What are the common problems/weaknesses with the GB?
Steve Wells: Common problems with GB’s: 1.) They _eat_ Camchains. I go through one about every 15,000 Km. The standard cam-chain tensioner is not very efficient and tends to wear out causing it to eat cam-chains even quicker. 2.) Starter Moters. The electronic starter motor also tends to die fairly commonly on GB’s. Either the solenoid will pack up, the clutch will or it will just wear out. GB’s with working starter motors are not all that common. 3.) Handlebar placement. If you drop the bike, you can be almost certain that the handlebar on the side you drop it on will be pushed back into the petrol tank and leave a fairly large dent. GB’s without these dents aren’t too common. Only thing to be done about it is lock the handles as far forward as possible and hope. 4.) Swingarm pivots. The sleeves used for these pivots are made of nylon, and wear out fairly quickly causing lots of rear-end movement. I’ve had mine replaced with metal rollers. If these pivots wear out and start chewing on
