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My 1983 Vf750f Restoration Project, Lotsa Big Pics!


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niceseat.jpg

***I apologize, some of the pics are really big, please give it a minute to load entirely!***

Well, I couldn't hold back from posting any longer once I had the powdercoated parts in my hand. Now I can't help but let you guys in on the rest of the story!

So here it is, from the very beginning(yes, it's a saga!) :P

This poor old bike that currently sits (mostly) in boxes was bought new in 1983 in New Hampshire, and was ridden on the street and then on one track day at NHIS(Loudon). The owner went down because of a visor tear-off that was thrown on the track, and after that, the guy put 'her' in a corner of a barn. That was in 1984, after accumulating only 2,997 miles.

July1st2007029.jpg

Many years later(about 15!), said original owner sold the bike(to avoid giving it up during a divorce), to his neighbor, who is an ex-co-worker of mine. About 2 years after that, I bought my 700, and when I rode it to work for the first time, this guy started going nuts over how nice it was, and told me the story I just told you. Except he added that he was not sure if he wanted to keep it, because of the expense of a new clutch master cylinder... :beer:

Sooo... it became mine for the lovely sum of $300. :beer: I had all kinds of ideas at the time, but no garage, tools, or mechanical/working knowledge to speak of back then, so it sat around for a couple years, and I started disassembling it when I got my garage. Along the way, I came down with a terrible case of MBD(multiple bike disorder) and the bike took a back seat to "more important things" like my F4i and VTEC vfr, and since then have decided to restore it.

Here are the Polaroids that I saw before picking the bike up:

1983Resto.jpg

1983Resto2.jpg

The tank was pretty banged up, so I got a better one from Chev, and the frame was a little tweaked at the rear, which I've fixed. There were also two spots on the frame where water had gotten in(the guy I bought it from kept it outside for one winter), when the water froze, it expanded the tubes. I heated them up and hammered them flat, then ground them to make them nice. The motor ran 5 years ago from a beer bottle full of gas, and when I drained the fluids to pull the motor a while back, everything was clean.

Finally getting back into the project, I got the bike stripped down completely.

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Riding other bikes and life in general kept me away from it again until early this year, when I started fitting bodywork to it (going to adapt VF1000F side panels), and I noticed something was wrong here. :blink:

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Rough idea of the 1kF panels:

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I knew the rear section had been repaired, but didn't realize it was this far off until I actually tried to bolt the tail on. It was pretty twisted! I took measurements on this frame and my good one, and determined that the damage was isolated at the very end of the frame, so, I decided it was time to "say hello to my little friend"! :salesman:

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A little zip here, and a little zag there - and viola! No more damage!(depending on how you look at it) :goofy:

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I also took the liberty of chopping off the square-shaped rear rail mounts while I was at it, I thought that would be a nice touch to clean up the bike, and being they only hold the helmet lock and huge stock signals anyway(2 things I will NOT be using), in the trash they went! Thanks you Mr. Portable Bandsaw, hehe.

And yes, I cut up a good frame for the sake of having a numbers-matching bike that wasn't a true restoration anyway... :joystick: Call me crazy or keep reading!

Next up: weld it back together! Hiho, off to work I go, on a cold Saturday morning. Still saving up for my own TIG welder... with the bike habit, it's not going so well. :rolleyes:

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After some creative grinding:

Frameweld1-5-08005.jpg

Which leads us to...

powdercoat!

Frame, swingarm, and VF1000R upper triple were done in Satin Black:

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I'm upgrading to CBR F2 wheels, and had them coated in mirror white.

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I have another clean rear wheel that's black and had the lips polished, I'll throw that on later and see how it looks in there.

Much more to come!!

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Hey Seb......that BMW is still just sitting in the background...........

Yes, but - now it's back together. :D

It's my Dad's bike, he received it as a gift, and I was put in charge of cleaning it up. I touched up the frame, cleaned the outside of the motor, cleaned the carbs, put a new Dyna ignition on it, sandblasted and repainted the seat pan and battery tray, re-covered the seat(what a pain!), installed new left and right switch controls(what a pain!), new grips, new battery, new aftermarket OEM-style exhausts, and new Metzler tires. Also lubed all the cables and restored some assorted sun-toasted plastic.

I have two more small trim pieces to add to the seat, then it can be bolted back on. Right now it's just sitting on the battery tender, hiding from the snow. I'll do a little buffing on the paint come spring, but it will probably be getting a coat of black paint next winter.

