CatiePotatie Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 As much as I love Honda's styling ideas I always thought the Viffer needed some more colour. Painting the original fairings would have been quite expensive, allowing no room for error and leaving me without any spare panels should the worst happen. For the price of 1 Honda side panel.. I picked up a pre-painted and stickered full set of ABS plastics from china. Rather than eBay I found them to be cheaper on DHGate.com, which is a very similar website to ebay but featuring only chinese businesses and mostly bulk/wholesale items. Paid about $340 AUD including delivery, 4 weeks to get here from China. Panels were packed very securely and wrapped in many layers of foam, with a wooden frame around the box to prevent it from being crushed.. zero shipping damage resulted. Paint is excellent albeit a tiny bit purple in comparison to Honda's factory blue, but this could also be due to 12 years of weathering.. so can't complain The shape of each panel is spot on, almost exact replica of the originals.. only problem is there was no touch up AFTER painting so every hole was a bit clogged with paint. A quick cleanout with just a flathead screwdriver was enough, then transferring the rubber/brass threaded inserts from the old panels to new and reassembled. It took me about 4 hours total to do the rear panel around the seat, and both main side fairings + the separator behind the front wheel, and the front fender. Not much worse than refitting the originals I have not attempted to do the front headlight/windscreen cowl yet as that requires much more disassembly and I'd like to have at least a few days of spare time before attempting that as I suspect it will be much more difficult and this bike is my only means of transport to uni. Now I have more incentive to keep it clean too. Also shown here is a new set of front brake discs, as the previous ones were just on their service limit after 12 years I figured I should add some newies. I am the kind of person who relies mostly on my engine for braking and so the brakes themselves will very rarely take a beating, and even a mild one at that. Thus the decision to get cheap ones was made easy. After receiving them, comparing to the originals the build quality is rather impressive and then testing them out on the street I've gotta say they work SO much better than before. Only 1 finger on the brake lever and it still feels like I'm about to lose the rear (almost.. but not quite). Plus being stainless steel their tolerance for heat is amazing, as during the first few days with oversized pads the brakes were dragging a little and heating up a fair bit. The rear (standard cast iron) disc turned purple after the first heavy test ride while the fronts never broke a sweat. Despite melting the tip of my glove when i tested to see if they actually were as hot as the rear... Looks fantastic too If anyone wants me to I might add some detail about the blueish headlight shown here Which may or may not be an 8000k 35w Xenon HID with angle adjustment via a solenoid for high/low beam btw first post .. been lurking on and off for a long time though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB-Oz Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 looks really good... have you got pix of the spread of light from the HID, there's a bit of a discussion going on over here: http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.php/topic/70756-fifth-gen-hid-lights/#entry829130 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 They are just the plug-n-play variant rather than projector, but the spread is quite good. From directly infront you can crouch down to level with the light and still look directly at it with no problem.. much easier on the eyes than the originals. Crouching below that however and you lose all vision and begin cursing at the pain :P Have had the HIDs in for a couple of months now and never had a complaint from oncoming traffic. I'll take pics and upload tonight sometime if I get around to it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer huntinggunns Posted April 11, 2012 Member Contributer Share Posted April 11, 2012 Hey, I think I have seen this color scheme somewhere before on a 6th Gen. Wait, my signature picture. You sir have a unique and good looking 5th Gen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Vee-Ef-Ar Posted April 11, 2012 Member Contributer Share Posted April 11, 2012 Welcome to the forum DC. Good to see another 5thGen and you won't be that hard to spot either. See ya on the road mate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted April 12, 2012 Author Share Posted April 12, 2012 Not the best photo here showing the light spread but the driveway was full of cars and the garage was the only flat ground I could use. As you can see its the standard spread that the original headlight has, and sitting directly infront of it after its warmed up the camera doesn't even try to dim that much so the glare to oncoming traffic is much less than it used to be. As mentioned in the other thread about HID plug-n-play's the headlight reflector allows some light above the horizontal to light up road signs, and the bluish colour of these lights up the signs waaay more than ~3600k yellow stock lights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted April 12, 2012 Member Contributer Share Posted April 12, 2012 Will be interesting to read how the front panels fit/line up. Till now, I have only read horror stories with regards to these chinese kits, so it sounds like they too read VFRD and improve their product! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baileyrock Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Looks good and Welcome!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhotoOp Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 tell me more about the hid! what brand are they? I havent found any with a solenoid hi/lo system that would fit. I am crazy curious about this now, having just this week resigned my self to slightly disappointing lights on my 5th gen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted April 14, 2012 Author Share Posted April 14, 2012 Generic eBay 55w H4 kit.. didn't have a brand name. I have the relay under the right hand side fairings, and both ballasts underneath the front of the tank. The shape of the shield on the light makes the beam point straight ahead during normal use, while the high beam switch activates the solenoid which just pulls the bulb back in its housing allowing light through a hole at the bottom onto the lower reflector and thus angling the beam higher. Quite a cheap/simple design yet very effective. Only problem I came across was the standard Honda lights weren't actually H4 (despite H4 being imprinted on the lense) and I had to bend the tabs back and make it fit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted May 28, 2012 Author Share Posted May 28, 2012 Had a bit more of a play around recently, and figured I'd take some more pics while she's nice and clean. Changes since before include: Dubious Chinese gold anodized brake/clutch levers, with adjustable length and fold up in the event of a drop. Dubious Chinese carbon fibre mirrors, without indicators though as I (unlike most it seems) actually like the dumbo ears. Gold bar ends to match the levers. Many things are still on the to-do list, and I'm currently searching for a decent white rear wheel as the next upgrade.. see here for details on that: http://www.vfrdiscus...el/page__st__30 Will need to make the front white to match, but haven't decided yet if powder coating or just finding a white VFR rim would