The Phantom

Here you go Kev! Parker's bike after the R1 front end went onto it (lifted from the topic he linked in his reply, g'day Steve). Raoul, mine is set up with the 2004 R1 master cylinder (got a VTR1000F clutch master cylinder, with Beringer reservoir kits for each side. My brake lines are HEL custom made (two equal length lines from master to calipers). CBR929 lower triple, and I have both CBR929 and SP1 upper triples, still haven't finalised the cockpit set-up so not sure which I'll use. My clip-ons are 4-piece Epro billet items (Japanese top-shelf Yamaha parts specialist). They are 25mm higher than stock R1 position. My bodywork and riding position are more sportsbike than VFR so I don't have clearance problems. The 2004 R1 master cylinder perch definitely has a brake switch (mine came from the US so same spec as you'll find locally).

Hey Jeff, Roy has sold this bike but the front end lives on, on a mint 4th Gen VFR750 owned by VFRD member Parker. I'm sure he (or Roy) would be happy to elaborate, will see if I can shake one of them out of the tree, or just PM Parker. Roy currently rides a 2009 CBR1000RR with a few of your more typical mods like Ohlins R&T forks, but I reckon a VFR1200 is going to get the zRoYz treatment in the near future...

I've been looking into this, as I got an in-tank pump assembly from a 2004 CBR1000RR in an ebay job lot of parts. Apparently the Blade guys that put turbos on carbed Blades use these, as they need a higher rate of fuel delivery. But you do need to regulate it, just like a fi bike, so you install a FPR (fuel pressure regulator). The stock set-up has a return to the tank so you hook that up to the new pump, of course. Members here replace OEM FPRs with Turbo City FPRs with good results. I was going to do it so I wouldn't have to find a home for the stock pump on my 4th Gen (have fitted a smaller tail unit/subframe). But having to then find a home for the FPR sort of defeats the purpose somewhat, as the FBR is almost the same size as the stock fuel pump...

Mine were done in 1998. I took the paint off myself, took a good4-5 hours with paint stripper (hardware store, not aircraft variety). Then I gave them to a metal polisher who made them look like mirrors for AUD$300. He said he wouldn't do them again for less than $600 though... They were pretty good like that as far as maintenance went - I'd wash the bike once a week (was doing 700-1000km per week at the time) and just wash the wheels last with the soapy bikewash, and twice a year I'd give them a good rub with Kalifornia Kustom Purple Metal Polish, easiest to use of all the different ones I tried. Eventually I coated them with Nyalic (aka Everbrite) which does everything they say it does - brush or spray on (it's self levelling), won't go yellow at all, and when you scratch it you just clean up the scratch and paint more Nyalic on - it's self-blending. The expensive alternative is nickel plating. I wouldn't go with chroming, partly because chrome looks arse on sportsbike but mostly because with chroming alloys there is a risk of reducing the strength of the wheel.

The bike isn't throwing away electricity. The load on the engine from the stator is the resistance of the system attached to it. As you draw more amps, the stator will be harder to turn, using more fuel. No, the stator generates full output (for the rpms it is turning) at all times. You can't increase the load on it, you can only siphon off the power it generates (which is why we have a regulator to soak up the power that the bikes systems don't burn up). Anytime you hear words like "Can I just say" or "That's a very good question" or "let me tell you"... you're listening to either a politician or a spin doctor.

Amazing stuff, John. Looking forward to ride impressions and dyno. So it warms up slow because the HHO is a cooler burn than petrol? You are wearing your best Nomex undies when you ride it, right? :fing02: I've been reading up on WVO and Bio-diesel lately, going to have to have a good look at this. A colleague is right into it, I didn't understand when he explained it but it's a lot clearer now :goofy:

Bloody Nora...

2002 huh, wasn't that around the time that VFRD came into being? Were you on the 'big list' prior to that? I joined here in 2003 as v4racer, but my id was lost in a server crash in 2005 or so.

Well the ZX-10R is 50mm upper and 54mm lower, but I'm not sure about overall fork length - although I do know that the 2005 ZX-10R uppers are 10mm longer than the 2004 R1 uppers - the Kawasaki forums might have info on this as they are mad about front end swaps (lots of ZX stuff going onto Kasawaki nakeds etc.). I think the fork spacing on the ZX-10R is 210mm, same as R1, so the same spacer requirements etc. would apply.

