BusyLittleShop

Stock RC45 front end is high quality but my goal was to drop the weight and pick up the pace...

You're looking at over 8k in parts and over 8K in manual machining... but hey it was a labor of love...

1 Home made magnesium Triple Clamps with 35mm offset... $1,200

2 Ohlins FG310 Superbike Forks... $1,500

3 Ferodo Ceramic Matrix Composite Front Disc... $2,300

4 Brembo billet radial Front Calipers... $1,500

5 Home made Magnesium radial caliper mounts... $1,000

6 Marchesini Magnesium 3.5x17 Front Rim that was owned by Wayne Rainey
when he sponsored Jimmy Felice YZ250R... $500

9 Brembo radial Front Brake master cylinder $275

10 Brembo billet radial clutch master cylinder $375

7 Homemade 7075 T6 Bar Risers... $450

8 home made 7075 T6 aluminum Front Axle... $350

On 3/31/2020 at 8:05 PM, Philois1984 said:

Out of interest what if anything is the problem with oem oil filters ?

No problems...

Honda OEM filter are manufactured by Filtech, an American subsidiary
of the Toyo Roki Manufacturing Company. Filtech has been manufacturing
filters for HMC since '87 take a look inside and note the quality is about the

same as K&N or HiFlo...

There was a K&N safety recall back in 2016 for certain K&N oil
filters, Part Nos. KN-204 (black) and KN-204C (chrome), manufactured
between March 1, 2016 and September 30, 2016 can leak oil at the area
where a nut (intended for use to remove the oil filter during routine
oil changes) is welded to the end of the filter. If there is such a
leak, oil could come into contact with the rear tire or rear brake of
the motorcycle on which the filter is installed. If this were to
occur, it could lead to a loss of control or a crash. Therefore, K&N
offered to replace the affected oil filters at no charge...

I continue to employ a K&N 303 filter on Mr.RC45 and I have used OEM and High Flow with equal satisfaction...

Oil Filter Comparison...

[youtube]

  Motorcycle horns... in good working order... have a distinctive sound
all there own... when people here that little beeep eep... they have
been trained over the years to think motorcycle... but if you replace
the beeep eep with a car... truck or train horn... guess what???
confused people will charge right into your path thinking a car... truck
or train has blown it's horn for them to get out their way... It's only
natural for cagers to equate sounds to the first thing that pops into
their heads in a panic situation...

You're safest with meep meep...

I talked to BMW rider who mounted air horns pirated from Southern Pacific Diesel
Locomotive... They sounded great but he was having second thoughts... it seems
cagers were running into his bike in a panic trying to get away from the train
they could not see...

We know that cagers are unpredictable and that blasting them with
125db non standard motorcycle horn is enough to send their thought
process into over load... that's a destabilizing act of our own creation...

Nathom Air Chimes off a Locomotive...

On 5/7/2019 at 1:46 PM, jimbob said:

Newer SN designated oils are backwards compatible with type SM...

 

and No "energy conserving" designation in the bottom of the rocker, as it works better w/ the wet clutches..

 

 

Negative... SN are not backwards compatible with SM... SN is new and improved over SM...

SM - Introduced November 2004, improved oxidation resistance, deposit
protection and wear protection, also better low temperature
performance over the life of the oil compared to previous categories.

SN - Introduced in October 2010 for 2011 and older vehicles, designed to
provide improved high temperature deposit protection for pistons, more
stringent sludge control, and seal compatibility.

Energy Conserving is not additive... its an API test that this "oil
may result is an overall saving of fuel in the vehicle fleet as a
whole"...

 Technically speaking Energy Conserving tested oil can not defeat a
wet clutch in good working order... what is confusing the issue is the
fact that all motorcycle wet clutches will reach a point in their life
and start to slip... no one complains about clutch slip when the bike
is new... but on about the 27K to 57K range is when contaminants may
build up to point where the clutch begins to loose its grip... this is
usually discovered by the owner during WFO (Wide Fooking Open)throttle
like at a track day... in error one can blame the oil but its really
the  contaminants on the clutch plates...

So the notion that we should stay away from EC oil is on shaky
ground... fact is I've been using 5/30 Energy Conserving Mobil 1
since 98 in Mr.RC45 with no clutch slipping due to oil being certified
10% freer flowing than non EC oil... and we're talking about Honda's
homologated racer with a tall first gear good for 90mph that's known
to incinerate clutch plates...

