93 Vfr Newb In Over His Head!

[MorganR715]

Hey everyone! I bought my vfr last year as my first bike, which I found out to be a terrible mistake. It wasn't a mistake because it was powerful, or big, but rather that I loved this bike too much. I thought the v4 was so unique, the swingarm so cool, and the gauge cluster, which had a gas gauge, so useful, that when I inevitably dropped it, it was gut wrenching. I've never struggled with wanting to ride like aggressively, I prioritize safety over adrenaline(despite various "ole geezers telling me I wouldn't be able to help myself because I'm just a youngin') which I say light heartedly, of course, I appreciate all advice from wise, experienced riders... but the first time I dropped the bike because I panicked after stalling it at a stop light, I did some damage to it. The second time I laid it down I was literally just sitting at a light. Trying to pull my phone out of my pocket to check a missed call real quick, I lost balance and laid it on the opposite side. The third time I ran into it with my truck(I know, I sound like the most irresponsible person ever, mainly because I am.)

Now, I am trying to repair the bike I've abused, because dangit, I just love it so much. Ive learned enough to, I believe, justify repairing as much as I can, trusting that I'm not going to lay it down again due to lack of experience. I've learned that people's temporary discomfort at a stoplight takes a back seat to making sure my bike doesn't decide it wants to do a wheelie without me on it, and I've learned that keeping your bike upright is, in general, a good thing. I've also learned that when you go to frantically move your truck when you're half asleep, and you can tell that you're getting close to your bike, pressing the clutch in does not have the same effect as the brake, so maybe you shouldn't leave one leg hanging out the door so you can effectively reach said brake.

All that said, I really am looking to replace all the plastic, I'm trying to figure out why it won't start after this terrifyingly cold winter, and I'm curious as to why I slip back into neutral after shifting into second if I go 75%-100% throttle. The plastic is my main concern, as getting it to start could just be my starter(it won't crank at all, battery is good, makes no noise) and as long as I go half throttle I can ride it just fine. I don't need to go anything beyond half throttle anyways, so I can definitely make do. I heard airtech is not recommended for any plastic, so I'm wondering what my options are. Sorry for the long read, if you read all of it, well done. I'll post up some pictures if you want, but the state of my bike is pretty embarrassing. Thanks so much!

[gll429]

post it up do a repair write up..

take a class on proper riding

[Veefer800Canuck]

Plastics for a '93 are getting rare as rocking horse crap.

You may wind up plastic welding yours back together, if possible. Or, look for some that are not as damaged as yours are and fix them.

As for the slipping out of 2nd, it can do that with a lousy shift occasionally, but if it does it all the time, whenever you get on the gas hard, then your gear dogs are rounded off, and you'll have to pull the motor, flip it upside down, and split the crankcases to get to the offending gear, and replace it.

Good news is that you don't have to completely disassemble the engine, the lower crankcase half will lift right off once the engine is upside down, exposing the transmission.

I suppose if you removed the gas tank and all the bodywork, and drained the oil, had some sort of rigging to gently and firmly support the bike, and SEVERAL strong friends, you could probably flip the entire motorcycle upside down with the engine still in the frame, and proceed with the trans surgery from there.

Though I've never seen it done, I think it may be possible.

anyone???

[The Phantom]

I am hopeful that your shift issue is simply a combination of the embarrassingly bad VFR gearbox, and a technique problem. I used to get the false neutral too with mine, but learned to really push the lever through - all other shifts were fine. It can also be useful to 'preload' the shift lever, this simply entails putting some upward pressure on it as you are approaching your shift point, and when you do shift it makes for a more positive action at the lever.

Failing that, I'd put a Factory Evo Star shift kit in it before I went to the trouble of going into the gearbox! Not sure what they go for these days - $250? - but money well spent.

I agree re. bodywork - get a Urethane Supply Company airless plastic welder, and start fixing.

[Switchblade]

One day at a time ...

