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Same situation on my 6th gen. Since I lost my private garage I ended up taking it to Honda to have them bleed and inspect the system. I don’t like to fool around with the CBS. The brakes seem to work as designed now but no one could explain what the issue was but they desperately tried to sell me a 16k mile service for $2300.00. I’m over 16k and don’t plan on checking valves anytime soon. Next was some lame scare tactic that my fork seals were leaking and will affect the front brakes, the service manager and a technician were seemingly gaslighting me into believing something I can see was absolutely not true. It really felt like amateur hour. I went over the bike with a fine tooth comb once I got it home to make sure everything was good. My fork seals have never leaked and are not showing any signs of leaking. More like a scam than simple incompetence. It’s unfortunate the dealer staff acted so weirdly, I was thinking of picking up a Hornet to celebrate my retirement. No offense but I’m staying away from Honda shops.

Ok, I'll give it a go, pic is 1600px on the long axis and pasted in as rich text. This was a younger slimmer me at the 1993 Vancouver motorcycle show. White '93 VFRs were very tempting and very not-red, but I ended up with a low mileage 2nd hand '91 VFR instead. Red, of course.

Can't post photos, get this message. file too big?

Good to hear a professional opinion !

Over time my forks friction grew to the point of sticking... the travel wasn't smooth no more... my body was getting hammered on rough roads... I had to find a cure.. Upon close inspection I found the scuff marks on the chrome surface of the fork legs... I pull the forks apart and chucked the leg up in the Lathe... I employed a 600 crankshaft polish strap around the leg... got the leg wet with Acetone and spun it at 750 rpm's... I worked the strap evenly up and down the leg until all the marks were gone... I was mindful not to go below the surface hardness of chrome... I was successful in establishing a smooth uniform finish over the length of the leg... To improve the smoothness of a fork's action and to minimize stiction I employed Good Old Fashion Hand Polishing... I decided to go it alone and tackle the polishing job by hand with the help of the Lathe... I use Nevr-Dull magic wadding under a trimmed down section of black PVC... in about a day I had one leg polished up real nice... RC45 Fork Polishing In conclusion... no more frict'n fork stiction... I estimate a 25% drop in stiction as a reward for my hours of labor... I will still get hammered as a result of race track ready suspension settings but now to a lesser degree... I can't complain... I prefer to sacrifice a bit of comfort for a volume of control... Not only do I trust Dave Moss judgement, I would trust him riding my prized RC45...

I’m the original owner of this 2014 Honda VFR800 Interceptor, and it has been meticulously cared for from day one. With only 5,688 miles, this bike is barely broken in and runs exactly as a VFR should, smooth, powerful, and reliable. It’s been stored properly, maintained proactively, and is 100% ready to ride. This bike is hard to find in this condition. · Original owner · Clean title · Ultra-low mileage: 5,688 miles · New battery · Two keys · Aftermarket windscreen (original included) · Aftermarket exhaust (original included) · Passenger seat & grab handles (brand new, never installed) · Trickle charger lead installed · Rear stand included · Factory hard shell saddlebags included 🏍️ Clean, complete, and turnkey. Serious buyers only. No test Drives without full cash and signed waiver. VIN available upon request. No trades. Pickup in Gilbert near Higley and Ray Please use my OfferUp link for communication. https://offerup.co/4zQPfc8yVZb

Ha, the best outcome of this wanker video is that I learned few more tricks. Thank you gentlemen! I have watched many Dave Moss videos and learned quite a bit from him.