On 2/6/2017 at 2:41 PM, monstar said:

I picked up the bike in sacramento. I should have stopped by your shop. Could've sworn seeing your posts on speedzilla or something back in the day? rc51 or crf450 supermoto stuff? It's been so long... maybe 8 years so I'm old and forgetful.

You're right... I joined Speedzilla because it was very lively... however my love for V4s clashed with the V2 crowd... do you remember their Larry poll???

How tired are you of listening to Larry's V4 rants?

View Poll Results:
1)They dont bother me, I like V4s and think RC45s are
super-duper

16 15.38%

2)Its getting a little old, but I still like V4 engines

34 32.69%

3) Im sick of it, and swear to only buy inline 4 powered bikes from
now on

0.0%

4) FOR THE LOVE OF GOD LARRY SHUT THE **** UP

54 51.92%

Dezmo
Excercise your right to vote.

1996900sp
I"ll chime in. I have a 6th gen VFR what about that? I
always thought the RC30 was the bike to have and the 45 was pretty
much a pile is that wrong?

Old Baldy
For me, Option #3 might have been better with something
like,

"I'm truly sick and tired of it, but still appreciate that a V4 is a
nice motor"

Much as I'm tired of his almost comical rhetoric, I just can't bring
myself to Option #4..............so #2 it is, for me.

hawkti
V-4 thumpsup

twowheelcossack
The never ending saga continues. Sigh.

duckdawg
maybe if you had two V4s...

gixracer
voted

babyabby
I have not had the so called pleasure of owning a V4 but I am
intrigued by the new VMAX and just might go to the dark side!!!!

roadkill
#2 for me.......Larry's fanaticism does not bother me one bit. Just ignore it if it bothers you.

I loooooooove my V4 BTW

Gog
Not too many have pride, passion and pedigree to Larry's extent.

mrgrn
did you know the rc30 WAS HAND ASSEMBLED BY ONE OF THREE TEAMS OF
4 MEN and they could only make 60 bikes per week. the bodywork was
hand laid glass and the RC30 was solely built to win suzuka, which it
did

cb186
i'll vote as soon as there is an option atleast 10x stronger than #4.

1996900sp
Was GINA a V4? If not she should have been the superior
power would have reformed the frame while in motion.

Old Baldy
 Originally Posted by Busy Little Shop  View Post
Hey Larry... FOR THE LOVE OF GOD SHUT THE **** UP...

hahahahhahahahhahahhahahhaha!!!! This is why I love the guy...at the
same time as being so damned frustrated with his illogical biased BS.

No matter what anyone says....Larry's a true motorcyclist and enthusiast.
And I still want to knock his block off every now and again.

Barry

cheekybloke
You got to respect the guy but it is all getting out of hand.

roadkill No one is making you or anyone else here read it. Just my
2cents

Old Fart
100% with your analogy and no ill will to Larry

cheekybloke
If I did that there would hardly be a thread on here to read, It's like viral advertising.
Have a look any thread that has anything about an IL4 or V twin and even the one make tyre thread.

mtmansl

+1 (what Old Baldy said)

Matthew

 robfromsc

Originally Posted by mrgrn  View Post it is certainly better than your
constant retoric or your blathering on about your $20,000 super fast
600cc bike

Originally Posted by cheekybloke View Post Mind it is still better
than reading about the latest second rate carbonfibre tut you have
spawned and are trying to push on people.

robfromsc
you guys need to go ahead and screw and just get it out of the way...
Much better to listen to Larry and the v4 this and v4 that, than you
two and your little pork hanging internet ego contest... go get laid
or something ...geesh!

Realmanken
I love hearing what Larry has to say. Sometimes when Im bored, I'll
log onto Speedzilla and actively search threads where Larry has posted
so that I might enrichen my knowledge more in depth on the properties
of a V-4 engine. Coincidentally, I dont have to search for very long
to find a thread because Larry has a post on every sinlge thread
created since he's joined. Kidding Larry! I really do love reading
your posts on V-4's though. Keep em coming!! VIVA LA V-4!!!!

banda
Larry is the only speedzilla member on my ignore list. Unfortuantely,
people still respond to him and quote his drivel, so it's hard to
completely avoid his V4 ravings.

1098 conversion is trick... what is the weight difference???

I also blanket the rear cylinders with a aluminumized Kevlar wrap to
curb the heat that radiates from the heat of combustion... the net
result is a lot cooler seat and more comfort for the rider...

I used Thermo Tec Heat Barriers Aluminum Kevlar

and 1" Titanium exhaust wrap...

I always wrap my pipes and I also wrap my RC45 customers pipes to curb
the heat that radiates from the heat of combustion

[

The amount of corrosion is limited to slight graying of the titanium
surface... buffed with grey micro 3M pad the luster of the metal
returns...

