Suzuki SS-II electronic tester

[craig]

Hi, I am new to the group so I apologize for my ignorance. I am curious if there is a benefit to obtaining a Suzuki SS – II electronic tester. I currently do have the old style compression tester, IE the EKG strip type tester. What is the utility of this other electronic tester and are there more modern equivalence that would do the job. I appreciate your input. Also is the electronic ignition control, CDI, a weak point in our RE-5s? Also, are gasket sets fairly readily available? Thanks for your replies.

[wayne]

Welcome Craig.

I know the ebay sale you're probably thinking of. There are a couple of blokes on the board who would be familiar with that SS-II tester and could advise exactly what it does.

Short story, no, you don't need it. I can't imagine how it would help or improve your RE5 maintenance in any worthwhile way.

Your compression tester is nice to have but honestly, once you've done one test and found it okay, the amount we ride old bikes you'd probably never use it again.

The CDI is not considered an RE5 "weak point". They do fail occasionally like any electronic doo-dad. I bought my bike not running and out of 4 years of storage in 1980. Turned out it was a failed CDI. I replaced it with a used CDI which lasted 40 years including 20 years in storage. I had it repaired and upgraded locally.

There's a thread on this board that tells you how to future proof your CDI with some cheap modern components. Depending on where in the world you are, there are people who can do it for you.

RE5 gasket sets are easy to find. A quick check of Ebay.com just threw up an incomplete set for $20. However, they're not all the same. Jess went to a bit of trouble with his sets and had the manufacturer consider the gasket thickness and compressibility vs the original. He may still stock them for sale- [e-mail]. You may pay a bit more but you're buying from someone who truly knows the bike.

PS A friend of mine and former board member bought a genuine gasket set for $20 twenty years ago (genuine was expensive back when you could get them). The seller apologised as it wasn't complete and was cheap because the head gasket was missing........... I'm surprised my friend didn't knock him down a few more $$ hee hee hee............

[craig]

Wayne, thanks for your reply and sharing your knowledge. I will keep all of those things in mind as I move forward in exploring my new Suzuki re5.