Pops hasn't been on a bike in almost 30 years, I'm very excited to think that in a few months we'll be going out on our first ride together! :beer: He's been watching me have all the fun for the last 12 or so...

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Here's some shots of the motor. It's going to get a scrubbing and a nice new coat of gloss black paint. I'm also going to be polishing the valve covers, stator cover, and the bare circle on the clutch cover. Not the parts that are on there now, I have spares that are close to perfect.

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It's quite possible that this is only the second oil filter ever installed...

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Only 2,997 miles on this lump, and it shows! Nice clean cams, only showing a teensy bit of wear:

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I decided to install VF1000R forks on the bike, and a member here hooked me up! I have them all torn down at the moment also, they need a very thorough cleaning! They are getting RaceTech gold valve emulators, which requires removal of the TRAC anti-dive system, and Sonic springs. I'll also be welding shut the holes that line up with the air crossover under the upper triple. This will let me toss the crossover part and allow me to play with the height of the tubes in the forks. Lots of grease and grime removal, then a coat of black paint!

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I can't really call this fluid, but this is the oily/goopy/grungy/yuck stuff that came out of the forks... :beer:

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Another neat item on the mod list - I was inspired by this pic I found on the web to go on a hunt for a clear automotive head light to use(some of you may remember the post), well, I found out it's the same unit used in early '90s Chevy S-10s, H60something or other. I bought a pair, and member Chickenofthesea(Matt) and I split the cost. We might upgrade to HID together later this year!

DSCF1094.jpg

Enjoy. More posting when I can.

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Just wanted to add quickly, that there are quite a few members here who have had input or helped me in some way with this project. I'm not naming names yet, because I want you all to have the credit you deserve when this is all done.

For now though, THANK YOU!! :beer: :beer:

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SEB, I have a 1984 VF750F. I was about to sell it into oblivion, but this thread has me thinking - why not pay homage to this fantastic old bike and pretty it up? One question - what's the financial damage going to be by the time you're done? That may be an uncomfortable question. If it is, sorry . . . . .

Not at all. I'm not really keeping a running tally at the moment, although I do have a bunch of receipts and numbers scattered about. If I wasn't getting performance cams and rockers, I could keep it under $3000, including the bike. If it sounds low, that's because I'm doing all the work myself, outside of the powdercoating and machining the rear hub(which I could do, but it happens to be more convenient to let someone else do it).

Keep in mind, I've been working on this bike for going on 6 years now, so I've had plenty of time to shop around. The big ticket items are the shock($500), G.V. Emulators($160), Accel ignition($130), Stage 2 cams and rockers($900), Vance & Hines full exhaust($200), set of F2 wheels with rotors, speedo drive, and hub($90 shipped, yes, smokin deal!!), Powdercoating frame, wheels, swingarm, and upper triple($200), VF1000R forks($100), and the gas tank with assorted bits and pieces like a full lock set that I got from Chev($150), NOS Maier dark smoke screen($35).

The bike itself cost me $300, every other item I've bought has been under $35, most under $20. Ebay is my friend!

I'm having fun dreaming of what the cockpit will look like when done, I've got a CBR1100XX Blackbird clutch master cylinder and 1998 VFR800 controls(w/choke) on the left, and a 2004 Yamaha R1 radial brake m/c with '06 CBR1000RR start/stop switch and 1993 CBR900RR throttle control on the right, all mounted on billet CBR600F3 racing clip-ons.

Another big item will be buying the bulk stainless steel lines and red & blue anodized fittings to make up the clutch and brake lines and the oil mod.

I already have a K&N air filter that was in my 700.

I also bought a CBR600F4i wiring harness, complete with reg/rectifier for $15 to rape relays and other plugs from(as well as the r/r).

Clear headlight was $12. Probably going to do Shock racing LED signals and an LED bulb in the taillight. Also want to do bar end mirrors.

I'm going to be doing the body and paintwork myself, including integrating the VF1000F side panels.

I have special plans for the exhaust(I'm not leaving ANYTHING alone!! lol!). I'll give you a hint, think of Rossi's GP bike.

Lots more that I'm sure I've forgotten, on top of everything being cleaner than new...

Lots of work to do!!!!!!!!!!

Oh yeah, tires! Avon Storms will run about $230-250, in 120/70-17 F, 160/70-17 rear. That reminds me, I have a new, gold 520 RK chain for it and will be going +1 on the rear sprocket, coupled w/ the new tire size will = +4(or thereabouts).