On 11/25/2017 at 6:52 AM, Dutchy said:

 

This weekend Kawasaki NL (and owners club) are showcasing their line up in the national military hardware museum.

Whoa ho ho... Lovely Spit... Can I fly it???

Great tutorial on how to remove the Foo Foo Ra... beautiful cut plates too... 

The VFR is not alone with complying with the Feds Foo Foo Ra... just look at

what Honda had to install on the RC45...

The key to the factory break procedure is high revs... you see at the factory
they have already run the engine a high rpms to help seat the rings...
they are not thrashing your engine... you're doing what your engine
requires... The purpose of high rpms is initial seating of the piston
rings to the cylinder walls. The run is conducted at full power
because that is where greatest B.M.E.P. (Brake Mean Effective
Pressure) occurs and a high B.M.E.P. is necessary for good piston ring
break-in.

The cylinder walls of a new engine are not mirror smooth as one might
imagine. A special hone is used to put a diamond like pattern of
"scratches" over the entire area of the cylinder wall. The cross hatch
treatment of the cylinder walls plays an important role in proper
break-in of piston rings to cylinder walls. I mentioned that B.M.E.P.
was necessary to the "break-in" process. Here is how it works.

If you cutaway a piston, ring and cylinder wall and inspect under
magnification you see something to the effect of  "saw teeth"... Given
that a film of lubricating oil holds the piston ring away from the
cylinder wall.  Proper break-in of piston ring to cylinder wall
requires that the ring rupture or break through this oil film and make
contact with the cylinder wall. During such "metal to metal" contact,
the little peaks on the ring face and cylinder wall become white hot
and rub off. This condition will continue to occur until the ring face
and cylinder wall have established a smooth compatible surface between
each other. At this point, break-in is said to be relatively complete
and very little metal-to-metal contact will occur hereafter. In fact,
as the break-in process progresses, the degree of metal-to-metal
contact will regress.

How do you know if break is done??? take a compression test... if your
engine shows factory compression then break in is complete... if your
engine shows less than factory compression then more break in is
require...

Great update...

I just wish someone would ante up an after market filter for the RC45...

Excellent narrative with photos...

VFR K&N filters are designed to pass just as much air as the stock
filter so the owner will not have to re map... whereas BMC filters are
designed to pass more air than stock but remapping is necessary to
reap more performance...

BMC

Thanks Dutchy... I'm still waiting for another bike to employ the
little known 11mm pitch belt or for Gates to wake up and offer the
11mm pitch belt in their catalog next to the 8mm and 14mm...

Interesting thoughts about Idlers but they are not an option based on
the fact that the longer BMW belt are not designed to bend backwards... not
to mention the problem of space given that fact that the idlers have
to be the same large diameter as the primary sprocket...

On 7/17/2017 at 11:05 AM, Ntolerance said:

 Is busy little shop still making the lowering blocks ?

PEG BLOCKS are still  available to keep your knees in the breeze...

the price + USPS flat rate priority shipping are as follows... as soon as I
receive Pay Pal payment the shipping starts... my account
netters2@comcast.net

USA Peg Blocks $85.00 + Priority Shipping $7.15 = $92.15

Canada Peg Blocks $85.00 + Priority Shipping $24.95 = $109.95

Europe Peg Blocks $85.00 + Priority Shipping $33.95 = $118.95

Australia or Denmark $85.00 + Priority Shipping $34.95 = $119.95

What you see is what you get...

Peg Blocks are specially designed using billet 6061 T6 aluminum for
the VFR800 years (5th Gen 98 to 01) and (6th Gen 02 on 09) and (8th
Gen 2014 on up)... they will effectively lower Honda's foot peg 1.5
inches (38mm) from the stock position...

Peg Block Instructions Print Out

Rob's INSTALLATION GUIDE
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/index.php/topic/34097-bls-footpeg-block-install/

VFRD site
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/index.php?/topic/80155-peg-lowering-blocks-an-vfrd-exclusive-product/

21 hours ago, sfdownhill said:

Now that is pure endurance sex. How does someone come to have two Lucky Strike endurance RC45s?

Honda collection Hall Motegi Japan...

http://apps.mobilityland.co.jp/hch/search/english/

8 hours ago, monstar said:

 My intention is to make it a RC45 race replica... more specifically the lucky strike endurance bike.

 

 

All Reeeeeeeeeeeeeet... Endurance Race RC45s are my favorite...  I'll ante my Lucky Strike pics... I actually have one of these HRC double sided exhaust systems hanging in the shop...

