JZH

That looks really nice--well done! Can you tell us more about how you did it? I had tossed around the same idea in my head for years, but never attempted it. I'm especially interested in the hinges... Many years ago I found a yellow Smuggler for my Y2k in California, but I ended up only using the seat, with the OEM cowl. But I need a 6mm Allen key to open it! Cheers, JZH

I'm happy for you to ride it! 😸 Ciao, JZH

I read the regs as removing the MOT tester's ability to fail a Class 1 or 2 motorcycle (which means?) simply for incompatibility. So it is no longer an automatic fail if HID or LED light sources are fitted to the bike. Ciao, JZH

I don't know about now, but there used to be companies which would arrange for a title in Nevada or someplace based only on a bill of sale. It involved a paper sale to them and paper re-sale back to you... I went through the process once for an NC30 I was thinking about importing, but I ended up not moving back to the US and never needed to register the bike there. Perhaps these companies still exist? Ciao, JZH

Replacing the fried OEM fuse holder with another one wouldn't be a great idea, IMHO. It likely fried not due to overcurrent (but, given it is a VFR, you might want to check that...), but due to corrosion. Unsealed connectors are prone to corrosion when used in automotive applications, so I would replace that fuse holder with a properly sealed one, e.g., Metri-Pack 630. As you're already familiar with Metri-Pack connectors, you know that they are good quality and widely available. Get the version for 3mm2 cable (pic shows a seal used with smaller wires). MIDI fuses are good (for 30A to 200A), but it's harder to find sealed holders for them, so I would use them only inside a car/van, not on a bike, which is exposed to the environment. Ciao, JZH

I don't mind wires, believe me! I never actually used the electrified version of SW-Motech tank ring--it could only do 5A through the tiny pogo pins. The latest (last?) version of my onboard electronics package had to power heated clothing, an accessory socket, a Touratech IMO control box and a bunch of other stuff. (The IP68 4-pin connector on the left is rated for 30A.) That thing was a nightmare to build. And then I realised I'd made it with the hinge on the wrong side... Ciao, JZH

Looks like we finally know what happened to the HK police bikes after this photo was taken... Some RC49 pics: Welcome! Ciao, JZH

I've got SW-Motech's older series of quick-lock tank rings and sockets on all my bikes. I'm not sure about their newer "evo" series, but they also made an electrified version for the older style, which allows the easy use of phone chargers in the tank bag, etc. However, the flat black cable is still not especially nice to see on the tank, but there's no way to electrify a tankbag without some sort of cable! (Ignore the Euro-spec darker OEM windscreen being compared here...) (...and ignore the coil of cables--they're for other electrical mods.) Ciao, JZH

I've noticed that people who do these kinds of cheapo conversions usually don't show actual cut-off pics. Is it because the light never quite reaches the garage door, or maybe they're too embarrassed to show how much light is scattering above the "cut-off"? "I didn't get flashed, so it must be okay"... (Yes, the heat is making me a bit cranky!) Ciao, JZH

Sorry, VT, but it hardly matters--it's a Honda! My case was the opposite of your case: it's a lot easier to make a 530 into 525 than it is to make a 525 into a 530! I didn't want to use a 525 (or 520) chain on my 837cc VFR, but if it turned out to be too difficult to have a 530 setup, I could have gone with the 525 (or even 520, as the strength of drive chains has improved quite a lot in the last 30 years). It may even be possible to run a 530 chain on 525 sprockets, but that sounds like a desperation move to me. Ciao, JZH

Sorry, I've never made it to Brno. Sounds adventurous! The beer's supposed to be cheap and plentiful, though, which may help... Ciao, JZH

The UK-spec ones have different part numbers (003 instead of 670), but the principle is the same! Honda changed the design (worldwide, it appears) in '92, but they should still swap. The numbers stamped on the can aren't the part numbers, but they reference the bikes' PCNs (MT4 and MY7), HM probably meaning Honda Motor and the E1 being the European homologation code. Ciao, JZH

You can buy steel (even stainless steel) sprocket blanks, with just a hole in the centre. Then have them machined to fit. Had to do that with my RC30 swing arm on an RC36. Not very cheap, but effective! I bought one and sent it to someone here in the UK to be machined and he somehow found a slotted stainless steel sprocket and machined that one instead. Gave me a discount. Kept my blank for himself! But are you sure there are no 530 front sprockets that fit the VF? I've swapped several around, just based on the dimensions and JT sprocket diagrams. Honda doesn't seem to use that many different output shaft sizes, but I suppose the 1980s may have been different than the 1990s as far as engine power and 530 sprockets go. Ciao, JZH

