Matt Tries – 1984 VF500F Overhaul

Discussion in '1st & 2nd Generation 1983-1989' started by Colddevil, Feb 14, 2020.

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  1. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    I hear you about the valve clatter. I did not remember it being that loud from back in the day. It does get better when the oil pressure gets up.
     
  2. straycat

    straycat Member

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    re Fork seals...you and me both
     
  3. Colddevil

    Colddevil Member

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    Knowing you're having similar issues helped me keep an even head about it. Misery loves company, right? Plus I set myself up by trying to be super cheap. Lesson learned. It's not like I have to pull the engine out. :Sorry: (Jim). Also, I'm going to just knock on some of this wood here...
     
  4. raYzerman

    raYzerman Member

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    Naw, I doubt your misalignment caused fork seal leaks... anyway, glad you got all that alignment straightened out. Now what about a Bumble Bee theme for the paintwork? I'll have to share some ideas I've got for my yellow 5th Gen.
     
  5. Colddevil

    Colddevil Member

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    I am all ears on ideas for the next paint job! So long as yellow is the primary color. Once the mechanicals are sorted out, I'll begin worrying about aesthetics. The only remaining aesthetic mod I have left is to remove the word "CAMs" and the letter "R" from the "GEAR DRIVEN CAMS" and "VFR" stickers, lol. I should actually have access through work to a legitimate paint booth, I'll just have to sneak a work obligation in and a few nights in Illinois.

    Also, what are the odds that this bike on eBay isn't related to mine? The seller is within 100 miles of me, and I can't imagine that many people decided they wanted canary/pastel yellow that looks great in the sun and dreadful under any other source of light. Been tempted to email him asking if his name matches the name that's carved into a couple inconspicuous spots on mine considering he states that bike is a single owner.

    https://www.ebay.com/itm/1985-Honda...a=1&pg=2334524&_trksid=p2334524.c100667.m2042

    vfyellow.PNG
     
  6. lsc86

    lsc86 New Member

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    Go with black forks, offsets some of the yellow nicely- IMO!

    Very few pics remain of my bike, or any of my teen years. It was all 35mm film, if you could afford it, or 110 Kodak disposable cameras.....and I was lucky enough to afford the $96.12 monthly bike payment, insurance, and gas for my VF500, let alone 35mm cameras and film developing costs making $2.90 @ Baskin Robbins 31-Flavors....

    Based on my fading brain cells, I'd probably agree that your lower is Spec-II. The Lockhart was cut straight, like a Ninja 900 middle, and didn't curve back towards the center of the engine like the Spec-II. Good friend back in the day had an '84 VF750 with the Spec-II lower and looked the same as your bike. I recently cut loose 2 decades worth of cycle magazines from the mid-80s through early 2000s, including many original catalogs from V&H, Hindle, Sudco, etc.....just got tired of them taking up so much space and listening to the wife bitch about them. Probably had plenty of great photos I coulda scanned. Someone got a killer deal too, think I gave it all up for $100 after getting zero interest at $250 and n0 patience to do it one at a time on fleabay.

    The muffler bracket really wasn't much at all, straight cheap steel stock with a hole in one end for the footpeg mount and an inverted U on the other end to stop the little arm of the center stand from hitting anything. Crappy drawing attached below.

    The SV was definitely a unique bike and if you're comfortable on it, that'll make all the difference while you're learning for sure. Get yourself to Grattan- oh the memories there.....

    v&h bracket.jpg magazine_collection.JPG
     
    Last edited: Jun 8, 2020
  7. Captain 80s

    Captain 80s Member

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    Shit, I have a stack of boxes three times that amount in my outer garage right now that I am in the process of trying to get rid of. Late 70's to Early 00's.

    The lowers are German, made by Telefix, distributed by Spec II in the U.S.
    [​IMG]

    And those are Spec II slip-ons.
     
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  8. lsc86

    lsc86 New Member

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    Telefix, they were the fork brace folks too IIRC. Started buying issues of various motorags in '83 and then got my first subscriptions rolling in '87. Bought a few choice per-'87 issues over the years to augment my collection. Scanned a couple catalog images, probably shoulda kept the dealer catalogs, old Yosh stuff was killer.....

    Only suggestions that come to my mind for yellow based Honda schemes would be from the HB Racing GP teams and the Commonwealth Honda/Smokin Joes AMA teams. In my era, yellow was always Suzuki dirt bike colors.

    Think I've mucked this thread up enough, I'll start some separate ones for the few scans I still have and some old school photos I managed to find of my VF as well.

    BTW- Capt80's I am so jealous of that pair pictured above! Kudos after Kudos.
     
  9. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    LOL!
     
  10. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    Damn, nice job Capt 80's!
     
  11. Colddevil

    Colddevil Member

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    Thanks for clearing up a question I've had for a decade. Also, I can't stop staring at that picture of your 500... my goodness, that looks incredible. Having cleaned my chain today I have no idea how that rear wheel is so damn clean! I'm also seeing that I'm missing the fender tabs that guide the brake lines and speedo cable. I'll have to find some. Good god that bike is gorgeous.