Just an FYI, should anyone find this topic in the distant future, but I recently confirmed a few things about the 5th gen headlight unit. 1. The headlight unit is made in two pieces, the clear plastic lens and the black plastic housing. The lens is 5th-gen VFR-specific, but the housing is the exact same as the SC33 CBR900RRW-X (just pre-929). I have baked both types apart in an oven--you can swap the clear lenses if you want to. FWIW, the VFR lens is much deeper, so it can accommodate a xenon projector retrofit easily, whereas the 900RR lens is flatter, and may not have enough room for that. (Of course, the top fairing is designed to work with one or the other, so you can't swap lenses and use the headlight on the same bike...) 2. All the lenses appear to have the same markings on them: both references to "DOT" and to EU "E" standards are included. So there is no easy way to tell from the front which headlight unit has been installed. (I'm talking to you, Mr. EU DMV Motorcycle Inspector...) The region-specific marking is on the back, in white paint. A is for USA, E is for England, G is for Germany, F for France, U for Australia... 3. There are differences internally, specifically the reflectors, for LHD and RHD. There are also differences for US, Canadian (and Australian?) models relating to the bulbs the reflectors are designed to hold. ROW-spec bikes used regular 55/60w H4 halogens, but the US and Canada got special 45/45w H4 halogen bulbs (which are not directly interchangeable). 4. That said, the CBR900RRW-X headlight unit uses reflectors which do not appear to incorporate a "kick-up" to one side or another on low beam. Honda specifies the same part number for US and Australian bikes, so they can't be "handed" for use on one side of the road or the other. However, the bulb difference makes these headlight units technically incompatible with European bikes (although, with the correct bulbs, they'd work). 5. The part numbers for the VFR don't allow me to say the same as above for sure. I looked into different spec headlights 10-15 years ago, and I recall thinking that there was an obvious difference in bulb orientation on the UK-spec headlight unit. Or maybe that was the ST1300 I was also working on at the time? In any case, the reflectors can be swapped around, even from side-to-side, so with enough components you can build any spec headlight you might want. (The same reflectors are used in the ST1300 headlight, btw!) I will be getting my US-spec 5th gen ready to pass RDW inspection in the Netherlands within the next few months, so I will have more to say about this topic later. That is why I purchased a (broken) 900RR headlight and baked it apart. The plan was to swap the reflectors from the German-spec 900RR headlight into my US-spec VFR800FiY. I still think that will work, but I got distracted by the 900RR's use of an extra glass fresnel lens on the LHS side: I think it has to do with the wiring, and it may have only been a difference between the W and X models, but one of those years may have had a single bulb illuminated on low beam, but both on high. Strange. I'm not sure if I will duplicate that on my new "EU-spec" 5th gen headlight or not. I doubt the test centre will test for that, and I don't think the EU-spec 5th gen had the same set-up. It definitely didn't have the fresnel lens... Ciao, JZH

This is about cleaning crud off chrome during a fork seal job? I use wet sanding sponges found in the paint aisle of AutoZone. They come in over 1000 grit. Think I used a 1200 or 1500 last time. Gently push to the tube and the sponge conforms to the shape. Worked out everytime I've done it.

LOL. That gave me a chuckle, had many a similar experience working in dealerships too, there's a lot of asshole customers for sure, doesn't help the workshop tho when brain dead sales staff blow smoke up a customer arse cos they've no balls to stand up to a no it all moron, satisfying when you prove em wrong & send em away with their tale between their legs tho innit. Yeah agree 400grit wet n dry is a bit harsh, that's why I used to keep a stash of used 400/600/800/1000 in a box, start with 1000 with some oil & go at it that way to knock back any crap build up, 9 times outta 10 that's all a stanchion needs, obviously you'd think twice about this process on a coated stanchion & break out some metal polish first. We have some stuff over here called "Duraglit" think "Brasso" make it? it's like some kinda cotton wadding stuff in a tin soaked in some strong solution, stinks horrible, ya don't wanna get it on ya hands, honks to high heaven, but it's good for scrubbing off stubborn crap on chrome, gentle too, thinks its for polishing silver/gold. Yeah that bloke in these trolling vids is a proper wanker.

