Terry

One other possibility is that the clutch master has some residue blocking the return port; this can cause the clutch to slightly disengage as the line pressure is unable to release fully, taking some of the clamping pressure off the clutch plates. As it is less invasive I would start there.

I used to be the same but when you get down to it, the engines will go practically forever, what starts to feel baggy is the suspension, steering, cush drive and sometimes the brakes. All these are easy enough for an owner to service or upgrade with basic tools. My other ride is a 2005 ST1300 with nearly 130,000km, but with some new bits in the forks and a YSS shock it handles better than new.

I wasn't trying to put you off the 1200 either. I think Hondas of that vintage are beautifully-crafted bikes, and the 1200 is now emerging as yet another quality unique product. I don't have room for another bike (at least that's what I tell my wife) but I do keep looking at used 1200s and thinking "what if..."? I also fancy a CBR1100XX Blackbird one day, for much the same reason. There is a video from Honda Collection Hall where they demo the 1200 and I can't get enough of the exhaust note! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seFPlh6gvG0

I can heartily recommend a different Yamaha. I've had my MT-10 for 28000km so far and it has never disapointed. When giving it the beans, it IS thirsty, but on a brisk and spirited country road ride it is no worse than my VFR or ST1300, but the 17L tank is a little limiting (200km is really about it before thinking about refuelling). The riding position is very decent, I have the comfort seat and a fly screen and that is also good enough especially with some bicycle shorts. The chassis, brakes and especially the engine are what you might expect for a nearly current model, and the MT has real character that no other inline 4 ever has.

The washer and hose guide are quite important; without the washer, the chain adjuster clamp bolt can bottom out in its threads without applying decent clamping force, which leads to the eccentric rotating loose sometimes.

When I opened up my VTR1000F (78000km) looking for a rattle I found the same sort of slack. I suspect they are all like that; we are normally used to looking at cam chains which must be kept very tight to avoid timing issues, but I guess the oil pump chain only needs to be able to stay on the sprockets. The water pump chain in the VTR was just the same. The rattle in my VTR was only obvious at low revs and in neutral and turned out to be slack in the hub damper springs of the clutch.

The CBR900 fork legs are 45mm I believe. If you are looking for fully adjustable forks and want to de-link the brakes then CBR600F4i forks/callipers will fit the stock triples and wheel/axle/discs. VFR750F3 makes a very sound recommendation about simply modifying the fork cartridges if you want to improve the stock forks. Correct weight springs and changing the valve bodies in the cartridges will make for a more compliant and controlled front end.

I like your style. The correct number of VFR's is N+1, where N is the number you currently have. I did ride a brand new 8th against my then-current modified 5th gen (suspension upgrades and delinked brakes) and honestly there was nothing in it. The 8th "felt" new with a nicer, tighter clutch and gearbox, but that was really all I noticed. It will be interesting to hear your thoughts.

As coolant heats up it exands, so running the engine with the radiator cap off will lead to overflows when some heats gets into the system. The point about hitting 107C at idle suggests that the radiator fan is not coming on. That should be cycling on around 101C and off at 98C and you should be able to hear or see that happening. If not you may have a broken wire, blown fuse or stuck fan blade. The thermostat sounds like it is working normally 78-80C is the normal opening point.

That's much too pretty to ride. Great work, I love it!

Dude....you've got so many bikes! I think you win.

Sorry - slight thread highjack. I just had a decent 400km test ride on the YSS shock. I also fitted a Pirelli Angel GTII rear tyre and reworked the fork Gold Valves. The old ST13000 (2004, 126000km) is handling very sweetly indeed. The YSS has been a good investment. Surprisingly plush and well controlled.

Oxford Hotgrips for me. I'm way too old to enjoy cold hands. They are perfectly comfortably for my endless rides (longest about 14 hours non-stop). My knees and butt are much more at risk of being show-stoppers than my hands.

Nice birthday present, but I bet it was a bugger for someone to wrap. Welcome!

That's looking fab, Mike. I took your advice and bought myself a YSS shock for my ST1300 recently. Only ridden for 50 km so far but is a night and day difference to the 120,000km original...

Honda marine make a nice 12v voltmeter. I had one mounted on my ST1100 that looked like a factory fitment.

The nuts under the throttle housing are just to orient the elbows, there's no adjustment to be had there. Looks like no grease on the handlebar. Some silicone grease would be a big help to allowing the throttle tube to rotate freely.

From the photos, you already have as much slack as you can get as the TB adjusters and the grip adjusters are as short as the can go (the outer is as close to the drum as it can go). I'd be taking a look at the routing of the cables to make sure they follow the prescribed path. The General Info section of the service manual has the helpful pictures. You might also check that the throttle drum has been lubricated where it turns on the bar, and that the bar end is not clashing with the grip rubber and causing binding. If you really get stuck, you could take nut 2 out of the equation and snug the big adjuster nut up against the bracket with just nut 3 as a locknut. The big question is how much slack do you have at the twistgrip? You need a few mm of freeplay, but do you already have lots?

I just know that when I pulled my 86's starter clutch apart (it was making some terrible noises) I had my heart in my mouth that I was going to find it horribly cracked (it wasn't). I am mighty impressed with your ingenuity to this point and wish you great success!

Sounds like you are inventing a whole new sideline business modifying later starter clutches to keep the 86 bikes on the road. Go fo it!

I'm sure that is only when you are clearing a tabletop jump.

That's a bummer. All I do know is that you cannot substitute any other year's starter clutch if you replace it. The bumps on the starter clutch case are triggers for the ignition and the 86/87 bikes are unique, compared to later VFR750s.

Not really. The MT-09 is a triple but the MT-10 is an in-line 4 derived from the R1 supersports. Has been retuned for torque and midrange and is as wild or mild as you choose. The R1/MT-10 engine is unique in having a crossplane crank which gives the exact same firing order as a 180 degree V4. It is light, taught and naughty.

I think I can play this game! I've owned this plate since 1987 when personalised plates were first released, and it has graced a number of V4s over the years since. Currently on the back of my MT-10 (but have you heard one of those??).