Let me hit "Submit" before I let too many more cats out of the bag... :joystick:

:goofy:

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Little update for today, I finally got to finish a set of spacers for the rear wheel today at work! Jamie Daugherty is setting me up with the milling and turning of the speedo drive and hub, and the parts should be back by the end of this coming week.

All the bearings are here, dust seals are here. Swingarm still needs some sanding of powdercoat in a few spots. Emulators should be in on Tuesday. I need to get a semi-large tub to soak & scrub the fork parts in, I wanted to use acetone but I'm thinking dish detergent & hot water first. Also need to do some touch-up grinding/surface refining on the lowers, then turn up the heat in the garage and give them a few coats of black paint.

Another nice piece of news, my seat is in Ohio at the moment getting a custom cover made by Wells Upholstery & Canvas, which is where theoxmole's(Dale) Mom works her sewing machine magic!

I sent them the seat, a spare tail cowl and this pic:

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We're working out the covering materials now, already set on the foam type & shape.

Can't wait to see the finished product! +1.gif

Gotta clear a spot in the garage probably tomorrow and set up my 2nd grinder with a wire wheel and a buff, to start cleaning hardware. Also on the list is to re-do the fender chop, and treat the faded plastic with some petroleum jelly. I might even install the license plate bracket I made...

Stay tuned for pics tomorrow! smile.gif

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Less progress today than I had hoped for. My heat went out in the garage(again!), and while I bundled up anyway, my air line kept freezing up! :pissed:

Didn't get the second fender chop done, but the nozzle for the furnace is clean and should be warm again tomorrow afternoon after work. <_<

Here's a pic of how petroleum jelly brings faded black plastic back to life, you can see the part was pretty ugly, almost white! I rubbed on a thick layer of P.J. and let it sit overnight, just to take a pic for you guys.

PICT0021.jpg

That's the fender I'm chopping right now, pics of the plate mount and rough cut are coming...

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Here's the other promised pics:

The 2 together:

750rearfender001.jpg

The one I didn't like:

750rearfender002.jpg

The one I like better, and didn't get to finish today:

750rearfender003.jpg

Here's the license plate bracket I made:

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It'll mount with a few rivets on the underside of the chopped tray:

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Plastic needs finishing trim:

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Angle was precisely calculated for coolest looks, most mud protection, and best angle for receiving light from the taillight.

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And the reason I didn't get much done - it was colder than shown, it bottoms out at 30, was closer to 20!

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Not that I'm a wussy, I'm outside in the blowing wind on colder days lugging firewood to and into my house, along with splitting, stacking, etc, it's just easier to be creative and productive when it's NOT 20 degrees! :joystick:

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Seb, start with the recommended amount of spring pre-load (it came in the instructions from Sonic). That put me at 32mm on the dot(230-235lb with gear). I'm also running 15w fork oil and I like it......... but I'm too stubborn to know if these things are good or not............ hasn't bucked me off yet anyway. :thumbsup:

Get that heat fixed..... wrenching is supposed to be fun.

Honestly, I wanted to go lighter w/ the springs, but the lightest Rich had was 1.0. I'm around 210 w/ gear, and like to push it(riding wise). The instructions set you up with 1/2" of preload, I'm thinking harder about doing what Jamie did, and drilling/tapping the fork caps and fitting a bolt and washer so I can adjust the setup later, its bad enough that there are no other adjustments...

I really like the ride on my VTEC w/ the .90 springs(w/ Honda 10wt), and it's not too much lighter than the 750 when the bags are on. Then again, the shock I got from you was meant to be used with the 1.0 springs, so, I'll see how it goes. Emulators will help. I'll keep at it till it's ironed out and ridin like a cream puff. :salesman:

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The heat is on! (and back on!)

Family is out at a b-day party today, so I have a whole afternoon of garage time!! Yay!

More pics to come, the fender is done, got the front wheel cleaned up, it's ready for rotors, which I need to paint black first. Been tapping out some of the holes in the frame, also got the excess PC cleaned off the swingarm.

Hopefully will have lots to report back with this evening!

In the meantime, here's proof of mileage: B)

lowmiles006.jpg

+1.gif

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  • Member Contributer

Hey Seb,

I'm getting my 83 VF750F today. I guess you could be of a big help to me. Right now, it's just a project. The guy is asking $300 for it. Here's a pic. Look at the sacrilege +1.gif

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I can't wait to strip it down to the bone. Here in BC, the bike will be available for "Collector Plate" which means dirt cheap insurance, but it has to be in mint condition and if modified, the modifications had to be available at the time of production.

