The Adventure Begins (again)

Discussion in '1st & 2nd Generation 1983-1989' started by deja vu, Feb 24, 2019.

  1. sixdog

    sixdog Member

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    When I bought my CBR1100xx the previous owner told me the same thing about plug replacement.... " i just changed plugs" he said. Pulled out the plugs and they were in bad shape. Called him and he said " never said I put new ones in" ...... yea trust but verify. I usually buy bikes that need TLC and have learned to do a full inspection/ tune up and general look over BEFORE I start riding the bike.
     
  2. deja vu

    deja vu New Member

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    Sixdog - wise words. Fortunately, I put less than 40 or 50 miles on the bike, doing safety checks and such. Here's a picture of the other two plugs. Incredibly, both were loose as well - 3 out of 4 were loose. As previously noted, the bike was running fuzzy (compared to the last time I rode one almost 25 years ago). There was also water spraying out of both exhaust weepholes and the bike almost sounded like it had a slight tick (I wouldn't say a knock).

    After replacing the last two spark plugs tonight, the tick is gone, no spraying of water (I let it idle for about 3-5 minutes before taking a quick ride around the block) and the power is amazing. As squirrelman noted, it wants to rip my arms off when accelerating from 35 (I didn't want to get too wild in the subdivision).

    In installing the plugs, I followed the manual's give it a 1/2 turn after the plugs seat advice. Next step will be to recheck in a few days to make sure nothing has changed, though now I know what to look for. It wouldn't be surprising if the cylinders had been pulling in air directly past the spark plug threads, leading to the condensation in the exhaust. That said, I'm fighting the tendency to say "it's hard to believe someone could be so irresponsible in changing the plugs", though I don't want to jump to conclusions until I put a couple of hundred miles on the bike and recheck the seating.

    Next up:
    • Replace the busted turn signal stem
    • Change/replace the fork oil

    Also, bought a NOS air filter (Honda) from Ebay and it turned out they sent 2 for the price of 1. In replacing the filter, it the previous owner had installed K&N.
     

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    Last edited: Mar 8, 2019
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  3. squirrelman

    squirrelman Member

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    good work ! :Bravo: you used some lube on the plug threads, right ? :Kiss:
     
  4. deja vu

    deja vu New Member

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    Indeed...the customary copper color anti-seize compound. I'm still perplexed at how 3 out of the 4 plugs were practically loose. Also, I had noticed some slight smoking. Given that there was misting out of the weep hole, I've got to believe the smoke, which was light colored, was probably just water (condensation). As you said, the power (rip your arms off) is off the charts compared to before.
     
    Last edited: Mar 8, 2019
  5. Bill Mclean

    Bill Mclean New Member

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    Following this post closely. I have an 87 F2 with 8800 original miles and all stock. Squirrel working his magic on my carbs as we speak. Looks like you found a keeper. Congrats
     
  6. deja vu

    deja vu New Member

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    Bill - thanks. Great to hear yours is stock as well - that's the intent here as well. Some quick updates from this weekend:
    • Drained the coolant system (the fifth bolt) and also siphoned out of the bottle; added all new coolant
    • Replaced all four turn signal stems; the two in the front were damaged from when the bike was put down. We found the gasket for the front stems (was shoved behind the fairing) and we lubed it so we could install it with the new, non-damaged stems. Both fixtures are scraped on the outside from when the bike was set down
    • Bled the rear brake; the speedbleeders I bought don't fit and I'm looking at another brand

    Took the bike out yesterday and she did really well; was interesting to take the VRod around the block afterwards.

    Also, I ordered a touchup kit and plastic repair kit from Color Rite for the damage on the fairings. I'm girding for a protracted battle on this one and will be touching up the white portions in the interim (primer, base coat, clearcoat) in advance of an anticipated full replacement. Still considering options for the front cowling.

    Let me know how yours is progressing and if you're looking at any additional items on the bike besides the carburetors.
     

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  7. deja vu

    deja vu New Member

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    An update... With the mechanical items (regulator/rectifier, spark plugs, tires, all fluids, etc.) in the past, it's nice to be able to rely on the the over-engineered aspects of the bike (and the fact that it has less than 8,900 miles), so the focus shifts to cosmetic items. As a reminder, the bike appears to have been laid down a long time ago...on both sides, resulting in the expected outcome, which include:
    • A crack in the right side mirror
    • Broken fairing tips at the center stay - both sides
    • Broken or missing center fairing stays
    • Paint damage at 3 or 4 places on each fairing side
    • A broken right side, lower fairing stay, missing fairing screw and spider webbing of the polycarbonate around the hole
    • Scraped right side inspection cap
    • Scraped right front turn signal housing
    • Broken turn signal stems
    • Cracks on both sides of the cowling (above the turn signals)
    And now for the latest:
    • Replaced the broken turn signal stems; fortunately, the stem seals for the front stems were still there and usable; we greased the seals up after replacing with non-sagging stems and reinstalled
    • Still searching for a right front turn signal housing (preferably NOS)
    • Replaced the right side inspection cap (found on Partzilla)
    • Found a right side, lower stay on Ebay; should arrive next week - also, found the screw on Partzilla and ordered it
    • Sanded the damaged areas of the fairing; used Plastifix on one of the areas where the rub had gone all the way through the polycarbonate
    • Found one center stay so far on Ebay (the item 23 instead of the item 20 in the cowl diagram) - it's coming from Japan and should arrive next month
    • Formed new fairing tips with Plastifix on both sides at the center stay location where previously broken off; drilled one hole where the hole location was still visible on the remaining fairing portion
    • Still looking for a preferably NOS right side mirror (or at least the connecting arm)
    Regarding the fairing repair approach, both air ducts appear to be intact, though the thread inserts for two of the screws on the left duct are missing, together with the screws. Both fairing springs also came with the bike. Based on this, I'm thinking it's worth trying to sand off the decals, lightly scuff the fairings, and prime/paint/re-decal/clearcoat each fairing. It looks like all of this can be done for about $400 ($300 for the paint and $100 for the decals), which is about what it would cost to replace the fairings with newer, fiberglass versions. Using this approach, I won't have to mess around with drilling out tabs, holes, reinstalling the ducts, riveting bottom fairing connectors, etc.

    A couple of more items (mostly just being nit picky):
    • Replaced the four upper fairing screws, two on each side (the black ones with the rusty screw heads)
    • Replaced the brake lever - it had apparently been bent when the bike was laid down and almost looked like a "c"
    The bike is running very nicely - have been on a couple of short rides recently, as the weather continues to improve.
     

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    Last edited: Mar 17, 2019
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