5th Gen Resto....A look back on what was.

Was going through my old records and found the data files for this 2000 VFR800 I restored 4 years ago. This was the reason I joined VFRWORLD but never posted anything. I think I was going back and forth on what the "real" VFR site was between brand X and this site!

I bought it off CL from a guy "who knew what he had" . Of course he mentioned NO SCAMMERS and IF THE AD IS UP IT IS STILL AVAILABLE plus for bonus points he said PRICE IS FIRM DO NOT BOTHER TO OFFER ANYTHING LESS THAN MY PRICE.

So I immediately did what any good CL guy does and asked if it was till available and then proceeded to low ball him LOL.

We went back and forth for a while and I agreed to come and look at it. It did not run due to a "fuel pump issue" but "it was an easy fix" So I get there and the drive way is of course full of half completed project Toyota MR2's and such. Dude was way over his head. I tried to start it and gave up and said no thanks and bailed.

After a month of watching it go up and down on price on CL it bottomed out at $1100.00 so I made my move. In between me calling him and me arriving he changed the price to $1300.00 "because it was a typo" in the ad. I just got back in the truck and started to drive off and he said he would go with he $1,100.00. Jeez.

Anyway, here is what it looked like in it's plasti-dip glory.....

 

And he said it was an AWESOME paint job.

 

Here is the deal....I had no idea how plasti-dip worked and as I inspected the bike I saw some YELLOW sunshine coming through the paint.

I scratched it with my fingernail and this was what I saw by the seat.






I had no idea about the color under the whit paint, but I started scraping with my fingernails and palm. After about 2 weeks of scraping this is what it looked like...

 

I have no idea why the PO to the PO painted it that weird green color on the tank and side fairings. Bike did not appear to have been in a wreck and need a re-painting.

This shot is after I did a ton of clean up work also. It was trashed. I added the Honda decal on the tank.

 

did you have to buy replacement turn signal and brake lenses, or had the PO actually dipped those or used VHT nightshades or something like that?

looks like you did a great job... what a diff in the before and after! i hope my 99 shows the same way after this winter...

 

Yes....everything was painted with that "black out" spray. I think I used paint thinner or acetone to remove it. Can't remember. It was actually pretty easy to remove which was surprising. They came out looking just like new.

 

That headlight took about a week of polishing to get clear. I also replaced the tinted windshield with an OEM.

As per my custom, I want the bike back to OEM as much as possible, and that means the exhaust also.



OEM Muffler can...Quiet and effective!

 

Wow! Your doing a great job bringing a great bike back to life. Looks like you spent time on the rims too. Its unbelievable what the Honda Tri-Coat VFR Yellow cost per pint. I went cheap on the ST1300 one cold Winter of sanding for two-months before I delivered the body parts to the paint shop for the 05Goldwing yellow at about a third of the cost of the VFR paint per pint.

Be careful, it looks like your turning your VFR into a show room bike rather than a bike to be ridden. Great job!