Yeah, thought you'd doing some cooling system mods. Have you considered 6th Gen rads (more capacity) loads on Ebay cheapish. I know it gets a bit chilly willy in winter where you're located, as Honda recommends a 50% glycol content which is good to -30C ish. Wondering if you could get away with a 25% Glycol ratio instead & still get enough anti-freeze protection, or leave a 50% mix over winter, come spring, drop coolant & just add 10% Glycol to keep W/pump & internals happy from corrosion. In theory it should make the system more thermally efficient? by how much I dunno, something to think about eh? You're pretty much screwed for any other choice on thermostats, spent a ton of time on this, no joy at all, seems these 800's have a custom designed Stat that no other motor uses, found a couple close but no cigar. You could fit lower max rated rad sender so fan kicks on earlier or add a manual override switch to flick on when is slow traffic or both? VTR1000 Firestorm or Superhawk as you guys call em, stock fan runs on right hand rad, blades become a pusher fan when fitted onto a 5th/6th Gen fan motor, supposed to more efficient at shifting heat from a VFR's rad & is a drop in fit (supposedly). Got my eye on a cheap one on Ebay, new fan is about £65GBP from Honda, dunno how prices are over in US? 👍

I avoid Greedletube whenever possible.

Correct. I am going to give my cooling system a refresh this winter, thermostat out and tested. Radiators flushed and externally cleaned. If budget allows, some fancy Mello Dude coolant hoses 😁, more powerful fan, etc. It's always bugged me that the fan waits to turn until 219F (104 C), then struggle or fail to keep the temps down when the ambient temp is +90 F and the temp on the tarmac is comfortably in 3 digit Farenheit. So I think a slightly lower temp sending unit in the 95-100 C would be benificial. This is not a problem where I live, in late Spring the temps are 2C to maybe 15C, the bike rarely gets above 85C if that. In the sumner, its 90-95 C. It's when I head south, and ambient temps climb markedly, that the bike will occasionally turn onto a Red, two wheeled frying pan. Yes, Honda says anything over 252 F (122 C) is considered overheating, but...........I think I can do without the bike hitting 232 F (112 C) as it did last year. Any suggestions, observations, or critiques are welcome and encouraged! This is my first 5th Gen, and first bike with side mounted radiators, I am far from being an expert, no matter what I think.......

I’m one of those Dave Moss happy customers, helped me set up my RC51 at Thunderhill a few years ago. He can be gruff and abrasive, but he knows what he’s doing.

Thanks for the heads up. I take a little pride in not giving garbage of this sort a click. Still haven't watched a YammieNoob video. 😇

While I personally wouldn't start with 400 anything on my tubes, as long as they aren't the coated variety of high end tubes, some knocking down of artifacts is perfectly acceptable on hardened chrome. In the real world where debris hits your chrome tubes, without addressing trouble spots your options would be to change your seals every month (or sooner) or replace your tubes for any anomaly that could take out a seal. The commentator sure seems like a wanker. I think in the video he states that they are coated tubes, which they are not. That being said, it seems like Moss immediately went for a harsh option for some "dark spots"? "Slide" story: When I worked for a Honda/Yamaha dealership, this know-it-all ASS-HAT came in with his R!'s Gold Titanium Nitride coated fork tubes. He had his forks completely disassembled by another shop and wanted his tubes "warrantied" because the coating was "failing". In my mind I was like, "Here we fucking go. this oughta be fun." The Salesman is standing at the counter with him assuring him everything will be fine, shouldn't be a problem, blah blah blah. His bike was pretty new (we sold it to him) and I was VERY skeptical. I hadn't heard of anything similar. And if it was happening so soon, I probably would have by then. I'm looking at the tubes and I didn't see failing anything. You could feel something with your fingernail, but it sure seemed to be built up rubber or something. "Give me a couple minutes to look into something." I took the tubes back into the shop (WITHOUT HIM), got a brand new diaper and some Mothers Polish. It started coming right off. I knew if there was even the slightest imperfection anywhere he was going to squawk. I cleaned up the tubes, they looked BRAND FUCKING NEW. The gold coating was still exactly the same, not lighter looking at all. I came out with a straight face, said they weren't failing, if he just would have looked closely it was just what seemed to be some seal rubber build up and he can go away and have his forks reassembled by whatever suspension "expert" took them apart. He went over them like a fucking NASA mirror inspector and found NOTHING. It was FUCKING GLORIOUS watching him squirm and slink away. ASS-HAT.

