M1962

I've bought loads from Ebay as well as some of the above sites. Just got hold of a yellow tank for mine in very good condition to replace my rather tired and rusty one. I've had brake lines, oil cooler pipes, end can, airbox etc etc all in pretty much 'as new' condition and it's always my first port of call for anything original.

we'll never know.......

Just a thought. When you said you looked it over, how close did you look? It may take a magnifying glass to see tiny splits in the tracks which could be enough to break the connection. If you use a meter to test each track you'll soon be able to eliminate that as a fault or find something you didn't see before.

All of the above plus........... Remove all the plastics and inspect all the connections in the wiring loom. check the earth block, big red wire coming from the main 30A fuse, look for spliced in zombie wiring and see where it goes. Check the connectors coming from the rectifier. Replace anything that looks burned out or flaky because it will almost certainly let you down soon if you don't. Check the forum for advice. it's worth having a look at the PCB behind the instrument panel to see what condition it's in. By now some of the tracks may be corroded through and the will cause issues with the displays. There are some straightforward repairs you can do. Depending on how keen you are, consider replacing rubber hoses, check the thermostat and hosing around that area (it's a pig to get to though). Check out GreginDenver's posts here on the subject and his VFR refresh posts for what is possible. He's got some good advice about perishables! It will also be worthwhile downloading a copy of the full workshop manual.It's on here somewhere, and a lot better than the Haynes manual. If you need spares, check out David Silver and M&P. Ebay has a wealth of VFR material too. Post some photos.

It does take a bit of effort. I assume you have the allen blot from the bottom of the slider removed first because they aren't going anywhere if it's still in place. Having done that (and they tend to be a pain because they rotate on themselves), make sure the oil is drained. Then it is just like in the video. Repeatedly push and pull the leg into the slider making sure you go as far out as you can. You'll feel resistance and that will be the bushes inside banging on a lip inside. Be patient and just keep going and don't be shy. Show it who's boss! If you've got this far then keep going. The bushes will probably need replacing anyway Eventually after some gnashing of teeth it will all of a sudden release itself. Patience and persistence.

What a great piece of work. Inspirational indeed. So nice to see another well looked-after VFR

+1 for the advice about the manual. The brake bleeding process is very specific, especially the part about removing the rear caliper and raising it. Remember also that the rear brake lines are v long and there's also the PCV thrown into the mix, so with all these bleed nipples, orders of business and messing about it's no wonder I took mine straight to Honda and got them to do it!! Good luck with it.

well done for sticking with it

Bikers Oracle https://vfr.bikersoracle.com/index.php There are some knowledgeable people on there and some good historical information, but I get the impression only a few now own a VFR so it's not as engaging as here. Avoid the 'ranting' and 'spouting' forums.

I replaced mine with a Hagon from Wemoto. It was about £300. You can read 100 reviews and get 100 different viewpoints on these things, but mine bolted straight on and transformed the handling once I'd made a few adjustments. You get what you pay for.

What have you actually done to your original engine then to make it need replacing?

Pleased to hear you've got it working. There are few things worse than having that 'totally stumped' feeling, but this forum is always a great place to turn to for advice. The UK forum (if it's the one I'm thinking of) has hardly any actual VFR owners now and only a small number of contributors. There's some good historic stuff on there, but VFRDiscusion is much better all round.

Anything is possible.

Amazing and not surprising. Have you worked out how many gallons/litres of petrol have flowed through that fuel system?

That's a good idea. I suppose it depends on what 'look' you're going for with a refurbishment. For me I wanted the bike to be as 'factory' as possible, so all the parts I replaced were either OEM or good quality secondhand - like the oil cooler pipes. Mine's still a work in progress after 3 years, but the aim is to get it as close to showroom as possible.