. Yoshis and the like. Good luck and if I do hear of one I'll msg you. Thanks for watching my video :)
@@motorcyclingkiwistyle Yeah i know😮💨 Whats annoying is i remember seeing them piled up at motorcycle wreakers in the late 90s, no one wanted them because they are so restrictive. Mines running Yoshi down pipes with a muffler made by Cycleworks in Wgtn, sounds great, and its been dynoed at 112 hp at the wheel, which is ok, as new they made around 105hp with the stock pipe. I know the marketing boys claimed 125hp, but that was an "at the crank" figure, about as much use in the real world as "Dry weight" figures.😆
Had 86 gsxr1100
1990 Gsx 1100 f katana
2001 bandit
Engine was fast in 1986
By 2001 it was boring!
@garyeuscher4499 - yes the 100hp claimed isn't exactly pavement shattering but max torque at 4,000rpm is what it's about. I have heard people putting GSXR engines in the Bandits but the popular go fast these days is turbo-ing and getting 350hp out of them just because the engines are so strong. Now that would be a hoot!
Prt 2?
@Tec2Nut I decided it was worth saving. Slow progress so far but getting there 😊.
Suzuki Bandit GSF1200 Project: czcams.com/play/PLvWuxcP6nP-OTRlx5DdBRL9ngHcl7jUy1.html
It's too rough I would not have bought it ,Too much hassle/time involved to fix it.
@@cwc_NZ I hope your happy with the result .
@@leeengelsman1855 I hear what you're saying and the Bandit 12s aren't worth heaps, it's more of a can I get a usable bike without spending a lot that I can use without regard for immaculate looks 😊. DIY myself, hot glue gun for fairing and cheap paint. My budget is $2.5k NZ. More of a challenge and fun. Thanks for your feedback
@@leeengelsman1855 I hope so. They're a bulletproof simple design and parts are cheap so even if I keep it for 5 years it won't be worth much less.