Ask Larry he scored an RC45 race one for Mr RC45 I believe. So I hope he has weights for standard (close to 5th gen) and the race unit.

Welcome wargen.. may I record your RC45 VIN in my growing World Wide list ???

Here is the whole story Mohawk is referring too....

http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.php/topic/52013-hrc-swingarm-upgrade/

Stock arm weights 11 lb 7.5 oz but the HRC arm weights 11 lb 2 oz

The HRC aluminum swingarm is stiffer internally with more webs to

resist the loads during the rigors of WSBK racing but it actually

weights in less due to it's extensive use of aluminum and titanium

bits...

Nice job... I may ante up myself... did you mod your RC45 axle too?

Nice job and a good presentation.. You have gone quite a bit beyond the point where most of the owners would customize their ride... You cleaned up Honda's cush but I believe no cush is even better...

I have a new 8th gen. being assembled from the crate tomorrow. The new 8th gen. calls for 10W-30 in it. Is there any reason 10W-40 motorcycle specific would hurt anything? 10W-30 sounds awfully thin for someone like me that rides hard in hot weather. What are you other 8th gen. owners using?

Honda knows their sh*t... thin is in thick is out...

If we analyze the actual numbers between 30 and 40 weight at operating

temp of 212F we note the difference in viscosity is only 2.6 Cts...

thats not 2.6 Cts thinner or thicker... the measurement is 2.6 Cts in

flow... although 2.6 Cts more flow increases the amount of HP at the

rear wheel... 2.6 more flow doesn't risk increase wear... our modern

engines protected by modern oils don't operate with in a 2.6 Cts range

of risk...

Honda specs a 30w over a 40w because it will:

1)increase 2 to 3 HP at the rear wheel

2)quicken the throttle response coming out of the corners...

3)decrease over all operating temps...

4)increase the oil flow at the critical bearings...

Quote 540Rat

Thicker oil DOES NOT automatically provide better wear protection

than thinner oils. Extensive “dynamic wear testing under load” of over

130 motor oils, has shown that the base oil and its additive package

“as a whole”, is what determines an oil’s wear protection capability,

NOT its viscosity. For example, some 5W30 oils have proven to provide

OUTSTANDING wear protection, while some 15W50 oils have only been able

to provide MODEST wear protection. So, do not run thicker oil under

the false assumption that it can provide better wear protection for

our engines.

Or if you were using Busy little shops numbers, from his uoa's, that show a lot of metal for a 700 mile max interval and really unsatisfactory. Yet he still spews the nonsense.

Negative... Busy Little Shop numbers are satisfactory...

Quote Blackstone Labs...

LARRY: We admit, we haven't seen a lot of engines of this type, so our universal averages may still change

a little over time as we see more samples come in. That said, yours is fine compared to the samples we

have seen, with wear metals in good proportion and no signs of problems.

LARRY: This is another very nice sample for your Honda. Metals are about the same as last time, with just

minor fluctuations here and there. Nothing excessive, though, so there isn't anything in these numbers that

screams "problem" to us.

Quote abycat

I admittedly popped in on the last page of this discussion, but I'm under the impression that the above weight oil is not good for wet clutch bike engines. "Energy conserving" circle = not for bikes I've always read.

Or should I be quiet and read the whole thread?

Some Manufactures warn against it and some owners are leery of it but Energy Conserving is not

additive... its an API test that is "oil MAY result is an overall saving of fuel in the vehicle fleet as

a whole"... so there is nothing new in the oil to defeat a wet clutch... mercy!!!

You're welcome mighty Professor of Liquid Logic...

What about my Oil Logic ?

I agree...

My experience is that Honda can be trusted... if they recommend in

writing a 8K oil interval then it will meet and exceed your mileage

expectations because I believe after talking with the engineers at

Honda that they do thoroughly test the oil... in fact it doesn't

matter to your engines longevity if you run Dino or Synthetic... or

even 50 40 or 30 weight.... no one is wearing out their engine... but

it does matter in the amount of rear wheel HP is wasted in unnecessary

oil drag... between a 30wt and 40wt is 2 to 3 HP in unnecessary oil

drag... between a 30 and 50 is 4 to 6 HP in unnecessary oil drag...

choosing the freest flowing viscosity of 30 as prescribed by the

official Honda manual over a 40 50 is smarter because it will:

1)increase HP at the rear wheel

2)quicken the throttle response coming out of the corners...

3)decrease over all operating temps...

4)increase the oil flow at the critical bearings...