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NO FRICKIN' WAY! When a project hits a couple of the 'just one more week' cycles, it raises one's eyebrow a bit. But here is physical molecular evidence of the cause of giant ____-eating grins on the faces of 22 VFR owners: Rows of cylinders 1-2 merges alongside rows of cylinders 3-4 merges: And here is a set of production headers just the way we like our women...almost fully dressed:

Hi all, just wanted to give everyone an update. I finally got a lull in my work schedule and was able to get pricing and work with SFDownhill on all the costing numbers and options you have selected. On that vein, I will be sending out later today, PMs to all of you who have gave your deposit and shipping info with the information we have received. Ideally we have it all correct but that is where you will come in. Once you get the PM. please look over the info and make sure we got it right. As far as the headers go, we spoke with Wade yesterday and this morning, he anticipated being able to deliver the first batch by early next week, we have no reason to doubt that will happen, so we anticipate being able to pick them up and get those that will have passivization done dropped off shortly after we take possession. I'm sure everyone is chomping at the bit as much as we are, all I can say is the last mile is the longest mile! Hard to believe this has come to fruition, let alone almost here! Cheers, D

Updates: 1 - We are waiting to hear back from Wade about how the production run is progressing - it's scheduled to be done this week. 2 - This past weekend we fitted prototype headers to a 6 gen. We needed to trim 5/8" off the collector exit, then OEM 6 gen mufflers fit great. By early next week I will mount the now-trimmed prototype to my 5 gen to recheck fitment. I'll use an OEM muffler, TBR slipon, and Staintune slipon [Using both support brackets on the Staintune to lock down positioning] to confirm that proper fitment is maintained on 5 gens after the 5/8" trim. 3 - We have an 8 gen loaner in our sinister clutches. Monday Duc2V4 mounted new tires while I installed speed bleeders and new brake/clutch actuation fluid to get acquainted with the 8 gen - neither of us have one [Yet]. We will be installing a PCV on the 8 gen. One of the production run 5/6 gen headers will be converted to the 8 gen by modeling the curves of the 8 gen front primaries. Wade will build a prototype, then we'll do a baseline and dyno tune April 6.

Orange!

Hi all, just wanted to let you I am working on getting the totals for passivization, bungs, center stops and shipping together. I've been trying to do this when I had the time after work but after being in Montana all last week and coming back to a full plate of work this week, it's taking me some time to gather all the data and numbers for you all. Please be patient, I'll have the totals shortly, if only this work thing didn't get in the way all the time!Insert other media

You typed that from the emergency room, didn't you? Are they removing the shoes from your arse in pairs, or one at a time?😂

Swingarm and linkage now free of 30+ years of chain grime. That was not fun. Bearings all clean and repacked with Bel-Ray water proof grease, and everything assembled and torqued. New shock fit perfectly. +5mm ride height.

the thing is i like polished aluminium. so this bike will have polished aluminium. the aluminium from rc36 i consider is top quality. i have polished the frame of my 2'nd gen and it stayed like new for years. ocasional maintainance with Autosol for aluminium. i have send the wheels to be vibro polished. this is after chemicaly cleaned. this is after 72 hours in the polishing machine and started working at the frame to

RC made it home. 11K mile bike with lots of extras. Receipt history for work done incl Racetech sprung/valved forks and shock. Tires on order, need to make some time to go through it and change out all fluids.

Took some pictures...

Having tried four different types of 42mm crush gaskets, we found the best option is 42mm copper crush gaskets from Delkevic (pictured in a couple places on this thread). The 42mm gaskets are not on Delk’s website and they do not sell them on ebay. I only learned of them because I was on the phone with Matt at Delk to order the 41mm gaskets they recommend for VFR800s (Hoping the 41mm gaskets would crush to a functional size) and Matt said they have and sell 42mm gaskets. The 42mm gaskets from Delk have a skinny, round cross section and crush to a perfect id that is larger than the VFR’s exhaust port. The Delk gaskets have a seam on one side - we put the seam side down, toward the head, to give the header’s collar a cleaner surface to press against. They create a good seal. All the other 42mm gaskets we tried were too big to fit into the head’s sleeve - where the headers seat - without grinding and/or cutting. I’m editing out reams of trial and error, grinding, cutting, splicing, and cursing data. Even the Delk washers are difficult to get started into the sleeve, but because they are so thin, they can be persuaded past the lip of the sleeve. After starting the gaskets in by hand, the headers do the rest of the job of escorting the gaskets into their final resting place, then crushing them. It’s a lovely kind of slow-paced violence.

