Jump to content

Another new member...another restoration/slight modification


Loftust

Recommended Posts

Hi folks – thought I’d better say hi and introduce myself. The name’s Matt, and until 2015, I was a Royal Navy Weapon Engineer. Life is now much less exciting, and I’m itching to get back onto two wheels.

 

I bought an ’02 VTEC with 70k on it back in the summer, or what the south of England calls summer anyway…

 

This is my third VFR, with the first being an Fi-W, and the second was also an ’02 which I had to sell due to chronic knee injury.

 

I’ve always wanted to strip a bike right down and get lots of the parts powdercoated for a durable finish, and replace the sh1tty bolts with stainless ones where appropriate – UK weather is generally crap, and the fittings/various brackets tarnish and rust quite quickly. This particular bike was a prime candidate for such a restoration, having had a reasonably hard life that saw a lot of touring in the UK and Europe.

 

Here she is (was):

 

20160430_134833.jpg

 

The same day that I picked the old girl up from her former owner, I set about dismantling the whole bike, and was soon left with this:

 

20160430_134816.jpg

 

20160430_190317.jpg

 

It would take a day and an age to tell you every little step, so here are the headlines thus far:

 

The VTEC lump is being replaced with an Fi engine; gear driven cams, no CCTs, the noise, much lower mileage, and smoother low down power delivery were the main factors. The long engine bolts between the frame and engine was b1tch though, and needed a lot of ‘persuasion’ to come out…in many pieces.

 

20160504_185939.jpg

 

The day after, I had reduced the bike to this:

 

20160504_185933.jpg

 

I’m retaining the VTEC loom and ECU, so will be fitting a PCV to adjust the map, and am having some adaptors made that will bridge the gap between the cam covers (VTEC ones won’t fit) and the bottom of the coil-on-plugs, which are about an inch longer than the Fi HT leads. I will also need to attach the coils to the cam cover, and will likely use the PAIR blanking plates (yep, they’re gone too) as a fixing point.

 

A great many parts have been powdercoated, including the frame, swingarm, pegs, subframes, as well as the vast majority of all the fiddly brackets.

 

The rear shock is already a Nitron, and the forks have been revalved/resprung/serviced by a UK company called Maxton.

I was tempted to de-link the brakes, but chose to purchase a full set of stainless hoses from Goodridge –I may fit the CBR front end one day...maybe not. Incidentally, new pads went in between Christmas and New Year. It is perhaps worth mentioning that I am doing all this work outside on my GF’s patio, under a 2mx2m gazebo. When we get a place together later this year, I’ll make sure that it has the biggest possible garage and workshop.  

 

Here’s the new(er) but older Fi engine after a bit of a clean.

 

20160611_125531.jpg

 

20160611_125519.jpg

 

 

Here’s the engine in the newly powdercoated frame:

 

IMG-20160730-WA0004.jpeg

 

IMG-20160730-WA0002.jpeg

 

IMG-20160730-WA0000.jpeg

 

Rear hub in the swingarm:

 

20160806_192534.jpg

 

20160806_192503.jpg

 

A bit more bling:

 

FB_IMG_1475511151899.jpg

 

Here’s the bike as of a few weeks ago:

 

20161210_134818.jpg

 

Since then, i have also fitted:

 

Forks

Font axle

Top yoke

Front brake MC

Clutch MC

Bars

Bar-mounted switches

Calipers

Front pads

Front subframe (cowl stay) and relays

Front sub-loom

ECU

 

The new cooler pipes have also gone on, along with the oil cooler itself, using new O rings on both ends.

The rear brake MC, switch and pipes have been fitted, along with the rest of the hard brake lines. 

 

After much wiggling, the undertray was refitted, as well as the seat latch cable/lock, and the wiring loom was routed to the rear of the bike. The Scottoiler has also been put back on, tapping into the existing vacuum connection by the TBs, although the actual delivery needle needs to be routed/secured when I put the main chain guard on; the latter has benefitted from new stickers as well. The chain guard itself will be fitted once the collars/bolt sleeves are delivered by DSS; I seem to have misplaced the originals.