[Dutchy]

http://thurn-motorsport.de/html/verkleidung-rc36.html

If you like what you see, drop Gerhard an email and ask for a quote including shipping across the pond

[MorganR715]

Gll429, I have already taken the beginners abate class, will take the advanced one either this year or next.

Veefer,I was going to fix it all myself, make my own bolt holes and what-not, but I went to take my fairings off last night, and discovered that the mid right faring was broken off, with pieces still attached, and the broken piece completely missing. I think my little cousin broke it off and panicked, throwing it away. It was hanging because the bolt fell out, so I assume he just walked past it, not seeing that. Anyways, I am looking at getting at least a new mid, but ill keep a lookout for a set. I tried shifting it pretty firmly, it would still pop out. I'm getting ready to get a hold of someone, ill post his estimate for repair on here, as I am incredibly inexperienced with repairs. If it is too pricey I will try to tackle it myself.

Phantom, ill try preloading it and let you know if that helps, it isn't bad enough for me to worry too much right now, but that shift kit could very well be an option.

Switchblade, I completely agree. Right now my priority is getting it started, everything else can wait.

Dutch, I can't really understand german too well, are all those pieces for sale, pre painted? or is it an example of his work? Would that be 659 euro?

Also, how would riding without the mid or lower fairings go? I wouldn't ride in the rain, so I assume rust wouldn't be an issue. I'd love to get riding asap, and I'm not worried about turning heads.

[gll429]

you can ride with no fairing.

plastic welding is EASY!!!

if your trying to get the bike running., check your fuses.

make sure you have gas.

the key is on and the run switch on run

make sure bike is in neutral and pull in the clutch .

[MorganR715]

I'm glad to hear that its easy, ill probably give it a shot. Haven't checked fuses, but everything else you mentioned is good. This cold was just killing things left and right..

[snowman11]

I've been piecing mine back together for years now. I slowly found all my fairings on ebay. Some were in good shape, some I had to plastic weld and I think it all turned out great. Take your time and rebuild one day at a time and it will come together. I've had my bike for over 8 years and I just got it running last year. All the fairing work is complete, now I just have electrical to figure out.

[MorganR715]

I looked at your pictures, it looks awesome! You have some incredible patience to do that for so long, that's something I need to work on. Fortunately it runs like a dream when it is running. I looked at my plastic, the upper, and lower are in good shape. Need to do some Bondo to some of the corners, reshape them. But other than that they are awesome. The tail is salvageable, but the right mid is gone for good. Looks like ill be rocking the naked look for a bit. It looks like the plastic welders are about $300. Does that seem accurate? Thank you all for your advice, I already feel like I have more direction.

[gll429]

plastic welders cost 15 bucks if you use the soldering iron method. and $40 bucks if you get a hot air one from harbor freight.

i prefer the soldering iron.

[RollinAgain]

I've got an extra right mid fairing from my old 93 I'll sell to you if you are interested. It is in good shape with just a few minor scratches on it with no cracks and no broken tabs. PM me if interested.

Rollin

[Dutchy]

The 659 euro is for the 3 pieces that form the front fairing only. Unpainted.

[mcrwt644]

that's $913.04 USD, and IDK if that's with shipping? wowsa, that's pricey!

[Veefer800Canuck]

Try seeing what the Honda ones are worth at the dealer.

My guess is $0.00 because there are none anymore.

Just for giggles, last time I checked, ONE lower side fairing for my '98 from Honda was about $350, so the THURN prices for the complete lower and upper fairings seems in line with reality.

Of course that's already painted, but for the 3rd gen, if they don't exist from Honda anymore, then $900 begins to look good even Unpainted.

[MorganR715]

Gll, where did you find one for $15?

Dutch, ill pass on that piece, my upper is in good shape.

Mcrwt, that's sort of what I was thinking, that is without shipping. But hey, I never tried buying one before, so I have nothing to compare it to.

Veefer, that's a very good point, I just better make sure I don't drop my bike again. I'm going to NC to ride Route 129 in June, so I'd like to get this thing looking a little better. We'll see.

