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Hello from England


Stray

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Hello All, 

 

Ive just become the proud owner of a 1998 VFR800 and thought I'd join the forum. 

 

She's rather high mileage at 68k and a bit of a shed really but I've wanted one of these for many years so will spend some time tidying her up. Luckily I've know my  way round a toolbox and have done a couple frame-up rebuilds in the past. Not planning anything quite so involved with the VFR though. 

 

Riding style is mostly brisk weekend jaunts and the odd track day - looking forward to bonding with the old girl! 

 

Never thought I'd get on with linked brakes but prepared to give them a chance. After all, they should reduce diving and rear wheel lockup. Not sure how they will feel at "elevated" speeds though. 

 

She has an old worn Sergeant seat that is comfy and stainless exhaust can. Everything else is stock (and most of it needs upgrading). 

 

Electrical system seems weak and only shows 12.4 bolts with engine idling. No increase at 5k rpm either so stator and/or RR are probably toast. Hoping to replace RR with SH847 as they sound bulletproof but these are brand new and really expensive. Not sure if I should get the old stator rewound or buy another (cheap Chinese ones on eBay or expensive American ones probably made in China anyway?). 

 

Suspension is sloppy and vague on both ends so suspenders will need rebuilding/upgrading. Lots of great info on this site about swapping

fork internals - going to look into that! Might get YSS rear shock or get a Fireblade unit rebuilt as per advice on here. Looking at other 325mm Suzuki shocks too. 

 

Brake system will need complete overhaul, including new discs and braided lines. Fluid looks like Guinness. 

 

Also intend to do valve clearances as judging by the state of this bike they've probably never been done. 

 

Then full fluids/filters service and fit Scottoiler as they really make chain adjustment easier. 

 

Ultimate goal is to have a mechanically sound machine that can be used through winter salt, weekend jaunts, and the odd track day. Basically I plan to beat on her mercilessly until the wheels fall off. 

 

The site is full of excellent advice/knowledge that I intend to use. Hopefully in time I will be able give something back as I learn more about this wonderful machine. 

 

Stray

 

 

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Welcome.

 

At 68k she's barely broken in!

 

I have never had a problem with the CBS. If your goal is tracking it occasionally I could see delinking them, though.

 

May want to investigate DMr for suspension upgrades. I know many who have shipped to the UK and still found it cost effective. http://www.daughertymotorsports.com/

 

Everyone on this site is too quick to say "You don't need to check the valves," but my experience says otherwise. At 74k every valve was way out of spec on our 99.

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Hello m8,welcome to the VFR.

 

Sounds like you have set yourself some achievable goals and once they're done I'm sure you'll fall in love with the VFR like the rest of us have.

 

Not sure where you are in Blighty, but I can recommend MC Technics in Stowmarket for suspension; they bespoked my VFR1200 and she's nails now.

 

I have used all my 800 VFRs for winter commuting and would highly recommend doing a headlamp change to either HiD-Xenon or LED - cage drivers seem to react far quicker to the newer generation of bulbs than the old incandescent ones.

 

68k.....ha ha ha, years and years left in her yet but definitely check the valve clearances. It's easy to do (I can do it so anyone can) and gives you that extra piece of mind.

 

Please keep us updated with your progress and a few pictures wouldn't go amiss either.

 

Best of luck with the transformation.

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You will love the V4!

Besides the essentials, Tires, brakes, bearings, battery, the only thing you really need to do at the start is make sure your charging system is in order as it is the achilles heel of the bike.

 

This includes checking all electrical plugs, grounds etc. as it really is the achilles heel of the bike.

Check charging output and then look to upgrade at  http://www.wiremybike.com/vfr-specific-parts-c-1.html?osCsid=a829dd005948043555c6f7420c87fe62

Poor grounding via the ground block can manifest itself in many ways that can start off annoying and progress to a no start situation.  http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/index.php?/forums/topic/66045-urethra-i-found-it/#comment-773553

I went even farther with the grounds upgrading them all including the ECU

 

Have fun!

 

 

 

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Thanks for the warm welcome and advice - I really appreciate it. 

 

Valve clearances will definitely be done. If I want this engine to go another 40k it had best be in top condition. Racing is also unkind to out-of-spec engines and it needs sorting before I take her to the track. 

 

Going to bleed and clean brake system next week. Apparently CBS makes this job a pig but I'm hoping to get it sorted anyway. 

 

Just a thought: has anyone tried delinking the brakes and splicing the linked front piston in with the other two? That way you get 3 pistons per calliper engaged every time you pull the lever, instead of only 2 as standard. This may require a bigger master cylinder though. Need to poke about a bit and get a better feel for how the system operates. 

 

As for forks, upgrading internals and fitting new seals/bushings/fluids is about as much work/money as a front end swap. Also, there is some pitting on the top of my chrome stantions (fork legs) near the bottom yoke so they may need replacing anyway. I'm tempted to follow other forum contributors who have fitted gear off sportsbikes (CBRs, VTRs and others). Might even try for an upside-down front end if one can be sourced cheap enough. Will run the standard setup for now to see how I like it. 

 

Just finished testing electrical system - RR is toast. Stator seems in spec - just. Have ordered new MOSFET RR as per the links provided above - thanks for that. 

 

The bike is so dirty I could plant potatoes in it. Looks like an old growbag. I'm going to remove all fairings and hose everything down with WD40 (or other penetrating oil) to shift off years of caked-on crud. 

 

Then i I can get a better idea of what I'm dealing with and teardown can begin in earnest. 

 

Thanks again for the warm welcome. 

 

Stray 

 

 

 

 

 

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Mod'ing the brakes as you suggest has been done; I think there are threads on here about it so a search should uncover those.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Welcome aboard the VFR asylum!

Bleeding the CBS on your own can be tricky. There should be a how-to on this forum with good tips. YouTube can be good for that stuff too.

If you do decide the Stator is toast (5th gens usually fry the R/R but I have seen the odd crispy Stator on a couple of 5th gens) I would have it rewound by a reputable mob or fork out the extra for an OEM one. Stay away from el cheapos as they are false economy.

An excellent compromise on spending for improvement to the front end is using F4i internals to gain rebound adjustment which earlier generations unfortunately don't have.

Rear wise, whatever takes your fancy... Aftermarket shocks by TFX / Tecnoflex give good bang for the bucks.

There was a big trend on using Phanteon scooter R/Rs to replace the OEM one, at least in Europe.

Good luck and keep us posted!

I'm between Oxford and southern Spain if you ever need anything.

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Welcome to the asylum. You obviously have great taste in mc's. And red is the fastest color.

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  • 1 month later...
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Thanks again for all your help and advice/links. 

 

Have been plugging away at the old rust-heap with much help from this forum. 

 

Valve adjustment, throttle bodies balance and charging system upgrade link is here: 

There are threads about de-rusting forks and recharging a K&N air filter too. 

 

Thanks again for the warm welcome and advice. Few pics of cleaning up the old heap below: 

 

Stray

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