 

The fuel pump and filter is quite tricky to remove, but came out after about 10 minutes of scraping my fingers on the edge of the tank. For anyone looking to remove theirs, you need to pivot the pump/filter assembly at the rear of the tank, and compress the metal scourer (filter) under the rubber flap.

 

New mirrors have been ordered, as well as mirror extenders, a new Honda label for the yoke, a 15mm circlip for the RHS heelset, and the washers etc for the dogbone that braces the rear brake on the swingarm.

 

Once they rock up and are fitted, I will give the exhausts a good clean (sticking with OEM for now) and stick them on.

 

The fuel filler cap looks quite tired, so I'd like to get that polished to a good standard before fitting onto the tank and installing the fuel pump, fuel level sender, and various breather/overflow hoses.

 

The bodywork has been repainted, including the panniers, and I’m hoping to visit the guy who will be painting the wheels this week so that I can pick out the colour I want.

 

I'll continue to add to this thread as and when I make further progress, which I hope will be very soon!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

1 question, how can you even walk? balls must get in the way a lot. I wouldn't think about doing that with out like a 2+ bay garage to keep everything safe and organized. hats off to you. looks good btw

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
2 hours ago, 3dcycle said:

1 question, how can you even walk? balls must get in the way a lot. I wouldn't think about doing that with out like a 2+ bay garage to keep everything safe and organized. hats off to you. looks good btw

If they don't get in the way, they most certainly clang. I am a fan of powder coating shiny bits black. Getting to the frame and swing arm are certainly a challenge. Kudo's to you and you will serve as an inspiration.  Can't wait to see it all together. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the warm welcome folks :-)

 

I'll admit it's quite ambitious, and being relatively organised has helped tremendously. That's not to say I haven't misplaced a few things, thus requiring replacements. I have also scratched my head a lot over the last few months when working out where numerous, seemingly arbitrary components are fitted. It's not been easy with some parts being stored in my GF's shed, her spare room, a friend's workshop, and my place too.

 

The saving grace has been the IPCs, which are an absolute godsend; they've saved my bacon more times than I care to mention, and Mr Honda did a damned good job of telling us what bolts sizes are used where.

 

I had taken loads of photos during dissembly, but reused the SD card from my phone, in my underwater camera last year, and overwrote the files! There are a few other bits and pieces that I have yet to find a home for, so I may be asking for a little help!

 

I tried to envisage what the bike will look like when finished, and thought that a bit of silver was required to break up the black. It's perhaps worth noting that the rear hub was merely vapour blasted rather than powdercoated - I may choose to powdercoat it in the future.

 

As for balls, I used to throw myself out of helicopters from 60 feet without a harness, so this is quite tame in comparison! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcome to VFRD from across the North Sea (where we get crap weather too, but luckily by then most has fallen on UK&I already...  :goofy:)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcome,
Hats of to you for the outdoor work, I'd get eaten alive by mozzies if I tried that...
Engine swap too, into the brave territory, awesome.

Sent from my HTC_PN071 using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcome and fantastic work! Quite a few of us have envisioned taking a 5th gen engine and installing it in a 6th gen model or even the new 8th gen VFR. It's been done a few times by the group here. 

A big kudos to you!?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Keep the updates coming.  Love to see the awesome transformation, and just in case you were wondering what a polished fuel cap might look like.  Well................

 

IMG_4431.JPG

 

After wet sanding and polishing my friends 99 VFR while he was away in Germany tending to family issues, my friend decided the gas cap might look better shiny.  And shiny bits were added.  

IMG_4433.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, zoomzoom said:

Keep the updates coming.  Love to see the awesome transformation, and just in case you were wondering what a polished fuel cap might look like.  Well................

 

IMG_4431.JPG

 

After wet sanding and polishing my friends 99 VFR while he was away in Germany tending to family issues, my friend decided the gas cap might look better shiny.  And shiny bits were added.  

IMG_4433.JPG

 

That looks superb! Was it just wet and dry, or did you use a rotary buffing widget?