Viva la 1st Gen!

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PS - if you do get it, and don't like those case guards, I'll take them off your hands! :thumbsup:

I got the bike, so . . . What have you got to trade for?

I need: left muffler - the plastic above the ignition - windshield- right passenger foot peg - gasket kit-timing chain - seat - decal kit

So far that's it.

How 'bout a new Lockhart Philips smoke windscreen? Plastic around the ignition - you mean the piece that goes on the upper triple(fuse cover)? I have one of those too(won't need it on mine).

Invest in Vaseline. All that fugly gray plastic can be black again.

I have some pics from today, will add them tomorrow. I went through 3(yes 3!) full cans of degreaser/brake cleaner today cleaning every single part of the forks. Also got the lower bearing race and dust seal off the lower triple. Wire wheeled a bunch of bolts as well as the damping rods(if you can call them that). I'm going to smooth/port/polish the holes and grooves in those tomorrow for nice oil flow.

Also need to drill and tap the lone steering stop on the lower triple to accept two small bolts, to make the stop bigger. It hits the frame before the stop on the frame.

More tomorrow!

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Here's the leftovers from the fork cleaning... I don't have a parts washer yet, so I ended up going through 4 large aerosol cans of degreaser/brake cleaner... yuck!

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In other news, I disabled the TRAC anti-dive(required when installing GVE's):

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Also glass bead blasted the fork lowers and the lower triple:

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And the battery tray:

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Just a quickie job on the tray and the lower triple, and a little time with the angle grinder and some surface refining pads will make them nice. Same goes for the fork sliders, I didn't want to get the glass media in the axle clamps, so I taped them up and will finish the paint removal by hand.

I'll paint all that stuff satin or semi-gloss black the same time as the F2 rotors, but need to find a new/better rear rotor first. Seems the person I got the wheels from, has/had a riding style completely different from mine. The rear rotor is well worn, and grooved, and shows signs of having been good and hot at least once, while the fronts look great. Better for me that way, at least... :rolleyes:

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Last but not least, I finished up making a set of spacers to align the rear wheel in the swingarm, and sent Jamie Daugherty my spare rear F2 wheel in exchange for the machining of my hub and speedo drive. It worked out better this way for me, because my employer is becoming more strict about use of company machines for non-company parts. I was lucky to get that one set of spacers done under the radar, but had to jump through hoops to get time on the lathe. :rolleyes:

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Just need to make up the other front spacer, then see how it all fits!

I have my swingarm and the new bearings, seals, etc. in my truck and will drop them off at my local dealer tomorrow, got a pal there hooking me up with pressing everything back in(one less thing I have to do!). Doing wheel bearings is one thing, but the swinger is awkward and I would be super pissed if that fresh powdercoat got scratched up because I slipped with the hammer, pipe, etc, you know how these things go.

More to come!

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Nice work, Seb! Once I heal up from my surgery, I'm heading outside and starting work on my VF. I got the HID set in the mail, will post a thread when I get it in and working.

I can't wait for spring...

Surgery? :blink:

Can't wait to see how the lights turn out(on, I mean :idea3: )! :thumbsup:

Here's some more pics I took today, I got my Emulators! :D

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Still can't believe what they charge for these little suckers, but supposedly they are worth it...

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All Balls steering bearings(tapered roller), front wheel bearings, and rear wheel bearings. All three are kits and include new dust seals.

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Sonic Springs are here, sorry not unwrapping them till they go in the forks...

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Polishing the damping rods:

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Did some cleanup on the fork lowers, removing casting marks and some scratches they had:

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Thinking about how to use my 750 fender on the 1000 forks, or maybe even a VF500 fender. I really don't like the 1KR fender, and I'll chop it up to change the lines of it like I did with KeystoneVFR's fender if I have to.

The bolt patterns are different between the two(three?) fenders, but a new bracket may cure that problem(VF1kR on top, blank under it):

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CBR600F4 rear brake caliper, caliper bracket, and master will be fitted, also in the pic is the Blackbird clutch master.

