Ghostrider

97 FV currently on 104,941 - hit the ton Aug 2016. Would normally post a pic but, y'know, photobucket...

Thanks for the replies, fellas. I've given up this evening. Time for a cup of tea and try again tomorrow...

I've got a 16oz 'camping' mallet that I was tapping all around the case with but didn't want to hit it too hard as it's cast alloy. I know that there are a couple of locating dowels in there too...

After 104k the clutch has finally started slipping on my 36/2 Doused the bolts in Plusgas and cracked them off, no problem. Ok, so does anyone know how to get a crankcase off, that has been sitting for 20yrs? I've tried rocking it, shaking it, tapping it and swearing at it - none have worked so far. Is there a technique that I or the Haynes don't know about? The manual says 'lift the crankcase away'... ha!

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of it I'm afraid. I think the front looks a bit flabby. The jowels of the the front fairing where the line should be nice and taught from headlamp to bellypan kind of.... sags IMHO - not helped by the side-mounted radiators I suppose. Nowhere near as bad as the Yammy Thunderace/cat but still. And once someone had described to me that the rear panels looked like a scooter, I never quite saw it in the same way again...

I think the truth is that there is no such thing as a bad VFR750/800 - every single one of them have their pro's and con's - so it is always going to come down to personal preference. I've always had a hankering for 3rd/4th gens, the 5th gen is generally regarded as a sportier version and the 6th even more so while the RC24's the purer choice. Some like CBS and FI, some like underseat exhausts.... don't hear so many people say they prefer VTEC but that engine has been around longer than GDC's now so it must be doing something right. If Honda could've done a 1000cc V4 GDC engine, USD forks, underseat exhausts, digi-dash and kept it under 200kg/450lbs we'd still be debating if it was the ultimate model or not...

Bollocks... 5th gens are fine - just de-link the brakes...

Early models of the 5th gen had an abrupt step onto VTEC that was described as 'unsettling'. In a straight line - not so much a problem. On a wet corner? - well, I wouldn't want it. Later models solved the problem so buy as late as you can IMHO...

While with limited budget and skill, I did nothing more than swap the fork lowers with the Firestorm ones to get the 4-pots on my Gen 4. Internals remained the same. The brakes are better, it looks OEM and helped me bond that little bit more with the motorcycle. In my mind, it makes it more 'mine'...