 

The prototype cam cover adaptors should be en route from the north of England, and really looking forward to giving them a go - it would be a significant milestone, subsequently allowing me to work out how to secure the coils to the PAIR blanking plates.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

The gas cap I used 400, 800, 1500, 3000 dry to get rid of the coating (anodizing I think that give the cap it's stock color) and then 5000 grit wet to smooth it out.  Then I used a bench mounted rotary buffer with red jewellers rouge to bring out the shine.  Took me a few hours to complete.  You could likely get away with just 800 and 1500 and then polishing to remove the scratches from the sand paper.  I'm a little OCD when it comes to polishing though.  LOL 

 

As a shameless plug for another site member (Sebspeed) I've also polished the clutch pressure plate because it's now visible.  :)

 

IMG_4186.JPG

 

The paint on my friends VFR is a pearl black used by Ford on the new 2016 Mustang.  It has blue, silver and red flake in the paint and looks amazing when the sun shines or at night under

the street lights.  When the panels came back from the body shop all he wanted to do was ride as he had spent a few months rebuilding the bike.  The paint was good but I knew I could make it look better, and wet sanding it adds sooooo much depth to the paint.  His bike always has that "Wet" look.  

 

I had asked the painter for a little extra clear because I wanted to wet sand the bike after he was finished.  I started wet sanding with 2000 grit and then smoothed a bit further with 5000 grit.  Once finished sanding I polished the bike with a product called Menzerna 400, then Menzerna 3500, then finished it off with a paint sealant called Menzerna Power Lock sealant.  I've used the same product on my bike and it's amazing and easy to use.  Menzerna is a more industrial type product sold mainly to detailing companies but since I do Paintless Dent Repair for a living, the polishing experience comes in handy.  My brother and I used to do detailing and heavy duty polishing on the wheels and tanks on semi trucks.  THAT was a dirty job.  Now, if a clean bike is the sign of a sick mind, then my friends would call me delusional.  LOL 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, zoomzoom said:

The gas cap I used 400, 800, 1500, 3000 dry to get rid of the coating (anodizing I think that give the cap it's stock color) and then 5000 grit wet to smooth it out.  Then I used a bench mounted rotary buffer with red jewellers rouge to bring out the shine.  Took me a few hours to complete.  You could likely get away with just 800 and 1500 and then polishing to remove the scratches from the sand paper.  I'm a little OCD when it comes to polishing though.  LOL 

 

As a shameless plug for another site member (Sebspeed) I've also polished the clutch pressure plate because it's now visible.  :)

 

IMG_4186.JPG

 

The paint on my friends VFR is a pearl black used by Ford on the new 2016 Mustang.  It has blue, silver and red flake in the paint and looks amazing when the sun shines or at night under

the street lights.  When the panels came back from the body shop all he wanted to do was ride as he had spent a few months rebuilding the bike.  The paint was good but I knew I could make it look better, and wet sanding it adds sooooo much depth to the paint.  His bike always has that "Wet" look.  

 

I had asked the painter for a little extra clear because I wanted to wet sand the bike after he was finished.  I started wet sanding with 2000 grit and then smoothed a bit further with 5000 grit.  Once finished sanding I polished the bike with a product called Menzerna 400, then Menzerna 3500, then finished it off with a paint sealant called Menzerna Power Lock sealant.  I've used the same product on my bike and it's amazing and easy to use.  Menzerna is a more industrial type product sold mainly to detailing companies but since I do Paintless Dent Repair for a living, the polishing experience comes in handy.  My brother and I used to do detailing and heavy duty polishing on the wheels and tanks on semi trucks.  THAT was a dirty job.  Now, if a clean bike is the sign of a sick mind, then my friends would call me delusional.  LOL 

 

Thank you - that's very helpful. I'm slightly OCD about such things well, although I do need to be economical with my time - I've got to get the bike running ASAP so that I can move it from my GF's back garden (that's not a eupehism!).