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Last but not least here's the controls;

Early 5th gen left side controls:

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2006 CBR1000RR kill/run switch:

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Got some helping hands coming from Canada this weekend, if we don't drink to much there may be more to report by Monday! :blink:

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Reading through this thread (particularly the bit about there being "only a bit of cam wear after ~3000 miles"), I can't help wondering if, for the sake of longevity, you'd be better off sourcing an engine from an '86-89 model VFR? I don't know if these will bolt into that frame (but suspect they would), and they are designed to be "hidden" under a full fairing (nothing a bit of powder-coating/painting wouldn't fix)...

If you're going to be riding it a lot, you'd probably want better piece of mind than that offered by one of the infamous VF donks.

(Just my 2c, mind)

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  • 2 weeks later...
Seb, thats what I'm talkin bout start em early :D

You are moving along at a nice pace. As you know mine is at a standstill so I can live my wrenchin

days through you :rolleyes:

I'll have a post for you in a few days that you MAY or may not like.....

Keep it up dude

So what was not to like about your posts? :joystick: Helmet looks slick! :thumbsup:

Here's some pics of the meager bits I got done recently...

Wheel bearings in

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All new, all 'round, even in the hub!

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I bought the Vortex sprocket on a CBR board years ago for $10, just to hang on the wall, because the owner did not know what is was for. I called the part number in to Vortex, they replied "530 pitch fits Honda"... sooo.... at the time I tried to fit it to my CBR, and it didn't fit. On the wall it went. Last weekend I pulled it down, and LO AND BEHOLD, LOOKY WHAT IT FITS!!! How lucky is that?? It's a bit big @48 teeth, but, we shall see. If I don't use it, at least now I know what it fits, and can sell it to get $$ for the one I really want/need. :thumbsup:

The VF1000R forks where meant to be air charged just as the 750, and a cross over tube is used to keep pressure even. Not anymore. I want to be able to adjust the height of the tubes, so I welded the holes for the crossover shut. Still need the grind them down and blend them in a bit.

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Did some more glass bead blasting, and yes, I did blast the rotors. Came out great!!

Anti-dive case cover:

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Rotors(also masked for paint):

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I was advised to test fit the 1KR triple before powdercoat, and I'm glad I did. Turns out I needed to add ~1/8th of an inch to either side of the steering stop on the lower triple to keep it from hitting the frame.

Here's what I did, I drilled a hole through the stop, and cut most of the thread off of two spare VFR fairing bolts. Then pressed them into the slightly undersized hole:

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Last but not least, I had been wondering why there were two extra holes and one small machined area on each side of the VF swingarm. I still don't know what Honda's intentions were, but I decided to use the spot to implement a bracket for one of my bike stands on each side. They will be made of titanium, and include the cutouts shown on the full scale paper template. I modeled them after Gilles Tooling's chain adjusters, which include the rear stand bracket, and double as toe guards(to keep your toes from getting caught in the chain & sprocket).

3-18-08007.jpg

Hope you guys enjoy, I'm trying to keep the ball rolling here... tough lately...

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • Member Contributer

Really interesting and nice job, Seb!! It'll turn into something you will be proud of.

I also noticed that $30K BMW in your garage. You'll never see me with one of those $30K BMW's in my garage! Too snobby for me and they're bad protocol.... :lol: :beer:

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Ok, how about getting back on topic here...

I got a deal on some signals, once I repaint them they should blend in nicely - until they get turned on that is.

Ten superbright LEDs in a fake carbon-coated aluminum housing, I was impressed by how good it felt to hold these, they feel like quality should! $15 for this pair and have another set in chrome coming that I got for $5(both new!). I will sand them and paint them gloss black, they should blend right into the black frame. Stock location in front, and semi-tucked under the license plate bracket at the rear.

3-27-08001.jpg

Painted parts! All these parts have about 4 coats of Rustoleum Gloss Black, and were painted in a heated booth, then baked overnight. No real reason to go that far, but it was available at no cost to me, and I thought it would be a plus to get the paint baked on the fork sliders, less worry while cleaning!

License plate bracket:

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Paint came out a little funky on the front side here, but the back is perfect, and the only part you might be able to see when on the bike.

Rotors:

3-27-08011.jpg

Both came out nice.

Battery box:

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The sticker was in good shape, so I taped it of during media blast and paint to keep it around.

Steering stem, not the greatest pic:

3-27-08008.jpg

I ended up taking the screws back out and reinstalling them wet with JB Weld, and drilled a small hole perpendicular to the screw hole to let the excess out along with air. They're very solid now!