I had some headlights for my Hiace van sent from Australia and they got caught in the same kind of limbo--I was never sent any letters--the headlights were eventually sent back to Australia, and then I got to fight with the seller about whose fault it was! (I won...) Ciao, JZH

Hydraulics is hydraulics, so it will certainly work. Not so sure about the brake bleeding justification, though. Most people bleed brakes at the caliper end (though it makes more sense to do it at the master cylinder end, where the bubbles want to go anyway). It may be a practical solution, but a bulky and clunky one, IMHO. I'd just make some new teflon lines (or have them made) and keep the OEM ones in a box for when the risers got removed. Ciao, JZH

I've never seen his videos before, but I did grow up in that area so I was curious to see the full route. Wondering why he didn't at least go up Crest Road; it's nothing special, but if you go all that way to RPV... I always found riding in LA to be rather soul-destroying. So much traffic, so few places to have fun. (A bit like London, lol...) Ciao, JZH

FWIW, I should also be ready to participate in the next round (if there's a next round...) 🤞 Ciao, JZH

I'm moving away from soldering wires in an automotive application. I used to crimp, solder and shrink, but the soldering part is apparently usually not done in any kind of competition environment these days. Recently, as part of my somewhat-impending 3UZ swap project, I've been reading a lot about the state of the art of performance automotive wiring. This will blow your mind: https://www.rbracing-rsr.com/wiring_ecu.html Ciao, JZH

Despite the dodgy sounding name (to my ears, anyway) Tour Max is actually a high-quality Japanese aftermarket parts brand. That said, I would not buy another shunt-type reg/rec unless it was a MOSFET. OEM, Shindengen or Tour Max are all high quality. Ciao, JZH

Yes, and unfortunately, it still looks exactly like that. Fairing has not been trimmed to clear the belt, nor have I fitted the RC51 forks and front wheel or the matching Pearl Shining Yellow front mudguard... Of course, having read about the A&A issues, now I'm worried the Rotrex will blow up if I run it again! Ciao, JZH

US import? Strange for someone to remove the remote reserve switch. Do you have a low fuel light in the tachometer? Ciao, JZH

Yes. For some unknown reason, US-spec bikes have slightly different levels specified. (Maybe due to the initial conversion from ml to oz?) The "air gap" does have a function in the way cartridge forks perform, but I'm very sceptical that a small difference in oil level would be noticeable. Ciao, JZH

Maybe Honda should have put the forks on security bolts, too... As mentioned above, the would-be thief was so unfamiliar with Hondas (they're all the same--if not most other Japanese motorcycles!) he didn't know that the security bolts holding the lock cylinder are on the bottom of the top clamp! Oh, dear... Btw, on Euro-spec and other Hondas with the HISS security system, the black plastic piece bolted on top of the triple clamp is a transponder for the coded chip in the ignition key. Removing it just means there is no way to send the corresponding code to the ECU to allow the bike to run. As it happens, this vandal only destroyed a decorative plastic bezel, which had no function in the bike's security system whatsoever. Be thankful for stupid thieves, I guess... Ciao, JZH

Here's an even faster colour... Ciao, JZH

1. Yes, you can, but it is really not the best way to do this. As others have mentioned already, there will be small particles of metal and other contaminants mixed in with the fork oil (how much depends on how long it has been since the last fork oil change), and the only way to get that "sludge" out is to fully disassemble the forks and clean them with a solvent like kerosene. Early bikes do have the drain bolts mentioned above, but using them does not result in the removal of the sludge. (Also note that fork oil drained in that way spurts surprisingly far horizontally--DAMHIK.) The most effective "easy" way to change fork oil is to remove the wheel, brake calipers and the forks from the bike, open the top caps, remove the springs and dump the old fork oil out from the top. You could then add some fresh oil shake it around and dump it out again, and each time you did this you would remove a bit more of the sludge. Then put everything back together (except the springs--oil is measured without the springs and with the forks and damper rod fully compressed) and add new fork oil up to the OEM recommended level. 2. Adding oil by volume is not as accurate as measuring the distance from the top of the oil to the top of the fork. Once the levels are correct, pop the springs in and tighten the fork caps. (The OEM oil level is 175mm on the Euro-spec 1990 VFR750FL.) Ciao, JZH