    Anyway, I replaced the super cheap fork seals this week and put in a set of All Balls ones. God, I make such a mess when doing fork seals. I took the bike out today about 25 miles roundtrip to a friend's house. No leaks on the fork seals, so that's good! I was feeling a bit more vibration (not alarming, but existent) than I remembered in the pegs and handlebars. Put it on the swingarm stand and loosened the chain up. Went out for another hour, and it was pretty much gone. Super excited with how the engine feels and sounds. I didn't realize how much I missed riding this bike. Just a few more things I want to get straightened out before taking it too far from home.

    2020-06-13 15.38.34.jpg

    Oh, and the rear shock is definitely shot--it's still holding pressure, but it's just not right. I never realized it before because I had nothing to compare it to. A YSS shock is the next major component that gets replaced.

    But it wouldn't be in the spirit of "Two Steps Forward, One Step Back" if something new didn't pop up! I put the speedo line on last night. Lubricated it with Liquid Wrench cable lube. Screwed it in tight to the gauges and the speedo gear drive on the wheel. It worked fine for 1.5 miles. Then it stopped. I figured I must not have tightened it well enough. Pulled it off when I got home, and I saw that the metal tab that rotates from the speedo gear drive had snapped off. The speedo drive spins fine (jacked front and spun wheel), the speedo on the gauges appears to work fine (not locked up or anything, spun with cable and seemed to work fine), and the cable seems fine.

    2020-06-13 14.29.50.jpg
    So before I put the used replacement on, I'm curious what I did that could have caused this, so I don't just torch the replacement right away. Too tight? Too much or incorrect lubrication? I can't think of what else could have caused it--especially because it worked for 1.5mi @~25mph.
     
  12. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    Matt can you slide the cable all the way out of the cable housing? Perhaps the inner cable has a burr on it and it caught itself on the inner cable housing? It may have caught then wound up until something gave.

    I am glad you had a chance to actually ride it!
     
  13. Captain 80s

    Captain 80s Member

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    Whatever parts you need for the drive you can have for the price of shipping.

    And thank you for the kind words on my 500. It's in line for some things like tires (old) and carbs (fuel tube o-rings). And I might as well do a set of 84/85 carbs so I can just swap them out. I'm not paying $100 for 86 carb boots.
     
  14. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    Are the boots different? I have a set of 86 carbs on my 85 engine and the 84-5 boots fit perfect. Are the 86 heads that different? If so I am GLAD I dont have an 86 engine anymore. Love the improvements on the 86 but parts supply is sketchy to say the least.
     
  15. Colddevil

    Colddevil Member

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    Am I not supposed to be able to? It'll slide all the way out the wheel side, but it will not on the tachometer side. The cable seems to be in really good shape--the housing seems fine besides the yellow overspray paint on it.

    And yea, I just quick rode to the grocery store again because I'm excited, and I wanted to hear the engine again, haha.

    I ordered a used '84 one on eBay for $25 earlier. Should have waited. But if it shows up broken or something I'll take you up on that. I can't find a diagram of how that speedo gear metal tab works. I understand how it's driven, but I don't understand if that tab is free-floating or connected to a driven gear. I don't want to take mine off just yet as I plan on riding a bit. I'm sure it'll make a lot more sense when I can pull my damaged one apart.

    There's quite a bit going on on that 500 of yours I wouldn't have realized until this year.
    1. How are the mirrors mounted? Is that a custom front fairing, or is it drilled somehow to hold the mirrors? I've seen that placement on one other VF500F recently (the other yellow one on eBay I linked earlier).
    2. The white-painted signal lights look awesome.
    3. Are those special clip-ons for racing up front to move you forward?
     
  16. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    It's been a while but I am pretty sure the inner cable can slide right out of the outer housing. Unhook the it from the drive side and it should slide right out. May want to inspect/clean the inner cable. If it is too much trouble let me know I have the fairing off mine and I can remove the entire cable and see what I find.
     
  17. Colddevil

    Colddevil Member

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    Ahhh sorry Jim, I misinterpreted what you said. Yes, I can slide it right out. Both cable ends look really good, and I'd just lubricated it. This is why I suspected that I may have over-tightened it on the drive side. Or maybe I under-tightened it. Something that would have left the female cable and male gear drive tab cockeyed and allowed it to snap. Or maybe it was just coincidence, but that seems highly unlikely since my hands were just on it.
     
  18. Captain 80s

    Captain 80s Member

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    Boots are different because the 84/85 and 86 carbs are different sizes.

    Are your carbs super easy to install?
     
  19. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    Not really easy at all, BUT I do notice that I have to tighten the boot clamps down pretty far to secure them. I am also sealing the boots with Dow Corning Hi Vacuum grease to eliminate any vacuum leaks. Seems to work.
     
  20. Colddevil

    Colddevil Member

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    Forgot to turn the petcock from OFF to ON. Ran out in neighborhood probably 1/4-1/3mi from home. Couldn't get it primed by sucking on the vacuum line (line isn't perfect vacuum--it allows very restricted flow--don't think it should). Walked it home. Glad it wasn't far. Good calves workout. Primed with auxiliary fuel tank once home. Everything worked perfect. Went and grabbed the swivel I need to change my truck's spark plugs. Vacuum petcocks annoy me.
     
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