be easier, as time is something I have plenty of right now. I was also considering replacing the windscreen with a proper ZG-DB if I can find a cheap one, or just cut the current one down as its way too high for my likings.. Later on down the track will be the more difficult stuff, such as front end swap as seen elsewhere on the forums, Ducati 848/1098/1198 tail conversion which I've done a quick to-scale mockup with random stock photos I found on google and perhaps a Koso RX-2 dash with the inner fairings trimmed down a bit. Basically the overall goal is to modernize it and give it a more sporty feel while still retaining the original character and bulletproof engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidzilla Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 Looks great. I like solid color bikes and bikes that look more racy-ish. I am curious about the tail conversion, especially if it can be somewhat pliug and play. Unlike most here, I am not a natural machinist/welder/fabricator. So I need as much plug and play as possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer MaxSwell Posted May 28, 2012 Member Contributer Share Posted May 28, 2012 Nice write-up DC. I've been considering DHGate.com body panels (recommended by Timmy). I pretty much destroyed all my body work at T-mac. Your experience with them is very encouraging. Thanks. BTW: nice looking machine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veefer800Canuck Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 If you're going with a more angular tail, consider swapping the fual tank to a 6th gen item. It's also more angular, and might help lead the fairing back into the tailsection a bit more??? The 5th gen's bodywork is a little soft looking, especially compared to anything post-2000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted May 29, 2012 Author Share Posted May 29, 2012 If you're going with a more angular tail, consider swapping the fual tank to a 6th gen item. It's also more angular, and might help lead the fairing back into the tailsection a bit more??? The 5th gen's bodywork is a little soft looking, especially compared to anything post-2000. If you look carefully at the crappy photoshop job you'll see that's a VTEC tank, and I agree it does suit a lot better. Also the front forks/wheel in that picture is VTEC too, which would be the cheapest and easiest swap to do considering it isn't intended for a race track.. Could keep my current brakes too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidzilla Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 I hear you can use the f4i forks and still use your calipers and wheels. You just need the whole triple/forks/clip ons. Someone needs to confirm this though, I am only going off of what I read in a post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted May 30, 2012 Author Share Posted May 30, 2012 I had a look around about the F4i setup and it looks like you can use 6th gen upper triple, any VFR800 ('98-'12) wheel and rotors, 6th gen fender fits with only 4 of 6 bolts which is plenty anyway... but calipers, must be F4i and will remove the linked braking system. Considering I have a 5th gen I'd be swapping almost everything anyway, only getting to keep my rotors unfortunately. When I get to that part though I may decide I want to be rid of the linked brakes anyway... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarossaBill Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Hi DragonCypher, Thanks for the great pics on your Movistar replica, it was enough to make me go online and order a set for mine. Just woundering if yours was from Lee's or Motorstar? I placed my order with Motorstar so I am hopeing yours was the same. I also decided to have the word "MOVISTAR" replaced with "MONSTER" and the "M" replaced with the monster "M". So I am going to be very interested to see how it turns out. If it comes up as good as yours I'll be happy..... I will keep you posted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarossaBill Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dutchy Posted August 1, 2012 Member Contributer Share Posted August 1, 2012 Looking very nice! Now grab a can of XXXX and throw some prawns on the barbie! (I know it is winter for you now but guess it is still warmer than here :-) ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarossaBill Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 Well I can't believe how great Motostar were at giving me exactly what I wanted, and from start to finish it took less that 4 weeks. I am amazed at the Quality I got for a "made to order" kit, and true it is not as good as the original finish, but value for money just leaves me with a big grin on my face every time I look at it. Because it was an original design, they sent me photo's prior to clear coat just to get my final approval. Once I confirmed the order, it was in my hands within 10 days. I am glad I was pre warned about re drilling holes and tags not being exactly where they should be, because I was expecting the install to be much harder than it actually was. Everthing went together fairly easily and I found I actually needed a few extra bolts as threads were provided in some places instead of the rubber gromet nuts that Honda use. To be honest it was much easier than I had expected, and even the front head light cowl (which I thought was going to be a nightmare) came off and went back on without a hitch. All I can say is it's the cheapest and easiest way to give your old rocket a new lease on life. Now all I am waiting for is the weather to warm up a bit so I can head for the hills again!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarossaBill Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidzilla Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 Nice. Chinese fairings seem to be improving quite a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatiePotatie Posted August 2, 2012 Author Share Posted August 2, 2012 Looking good Bill, I never even considered that these mobs would do a custom job without charging heaps of $$. This is where mine stands atm, I got a new wheel including spacers to centre it, even went down to the dealership to get a tyre put on. But alas, no tyres they had available would blow out onto the beads.. I chose a rim with a safety bead on both sides, since its a motorbike and will lean in both directions, but this made it impossible for a 200//17" tyre to fit. After an hour of trying different brands and even taking it down the road to use a more powerful air compressor they gave up and said I need to go bigger. Unfortunately they didn't have anything in stock, and even though there is a 240//17" Diablo Rosso II on their website they stopped responding to my emails and didn't answer the phone when I called. I can get the exact same tyre through eBay from the US for $100 cheaper than listed so I'll probably be doing that shortly and then just take it to anyone to get fitted.. Would be nice if 240 width tyres weren't so expensive though [edit]: purchased for >$150 cheaper than local (including delivery cost).. from Jakewilson.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarossaBill Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Hi DragonCypher, Just wondering what you are going to do with your old rims once you have the bike sorted? I have toyed with the idea of buying a second hand set to put some touring rubber on, rather than bugger up my Pilot Powers on the straight runs. Let me know if you are interested in selling them. Cheers, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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