New rider, new bike

I just picked up an '86 500 interceptor from a barn for free. It's been sitting for many years. It's all there as far as I know. I've raced dirt bikes for many years and now I ride trials. I've never had a street bike because car drivers scare me. But, I'd like to get this bike going and give it a try. I may have lots of questions, as I'm new to street bike rebuilds. I'm in the Indianapolis area.

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WELCOME !

not alot of those models still run. make a compression test first, then inspect the cams and valves b4 you spend a lot of money on it. dozens of sad stories here about troubles with the vf500 and many frustrated guys after many attempts to get a reliable running example.

go0d luck, but many free bikes are worth just that, zero.


(btw: i grew up in indy.)

 

Congrats. I hope you can get it running and on the road. I have an 86 VF500 also. It was purchased new and I still ride it. It is lots of fun to ride and easy to handle. I guess many of them did have a problem, but mine runs great. It only has 26k miles, so that may be a factor.
Lots of good info here on this forum.

 

What were some of the common problems people have had with these bikes,?

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low compression is common from sitting for years, but the #1 problem is valve damage, which can lead to engine failure when the valve drops into the combustion chamber and hammers through the piston.

inspect the tops of valve stems for signs of metal spreading ("mushrooming"), which is fatal.

 

Will do. Thanks!

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also check oil and cooling system for signs of any milky white deposits that indicate a blown head gasket.

 

Wow, these things still keep popping up! Good luck and I will be a shoulder to cry on if you take this challenge!

 

Lol thank you.

 

I finally power washed the dust & crust off the bike and the odo says 13kmi. Will probably wait until it cools off to start digging in.