Hello from Wisconsin - '91 VFR750F

Discussion in 'Introductions' started by K_Tolz, Nov 13, 2017.

  1. K_Tolz

    K_Tolz New Member

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    Intro
    I've lurked here for about a year and finally decided it was time to say hello! There's quite a bit of good information on this forum already and I hope to contribute more!

    First, a little about myself. I am in my mid-20s and have been riding for about 6 years now, and have owned four different bikes now during my riding career. Around the end of last summer I decided I wanted a little more than my 1983 KZ550 had to offer. While it was a solid bike to ride around Milwaukee, and it carried me on many adventures during my two years owning it (see Pikes Peak pic below), the sketchy handling and the pedestrian power left me itching for something more.

    I have a couple friends from college who simply rave about VFRs. Personally, I had no experience with the bikes, but their praise of the performance and reliability of the VFR piqued my interest and I decided to browse Craigslist to see if anything interesting was out there. Immediately, I was drawn to an ad for an Italian Red '91 VFR750F 30 minutes South of Milwaukee. There were only three pictures, but the bike looked very complete so I decided to take a trip down to take a look in person. When I arrived, I was immediately impressed with the condition of this 26 year-old bike. The fairings were complete and the paint betrayed no signs of the bike having been dropped. While talking to the owner I discovered that the original owner sold the bike only 4 years ago, and has swapped hands only once since then. Who knows if that story is true, but I could care less given the condition of the bike. The current owner showed me receipts of $1200 worth of work being done to in July 2015, including new fork seals, new chain and sprockets, and new front and rear Dunlop Q3 tires. He was forced to sell it to pay for medical bills after having shoulder surgery.

    After hearing this and inspecting the bike in person, I decided I needed to take a test ride. The bike immediately started up and after warming for a couple minutes I took off down the road and headed to the nearest freeway on-ramp to test the bike at speed. Now, prior to this point I had never heard a V4 exhaust note in person. Needless to say, the second I twisted that throttle on the on-ramp I knew there was no way I wasn't buying this bike. That exhaust note through the Yoshimura muffler was simply intoxicating. I had never heard an engine sing, growl, and roar all in conjunction. Everything on the test ride checked out, and I brought it back to the seller. We negotiated down to $2600, and I had my first truly eye-catching motorcycle in a condition I could be proud of. I may have paid too much, but I felt the condition of the bike along with the recent maintenance done to it justified the price. Mileage read just shy of 25k.

    My VFR hasn't missed a beat over my first year of ownership. Without complaint it will satisfy both on-ramp heroics and day road trips through rural WI. It really is a do-anything motorcycle with a hell of an engine (that exhaust note!). It's tucked away for winter now, but I am already looking forward to the adventures it will take me on next year.

    Bike modifications:
    Corbin seat (torn seam right where my butt sits, seems to be a problem due to the pressure put on here from the rider and the lack of padding under the area)
    Yoshimura muffler
    Bar ends with cruise control

    Maintenance/repairs I have performed:
    Oil and filter change (Castrol 20W-50 part synthetic oil, Honda filter)
    Air filter replacement (OEM)
    Replaced miscellaneous/incorrect screws and fasteners ($8 for a quarter turn screw? Better not lose any)
    Antifreeze replaced (with Honda blue antifreeze)
    Removed non-functional 90's security alarm kit and cleaned up the wiring
    Replaced stripped out gear that drives the cable to the speedometer
    Replaced missing seat locking mechanism
    Wash/clay/wax (some knucklehead hit the bike with an egg while I was parked outside of Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee. Couldn't believe it. Scratched the paint, but not in a very visible spot. I was finding egg yolk amongst the wiring around the triple tree months later)

    Plans:
    Replace voltage regulator with R1 unit I had from my old FZR600 (the wires going to the OEM unit on the bike are already crispy)
    Replace rubber brake and clutch lines with stainless steel lines

    Qustions:
    Hard luggage. I would really like to set this bike up for touring, and I see that at one point there were many hard luggage options. Do any luggage manufacturers still produce hard luggage for the third gen VFRs? Everyplace I look seems to be out of stock.

    Speedometer accuracy. The speedometer and odometer tend to read about 15% fast compared to mile markers on the freeway. Do these speedos tend to read fast? I don't want to rack up a ton of illegitimate mileage. Once I get the bike out of storage next season I will count the teeth on the sprockets to see if the gearing has been changed. I hope the sprockets are correct, because I really enjoy the acceleration the bike currently has.

    Valve clearance. The bike reads approximately 26k miles now, and I have no idea if a valve adjustment has ever been performed. Should I be worried if the bike runs great? I have performed valve clearance adjustments before on inline 4 engines, but I hear it is a real pain in the ass on the V4.

    Lastly, this thread would be worthless without pics!
    Some were taken by a GoPro, in case you were wondering about the distortion. (And yes, I always wear gear. Except for that photo :))
     

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  2. RllwJoe

    RllwJoe Insider

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    Welcome to the forum! Good purchase you have there. As for the valve clearance check we all tend to be our own pit crew. Spend some time reading through the following post: http://vfrworld.com/threads/tips-for-5th-gen-valve-clearance-inspection.16474/
    That post is of a 5th gen, but yours won't be that different. Its not as difficult as you may think, and by doing it yourself you will save a bundle over what a dealership would charge.
     
  3. Samuel

    Samuel Member

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    That picture on the bridge made me lol! Welcome! :)

    Reminded me of:

    [​IMG]
     
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  4. K_Tolz

    K_Tolz New Member

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    I'd be lying if I said Top Gun didn't partially inspire that picture.
     
  5. Big_Jim59

    Big_Jim59 Member

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    Welcome! You found a real gem and at a young age too. My advice is to start buying good tools and never ever pay big bucks for service. Valve adjustments are not easy but they do make a great winter project. Think about replacing the hoses if they are OEM. You presented a great introduction and write up that was worth the read.
     
  6. K_Tolz

    K_Tolz New Member

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    Glad you enjoyed the writeup! I've actually been wrenching on my own bikes ever since I got into the hobby. Buying cheap bikes and keeping them running myself has allowed me to afford them. I've ammassed a decent collection of tools over the years, usually out of necessity for some new project I take on. I wouldn't mind doing the valves this winter, but right now I lack a good garage space to work in, so it must wait. The hoses felt pretty good when I inspected them during the coolant change, so I'm not too worried about them cracking or leaking.
     
  7. Big_Jim59

    Big_Jim59 Member

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    I wouldn't be worried about the hoses either but I would replace them when I was deep into the bike. Pretty much every bike i ever bought, except for my VFR, came to me as a non-runner or in boxes.
     
  8. cayman

    cayman New Member

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    For luggage, I recommend that the 3rd generation VFRs were really well designed to accept the Givi kit. You can find an occasional Wingrack on ebay or craigslist, which will accept just about any flat back case Givi made. Super versatile and well worth it for commuting or touring.
     
  9. Big_Jim59

    Big_Jim59 Member

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    I have some big old Chaise Harper throw over bags for when I go tripping. I got them used, they are just now showing signs of wear (one more trip and that will be it) and I don't have the bags or the hardware hanging off all the time. I had another brand of motorcycle with factory hard bags and I just couldn't get used to the width. The added bulk bugged me. A top box, of any kind, is the nuts of you are commuting. I think they are ugly but they are as practical as a milk crate and bungee cords.
     
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