SoCal97VFR

Update: The 05 CBR cluster requires the addition of a 1 watt 300 ohm resistor between the fuel guage and stock vfr fuel sender to read empty correctly. I'm looking forward to a good 300 mile San Diego mountain/desert tour tomorrow to put the CBVFR through the paces. Sent from my SM-N920T using Tapatalk

I never did extend the forks, and to be honest it doesn't really need it when positioned correctly. I looked into the RC51 forks and it was substantially more effort and money to source various parts to make it work when the CBR954 was a straight easy cheap swap. I've put over 12k miles, mostly knee dragging the hairpins and with the VFR's additional weight I'm happy to have the bigger rotors.

I'm glad you said samething, I didint notice that. I was able to backfill most of the pics so this thread is valid again! :)

About a year later and this conversion is still doing great.

Off idle issues are often idle ports / pilot jets being clogged. Those only affect the first 1/4 of your throttle so as your load increases through the rev range you pass the area where this might be noticeable. Often times people have turned up the idle screw to compensate for clogged jets so it masked the problem a bit and makes it harder to trace. Cleaning the carbs on a VFR is a bit of a pain compared to other bikes but they are prone to clogging up, and may even dribble fuel if not run for a while and the floats are gumming up.

I currently have and have had lots of 2 wheel toys from 25 years of riding, countless trips on the mountain with them in all kinds of weather. I really love the VFR even though its not necessarily the best thing out there. It's just one of those rare intoxicating bikes to ride. But even stacked up against these little gems, I still choose the VFR every other weekend!

Sorry guys, I never received notification that you replied. Switchblade, yes it is a fast group. The VFR is what it is when it comes to the modern bikes. Its heavy, down on power, and has a long wheelbase, all of which put it at a disadvantage. That being said, even in stock form, the bike can be made to corner really well. That means making sure the front/rear springs are setup correct for your weight, the dampening is setup correct, and by simply by raising the front/rear to gain much needed ground clearance ( using triangle plates as outlined above, using a 929 rear shock with the height built into the upper mount adapter, or a $$$$$ extendable shock like Fox, Wilbers, or Ohlins). I used stock suspension with triangle plates for a long time and did just fine, the VFR has exceptional drive out of the corners with the V4, and when geared down a bit will out sprint a lot of bikes above its class, to about 100mph and then the tables turn. The stock brakes had a hard time pushing hard for long periods of time on the mountain. This was my primary reason for wanted to go with the 929 inverted forks, big brakes!!! Trjerm, I've had zero clearance issues with big tires and the left side exit header, it seems to have about the same clearance as the right side exit header. Having run the 929 forks now for a good length of time, I'm very happy with them other than the length. I'm having a machinist make up a few sets of 1" Fork Cap Extenders, one for myself and one for a friend. If there are others trying to solve the length issue I might be able to increase this one time run. We haven't discussed cost yet, and I'm not going to make a business out of this, simply a few extra sets to the most needy, first come first serve. PM me if you are interested and I will let you know what the split would be between us. They will basically look like this in forged aluminum created with a CNC.

You may also need custom brake lines. Not all banjo bolts are the same size between manufacturers.

The DynoJet kits often get a bad name from people who install them incorrectly, erroneously run the near richest jets thinking they need them and/or don't invest the time it takes to find your unique jetting requirements through a dyno or even just seat of the pants. That being said I have had great luck with DynoJet kits and even with substantial aftermarket add ons, the best jetting is often near the smallest jetting at sea level. I believe my 4th Gen with this exhaust is using the smallest or second smallest jets and a needle position somewhere near the lowest needle settings (circlip nearest the end).

I have this header, very hard to find and worth the money! Aside from the obvious advantage of easy rear wheel removal it also provided a change in power delivery for the better.

As someone who runs all brands of tires, both sport and sport touring bikes, I've never been much of a fan of Dunlop's or Michelin Pilot Powers overall. However, the Q3's seem to be a departure from the ways of past and deliver good confidence and mileage when ridden aggressively, I've been very impressed.

Your factory carbs are not tuned for power, they are setup as a compromise for various fuel efficiency and state/country regulations around noise and exhaust emissions. Changing the stock jets can accomodate for small changes in altitude but you still remain with the compromise. Jet kits aren't just about the jets. Most good kits also come with replacement needles which have a custom fueling taper to them (some are straight, others have steps, etc), springs that change the slide opening rate, and sometimes they require modifications to the slides to change vacuum characteristics. While you are right that no two of the same engines are exactly alike, what you will find is common characteristics where vast improvements can be made on each engine model. Your jet kit will allow fine tuning through changing main jet sizes for wide open throttle, and adjusting needle positions to lean/rich mid-range transitions. These accommodates for small differences in variations on the same engine platform or when running different modifications. It is not uncommon to have inner/outer/forward/back carbs run different jetting or needle position than the other carbs on an engine either as variations in airbox and airflow sometime produce more power like this. So Yes, a good jet kit and proper tuning can play a huge role in making not just more power but better power delivery in the areas you use it most like off idle and mid-range.

The VFR is fun on the track but limited. Weight, brakes, and suspension are the immediate limitations which you can throw money at but ultimately wheelbase will hurt your tight corners and available power will hurt your fast sweepers when compared to a modern 600 and neither of those problems are something you will be able to change. The track is ultimately about confidence more than power so the lightest, best handling, fastest stopping, cheapest to operate/repair bike that let's you focus less on the bike and more on your head will ultimately be the most rewarding .

While the front end is all CBR 929rr now, the rear is still stock with an exception. Being 6' 200lbs, my 97 felt a little too low and plush even with the preload max'd out. To remedy this on the cheap, I long ago modified the swingarm plates to raise the ride height and to stiffen up the rear shock a little looking for more lean angle and had great success. When I started sharing the bike with my 5'7" 130lb girlfriend, I had to think reverse and create a lowering kit. The geometry below is the result of many generations of plate testing for both scenarios. This last prototype I'm still running today has worked so good I really don't think about it anymore, so I never returned to make a final pretty set. I'm sharing the geometry below for those capable of making their own plates and not wanting to risk trial and error. A lot of time went into working out the triangulation so if you don't know what you are doing, I recommend you do not alter any of the measurements. The wrong triangulation can result in limited/exaggerated travel, too soft/hard of ride, or the worst of either of those simultaneously.