Well, that could be a problem...

So, after several months in which intermittent electrical issues turned into an often non-starting old Katana, I took it to the old-school mechanics, who quickly determined that there might be a wee problem with the 33+ year old stator... can you see anything wrong with it?  The downstream casualty of the failing stator was the regulator/rectifier, which also had to be replaced.  The employees back at the Suzuki Canada warehouse in Ontario apparently had quite the treasure hunt tracking down both replacement parts in the giant warehouse.  The final cost?  Well, let's just say the pleasure of having a running, reliable bike again was (almost) bearable!