Fork clamps and TRAC case cover:

3-27-08004.jpg

Fork sliders:

3-27-08005.jpg

This one needs some touch-up below where the TRAC cover goes, I taped off more than necessary. Good thing it will be hard to see!

3-27-08006.jpg

Forks are just about ready to come together, need to smooth out the welds on the tubes, and triple-check that I have all the parts I need.

Every piece of these things are going to be new, all crush washers, o-rings, seals, bushings, wipers, etc. That with the GVE's and springs makes this a $400 fork rebuild! :beer:

I'm hoping to get the forks built and the swingarm in the frame this weekend. Also hoping to order the tires soon, I will be very happy to get this thing rolling about!

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......That with the GVE's and springs makes this a $400 fork rebuild! :beer:....

Was there a particular reason you chose the VF1000 forks? $400 seems like a lot to put into them.

Would it have been feasible to use CBR forks instead?

Not criticizing, just wondering....

I chose the VF forks for a few reasons: 1, they are larger in diameter(stiffer) @ 41mm than the 750 forks @ 39mm. 2, they have the quick-release axle clamps which is the same setup that HRC used on their 750 race bikes back in the day, so they add an era-correct performance look(to some people). 3, the option to use the VF1000R adjustable clip-ons, an option which I am not currently using. 4, RaceTech does not make a GVE for 39mm forks...

If I had to do this again, I would find a set of 1994 CBR600F2 forks to use. That one year only was the last year to have a cable-driven speedo, but was also blessed with the cartridge internals of the future CBR-F3.

I got a sweet deal on the R forks, else I would have skipped them and done the CBR forks. Cost would be about the same, the breakdown is: Gold Valve Emulators[$155], Sonic fork springs[$95], and the rest is made up by all the bushings and seals and such, they really start adding up! So, unless I got a set of mint-condition forks that I wouldn't paint or rebuild, this cost would factor back in to a different set.

It's just another of the many reasons this is taking so long, I'm not looking to throw this together and make it look cool, I want to do it right and make it functional too. :thumbsup:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, the fork is in the hands of the USPS right now, on it's way to GMD Computrack in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Here's a pic of the parts for my oil line mod:

Stevescustomlines2026.jpg

Gotta get off this darn pc now and go do some work... :fing02:

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Well, I got my Avon Storms mounted on the wheels! The front looks sweet, but the rear, not so much. Using the 160/70 series tire really looks funky...

Got the swingarm on the bike today, I had to bead blast and paint a few more parts like the suspension linkages before I could put it on. once it was in, I stuck the rear wheel and tire under the bike, and confirmed my fear. Right now, it looks like ass. The tire is huge, really tall, it looks like a truck tire in there! Hopefully, once the front end goes together, it will be more in proportion and won't look too bad. Maybe I'm just so used to seeing the bare frame sitting there on its own...

The fork tube is still with GMD Computrack. I did speak to Mike Hartman, he received it and it is fixable, but they were closed today when I tried to call and check on it. Hopefully I'll find out more tomorrow.

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Finally got through and paid for the, ahem - uh, what am I paying for??? $45 to find out the tube is not bent? Hmm. Great. Now I have to check the slider.

Good thing I have a bike to ride, or something(s) would be flying in the air getting broken right now. $7 to ship the tube to PA via USPS, $27 for labor, $15.xx for them to ship back via UPS, plus $1.73 for tax. Effing wonderful. And I don't know what the problem is, yet.

I had put the edge of a metal part on it when I suspected it was bent, and it looked like it was out. Mike Hartman @ GMD Computrack(located in the North American Warhorse dealership in Scranton, PA), says it's well within tolerance.

??????????????????????????

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  • 3 weeks later...
Maybe a long shot - have you tried rolling the fork legs on a piece of glass or marble :fing02: (kitchen worktop is the best, as I generally anoys the other half)

I have precision granite surface tables at my disposal at work, I just convinced myself that the tube was bent, and so I sent it out without further verification on my part. Then GMD told me it was fine. I will check it out before reassembly.

So to update, I have not done much of anything with the bike lately, except spend a bit more money on parts.

I got a very slightly used Accel ignition setup, a 2006 CBR1000RR clutch master(so now I have a choice between that and the B'bird master), and also had Jamie Daugherty's CNC guy make me a custom fork brace that will allow me to use my 750 front fender instead of the ugly 1kR piece.

Will try to get some new pics up this week, but it's been slow(or no) going lately...

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