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97 Vfr 750 To "vfcbr" Conversion (929Rr Forks / 600Rr Body)


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:) I've been riding it so much lately I don't have any new progress towards additional mods. I had a big scare with an animal in the middle of my lane mid corner on a twisty section of mountain and the bike panic performed like my ZX-6, hard brakes, rapid flick full peg to peg with no drama. I would surely have dropped it on the other suspension or tagged a guardrail. Big thumbs up on the brakes, geometry, and rigidity!

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While the front end is all CBR 929rr now, the rear is still stock with an exception. Being 6' 200lbs, my 97 felt a little too low and plush even with the preload max'd out. To remedy this on the cheap, I long ago modified the swingarm plates to raise the ride height and to stiffen up the rear shock a little  looking for more lean angle and had great success. When I started sharing the bike with my 5'7" 130lb girlfriend, I had to think reverse and create a lowering kit. The geometry below is the result of many generations of plate testing for both scenarios. This last prototype I'm still running today has worked so good I really don't think about it anymore, so I never returned to make a final pretty set. 

 

I'm sharing the geometry below for those capable of making their own plates and not wanting to risk trial and error. A lot of time went into working out the triangulation so if you don't know what you are doing, I recommend you do not alter any of the measurements. The wrong triangulation can result in limited/exaggerated travel, too soft/hard of ride, or the worst of either of those simultaneously.

 

gallery_20063_7508_19754.jpggallery_20063_7508_13849.jpg

 
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  • Member Contributer

Nice engineering work there. I added a 4th gen dogbone to my 5th gen to raise it over an inch, might be another option for lowering the 4th gen with the 5th dogbone. Clearance is very tight though and I've played with alternate triangle configs.

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  • 2 months later...
  • Member Contributer

Have you had any clearance issues w/ your left side exhaust and what tires and sizes are you running. thanks for sharing your setup

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  • 2 months later...

Does the bike perform as well as the other bikes you run with ?

Looks like you run with a fast bunch .

Have you had any clearance issues w/ your left side exhaust and what tires and sizes are you running. thanks for sharing your setup

Sorry guys, I never received notification that you replied.

Switchblade, yes it is a fast group. The VFR is what it is when it comes to the modern bikes. Its heavy, down on power, and has a long wheelbase, all of which put it at a disadvantage. That being said, even in stock form, the bike can be made to corner really well. That means making sure the front/rear springs are setup correct for your weight, the dampening is setup correct, and by simply by raising the front/rear to gain much needed ground clearance ( using triangle plates as outlined above, using a 929 rear shock with the height built into the upper mount adapter, or a $$$$$ extendable shock like Fox, Wilbers, or Ohlins). I used stock suspension with triangle plates for a long time and did just fine, the VFR has exceptional drive out of the corners with the V4, and when geared down a bit will out sprint a lot of bikes above its class, to about 100mph and then the tables turn. The stock brakes had a hard time pushing hard for long periods of time on the mountain. This was my primary reason for wanted to go with the 929 inverted forks, big brakes!!!

Trjerm, I've had zero clearance issues with big tires and the left side exit header, it seems to have about the same clearance as the right side exit header.

Having run the 929 forks now for a good length of time, I'm very happy with them other than the length. I'm having a machinist make up a few sets of 1" Fork Cap Extenders, one for myself and one for a friend. If there are others trying to solve the length issue I might be able to increase this one time run. We haven't discussed cost yet, and I'm not going to make a business out of this, simply a few extra sets to the most needy, first come first serve. PM me if you are interested and I will let you know what the split would be between us. They will basically look like this in forged aluminum created with a CNC.

post-20063-0-39838700-1439422309.jpg

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I currently have and have had lots of 2 wheel toys from 25 years of riding, countless trips on the mountain with them in all kinds of weather. I really love the VFR even though its not necessarily the best thing out there. It's just one of those rare intoxicating bikes to ride. But even stacked up against these little gems, I still choose the VFR every other weekend!

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post-20063-0-24600600-1439423679.jpg

post-20063-0-13330700-1439423708.jpg

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  • 8 months later...
  • Member Contributer

Looking good!!!!!

 

Pity all your previous pictures are gone.... 

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Did you ever get the forks extended?  RC51 forks would swap right in, but would be significantly longer.  Might need to drop down to 320mm discs, though, and probably need a new wheel or some adapters/bearings.  Well within your capabilities, whatever the issues!

[EDIT: The difference in length between RC51 and 929 forks is 25mm, so there's your inch in old money.]

Ciao,

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I never did extend the forks, and to be honest it doesn't really need it when positioned correctly. I looked into the RC51 forks and it was substantially more effort and money to source various parts to make it work when the CBR954 was a straight easy cheap swap.  I've put over 12k miles, mostly knee dragging the hairpins and with the VFR's additional weight I'm happy to have the bigger rotors. 

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  • 11 months later...

Update: The 05 CBR cluster requires the addition of a 1 watt 300 ohm resistor between the fuel guage and stock vfr fuel sender to read empty correctly. I'm looking forward to a good 300 mile San Diego mountain/desert tour tomorrow to put the CBVFR through the paces.

Sent from my SM-N920T using Tapatalk

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Nice work! I always love those that take the plunge first and share the risk/rewards with others! My 599 went through a lot of this similar process thanks to the help of others.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 months later...

Wow, I am impressed. I have a 1997 VFR and its getting very tired. I don't think I need the fork modifications, but I'd like to replace the rear shock.

 

I am going to look into your ideas.

 

Thanks

 

Bobby

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If you are looking to the rear shock and are willing to spend some money, you can get something from Jamie Daugherty

http://www.daughertymotorsports.com

 

Can't remember if a 929 shock is a direct swap for 4th or 5th gen. That and F4i was an option. But both those should be dirt cheap on ebay, but they will probably be 'tired' too.

 

 

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