1985 VF500 Interceptor

Discussion in '1st & 2nd Generation 1983-1989' started by Scott S, Apr 10, 2017.

  1. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    Hey guys and gals! It took me quite a while to get my account activated, but I'm finally here. I was GOING to ask about the purchase of an '85 VF500, but in the time it took to get my account set up I've gone ahead and purchased the bike.
    I understand there's a Love/Hate thing going on here with the 500, but I figured what the hell....

    The bike belonged to my boss and he's owned it for about 31 years. It's in really nice cosmetic shape and he drained the carbs and tank when he stored it about three years ago.
    Here are the pics he sent me:

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    And here it is on the day I picked it up. The first time it's seen sunshine in about 1,000 days!

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  2. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    It's all original except for the full Kerker exhaust and a K&N air filter. It has a home made "tail tidy", but the rear fender extender was included with the bike.
    The clutch was inoperable and the brakes were dragging. This is probably why the clutch didn't work....

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  3. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    I rebuilt all three calipers with new seals and one new piston. I initially flushed the lines and had everything working, but the master cylinders were weeping, so I installed new ones. I also rebuilt the clutch slave cylinder.
    What Honda calls a "collar" on the calipers were all rusted up and not moving. Probably the hardest part of the rebuild was getting the new seals around them.

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  4. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    Changed the fork oil and installed new Pirelli Sport Demon tires.

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  5. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    Even though he drained the carbs, I heard too many horror stories of clogged pilot jet and choke circuits. I listened to the nay sayers and pulled the carbs. Holy Hell!, what a job!
    And, of course they were clean as a whistle....
    But, at this point, I took them to my carb guy for a professional cleaning. He's quite experienced with the V4 carbs and has actually owned a few Magna's.

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  6. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    I've spent some time sanding down the Kerker and was going to try painting it on the bike, using tape, aluminum foil, newspaper, etc., to mask it up. But I talked to my boss the other day and he says he's had it off before. So....now, I'm leaning towards removing it and having it coated.

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  7. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    That's about where she stands today. I've done lots of cleaning, installed a new fuel filter, etc. I have a Honda wrench on the way for the valve adjustment and will do that soon. I recently pulled and flushed the radiator and, like most everything else on the bike (other than the brake circuits), it was also in great shape with good looking fluid and no sediment. Everything is flushed and I'll wait to install it until the valves are adjusted (of course) and the carbs are back on. Yes, I have new manifold rubbers.

    It's my hope to be riding this thing within a month!
     
  8. Mind_Surfer

    Mind_Surfer New Member

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    Looking good Scott. Good work.
     
  9. RllwJoe

    RllwJoe Insider

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    Nice bike Scott!

    Great write up also!.
     
  10. Laker

    Laker New Member

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    Welcome Scott. I had a 1986 VF500 from new that I rode for 15 years and really loved it. What a great machine. It looks like your boss has a couple RZ350's. Maybe get one of those too. Long live the 2 stroke.
    Have fun on that sweet Interceptor.
     
  11. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    I hear about people wrapping their bikes....am I doing it right?

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    At least the aliens or the government can't see me know. 8)

    Nah, I made a brief attempt to loosen and remove the rear exhaust nuts and quickly decided that IF I could get them off, I'd probably never get them back on. I read about this on the internet and gave it a try. I think it'll work OK. The exhaust was sanded down and now has three coats of ceramic heat paint on it. I'll cure it in once I get the bike running.
    Oh, and got the oil and filter changed today, too.
     
  12. jeremyr62

    jeremyr62 New Member

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    In my experience the hardest thing to shift is always the the OE collector box. The last one I had to remove I had to hit so hard with a sledgehammer, I ended up destroying it. But you don't have one so no worries there.

    Those rear bolts are hard to get at but not impossible with extensions and wobbles. Taking off the gearbox sprocket cover makes access a bit easier too.

    Good job aluminium foil is cheap..
     
  13. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    Got the valves adjusted on today. Man, that was.....fun....

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    The good news is that the lobes, cam chains, etc., all look beautiful. No wear at all that I can see, Everything internally that I've seen on this engine is awesome.

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    The job would have gone even quicker if I didn't have to spend an hour trying to fish out this damn wrench. It slipped, dropped, slid and fell....RIGHT into the oval hole on the INSIDE of the swing arm! My buddy was actually successful in fishing it out for me using a couple of magnets. I was thiiiiiissss close to removing the damn swing arm!

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  14. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    Carbs should be done tomorrow. To be honest, it gives me the heeby-jeebies seeing the parts like this. I would have used Tupperware, ziploc baggies, etc., but my carb guys knows his way around these things and is something of a mad scientist. I've yet to get a set of carbs back from him that weren't flawless.

    He said I made a good call in pulling them. All O-rings, bowl gaskets and fuel tees were shot. Otherwise, not too bad. "After" pics coming soon.

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  15. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    The cowl had a couple of broken tabs. One was already missing, the other was only held on by the bolt. My Dad did a couple of repairs for me....

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    ... and I hit it with a little white paint. Both of these areas are pretty much invisible when installed, but now they're fixed!

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  16. Mind_Surfer

    Mind_Surfer New Member

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    Nice job on the repair.

    Sent from my XT1031 using Tapatalk
     
  17. Scott S

    Scott S New Member

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    Heard from my carb guy tonight. Carbs are done! Now you see why I use him, especially on carbs this complicated. I still do some carbs at home, but if they're even a little bit iffy I just drop them off.
    I plan on picking them up in the morning and hopefully getting them back on the bike in the next few days.

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    After:
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  18. Mind_Surfer

    Mind_Surfer New Member

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    Looks awesome dog!

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  19. Glenngt750

    Glenngt750 New Member

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    Wow, nice bike and nicer work! Have recently been reading about the 500 c.c. V-4's. Cycle magazine called them "Jewels" and "the VF500F is marked by greatness". The 500's are the hardest to come by in my neck of the woods. Spying a V30 Magna for the step daughter with only 25000 km's on it for $1400.
    Something tells me that you are going to be extremely happy with your bike.
     
  20. GatorGreg

    GatorGreg Honda Fanboy/LitiGator

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    Oh wow - that is sweeeeet! I still remember seeing those things for the first time and being blown away when I saw the little "V-FOUR" on the lower fairing - thought it was the coolest thing ever. Looks like you're doing a great job getting her ready for the road again.
     
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