WestOfBen

Oooh that's nasty. In any case, my friend is able to take a look/fix in a few weeks time. We will see what's going on in there. Thanks again guys. I hope not to have wasted your time. It was looking like something I'd tackle myself or take elsewhere. Forearmed is forewarned kind of thing. Now that I can place it in trusted and more than capable hands again, I am at some ease. If I can be there and help as it is worked on, that might be a good thing.

Castrol Power 1 Racing 4T 5W-40, correct. Since day one, I understand. I have access to a service manual thanks to this forum many years ago. I am confident removing the starter and checking that. I see the side cover needs to be removed to gain access to the starter clutch. Do I need to dump the oil before removing the cover? It only had an oil change say 6-12 months ago. I do changes every 12-18 months and per distance. Captain, not harsh at all. I accept truths very well. I will have opportunity to chat to mechanic friend soon. This is definitely not something I want to "fix it or futz it".

Cold and warm cranking are the same now. Only the warm "engage, disengage, engage, graunch, whizzz" remains. The graunch isn't like oh gosh that sounds nasty, just the kind of thing I hear in old cars notorious for starter solenoid problems. As I have mentioned, cold starting is seemingly no problem. I doubt it is an oil problem either, so you can take your oil mutants elsewhere 😄 This bike has been running Castrol Power 1 4T 5W40 since birth. The bike was owned since new by my very fussy and highly trained motorcycle mechanic V4 nut friend. Covid, lockdowns/opportunity and other private reasons have prevented it from being in his more than capable hands. I have opportunity to take to another great mechanic, would rather not. If it is potentially something I can take care of, I explore this first. Regarding servicing the starter, I will look up what that entails. I am told, by a few sources that the mechanism of these starters is not exactly for the uninitiated. That would be me, so I hope to know with some inspection what things look like. On a different positive note, I have discovered that when the fork seals were done, I didn't return the fork leg preload settings to where they were set. After a few rides (with time for ample cool down so as to allow starting again hahaha) it seems the slow speed (below 80kmh) "steer or not steer and then drop into a corner" problem is also on its way to fixed. Fancy that!

Fresh battery installed. I hesitate to say slight improvement, so I won't. Still troublesome when warm. I'll do some careful checking of electrical and maybe remove the starter and see what I can see. I imagine if there is wear or damage I might see it. Will also try electrical cleaner as suggested. Thanks again everyone!

It is a mix of the grab spin grab and I also noticed the odd struggle to crank, suggesting electrical. I hope it ain't both, but hey! Will start with a fresh battery, or at least lightly used and will get both fully charged and tested.

You guys are absolutely awesome! I will run through what you suggest. I have a spare battery I can charge up. I usually keep the bike on a trickle anyway, but the battery installed right now probably is a few years old. @DannoXYZ Now I think of it, she doesn't go whizzz. More like ZZ-crank-crank-"disengage clunk"-err - stop When I went for a ride yesterday there were moments of reluctance to begin cranking. So maybe you are all bang on the money and it is a matter of grunt. I have to say that she is a shed queen and nowhere near an ocean. Absolutely as pristine as I can keep her. I do ride in all kinds of weather but not a lot. That means I don't rule out corrosion and such, but not what you might see in some other climates. @Captain 80s Do you mean your basic de-oxit kind of stuff? Definitely not the lubricant type though...?

I haven't been around here for a while. Currently searching the forums for clues, so please forgive my early posting when the answer may in fact be widely known 😃 I will be booking the bike in to get checked soon, seeking some of your valued thoughts before this happens. Possible causes / known causes? Potential for parts availability I did chat with the mechanic and he indicated that OEM some parts were no longer available, while others still appeared to be. Things have been rather busy and I haven't made further enquiries. Mostly I just don't want her to be with the mechanic for an extended period when this Aussie weather is improving! The symptoms: When the bike is cold, she starts relatively easily, starter clutch engages fine When warm/hot, starting is impossible. I get spin, partial engagement, spin, zippo I can let her cool down for at least an hour, we are back in business Thanks and any help greatly appreciated!

I just had the internals of my 4th gens reworked. For all of the stuffing around, unless you're going for the look and really need the extra performace, I don't see the point. Yes later USD fork may just perform better than reworked standard forks. I contend that is a MAY perform better. That said, I do like the look of USDs on VFRs. Not enough to bastardise mine though.

I haven't found any threads yet. Has anyone tried a 7th Gen on an earlier Gen, say 4th? I quite like the look of the new wheels.