Fixing my VF500F

Nope, a fouled plug will be wet. Yours looks more like a tad rich but that's it. One thing that I can tell is that it looks like you are burning a little oil. It's not real bad though, I really don't see anything alarming with that plug.

 

Is it a bad idea to ride out the rest of the season with a high idle and lean or rich mixture?

It's been a while since I updated. Today I decided to call the local motorcycle store where I ordered the spark plug wire from cuz they haven't called me and turns out that Honda now has the item on backorder. They say I am the only one in the whole US of A ordering this part and it needs to be shipped from Japan. The guy on the other line reassured me that they will find out when it's supposed to be coming in within a few days. This would be where I would let out a big F word should I be allowed to curse on this forum.

So I decided that I will most likely not get to ride the rest of this season if I wait for that part. Today I went to the local auto store and looked for some spark plug wires (as Grey suggested - thanks) and found some radio shielded ignition wire. I was pretty happy til I cut it up and installed it then found out that it doesn't work. The core is some weird carbon string thing not copper as the old wires. I don't think they had the other kind but I didn't ask cuz I assumed they are all solid core.

By this time I got the idea to repair the old wire. I joined the wire with the stub that was left on the part that hooks on the spark plug. I was lucky to even have that stub. Eventually I got the bike running again.

I took it on the road and rode around for about an hour and was quite pleased with it despite the high idle and lack of power. I thought it would be stronger, considering it has 70 HP, but that could be the carbs having some problem.

I might sell this thing next spring. I am worried about something else breaking on it and not being able to fix it or find the parts. In hindsight I was a dumbass buying this. I wanted something to ride quickly and cheaply and couldn't wait. But I have learned a bit about its inner workings and about older motorcycles. I wouldn't mind buying another one to work on. It brings great pleasure working on something and then bringing it to life. It feels great riding something that you are intimately familiar with (haha). So I might actually buy another junk at some point and make it ridable although nothing from the 80s, or anything that parts are had to find like this one.

Gonna keep updated on this but it might be a while til I take the carbs apart again. Next time I'll order some gaskets and suck it up. I'm basically stuck for the long haul now.

 

""
I might sell this thing next spring. I am worried about something else breaking on it and not being able to fix it or find the parts. In hindsight I was a dumbass buying this. I wanted something to ride quickly and cheaply and couldn't wait. ""


THAT'S the most common VF 500 experience around, and the same goes more or less for any other VF model.

The modern era of Hondas started in 1986 with the VFR, a far more reliable ride.

 

Actually, I disagree with that. The most common experience with VF500 owners is that they ABSOLUTELY LOVE the bike. Usually the only reason they get sold is because the rider is ready for something more powerful or faster. This almost always leads to thoughs of "I miss my VF500". When I park the SuperHawk or Ducati and ride one of my VF500's I get more comments than the other two put together. I can't tell you how many people stop me to give a story about how they wish they has their VF500 back.

Sure, the VFR700's were better but I would not compare them to 'modern' Honda technology. They were staggering back in the day but Honda has since moved on in all categories.

 

Happens to me alot too.

 

Don't get me wrong I like the bike but it doesn't work right.

 

Sounds like you need to adjust the timing, and fully rebuild the carbs. If the bike was rideable for a good hour - then the bike is fixable in my opinion.

Just get 4 carb kits and do a rebuild. Adjust the timing, put in 4 new plugs.

I think you'd be pleasantly surprised.

 

There's a guy in my area who finds VF's which their owners give up and he fixes them and sells them.

He has told me many stories of people getting rid of their bikes cause they think something is terribly wrong or it's running on only 3 cylinders and 9 times out of 10 it's not a huge fix.

 

THE spark timing is NOT adjustable, and the valve timing is not adjustable either: it's either correct (bike runs) or it's not ( valve damage) and nothing to play around with.

Carbs often need a good cleaning but seldom need the expensive rebuild kits which are just a few rubber bits.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Jamie, one of our foremost proponents of the venerable VF 500, is a professional engineer and also a professional mechanic with years of experience, so naturally he can keep his bike going, while others may not .

 

You give me too much credit. I'm wondering when I'm going to get a PM asking for a favor!


....just kidding of course, thanks for the kind words.

 

I'm assuming you didn't pay a lot for it, so keep that in mind. You also have an old bike with VERY low miles - all of the procblems you have described are a function of it sitting for long periods of time. The carbs are probably beyond repair and getting another set would not be a bad idea. The chain will need replaced but even a new bike will need that eventually. The rust in the tank is again because it sat for so long, this can even happen over just one winter.

I really don't think your issues are that big. Put in a little bit of work and you'll have a great bike that will get lots of comments. Sell it now and the next guy will be one who reaps the benefits!

 

Yesterday I went for a ride on it and it DIED on me! Left me stranded about 3-4 miles from my house. It just wouldn't start again and I could feel it hogging and hesitating sporadically before it eventually died. It wouldn't stay running below 5000 RPM. Then it wouldn't start at all.

I thought I was going to have to push it home but it started again after letting it cool for 10-15 minutes. The weird thing is it wasn't overheating.

I guess this is it until i get it running right cuz I don't want this to happen when I really need to be somewhere.

I think I will buy rebuild kits cuz I need to take the carbs apart again and it needs new gaskets for sure. Gonna check the float levels but other than that I can't see what else would be wrong with them. It runs just at 3000 RPM so that means it doesn't get enough gas below that? I don't know.

I wish I knew someone locally that fixes bikes that would make things a hell of a lot easier for me.

 

+1 :thumbsup:

 

That makes me sick to my stomach.

 

no sick is spooning jamie in the hotel at indy :biggrin:

 

I just threw up in my mouth a little uke:

 

X2. :frown:

I guess Matt just let us in on the secret to how he got his parts from Jamie.

 

So did Matt at first but he got used to it after about an hour.

 

Don't get so upset, you can find used carbs fairly cheap and easy.

I think right about now is a good time for a reality check. This is 20+ years old. A few hiccups here and there are totally normal and you should be prepared to deal with it. A motorcycle like this a joy to ride and the satisfaction you get from knowing that you are being rewarded for your efforts is worth it. If you want something that you just ride without having to think about then you'll need $10k+ for a new bike. Anything used is going to be... used.

 

>>>>

This sounds like you might have an electrical issue, maybe not carbs.

You need to check for sparks when the bike gets warm and quits, because electrical components, but not carbs, are sensitive to heat and may temporarily malfunction.

It's your money, Bunky, but there's no need for those $45 carb gasket kits from Honda......unless you have leaky float bowl gaskets, which isn't common.