"The Workshop" guy, Matt, I think he's called is a complete moron, my advice is take no notice of his trolling garbage, he gets off on trolling others on Youtube, he's been getting away with it for yrs, dunno why Youtube aren't banning his vile crap. Dave's using 400/800 wet & dry paper which is used to sand when prepping paintwork, it's perfectly ok to use on "Hard chromed" stanchions, it's not emery paper, which something very different, it's a similar process to honing an engine cylinder bore so it holds a film of oil, which actually reduced stanchion & slide bush wear. I've done this hundreds of times, all suspension service centres do it, they spin stanchion in a lathe chuck, similar end result doing it by hand. Dave Moss is no Guru, but he's very knowledgeable about suspension setup & tyre wear, he's made a living out of it for yrs, if he was rubbish, he'd have been out of business yrs ago. Dave has many satisfied track day customers, you can't please everyone, from what I've seen over the yrs, many of Dave's track customers haven't a Scooby Doo how to ride let alone setup a bikes suspension, yet they go posting complaints about stuff they've no clue about, it's human nature to complain, we all do it, but there's complaining when you have some technical know how & there's complaining when you know fuck all like this clown on "The Workshop".

I'm not expressing any opinion on Dave Moss because I consider myself to have an 'L' plate when it comes to motorcycle maintenance. Having said that, I am quite familiar with 400 grit emery paper and said 'Yikes!' when I watched this. Posting this because he has done a very good job marketing himself as a suspension guru, and this gives one food for thought about whom to trust or not trust when you are in the learning stage. Thought I should share it with the community and get some thoughts on the criticism and harsh title of the video. Reading some of the Comments below the video is also interesting

Hi Gaz. Yes i made it using stainless steel tubes pre-formed in straight, 45° and 90° pieces pre-assembled by me with spot welding, for final welding i asked to a pro. But i made a mistake: as you can see the tubes passing under oil pan are not parallel to, but divergent. Anyway most of exhaust system will be modified 'cause i will change the rear fork with a two-arms for weight reason; so i have no space enough on left side. Final solution will be a 4 in 2 system with exit at two sides of bike. (as the VTR twin). Anyway, an homemade system for a road bike is possible to build, following the stock path. Is not an easy work, but it's not so complicate as appear. Ciao, Luigi.

Curious as to why you need thread size? Dya need a sender with a different min/max range?

Hey Luigi. Can I ask the brand of headers you've fitted? or Is it a homemade system?

Anyway, the HRC solution for the RC45 are the best result. Also for aestetical look. Do you agree?

Thank you. Installing Intercooler are not difficult and it needs only two alloy joint on main circuit to let flow water to cooler and return. At moment i'm thinking to use two flat radiator mounted in the usual position with the help of the airscoop discussed above, keeping the small one (in pic posted when i started the topic) instead the oil rad that will moved in the fairing. Another solution can be keeping the oil radiator in stock position, adding a small, triangular water rad placed in low position. With small dimension maybe i could fix the problem of position too close to exhaust, without the risk of contact with front wheel when the fork are bottomed down. Obviuosly all modifications are made for track use. On open road, except in a city traffic, the cooling system works well enough. I'll keep you update, i just ask for patience 'cause are not the only bike that i'm workin on. Ciao! Luigi.

Stock rads work fine & if a track bike they will work better as no antifreeze required. I run 25/75 (antifreeze/distilled water) & can cane my 118hp/175Kg VFR800 all day in up to 33C ambient temps with no issues. I replaced the water pump with an electric one that works at one speed, this cools the system quicker when you are on slowdown or idling, plus it runs with the ignition on so you can avoid heat soak if you have to stop quickly.