The reasons I spent the extra bucks on a 2004 R1 front end were for the radial calipers and the lightweight front wheel. The radial calipers were mainly desirable for looks; there's nothing much wrong with the 1998-2003 R1 stoppers... and likewise the forks are pretty good on the earlier model. The 2007 R1 went to six-pot brake calipers but testers said they weren't much different in performance to the 4-pot ones on 2004-2006 bikes. Forgot to mention, the front guard (fender) needs to be either fitted with spacers too, or just stretched a bit. The 2006+ guard goes onto the 2004-05 front end but is thinner and lighter. Best way to go is to try to get the whole lot at once, and be sure to check that it's all straight - if there's one negative to the R1 forks it's that they are nowhere near as strong as SP1 forks. Mine were bent (uppers) despite the sellers assurances that they were straight.

Hi Tarun, You need spacers regardless of what year of R1 forks you go with - the R1 tripleclamps space the forks at 210mm from centre to centre, whereas the SP1/929/954 triples are 214mm. So for 1998-2003 forks, you need a 2mm spacer on the axle on either side of the wheel, and 2mm spacers to move the calipers out on each side. For 2004+ forks, same axle spacers as above, but as they have radial calipers you need to space the rotors out instead (and get longer rotor bolts). After that it's just a matter of bars (Convertibars seem the best bet with stock bodywork), clearance (ensuring the forks don't hit bits of fairing or the oil cooler when going lock to lock), and brakelines (Hel will make custom length lines)... that's more or less it. The later front end has a 5-spoke wheel, earlier has a 3-spoke. You could put a Triumph SSS hub into the VFR swingarm and run a 3-spoke Triumph rear wheel; the cheaper purchase cost of the pre-2004 R1 forks might leave some $$ free to do the rear end - and it would look quite different to the sea of Frankenviffers out there :laughing6-hehe:

That was going to be my comment! That corrugated stuff flows so poorly you would probably be offsetting any gains from increased pressure. Fluid dynamics can be complicated, but basically the ribs create turbulence where you want good flow. Smooth would be much better. A couple of OzVFR guys built a track-only 4th Gen, and they ran that corrugated tubing from the holes where the indicators were, back under the steeringhead and into the airbox. After one session at Eastern Creek they pulled it out - it just wouldn't rev. Either too much air was getting in, or not enough... it's a bit of a science, when Kawasaki released the first ZX-12R it had the big snow shovel air intake protruding from under the headlight, their explanation was that a shorter, more aesthetically pleasing one actually dropped the hp by a significant amount.

It's way too pricey for me too :rolleyes: , I guess it was one of those "what the hell, let's do it" moments... down the track it's possible that I'll switch back to the stock pump, and fit the EWP to my '69 VW Kombi when I drop a water-cooled Subaru motor into it... Rice asked for before/after info on any gains, that's not possible on my bike but if I can, I'll fit it to my wife's stock 4th Gen at some point and see what we get. Here's some VFR voltage figures we prepared earlier - the at-rest voltage on a good battery is around 12.8v, and at idle it's around 13.5v so it's producing enough at idle to top the battery up.

Yep the stator generates as much AC current as it can for whatever rpms it's turning. The regulator/rectifier does the next bit - 'rectifies' the voltage from AC to DC, and regulates how much of that current gets through to the battery - and then simply dumps the excess current as heat. The regulator function also doubles up by making sure the voltage into the battery/electrical system is maintained at a steady voltage. Any electrical function you add (such as a GPS, or heated grips, or an electic waterpump) will simply siphon off some of that excess voltage, meaning less work (and longer life) for the regulator function. You can suck a fair bit out before you start to have problems, which typically begin with an undercharging battery. But the stator doesn't really notice any of this as it spins away doing its thing. AC, as in the home example, is totally different in its behaviour and doesn't need to 'sink' excess current like a variable current DC system does. I'd like to swap to a smaller diameter stator to reduce rotating mass, will look into that down the track. My bike won't ever run the typical S/T power loads; a GPS and the EWP are about it (and all of my rear lights and front indicators are LED which saves some current) so I could easily get away with reducing voltage output.

