1994 RVF400R Build Project

Discussion in 'Mechanics Garage' started by NorcalBoy, Nov 7, 2018.

  1. ridervfr

    ridervfr Member

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    Dirt even. Difficult to type while your removing barbie doll shoes

    Sent from my LM-G850 using Tapatalk
     
  2. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    It's been quite awhile since I last posted an update. So here goes...

    Worked today to start finishing off the gauges. Mocked it up with the new foam surround and it looked pretty decent, so I test fit the carbon bezels to check clearances to the foam and everything looked good.

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    So I set about installing the bezels permanently using Quikchip sillicone adhesive. Got the first two lathered up and set them with bar clamps to cure. The center bezel will be attached tomorrow and I'll give it a good 24 hour cure, then work on installing the led's and the new hardware to finish it up.

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    I also recieved the new Tyga Performance aluminum subframe and a new upper cowl mount from Thailand. The Subframe is a nice improvement in overall weight savings. The stock steel sub weighed in at 7.4 pounds, on my relatively accurate scale, and the new aluminum version is 3 pounds, so a nice savings of almost 4.5 pounds. The welding and powdercoating on the sub is quite good and it has all of the mounting points, just like the OEM sub. I'll need to install some new rivnuts for the MOSFET RR that I'm running, as it's different in size to the stock RR.

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    I'm taking the upper cowl mount to my coating folks to have it blasted and pc'd. Right now it just has a rattle can paint job which isn't gonna cut it. It saves about .5 pound over the OEM mount and it all adds up. Total weight savings of the two is just shy of 5 pounds. I'll take it.

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    Took the triple clamps to my fabricator and dropped that off so the new stem can be cnc'd out of 7075. It needed to be three mm's longer on the threads for the stem nut to sit right, after adding the dual temp gauge mount. I prolly could have gotten away with that, but I didn't want to go half assed. Besides, who doesn't like on off cnc'd parts? Rob is also going to machine some aluminum plugs for the ends of the cowl mount tubing to clean those up.

    Now back to the engine....After the cams and towers came back from cryo and superfinishing, it was discovered that the cams and cam towers were scored. Shit....We thought about cleaning them up with APC, abraded powdercoating, from Line2Line Coatings ( https://www.line2linecoatings.com/video1.html ), which would have fixed them...but Mike Norman had a matched set of lightly used cams and towers, so I paid the man, and bought them. They are now in transit to the cryo REM folks to be finished.

    Due to COVID, the machining of the heads for the oversized intake valves, the valve stems, combustion chamber reshape, and new guides, has taken a little longer than usual to be completed, but supposedly they are almost finished. Once they come back, Mike is going to port and polish the passages to his proven specs and do the final valve assembly. When the cams come back, it will be time to button it up. ETA is middle of June, give or take.

    In the meantime, I'm also working on the new CRF, have a bunch of farkles for it, but the suspension is going out to get lowered 30mm and getting the right springs for my weight...couldn't get the race sag and static sag numbers right. OEM were just too stiff. Pulling the forks and shock tomorrow. David Behrend at FastBike Industries did my RVF suspension and he is going to do the lowering for me, nothing fancy, just lowered 30mm, new springs for my weight and intended riding, reassembly and fresh oil. David is a sharp cat and he told me he knows exactly what the 450L needs, guaranteed bolt on smiles when they come back.

    Have a Seat Concepts Race Low Comfort complete seat showing up tomorrow afternoon. Once the initial ergo and jewelry mods are done, it's getting an FMF megabomb header, Q4 silencer/spark arrestor, and Vortex ECU and the tuning software. My buddies at Evan Steel Performance are going to put the custom tune to it.

    Welp, that's it for now, I'll post up more when I have anything.
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2020
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  3. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    Small update. received some pics from the engine builder today. The valves, guides, and retainers have come in.

    Custom bronze valve guides.

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    Custom inconel exhaust valves.

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    +1mm oversize intake valves. Stainless steel with ti-nitride treatment.

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    Ti retainers with ti-nitride treatment

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    The new cams and cam towers are out for cryo and REM treating and should be done soon and the head machining is almost completed. Getting really close to finally getting this thing done. Hoping to have it on it's way back in the next 4 weeks. In the meantime I have started working on my CRF450L. The springs were way too stiff for my weight and I couldn't get the race sag set and have the static sag correct....so I tore it apart and the forks and shock on their way to Fast Bike Industries to have them lowered 30mm and to get the right springs installed for my weight.

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    I have a bunch of bits in hand and on the way for the CRF. Nothing internal for the engine, but quite a few clean little mods to make it an overall better looking and functioning moto. I would do a little thread on it, but it's not really a VFR, although it is a Honda.
     