Edit: So I started poking around my bike, checking to see if I could diagnose the no-start issue, and discovered this. It would be the starter relay plug. I assume that's what's causing the no start? The album also has pictures of parts of my plastic that are damaged. Gll429 wanted to see. I'm on a tablet and IMG isn't working. Neither is copy/paste so I'm typing the URL in :P

Oh, and hope you like Darth Vader. Always chuckle when I'm riding and see him staring at me. Sadly, he is over plasti dip, and won't be able to stay..

http://s53.photobucket.com/user/Morgan-UFC/library/VFR?sort=3&page1

[MorganR715]

oh, and I don't have a license plate bracket for my bike, any good, cheap ones out there?

[RollinAgain]

I'll check to see if I have an extra. If I do I'll include it with the mid fairing that I'm shipping to you.

Rollin

[MorganR715]

Thanks Rollin, I really appreciate it.

Got the bike running. New solenoid fixed the no start, although the wiring was swapped from the original configuration, because we bought an aftermarket solenoid from Redline Honda here in Ft. Wayne. We kept burning fuses with the original wiring. Ill post pictures, although I didnt get a picture of the original wiring config, we just swapped them out one at a time. Interesting development would be that my neutral light stays on now, until i let out the clutch, then it goes out. Anyone hear of this? I'll do some searching to see if I can solve it myself. First start of the year was flawless on old gas from this terrible winter after just a few attempts. Sounds great, haven't ridden it yet to see if the oil change fixed my shifting issue. Looking forward to getting some miles in!

Edit: Found a topic regarding the neutral light, are saying it would be the clutch diode, or the silicone rectifier( http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.php/topic/60153-neutral-light-comes-on-when-in-gear/ ) My issue is I cant find it. Looking through the service manual now but I have energy drink running through me and I'm having trouble concentrating. Any help as to where it's located would be amazing.

Another edit: Found the clutch diode, checked it with a multimeter, and I'm definitely getting some numbers, but they're all over the place, never settling on any one number. Is this good? First time using a multimeter, had it on the diode setting, and just looked it up briefly on YouTube.

[mcrwt644]

are you sure the neutral light isn't as simple as a burnt bulb?

[MorganR715]

Burnt neutral light bulb? Its on, bright as can be. Or do you mean something else?

[apexandy]

I would be almost certain your clutch diode is toast. I just rewired my whole harness and was having the same issue with my old clutch diode (neutral light would turn on when the clutch lever was pulled in, regardless of gear). I had a few spare harnesses and 2 of the 3 diodes were toast. The 3rd one fixed the problem.

[MorganR715]

yeah, I'm picking one up tomorrow, should do the trick. Got to ride it around the neighborhood, because the tail is off I didn't get on any main roads, rode like a dream. New oil completely fixed the popping into neutral, at least that's how it seems. When I bought the bike I was told the oil was changed last season, and I think he might have misspoke. After I drained the tar out, put some fresh oil in, and changed the filter, it was amazing. Put some seafoam in as well. Going to begin repairing the plastic with the welding kit I got from harbor freight, the 16 dollar kit, and after its all fixed, it will be paint time! Sticking with all original plastic I was thinking matte black. Thoughts? Also, I have super cheap side mirrors, and was looking for a better replacement. Would you recommend OEM, or are there good fitting aftermarket? I'd like to stay OEM if possible, but I can work with what I got. I'll get my brother to send the pictures and video of it running tonight.

[mello dude]

. The second time I laid it down I was literally just sitting at a light. Trying to pull my phone out of my pocket to check a missed call real quick, I lost balance and laid it on the opposite side.

Dude, congratulations in your adventure to the motorcycling world. -- But nobody has pointed out the obvious. When on the bike focus on riding! Ignore the damn cell phone! Watch out for trucks, and dont assume you know how to ride even now. Practice, practice, practice. Riding is like learning to fly an airplane, its a skill, and you get that from over time.

Please plan to take more riding skill classes in the near future. I dont want to read about you in a wreck and now your in the hospital.

Good luck