No you don't need to change the idle, the drain is negligible. Operating voltage is 4v DC to 14.5v DC. Max current draw is 7.5amps. The digital controller pulls a few amps too (up to 12 max) but it also controls the radiator fan and can switch it on and off as required, as well as switch the waterpump on/off and vary the speed. http://www.daviescra...05-details.aspx I've used my pump on my VT Berlina (3.8litre V6) while I waited for a replacement waterpump - the kit comes with adaptors for a few different hose sizes and I just had to buy a few generic bits of radiator hose to make it work - and while the EWP115 would probably be a better long term bet from an efficiency point of view, the little EWP80 kept it at normal operating temps, and this was at the start of a Queensland summer. VFRD member Vfroem is running an electric pump on his 140+hp big bore 3rd Gen, seems to be having no problems with it. His is a Mercedes pump, don't know what vehicle though. Not switch it off altogether - just slow it down so it's performing at max efficiency. The OEM waterpump is hurling the water around inside the block at the fastest rate just when it's not (generally) necessary). The pump runs at its max speed without a controller; not the ideal option of course, but fine if you were running at the track or had a motor that tended to run hot. I have the thermal switch that will turn it on and off to maintain a set temperature, but as mentioned when I feel ready to part with $200 (ouch) I plan to buy the digital controller which will just vary the impellor speed as required. With the digital controller, you throw away the thermostat, and the controller varies the voltage to maintain optimum flow and therefore temp, the radiator fan is also on call when needed. I had planned to fit twin 5" R6 fans that I bought, but their combined weight is a bit more than the OEM fan and I don't need that extra efficiency with this pump. Speaking of weight - Rice, the pump weighs 900g and the digital controller weighs 90g... I suspect that the OEM waterpump might actually weigh less than this, will try to weigh it (if I can find it...) To answer your other points - it's the same size as the OEM pump and fits perfectly in the OEM location; I am thinking of putting it above the stator cover though, so I can ditch that heavy metal waterpipe that runs down below the stator cover. Will have to see if there's room once my bodywork is done. They seem to be pretty reliable and the latest version has a "SiC x carbon mechanical face seal for added reliability". I'm guessing that 50000km is possible especially given that it will be off or running at low rpms a lot of the time, and on a little 750 it won't need to work nearly as hard as on a bigger motor - its designed to be able to cool engines of up to 5 litres so it will be understressed on the VFR. Except at the track Davies-Craig has been supplying thermofans and other products to the Australian (and o/s) auto industry for 40 years, their quality is excellent. Cost, well there's not much you can do about that. It's top shelf quality and low volume production. Again, VFR power doesn't come cheap, and unless you go big bore or blown, your only option is a series of small mods that will add up to more power and if you're lucky less weight. For me - EWP, cam scissor gears removed (makes it horribly noisy though), full headers, EGR system modded to reduce crankcase pressure, K&N - so far. Head and cam work is planned. I'm hoping for 115-120hp and faster throttle response, to go with my 20kg or so weight reduction. This tangent is getting pretty big for Sa1713's engine mod topic :goofy: Might leave it at that, I'll post some pics when the final installation happens on my bike.

Yep the digital controller will not only turn it on and off, but will run it at the appropriate speed for the cooling requirements at the time. The stator is not going to add any real resistance to the rotating force of the crank. But pull your waterpump out and spin it by hand, there's resistance - then think about it having to push x volume of water through itself and around the engine at y rpm, the output shaft that drives it has to work pretty hard. It's also spinning madly when you're belting along at a brisk pace, which is when it should be backing off and letting the radiator do the work instead - the EWP (with controller) fixes that problem too. Not cheap, but there's no cheap power increases on a VFR

Sounds like an SP1 top triple then. I think this pic belongs to a member here - SP2 stem on the left, take a look at the diameter of the top nut thread... Later today I'll post a pic with all three of them, busy getting kids out the door at the moment

Pete, are you sure your SP triple is an SP2? If so, it will definitely go on easier as the stem hole on the SP2 is of much larger diameter than the SP1/929... I have all three versions in the garage. To use an SP2 top triple you would need to fit a bush into the stem hole to positively locate the top triple onto the stem. Regarding Bren's issue - I too have no problems in switching between my 929 and my SP1 top triples (using a 929 bottom triple/stem). It's a weird problem, the only possible solution is that your 929 triple is twisted in the north/south plane?

I have one of these: http://www.daviescraig.com.au/Electric_Water_Pumps-EWP80__12V__ELECTRIC_WATER_PUMP___PART_No__8005-details.aspx An electric waterpump means the mech drive is no longer required, and saves some power (it all adds up). Also you can set it up to run on when you switch the motor off, which eliminates heat soak. When funds permit I'll get the digital controller for it: Not cheap, but neither are engine mods, or repair of engine failure... I definitely plan to get more power out of my engine at some point, this is the first step towards that. Good luck with the project, I'm looking forward to following it!