 

I had an issue with the throttle cables over the weekend, which I sorted whilst it was -2 outside last night. The throttle wouldn't 'snap' shut quickly, which I initally thought was due to the powdercoat on the bar, which was duly removed, but to no avail.

 

Yesterday I drilled the switchgear locating hole in the bar a little, and changed the throttle tube for one that I knew was off a VTEC. I had previously fitted what was advertsied as an Fi tube, and preferred it to the VTEC tube, as it is black rather than white. According to Lings (UK OEM parts supplier) the part numbers for the Fi and VTEC tubes are the same, so I'm not sure why there is a difference. Oh well. I also made sure the cable routing was correct, as this is quite important.

 

I took delivery of the Puig DB screen yesterday, but unfortunately it has an unsightly scratch on it, so I have asked for a replacement.

 

I've just ordered the tail ight and indicator lenses, as well as an LED flasher relay :wink:

 

My intentions for the weekend are:

 

- Take the wheels to the painters and select a colour.

- Remove the generator rotor and clean the light corrosion from it (it has been exposed to the damp British air :( )

- Chase the powdercoaters for the clutch cover so that I can refit the stator, the cover itself, and refill the engine oil.

- Fit fuel level sender and fuel pump to the new tank - I'll be doing it on a couple of old pillows to prevent damage.

- Fit dogbone to rear caliper (the pads have yet to arrive :( )

- Secure the scottoiler to the rear subframe.

- Fit the chain guard.

- Collect what may be the braided brake hoses from the post office; if they are what I suspect, get round to fitting them.

- Collect silencers from friend's workshop, clean, and fit.

- The bracket that secures the tank and coolant reservoir overflow lines, and the tank breather hose got bent during disassembly, so I'll need to straighten that out and fit, thereby allowing the LHS oil cooler pipe to be secured to the engine.

- Clean the tank earth point on the frame (I intend to do the blue connector and RR mod another time, once the bike is running).

- Order a PCIII or PCV; I'm not enitrely sure if I need to V, or if the III will do.

 

If time allows, and it probably won't:

 

- Polish the tank cap, although I couldn't possibly aspire to achieve the finish that zoomzoom has just yet.

- Pilfer a chain linking tool and fit/adjust the chain.

- Identify which electrical connectors have yet to be mated.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
2 hours ago, Loftust said:

 

- Pilfer a chain linking tool and fit/adjust the chain.

 

 

 

Where do you live? I have one you could borrow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Hey Lofust.  If you would like a polished gas cap of the same sheen, I can help you out there.  I have the fuel cap from my 99 VFR parts bike that has already been polished.  You are welcome to it if your willing to pay shipping charges.  It's fairly small so I doubt it would hugely expensive.  You would have to swap the lock cylinder for the one from your bike but after watching a YouTube video on how to do it last night, it's not all that difficult.  Shoot me a PM if you're interested.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
3 hours ago, Loftust said:

 

Jolly kind offer, thank you :) I'm co-located at the moment, near Portsmouth and Winchester.

 

I'd have to post it, though Mrs Skids is driving #2 son back to Uni in Portsmouth on Sunday, so.....???

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Skids said:

 

I'd have to post it, though Mrs Skids is driving #2 son back to Uni in Portsmouth on Sunday, so.....???

 

You might just be the biggest legend in the world right now - if something that doesn't inconvenience wifey and yourself could be arranged, I would be very grateful indeed. I'll send you a PM :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, zoomzoom said:

Hey Lofust.  If you would like a polished gas cap of the same sheen, I can help you out there.  I have the fuel cap from my 99 VFR parts bike that has already been polished.  You are welcome to it if your willing to pay shipping charges.  It's fairly small so I doubt it would hugely expensive.  You would have to swap the lock cylinder for the one from your bike but after watching a YouTube video on how to do it last night, it's not all that difficult.  Shoot me a PM if you're interested.  

 

You sir are a gentlemen! :fing02:

 

I will most likely take you up on your kind offer, and would naturally cover the necessary costs. I've got tons of stuff going on at the moment, so will sort those out and give you a shout when I'm a tad less snowed under :smile:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy.