{"id":44820,"date":"2019-03-21T20:55:59","date_gmt":"2019-03-21T11:55:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/?p=44820"},"modified":"2026-09-24T13:45:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T04:45:17","slug":"gsx1400s-inspection-new-plan-deco-mainte","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/20190321\/everyday-events\/gsx1400s-inspection-new-plan-deco-mainte","title":{"rendered":"GSX1400S Inspection (New Plan) Deco-mainte"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This is our first time servicing the carbon-clad unicorn GSX1400S.
The owner has requested an inspection and Deco-mainte.

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Starting with chain cleaning and lubrication. The brake and chain really make a difference in how easy a bike is to push and pull, so we do this thoroughly. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The inside of the swingarm. This is a spot that owners often find hard to clean.
Just a little wipe with a rag during maintenance makes a surprising difference. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bare aluminum parts\u2014no anodizing or paint\u2014are really helpful. We polished them up and got them looking great. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The wheel bearing could use a little adjustment against the distance collar. We took care of that.
Bearings are amazing\u2014they keep working even with some play. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The chain puller bolt should move smoothly. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The hub side didn’t have a dust seal, so we added one.
It’s not critical, but without it the hub collar flakes off and gets annoying. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Suzuki’s wheel bearing seals work almost too well. The steel collar gets a step worn into it from how tight they are.
We grind it down aggressively with a stone wheel.
This isn’t a leak point, so we prioritize reducing friction. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We replaced the rear brake pads with RK pads. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We polished the pad springs until they shine. When maintenance includes even a little restoration work, the bike stays clean and in good shape longer.
We didn’t get a photo, but the rear axle had some runout\u2014though the tolerance is a generous 0.25 mm! We’ll tackle that next time.
Tire and wheel runout are fine. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Like the rear fender, we cleaned up the inside of the front fender a bit.
That way the next person who works on it won’t think “Ugh, so sandy!”\u2014it’s considerate to everyone. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The front axle shaft looks fine. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The front wheel had a little runout.
The owner said they remembered it, so that’s reassuring. During this maintenance we also checked the tire brand, size, manufacturing date, and wheel size, so that info will be useful next time. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The caliper looks clean, but the piston return isn’t quite right.
In this case, we recommend a caliper OH without spending a lot of time on it.

Spending time massaging it out won’t help much. That time is better spent on an OH. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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This is a different caliper, but why does piston movement get sluggish?
Based on our experience:
Bare calipers corrode inside the seal, getting rough and pitted.
\u2022 The pitting pushes out the dust seal = friction makes it stiff
\u2022 The pitting deforms the dust seal severely
Usually the dust seal has the problem, not the oil seal, making return stiff and sluggish.

In this state, no amount of piston massaging helps. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The tank is aluminum, so we just checked it. You can adjust the seal with this nut.

Newton caps are basically for racing.
The stock cap is really well designed\u2014you appreciate it once you use it.
Maybe the inconvenience is part of the racing feel? <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We added Wako’s Fuel One.
A little now and then is fine\u2014don’t overdo it.
*We hear so many bad reviews we sometimes get discouraged… <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We apply fork oil to the stroke side and wipe away dust and oil seal debris. <\/em>
Apply rust preventative oil between the stem and top, then wipe it off once dry.
It works surprisingly well. AZ Long-term Rust Preventative Oil <\/a>
Over time it dries and turns into something like grease. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We opened the fork cap to equalize it to atmospheric pressure. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n
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We cleaned the front and rear brake discs. They’re not vented, so they look a bit plain. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We lubricated both brake levers. Smooth operation also prevents wear. It’s nice to keep things working well and functional for as long as possible.
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We cleaned the throttle. It’s in nice condition. We apply a thin layer of oil for rust prevention and smoothness. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We disassembled and lubricated both pedals. <\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We removed the side stand and lubricated it. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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It’s a bit shadowed, but you can see the difference in white between new and used.
Disposable masks\u2014replace them once they get dirty. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We also replaced the spark plugs. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We check the fuses at times like this too. Polishing them a bit might help with smooth current flow\u2014or maybe not. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We basically don’t sync FI because it’s a hassle. Here’s why:
\u2022 The fuel pump means we have to keep the tank on.
\u2022 It’s hard to adjust from above or below.


The exhaust note sounds pretty rough\u2014is it the 4-2-1 header? We figured we’d take a look anyway.
It was way out of sync\u2014definitely worth checking!

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This should help smooth things out a bit.


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We replaced the brake fluid with Golden Cruiser DOT4. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We replaced the engine oil with Newtech NC50 10W-50 and changed the oil filter. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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We replaced the drain bolt with an OEM magnetic drain bolt.

That completes this service. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":44783,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pochipp_cv_data":"","swell_btn_cv_data":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1924],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-everyday-events"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44820"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44820\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.decoboco.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}