VF500F with CBR600F Fork Sliders

Discussion in '1st & 2nd Generation 1983-1989' started by invisible cities, Nov 16, 2009.

  1. invisible cities

    invisible cities New Member

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    7-8mm

    5x5 - thank you again for taking time on a Sunday afternoon to check this!
     
  2. chiefmg

    chiefmg New Member

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    That might be overkill for this bike. Having said that, I have a USD fork from a late-model FZR1000 waiting to go on my RZ500.

    No problem, I was just sitting on my butt anyway. Hit me with a thanks!! LOL

    Seriously, if I can help people then I will. I know how it is being on a limited budget while wanting to make improvements. I may not have a lot of knowledge but I will share what I have.
     
  3. chiefmg

    chiefmg New Member

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    Oh yeah, and keep in mind that the measurement I took with the forks collapsed are your minimum. With everything buttoned up I doubt you would ever be able to get close to that clearance. Unless your last name was Rossi!
     
  4. JamieDaugherty

    JamieDaugherty New Member

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    Actually, you might be surprised. The tie wrap on my forks that I use to set the sag takes about a day to get pushed all of the way to full compression. Don't forget that under braking the forks deflect. It's more than you might think, I always maintain at least 10mm clearance and prefer 15mm or more.

    Thanks for the pictures.
     
  5. chiefmg

    chiefmg New Member

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    I know what you are saying, but I NEVER had any problems under racing conditions. I can't imagine any situation on the street where you would experience more deflection than that. What this is going to come down to is if each separate person is comfortable with it then they can do it. For myself, I have no problem running this setup on the street.
     
  6. tinkerinWstuff

    tinkerinWstuff Administrator Staff Member

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    Jamie's got a point - however, if I compress my forks all the way to the stops and am still braked hard enough to get all that deflection, kissing the valve cover with the plastic fender is gonna be the least of my worries.

    The steaming load in my pants will be my first concern :biggrin:
     
  7. invisible cities

    invisible cities New Member

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    7 vs 15

    Any thoughts on the minimum height - from the top of the triple clamp to the base of the fork cap - required to mount a set of clip-ons above the triple clamp?

    View attachment 10040
     
  8. JamieDaugherty

    JamieDaugherty New Member

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    Again, you might be surprised at what's really going on with your bike when you are riding. Things deflect and move around, and it doesn't even have to be a 'pucker' moment like you mention. All parts bend and move - it's a fact of life. The manufacturers are constantly trying to manipulate where and how much, but it can never go away completely. And you don't want it to, some flexing is actually good.



    It's really difficult to give a specific number. It all depends on the parts used in your setup. Sometimes you don't have much choice and are forced to take what you can get.
     
  9. invisible cities

    invisible cities New Member

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    stock clip-ons

    I've added a drawing to the post above. I've noted 55.65mm or 2.191" for this dimension - on a stock VF500F.

    cheifmg - From your photos it looks like you have the clip-ons mounted below the top clamp. Are there any clearance issues?
     
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2009
  10. chiefmg

    chiefmg New Member

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    Clip-ons are mounted below the top triple, had to do that for clearance with the RVF750 front fairing. No problems with them in that position but then I was running a steering damper which reduced my lock on its own. Those are aftermarket clip-ons, I have had them mounted above the top triple and they fit just fine.
     
  11. invisible cities

    invisible cities New Member

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    2 F2 or not 2 F2

    Thank you for the intel.

    Sliding the fork tubes back down a bit to get to 15mm still seems like an option - granted the 7-8mm you currently have has been fine, even under the higher stresses of track conditions.

    I'd be curious to know what rake and trail you are running - you mention having a Fox Twin Clicker so you could raise the back a bit if needed. The stock rake and trail calculations I have are 27d and 104mm.

    One caveat to the F2 forks would be how to go about mounting the clip-ons with the stock VF500F fairing. I think there might be some clearance issues here.
     
  12. chiefmg

    chiefmg New Member

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    Rake/trail figures- no idea. Should be pretty close to stock as that was how I set it up. The bike handled pretty neutrally. Only variable I am not sure about is the offset of the F2 triples, that would have an effect on the values. I couldn't get good readings right now as both tires are flat (cut thanks to my ex).

    As for the clip-ons, you could go aftermarket like I did. The part that clamps to the tubes is usually thinner than stock. Still might be hard finding something narrow enough if you were to move the tubes down in the triples more than what I have. I did put mine above the triples at one point and they fully clamped, but I don't recall how much (if any) of the tube was above the clip-on.
     
  13. JamieDaugherty

    JamieDaugherty New Member

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    Oh man, that is so wrong!!! I'm sorry to hear about that.
     
  14. chiefmg

    chiefmg New Member

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    Yeah, well not to sound too flippant but she is dead. Karma does catch up to you (not that it was because of the tires being cut, she had major issues). I'm just glad she didn't sell any of my bikes or RX-7 before I was permitted to get them from the house.
     
  15. willi777

    willi777 New Member

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    Old thread- but regarding clearance issues with F2 front end swap... if i recall the Steve Scott VF500 race pages, he mentioned using a set of early CBR1000 or VF1000 triple clamps in order to corrct offset and gain clearance with the F2 fork swap. Anyone know if Steve Scott's page or info has been saved anywhere?
    Also, instead of swapping fork lowers, why not swap the entire CBR600 front end right onto the VF500? If you can't slide CBR6 front end right into VF500 triples, it can't be difficult to swap CBR600 triples, allowing use of CBR600 front end.
     
  16. invisible cities

    invisible cities New Member

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    I believe that while the CBR600F triples can be installed without modification the forks are too short and will cause a clearance issue btwn the fender and radiator.

    My original thought was to switch out the sliders. I am thinking now to keep the stock forks/sliders and have a set of new caliper carriers machined to allow for the installation of modern calipers and larger diameter rotors. I would like to pair this w/ upgrading to new springs and emulators from Race Tech.
     
  17. invisible cities

    invisible cities New Member

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    Update, a recent post from Big3 has me thinking about this again.

    http://vfrworld.com/forums/1st-2nd-generation-1983-1989/30355-vf500-barn-find-2.html#post325581

    It was serendipitous as I received a price this week to have a custom bracket machined that will mount to the stock TRAC side slider. It was pricey to say the least. $480 for one. The cost is reduced significantly when ordering multiples, but I am not sure how much interest there is out there for this type of upgrade (would allow for four piston calipers and larger F/F2 rotors).

    Instead, installing 41mm F2 forks (no TRAC) looks to be a great way to go.

    The caveat to this is, IMO, Jamie D's reluctance to give his blessing on the clearance. I would wager to say that JD has the most experience on suspension setups when it comes to the VF series.

    If reading through the VFRW morning 'paper' over tea and toast JD, I would be very interested in hearing your take on Big3's thread.
     
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