Where abouts are you in Oz? Anywhere near Maroubra, Sydney as I am happy to come round and assist you in fixing the issue.

A very pleasant few days of late tempted me to reinsure my VTec this afternoon. Met with some friends to view a video of their ride last summer. Stopped for a portrait at Beacon Hill Park, looking across Juan de Fuca Straight to Port Angeles, Wash., and the mountains of Olympic National Park. The 90 minute ferry ride there from my home in Victoria is very familiar as it makes the first step of almost every summer trip.

I had my clutch cover, stator cover, cylinder head covers, and upper triples powdered to match the 2014 wheel and prismatic Powders triple bronze was the closest I had found.

On our heavily built NC30’s, full on SBK builds we are running stock air-boxes and stock air filters. The only setup that nets noticeable gains (we’re talking 2.5 HP on our 80 HP 428cc engines) is fully open air boxes with either proper ram air and a sealed tank to make a big volume air box or open trumpets and an open tray. Anything K&N ish tend to not make more power than stock and cause running issues on the carb’s bikes. My engine builder is running FI too and going back to stock-ish airboxes and filters until he can find something better. Can’t do open anymore because any crash ingests dirt. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Welcome back to VFRD after its little vacation. Hispanic Slammer, thanks for keeping the forum up to speed - you're efforts are appreciated. To purchasers of headers: Duc2V4 and I are unable to access PMs at this time, but we are getting email notifications when you send a PM, and we can read what you wrote. Until VFRD is back to being a fully armed and operational battle station, you can email us at vfrheaders@gmail.com. A few of you have already done this and it's working well as a stop-gap measure. K&N's large aperture [big mouth] air filter with part number HA-8098 is the only one they currently make for the VFR800. the big mouth is the filter we installed for dyno testing and tuning of the prototype headers. I was lucky enough to have purchased that particular filter from an individual in the UK for $85. Now the general public can purchase the same filter for $59.99 from K&N. The small aperture filter with the same part number is an old design, and is no longer manufactured. Confusion ensues because K&N on their own website and online retail dealers of K&N products all feature photos of the now defunct small mouth filter. Yesterday I ordered an HA-8098 straight from the K&N website and today a big mouth air filter arrived. I will attempt to attach a photo of the filter that arrived today:

Both nice videos but all they show is the VFR rider is better than the other guys. The VFRs are fast, make no mistake. Later models might be heavy and a bit lazy but there is a strong sporting pedigree there. Modern purpose-built sportsbikes on the other hand are mind-bendingly fast! Frankly they scare the sh!t out of me and the VFR doesn’t do that. Since the early noughties bike power has gone crazy. Think of the Super Blackbird, Haysbusa, S1000RR and now that new supercharged Kawasaki. It’s so bad that most of these machines can not safely be ridden anywhere near their potential without a f#ckload of electrical aids to help control their excesses. Does anyone remember a time before ABS, dynamic stability control, engine braking control, traction control and the like? Well, the VFR was born in that pre-electrical era. Hell, even the FI system on the 5th gen (grandfather of all 800s) is a crude first attempt. So you’re not comparing apples and apples here. Modern sports bikes boast power, braking and suspension excesses that require electronics to keep them stable. VFRs don’t have the kind of power that requires such electronic trickery (other than ABS, really). Then you look at the riders of the different machines. VFR riders tend to be quite experienced and (dare I say) mature. You won’t find many squids on a Viffer. They also tend to hold on to their bikes longer and know them well. This makes them capable riders and very handy in a dogfight! Sportsbike riders tend tend to fall into two camps: either they are hardcore headbanging speed merchants who live for trackdays and the thrill of overtaking everything; or they are inexperienced wannabes way out of their depth playing top-trumps. The former are generally a bit older and lethal in a dogfight. You won’t catch these boys with a VFR. The latter are either very young and stupid or born-again bikers in a midlife crisis. These boys tend to be organ-donors-in-waiting and a VFR will have them for breakfast. Trouble is you never know which of the two just pulled up next to you on a S1000RR at the lights...

I plan to do so at Assen again this year 😎 OK, I'll agian let that Duck with a female rider in tight leathers go in front of me then....

I have a Black Widow slip on (350mm carbon high mount) and really like it. Aesthetically: it mounts tight to the tail section, the mounting hardware is mostly hidden, fitment is great and it aligns very well. It is a well made piece (aside from BW's sticker style logo, which I wish was an embossed metal logo like other high quality brands) with nice welding, machining, and finishing. It sounds great in my opinion, but I do think tone & volume expectations need to align with the length, diameter, and materials of the can you select. I replaced a low-mount TBR metal can and it was longer and larger diameter, which produced a bit lower exhaust note to my ears. I thought the price point was great considering the rest of market and the part I received. Here's a rear-quarter view:

Search is over. I found one for me. First, "Rote Sau" would literaly be something like Red sow, like a big female pig, or even a swine, but it has some deeper meaning for me. I like Mercedes and "Rote Sau" is a nickname for a very successful model from a Mercedes racing history. I find it somehow ok, it suits her good. Sixth generation, 2005. with 56000 kilometers, Hondas original cases and very nice service history. Tires are from last season, same.as battery, chain set from DID is one thousand kilometers old. It was changed togwther with valve adjustment. Front fork is also serviced and all that I have to do is to change all liquids. Not that I need to but because I want to. Just to be sure. And check if the chain sits nice. Everything else is pretty much unchanged serial bike. And the most important thing, I like her.

Just an FYI I have removed, and reinstalled the center stand on a 5th gen without removing the headers. It takes a bit of prying, and cursing but it's doable. Fortunately I have separate work, and play bikes now so don't have to do that again.

Although most here on the forum wouldn't think So Cal being a place for wet weather/waterproof gear, this winter we had an enormously rainy season, we even had some snow at elevations as low as 3000 ft.! Anyway, to say the least, I was in search of waterproof gear and/or reconditioning the gear I had. As most would probably have assumed, Goretex is considered to be the gold standard for keeping dry but I found the info in this video to be very surprising. Even though our heavy rain seems to have subsided, we are still getting the occasional shower, we even had hail last Wednesday, I think this info is still useful for those not quite of of the woods just yet.

FREE BEER! The turbo beer wagon won't be back but the beer will still be there. Registration for the event gets you FREE BEER (post ride) everyday. This concludes today's plug for the Spring Memorial Ride.

Its possible you boiled your brake fluid because it was contaminated with moisture and your new pads generated excessive heat... Understanding Brake fluid DOT 3 DOT 4 and DOT 5.1 are Glycol based brake fluids whereas DOT 5 are Silicone based... Glycol based fluids are designed to signal moisture contamination by changing color... the fluid will start to turn golden, then light brown, then dark brown indicating that it has absorbed progressively more moisture. Eventually, if left unchanged beyond the recommended service interval, the fluid will become dark and yukky, indicating high amounts of water absorption and thus badly contaminated fluid... user friendly Glycol based fluids also reduce the effect of both corrosion and compressibility because it is not only designed to accept significant amounts of moisture, but even to neutralize it by dispersing this moisture evenly throughout the system, thus preventing its concentration in any one area... Boiling point of Glycol based brake fluids DOT 3 205 °C (401 °F) DOT 4 230 °C (446 °F) DOT 5.1 270 °C (518 °F) DOT 5 Silicone based fluid will not turn color to signal moisture content... Boiling point of Silicone based brake fluids DOT 5 260 °C (500 °F) If you wish to use the latest in Glycol base fluids then its DOT 5.1 Note: DOT 5 silicone was created at the request of the military for use in vehicles that are required to be parked for years at a time and be ready for deployment. Harley-Davidson used DOT 5 until a decade ago because it would not negatively affect paint but currently specifies DOT 4 or 5.1 WARNING: Dot 5.1 glycol (yellow) and Dot 5 silicone (purple) will not mix. Moisture Contaminated

Pulled trigger on deal but not at asking price of 4K. No way could it rate 5K The beauty was only skin deep and actually it's saving grace. Bodywork and seat in great condition. It had come out of a collection located around Traverse City in 2016 Seemed to run OK but must have sat for awhile in damp environment; many steel fasteners rusty. Other notes; engine quite dirty, all hydraulic lines need replacing . Clutch slave actuator past leak affected engine paint, I could go on but you get the picture. To answer the matter with regards to wheel size; fitted 16 front and 17 rear. Fitted with Metzlers that were so slicked up you would wonder if they would hold a turn. Has potential but............. Overall definitely not even close to a turn key item; in dire need of some decent maintenance/rehab at a minimum. Like many here; been there before

Lowered the idle today after reassembling and everything checked out. I’ll see how it does tomorrow when I take it on a mini little local trip to Pitt. I do need to find a fuse for the headlight, forgot I left that undone 🙄. So no night riding at the moment. But yeah, Honda mechanic magic made it work for now. Hopeful for the long run with this one.

Cool, congrats and welcome. From my limited experience and reading here, later year models had fewer problems due to Honda changing some of the wiring. The post recall years. However that doesn’t mean people may not have upgraded components proactively. Always good to take a look, inspect what you expect.

The traces of fine white dust are almost definitely old dried up dielectric grease.

Just received a set of T-31's from FortNine today. $350 CAD to my door. Edit; The tires took a day and a half to arrive (free shipping) from Montreal and I got the rebate approved four days after applying.

I am sorry as I am assuming this is a re-post

Registered. Will be at Hotel Fri/Sat but in the area earlier - maybe doing pre-ride with Rob Power et al or if not just aimlessly riding which is never a bad thing :). Coming solo this year as i am back down a few weeks later for annual vacation riding with the wife ( have a bit more leave then she does ).

It certainly could be spark plugs, but considering the RPM range where it becomes noticeable, I'd be looking hard at the V-tec actuation. Maybe you have a valve or two that isn't actuating like the others when the V-tec kicks in.

I received mine yesterday (Los Angeles). Box says 1998-2005 VFR so I'm hoping it's still good for 2014+...

Well the small K&N when moved to the top of the air box in my big air box mod, added 5hp, the filter is NOT restrictive, it’s location is !

starting to take shape

I have some footage of myself (on track) passing a GSXR1000 while on a RVF400. He was hard on the brakes while I was still full throttle. 🤣 Actual pass was about 6:09

2014 of mine came with painted black wheels, I changed them to gold

Great job, feels so good when your efforts actually fix the problem (and bring the bike back to running like it did when new). Job well done! The 5th and 6th Gen VFRs are getting older and, as you pointed out, things like the Thermostat and the Fuel Pressure Regulator are consumable items. The Honda build quality we love in our VFRs doesn't mean that the consumable items will last forever. I applaud you for addressing these things instead of trying to ignore them. I'm currently waiting on delivery of 2 Fuel Pressure Regulators, one for my '99 5th Gen and one for my '01 5th Gen. The '99 has begun to run a bit on the stinky side with not-so-good fuel mileage so it's getting a new FPR this spring. The '01 is fine (it doesn't stink of unburned fuel and the fuel mileage is still good) but I figure that while I'm doing the FPR replacement on the '99 why not do the '01 also?

Just wanted to say thank you to everyone (big shout out to Mr Grum of course) for commenting and help. I replaced the thermostat, got the right firing order (BTW, the cyclinder heads are numbered right on top 🤦🏽‍♂️) and my MPG still sucked. I noticed a persistent smell of gas and my MPG went from 25 to 32, still not great after the pain in the ass that is a thermostat replacement. After reading forum after forum, I decided to test my Fuel Pressure Regulator (FPR). You unplug the vacuum line on it and if gas slowly trickles out while running, the diagphram inside is torn. It may take up to 2 minutes to test it on small rips. Well mine pissed out gas immediately. I also noticed gasoline would pool in the bottom right (if looking from the tail to front) cyclinder over time. My dumbass thought it was there to help start the bike (second 🤦🏽‍♂️) I ordered a new FPR and BAM!! The throttle response is amazing and it no longer stalls on 1st. More than the thermostat (which was stuck open by 2mm when removed) the faulty FPR was destroying my MPG. Now I’m at 42MPG and acceleration is friggin amazing!! From 25 to 42 MPG feels amazing 🥳 The bike feels completely different, it feels like a super sport comapared to before 😱 Check those FPRs fellas! My bike was sitting over a year when I bought it so that may have done it in, but gasoline kills flexible rubber, I can’t imagine an FPR lasts longer than a few years under good conditions. A simple test can save you $$$ at the pump. I plan to check my FPR everytime I clean my air filter (12k miles, per the maintenance schedule). Thank you all again, I hope this helps some future forum lurker trying to improve his MPG.

So... Here we go! 😎 VFR800F-2014_Service_Manual.pdf

I ran with traction control OFF. If not it would have kicked on and I would have lost for sure. TC gets in the way a lot when I ride. Much like in my Corvette, I start the car/bike, disable TC and then pull out of the garage. First time it kicked on I almost went over the freaking handlebars. lol We races twice. The second go around was a tie. He wouldn't run me again. In his defence I've been doing these short slippery street races for decades and I'm pretty good at getting the job done. 😎

Hi - 13.4 idle and 14.2 @ 5000 rpm is generally fine. Mostly, I dont want to see over around 14.6 ish... 15s make me nervous.... -Dunno if you have already, but installing a voltmeter up front to watch things is a good idea. - Thanks for the pair valve photos.. - The VFRness will be a debate topic, but I will state I am not a fan, pull it. For the R/R, you should be wiring it direct to battery with a fuse to pos, and direct to ground/neg battery. Then for stator connection, either solder with heat shrink tubing or use a high quality automotive crimp with tubing. I am a huge believer in building for overkill. --- A good source for things is www.roadstercycle.com --- Also - http://www.cycleterminal.com/index.html Wire illustrated as the 2nd pic below, ignore the Compufire comments.... no VFRness required. 30 A fuse instead of 40 plz. --(credit JZH) Here's pic of my current '98 with the FH020AA installed. The stock OEM connector is sealed up out of use, lower left. No VFRness.

Wakey wakey!!

Finally got the cover finished for this bad boy... (with the help of a friend with a bit more skill with a sewing machine than I) I used heavy marine vinyl over the whole thing and the mesh is something I got from Seattle Fabrics that they call "Spacer Mesh". It's specifically designed to promote a bit of airflow between body and fabric... normally used for the back panel in backpacks and the like. It's a little bit grippy compared to vinyl, so I don't think it would work well for a super aggressive rider who likes to slide his weight around the seat a lot, but that really isn't me. I haven't given it a test ride yet, but just sitting in the garage, it feels like it will keep me as planted as I want to be, yet still let me shift my position when I want to. It was a bit of a trick to get the two fabrics to lay down together - they don't have the same amount of stretch.

Looking good highside, it'd be nice to have my wideband for the rapidbike there too.

If there is an intention, there is a way..... 😎

All you have to do is swap the axle. The 8th gen axle will drop straight into the 5 or 6 gen swingarm if you don't feel like swapping to this gorgeous swingarm lol. However the 6 and 8 gen swingarms are slightly longer than the 5gen swingarm so that will also add a bit of length to the wheelbase.