VF1000R rebuild

Started reading this last night. Wife started complaining that I needed to spend time with her, so I completed it this morning. Wonderful attention to detail and craftsmanship. Really inspirational for me. My wife doesn't know that I went to sleep last night trying to figure out what I need to do a CF wrap on.

I looked on ebay. There are cloths that look like CF that are cheaper than actual CF. I am guessing that UV would degrade these rapidly. I'm also guessing that thinner CF would be easier for wrapping. I'm seeing a vision of a rebuild with the fairings completely wrapped in CF. Ebay has some with color. The blue and black CF looks interesting as well as the red and black. I'm heading to Belgium in a couple of weeks and already found a red Blackbird there that is red, but has lots of cosmetic damage to the plastic. I'm wondering if covering the fairings in the red with black CF would look good. Maybe you've just got my imagination in overdrive. Not sure.

Great work.

 

I can't speak to the non-carbon cloth but just make sure you use an epoxy resin, not polyester. Polyester does not dry clear, it's more yellow. On the fairings, if it was me, I'd still put some paint on over the CF in places, just to break it up.

 

Since it's snowing this weekend, I thought I'd get some inside work done. I've been meaning to do a valve adjustment for some time now but it's such a pain that I tend to put it off. With my bike in a cold garage I thought I'd take a look at a motor I had kicking around. I bought it several years ago as a spare for $400 with unknown mileage. I painted it and did a valve adjustment.



Not much adjustment was needed and they are all spanked up now. Every lobe looked like this one, perfect. I'm sure there are bad ones out there but of the 6 R motors I've seen inside, none had messed up cams... not scientific, just saying.



So i'll swap motors when the weather gets better and see how second gear is. It probably has 60k miles less on it than the one in there now so hopefully she'll be a little "tighter". I'll put in a fresh clutch and a set of low mile pickups.

 

That is the VF1000R gear driven cam engine.
Also you will notice the plugs and cut outs on the cylinder head showing that it has a line bored cam.
You can expect no trouble with the cam faces as the cam probably has oil holes in the faces of the cam,(bottom side).

 

I only mention it Don cause some new R owners put an oil mod on their must do list but I have my doubts but peace of mind is priceless I suppose. I wouldn't tell someone to not do it.

 

From my 20+ years of experience with the early V4's I can tell you that the top end oiling issue is most prevalent in the 1983 model VF750F - but the VF1000R is a VERY close second. For sure any running early VF should have some sort of oiling mod. There is really no debate there.

 

I agree.

The late 1986 VF1000R's had factory fixes.
Line bored cams and oil holes in the cam face.
Like this:

Although this engine shown does NOT have the line bored cam.
You notice no cut outs for the half circle rubber plugs to match up with the valve cover.

 

awwwweee!!! I sooooo want a spare engine (or just heads) to practice valve Adjustments.

Nice work as always Hopit

 

It's easy to do, especially when the motor is on the bench but for some reason I've always hated doing them. The screw adjustment from too tight to too loose is so small that it can get frustrating but it doesn't take that long and it's worth it. Grab 2 feeler gauges and have at it...you'll do fine.

 

Wow, another ressurection of false information. These things have been debunked many years ago. In order to fix the problem you have to address the source(s) of the problem. In this case the problem areas are insufficient case hardening of the rocker arm faces and inadequate oil supply. Niether of which were addressed in the two changes you note. They have also been proven to have no affect on the situation.

 

Ran across this thread last night and could not stop reading-----Hobit----by no stretch of the imagination----YOU ARE THE MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! holy cow, you should be very proud of yourself. Pat yourself on the back, but don't pull a muscle.CHEERS

 

Thanks Duccmann, it's been quite a project. Unfortunately' it's not done. I'm working on an auxiliary cooling system and a different ignition set-up...i'll keep you posted.

 

WOW, I havnt been on this site or posted in a thread since 2008, when I was restoring a VF500F. Glad I did a search and found this thread.
I did a CBR600 F1 rear shock upgrade, making the brackets myself, for the VF500F. So now I have a 85 VF1000R that I bought cheap. PO said it has a bent rod or valve. Once I diagnose, I will be starting the break-down this summer, easy enough, but my question pertains to the rear suspension. I want to get rid of the stock unit, and I have a spare from a 600F2. Would this F2 unit support the weight of a 540lb dry weight motorcycle? I am frugal, so I dont want to spend a lot of money on a new aftermarket high performance unit. Can I go with a CBR1000 shock? Thx

 

A stock CBR600F2 rear shock is not even close. At minimum a new spring is required. Of course, that is after the shock is modified to fit your VF.

Assuming you are talking about a CBR1000RR shock, the answer is no it will not work. There is not enough room on your VF to fit the attached reservoir. You have to use a shock that either does not have a reservoir at all or has the reservoir attached with a rubber hose.

 

What about a circa 1987-1990 CBR1000F? Hurricane?

 

I guess anything is possible, but the way I convert shocks to fit the early VF's it would not work.

Please see my site for more details if you are interested.

 

I used a Penske shock with remote reservoirs, originally for a GSXR. It did take making a custom lower mount and the spring had to be swapped out for a much heavier one. Springs are about $100.

 

Why Lord...Why?


It seems like I was just at this stage not that long ago. Geez! I thought I was done with this thing




I decided to try out a motor I had kicking around just to see if was solid or not. I strip everything off and lift the frame off the motor...easy for one person, but you often find things that need addressing while you're in there so... Looking at the frame, there were some places that really needed some touch up so I had to respray it.


I had painted the block, heads and valve covers but looking at the side covers, there were some scratches and and some faded areas. They were in my hands so it would be dumb to not freshen them up as well so...



Into the blast cabinet to remove the paint and here they are all naked.




Some black powder before their trip to the oven. It looks grey but be patient.




Fresh from the 400 degree oven. All totaled...about $4 worth of powder with plenty left over for other things that will most likely pop up





I've got my radiators at a shop getting an enema. That gives me some time to get the rest of the stuff back on. Looks like I'll be re-doing the rear wheel as well. It was my first attempt at home PCing so there are a few spots that I could live with but since everything is set up, I might as well do it right while I'm at it.

 

Yum! :redface:

 

Yeah really ^ almost as good as looking at porn. BTW you could do a decent mail order biz re-coating peoples stuff...My side covers look awful but I am the only one that knows cause they are hidden by farings...Cheers, Nice Work!