  4. Captain 80s

    Captain 80s Member

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    No no no. You don't get to infuse the CRF in here. Start a new thread.

    Anything goes.
     
  5. raYzerman

    raYzerman Member

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    Sure, start a new thread.......
     
  6. Diving Pete

    Diving Pete Member

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    NEW thread...
     
  7. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    OK, ok, I'll start another thread....:Roll:
     
  8. lsc86

    lsc86 New Member

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    Great thread, took a while to get through al 20+ pages! One observation, you like using the phrase "turned out decent"....if this is decent so far, can't imagine what you're definition of awesome would be! Kudos on sharing the details throughout. Although given your obviously high attention to detail and preference for things just your way, can't imagine how you even bothered to not just buy the bike "as-is" to begin with.
     
  9. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    They do not exist "as is". I'm pretty sure of that.
     
  10. Diving Pete

    Diving Pete Member

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    They all require some love - they are 25 years old after all.
     
  11. Captain 80s

    Captain 80s Member

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    I think what he may be referring to is, didn't you have a shop do some work on it before it was shipped to you?
     
  12. lsc86

    lsc86 New Member

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    Capt is correct, why bother having the original/purchasing shop do anything other than sell it to you, not that it matters now.

    Been following a frame off rebuild on another motorsport forum, and all I could think about was, ya it's a nice build, but got absolutely nothing on Norcal's RVF!
     
  13. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    WOW, I just got thru reading all of that thread and I am in awe! Subscribed for sure. As you said early in the thread, it must boggle the mind what a factory GP team bike must be like with an unlimited budget. I can't believe your RVF would be much less of a full boat factory team bike after all you have accomplished.
     
  14. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    I'm not very trusting when it comes to other folks getting their mittens on my motos, rofl. Hopefully, in the next couple weeks I should hear that the engine is completed and ready to come home. Haven't really been pressing Mike Norman much. Figure the COVID thing has put a bit of a delay in how long it takes to get stuff done right now. Probably should send him an email and see what is up......I've actually been pretty busy ordering up all the bits and pieces to begin building my CRF, so haven't put much thought into it for the last month.
     
  15. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    Today I got with my fab guy and picked up the triple clamps that required a new steering stem to fit the dual gauge mount that was machined to fit the top of the triple. Rob made up the stem from 7075 aluminum billet, using his CNC lathe.

    When I first mocked up the gauge mount, it was pretty obvious that the stem wasn't long enough, as the extra space of the mount didn't allow the stem nut to thread on as far it should :Cry: This had to be fixed. So I took it to Rob.

    Old stem v. new stem. Rob pressed out the original Tyga stem and pressed in the new stem with longer threads at the top. He also pressed on the new tapered lower bearing and seal for me.

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    The finished product

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    It took three months to get here, but I also received the Eastern Beaver 2CS wiring harness that is going to power the twin temp gauges. Just need to install the connectors on the gauge wiring to plug directly into this harness, each gauge will be individually fused and a relay will be connected to the taillight wire and pulled in when the key is turned on. It's a compact and clean solution, rather than tapping into the OEM wiring harness.

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    Mike Norman had told me that I should expect the engine around the end of July, which was supposed to be the end of May, which was also supposed to be the end of June. COVID isn't doing that any favors. Our last conversation was a month ago. He has 8 days left in this month.....now back to the CRF project.
     
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  16. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    Top notch work!

    I feel your pain about waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting.............
     
  17. Diving Pete

    Diving Pete Member

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    Sadly the whole world has turned upside down this year with no promises that next year will get us back to normal... still waiting in anticipation....
     
  18. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    The heads finally came back from the machinist for the dome reshaping and the machining for the oversized valves. Mike Norman started today on the porting work and sent over some pics. The cams and towers are back from cryo and superfinish, so it shouldn't be to awful long until the engine is buttoned up and ready to be shipped back. Wish I could say the same about my CRF project....

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    It's been so long, it's actually anticlimactic at this point. It's just something that you want to be done with, so I need to get motivated again and get my head back into it. As soon as the engine is about to ship, I will be ordering a lift for the reassembly.
     
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  19. Jim McCulloch

    Jim McCulloch New Member

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    Wow, I hate to say it but I know how you feel! Won't be long now.....I am sure it will be worth the wait!
     
  20. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

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    We are brothers in arms when it comes to this stuff :Pound:It will be a couple weeks before it's done....just hoping I can get some resolution with UPS over the CRF forks that they lost somewhere in LA, before that.
     
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