ducnut

Be sure and get the belts and valves done, as well as flush all the fluids. That bike has excellent suspension and I’d get them serviced, sprung, and valved to you, too. It’ll be a solid bike to enjoy, then.

DATEL 8V-50V meter wired into the R/R side of the Roadstercycle relay, so even if fuses start popping or before the breaker trips, I can see how much voltage is coming out of the R/R. This is very important to diagnose what went wrong. I used a relay, triggered by the license plate light, used Velcro for the mounting, and drilled a small hole for the wire.

I don’t know if you’ll ever find an optimal number. If you do it in measured, increments of 2mm, I don’t think you’ll get into trouble. Just make sure you have vertical clearance between the fender and upper fairing (contact will leave marks) and horizontal clearance between the tire and lower fairing. You’ll know when you start reaching the limit, because there will be almost no turn-in resistance at the bars and the bike will start weaving when trying to ride a straight line, with light shimmies over bumps. If you had a steering damper, your concerns would be minimized.

The last 2/3 of your statement are inverse. Raising the fork tubes in the clamps DECREASES rake and trail and lowering the fork tubes INCREASES rake and trail.

Tapered definitely require less tension. By being tapered, the lower bearing is being wedged into the race by the weight of the bike. This is what gives tapered bearings their known tendency to calm frontend shimmy. The heavier the bike, the more they’re wedged, as well. The top bearing just needs light tension to eliminate play. The needles being cylindrical shaped spreads the load along their length. A ball concentrates all the load on a tiny contact point. This is what gives the needle superiority over a ball, for load capacity and durability. Ball bearings are less expensive than taper bearings, which is why motorcycle manufacturers use them.

I have AS3 hose and clamp kits on my ‘02 SV650 and ‘98 VFR. The SV has been ran ~4mos and had zero install issues or leaks. My VFR hoses are installed, but, the bike isn’t completely back together. Again, zero install issues. I used an impact driver to install all the clamps and that might be why no leaks on the SV. That thing can get clamps way tighter than necessary.

Until you add a steering damper to offset the lack of friction in the head bearings. Then, you’re right back to numbing the feeling.

Pilot RS will probably give you better wear characteristics than the PP. Then, when you replace your rear, try a PR5. That’ll give you better wear on the rear, without feeling too sluggish. But, keep running the Pilot RS on the front, so you maintain the sharp handling you’re probably used to.

Nice work!

Might be a bit off-the-wall question, but, did you ensure the countershaft sprocket was completely tight on the output shaft? I’m needing a replacement, bought a Sunstar as a replacement, and it’s too thin. The output shaft actually protrudes beyond the sprocket. Obviously, I need another, thicker replacement and am looking at JT. Thanks!

Be aware of your linkage clearances, when you jack it up. You may try suspending the rear, just to make sure there’s no contact. I’m not sure how much thread engagement is required, but, you may contact Penske for info. I’d strongly recommend having that shock serviced, before use. You’ve no idea how many miles are on it. The last thing you want is to be causing internal damage from lack of maintenance. If you saw how the insides of a shock work, you’d understand why it’s so important to care for it. I’m a 12yr customer of Traxxion Dynamics and just ordered my 4th Penske from them, today. I highly recommend them.

It appears to be a Penske 8900, which is a $700 shock. It has a single, rebound adjustment at the bottom. It could have compression adjustment added, via a remote reservoir. But, for a VFR, it’s a bit of a waste. It is pre-load and length-adjustable, as well. I’d just have it serviced, sprung, and valved for yourself and run it. I have one on my SV and it’s a great shock.

Here’s what that same view looked like, before.

That Duralast filter looks like a better fit than the Wix filter I used. The pic shows what I’m going to run. There were some doubters, but, Evapo-Rust did the deed.

Amazing effort!