Hey Rob - less than a year mate... :blush: It is coming along, more than the pics can show. My kids are a bit older (so less demanding; I'm actually getting a bit of sleep these days) and the wife has some of her own stuff happening which occasionally gives me a whole evening and sometimes a good part of the weekend too. I am well into the front bodywork which is turning out very well! Pics soon (soon being a relative term in this topic of course). MAJOR thanks to Sebastian (SEBSPEED) who has kicked this project along with his help and excellent advice. More on that later. I got the underseat exhaust set-up to about 95% complete, then decided that I needed to take some more weight out of the bike. Both physically and aesthetically. For some time I'd been looking at alternate tail sections - checking out pics, deciding which ones looked good, then hunting around online for pics showing the subframes of the ones I'd shortlisted. Once I found the pics (and it took some creative searching), I looked at the relationship between the top and bottom spars, and when possible asked people questions on measurements etc. The 2002 R6 came out on top - measurements seemed close enough, good looks, aluminium subframe, LED tail lights, pillion seat cowl available. A local dealer agreed to phone me when he got an '02 R6 in - I expected it to be a sale bike but he called me when a customer booked one in. I asked him to ask the owner if he was ok about me going over his bike with a tape; no problem. Everything checked out - it wasn't exact, but it was in the ballpark. But the best part was that the seat appeared to work well with the VFR tank (which I'd taken along to the dealer to check :fing02:) I decided that it was the one - and literally a day later, an entire R6 tail unit turned up on Australian ebay. $450 delivered to my door. I mocked it up with cable (zip) ties, and worked out how much I'd need to trim off the spars - very little as it turned out, maybe 10mm on each. Got the exact measurements somewhere in case someone wants to do it. The spars required some mild bending - I checked with the aluminium specialist who rewelded the brackets onto it for me and he said the range of bend required was nowhere near enough to impact the strength of the frame; less than 10 degrees. l needed to trim the tank mount on the R6 unit as it interfered with the VFR tank mount, and completely remove the VFR's seat locating tab at the rear of the VFR tank (the R6 seat locates into a bracket on it's subframe; actually the original R6 tank mount bracket). I also needed to trim some of the plastic undertail, as bringing the lower frame spars closer together meant the plastic couldn't sit between them like it had originally. No big deal. The internal tray mounts the battery lying down - I've read of problems with R6 batterys leaking because of this, and of course I need to allow for the possibility that the R6 battery doesn't have the cold cranking power that the VFR needs. No problem at all - the CBR929 battery also lays on its side and has all the power I need. There is plenty of space for all the other VFR electrical bits although some of the wiring may need to be extended; I'll document that as I get to it. A few weeks after I'd received the tail unit I was chasing a solo cowl to replace the pillion seat (where I live, single seat registration is a fair bit cheaper than pillion-capable rego, and my wife has her own bike - this bike is not being built with cruisy Sunday rides in mind anyway!) and I'd determined that the options were a 'Targa' solo seat cowl or a factory Yamaha seat cowl. The latter looked much better to me but was seriously expensive, so I was about to buy the Targa when I came across another Oz ebay listing, for a 'Yamaha seat cowl'. No model listing, but I knew from my research what it was; a factory seat cowl. The starting price of $90 was what I got it for - half the Targa price, and don't even ask what the Yamaha price is. The entire R6 tail unit - subrame, inner fender, light, seats etc. - weighs 1kg less than the bare VFR steel subframe... Anyway, we're here to LOOK not READ :goofy: Reference pic: Oh yeah, it's got the Indigo full system on it now too - have a good look at the difference in the rear header pipe routing and the outlet(s)... that lovely Wolf underseat system don't fit no more with that skinny tail! And I had both wheels powdercoated since the last pics. I need to work out what to do with those exhaust outlets...

Looking forward to future progress Lacy. It's a pain when life gets in the way of projects huh. Jason - go to it. Collect a few parts and start a topic :cool: Speaking of which, I haven't updated mine for a while... :wheel:

Three words - BRAKES, BRAKES, BRAKES... VFR brakes are fine, until you try serious brakes. All the other benefits of the USD fork swap (increased stiffness, lower unsprung weight, closer tolerances reducing play, more adjustability, better selection of aftermarket upgrades, good looks...) are just extra benefits :wheel: