checksix

I don't understand. How can the speedo accuracy change but not the odometer? They're both driven by counting revolutions of the output sprocket.

They may be counting the same revolutions, but the output is different due to the software involved.

Ok, I get it now. The factory electronics take a single signal from the sprocket and calculate two different quantities: speed and mileage. The mileage is exact but the displayed speed is (say) 5% too high, presumably as a favor to the consumer to reduce speeding tickets (or whatever). So without modifying the electronics you can only correct one or the other, not both.

I don't understand. How can the speedo accuracy change but not the odometer? They're both driven by counting revolutions of the output sprocket.

This was a great thread to read. Thanks for sharing a piece of history with us.

Good review here: http://raresportbikesforsale.com/featured-listing-1986-honda-vfr750r-rc30/

I've got one of these on my CBR. It's tiny and sits tucked away out of sight. The programming is a bit odd (just one button and one led) but not too hard to figure out. Set it once and forget about it.

Google "torocharger".

What a great first post. It's always good to see bike resurrections like this. Nice job and good luck with your project.

Just use a flashlight and one of those little round inspection mirrors on a telescoping wand and hold it under the water pump to see the weep hole.

My '98 came with one of these installed by the previous owner. It's very nice. Clean, precise "snick" shifts every time.

Roland Sands, step aside. There's a new builder in town. Beautifully finished. Can't wait to see more pictures.

Dang D-... You are cheap.

I miss you guys. I haven't made it to the store in quite a while.

I stop in there once in a while, but mostly ride by. Most of the familiar faces seem to have been replaced by strangers these days :(

Can I ask how you balance the rear wheel please?

Using this:

http://www.marcparnes.com/Honda_Motorcycle_Wheel_Balancer.htm

It's so sad when people just leave a bike to die like that. Good luck bringing it back to life!

That looks so nice. The white with a little bit of understated red trim and graphics looks perfect.

In addition to mellodude's windshield question, I was wondering who makes those hand grips you've got on there?

A set like that came on my CBR and I find the "fat" style really comfy. I'd like a set for my VFR, but don't know what brand they are.

I simply jack the truck up by placing the jack on the tire with a couple of 2X4 to protect the rotor. The bead breaks easily.

If you shake the balancer and not spin the wheel, the heavy spot will drop like a rock and you don't have to waste time with the spin.

The balancer has really good bearings and the heavy spot on the wheel settles at the bottom, no shaking or spinning needed.

I go through sets of tires fairly quickly and I like to change them myself, both to save money and for the convenience of doing it in my own garage. I'm also a cheapskate, so rather than buying a tire changing machine I just made some "tools" out of 2x4's. I figured they might be of interest, so I thought I'd post some pictures.

A simple box shaped stand keeps the wheel off the ground and protects the brake rotor while working on the tire.

The bead breaker is just a pair of 2x4's glued and screwed together, with a wedge shaped section at one end:

Hose clamps prevent the wooden wedge from splitting:

A handy minivan is used as the anchor of the lever arm (some people use a board bolted onto a wall):

After breaking the bead, a few simple hand tools are used to remove and replace the tire. Tire irons, plastic rim protectors, and some tire lube get the job done. The real secret is the tire lube. It helps the rubber to slip on and off the rim of the wheel and makes things much easier. I got a jug of "RuGLYDE" at my local NAPA auto parts store. A small tin cup and paint brush are used as an applicator:

I also made a balancing stand to hold a Marc Parnes balancer:

The balancer comes with cones for standard wheels. He also sells a special large cone for the VFR rear wheel. Here's what the balancer looks like in use:

It usually takes me about 3 hours to change a set of tires. That includes disassembly, cleaning, degreasing, inspecting, reassembly, and torquing everything. The actual bead braking and tire mounting goes quickly.

It took me awhile to learn how to use the tire irons. The first few attempts produced lots of airborne irons and cursing, but now I can get a tire on and off in just a minute or two. It helps to lay the tires out in the sun for a few minutes to warm up the rubber. Liberal use of the tire lube helps too.

The only "cost" for me was the tire balancer (about $100 if I remember correctly - I got it years ago). All the other materials were just laying around.

One advantage over a heavy dedicated tire changing machine bolted to the floor is that all the wood parts here are lightweight and store away in a corner or under my workbench when not in use.

I'm curious, has anyone ever tried cleaning the disc brake bobbins to "unbind" them so the discs can float properly in the carrier?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qoPqN2GBdw

I'd never heard of this before but it seems to make sense and would be easy to try.

Nice workmanship and clever idea. They do look a bit bulky though. Is there such a thing as blue delrin? That would be pretty neat.

Those pesky laws of gravity, thermodynamics, and electrodynamics are soooo dated. I mean, like, nothing's changed since the 1880's! They really need to be updated for the intarweb age.

Do you leave the wide band O2 sensor installed permanently? Or does it have a limited life perhaps? Ie. after you get all your maps dialled in, are you supposed to remove it and put back the OEM sensor?

This is not at ALL what I understood the resistors to do. The resistor is providing a voltage signal that tells the computer the O2 reading is perfect. This takes the variability out of the air/fuel ratio. The heater circuit is not touched, it is just there to get the O2 sensor up to speed faster anyway.

I'm pretty sure you have it backwards. The resistor is across the heater circuit to fool the ecu into thinking the o2 plug is still present, in order to prevent the FI light from going on. The other two wires are the voltage measurement circuit. These wires are not plugged in to anything, so I'm guessing the ecu will measure a steady 0 volts. At least this is what I gleaned by looking at the wiring diagram in the shop manual.

Hello to all, I'm new here but have a question reguarding the resitors ( 330ohm/1/2 watt ). How hot are they suppose to get the ones I installed got hot to the touch but not enough to burn and also what size are the bolts that close off the Sensor holes, 18mm is too small.

It's my understanding that the resistors are there to simulate the presence of the heater element in the o2 sensor (the two white wires on the sensor connector), so I suppose that's why they get warm. The other two pins are left unconnected, and present a reading of 0 volts (full lean) to the ecu, causing the ecu to attempt to compensate by going full rich. The power commander then makes the final adjustment to the injectors. Obligatory caveat: I'm not an EE. I just google alot.

I just wanted to thank Kanadian Ken for this outstanding "monitor wire fix" writeup.

My '07 with 18K miles just blew another headlight bulb (first pair blew at 10K miles) and I noticed the voltage was running between 14.6 and 15.1 on my Lascar voltmeter so I started to get worried. I applied the fix and the voltage now runs between 14.3 and 14.7 (ie. .3-.4 volts lower). Why Honda runs the R/R monitor wire through the entire wiring harness including the ignition switch is beyond me.

Anyway, this site is the greatest, and guys like KK who contribute this kind of information to the VFR knowledge pool deserve special appreciation!

For a second I thought I was on the wrong forum looking at a NASA space shuttle cockpit.

I'm not sure if this will help the discussion or not, but FWIW here are the readings I get on my 3 month old stock 2007 VFR (no mods):

resting voltage (overnight) 12.8

ignition on, not running 12.2

fully warmed up, @idle 14.6

@idle w/ hi-beams 13.3

@5000 rpm 14.6

@5000 w/ hi-beams 14.6