Month: April 2017

Polish windscreen, begin tank cleaning

Progress today

Scrubbed front fender – ready for prep & paint.

Cleaned windscreen.  Polished screen with headlight compound. About 4 passes total front and two on the back, working in small areas: about 2 hrs effort.  Pretty good clarity now with a slight gray smoked effect. Sufficient for the moment (compare to before).

Disassembled gas tank. Removed filler cap, fuel level sensor unit, fuel petcock, and fuel hose/filter assemblies.

Cleaned filler opening on tank and filler cap surfaces.

Replaced fuel filter with glass aftermarket unit. Attached 3/8″ adapters with teflon plumber’s tape.  Clamped tank end. Hose was clear.

Emptied about 1/2 gallon of nasty black liquid from tank. Found about 2″ of sludge/tar at the lower end where the fuel petcock/screen enters.  Level sensor coated with sludge. Pickup tube/screen coated to 2″ from bottom. Petcock almost immoveable and full of tarry sludge.  Scraped/brushed and cleaned both assemblies with solvent.

Fuel level sensor assembly (after cleaning)
Petcock assembly after external cleaning, new inline filter

Disassembled screen and petcock.

Petcock and screen cleaning in progress

Removed o-ring and valve handle. Pulled tar out of both screen tubes and petcock body using dental pick. Soaked petcock body in Gunk can (thanks Dan!), about 2 hrs.  Final cleanout with QTips. Valve action now crisp and easy.

Used fingers to pull out gunk from tank within reach of petcock hole.  Added two hands full of pebbles and half gallon of gas and swirled/shook tank for about 30 minutes. That got another pound or two of tar out. Rinsed/swirled  several times with water/pine cleaner, then Xylol (xylene), then gas.  Lower end of tank needs further cleaning.

Next

Soak tank innards for 24hrs with pine cleaner solution. Flush tank, seal/coat. Reassemble.

Disassemble front bodywork

Progress today

Disassembled front end bodywork ass’y.  Removed and polished headlight ass’y.  Separated body panels. Moved fasteners, ducting to new right panel. Cleaned all panels and polished visible mounting bolts. Existing center and left sections will need re-paint.

old, damaged right-front panel (inside)
new right-front panel (inside)

Cleaned and polished airbox ass’y, added new air filter and prefilter media. Ready to reinstall.

airbox, filter, cover

Removed front fender, ready for clean/prep.  Faded, scratched, will need paint. Polished decorative mounting bolts.

All bodywork now off bike. All but mid-fairings and two new right-side panels to be painted.

(fuzzy) naked bike

Next

Polish windscreeen. Clean/clear/inspect tank and petcock assembly. Replace fuel filter in existing rubber mount.

Disassemble rear, remove front fairing

Updated checklist posted [V3].

Progress today

Completed removing turn signal from left side rear fairing. Screw frozen, stripped. Used drill and manual screw extractor to remove. Replaced original rusted steel screws with new stainless for both rear turn mounts.  All rear plastic now ready for repair (then paint).

Removed front upper fairing assembly. Extracted left flange screw – plastic threaded brass insert spun. Removed and re-habbed mirrors and boots. Reference note:  mirror mount points (bolt holes) are 55mm apart. Cleaned out debris. Cleaned/refinished dash, black rubber and plastic parts.

Mirror inner covers (after)
 dash area (before, after)
windscreen (needs serious polishing)

End of the day:

 side and front

Misc cleanup, disassemble tail

Polished grab handles …

… and blackened rear fender.

Removed chain guard.

chain guard in place, center clamp w/brake hose

Brushed metal clamps. Cleaned and vaselined black plastic.

after first treatment

Disassembled tail section. Cleaned parts and polished up tail light and turn lenses.

Attempted reassembly with new right side plastic.  Changed mind – will fix original left side plastic first. Possibly wait for paint.

old right side w/cracks (use for plastic weld practice, then discard)
old left side w/cracks (will repair, reinstall)

 

Set-up new grinder, assemble lowers

Bought a mid-range Delta 6″ bench grinder, wire, buffing, polishing wheels at Lowe’s.

Progress today

Assembled and experimented with wire-brushing some bolt heads and shifter pedal.

Also found two lovely stainless steel socket head machine screws at Lowe’s to replace the rusted phillips heads in the lower fairing.  Got the second screw out; turned with big jaw pliers. Cleaned surviving fairing half and new one. Reassembled with new screws.

Ordered OEM air filters and overflow bottle, as determined yesterday.

Picked up new battery – already filled and charged – better get moving on this rebuild. Also fuel filter and other supplies.

 

Begin teardown, evaluation

Began disassembly with some evaluation. See checklist (V2). Photos and notes for later reference on reassembly.

Items determined to need replacement today:

  • Coolant overflow bottle – brittle, broke apart at touch. Hose from radiator left in place, ok.  Drain hose in bag with tiny hose clamps, also ok.
  • Air filter – not just very dirty;  oil/grease through at least 50% surface. May attempt, but probably not worth cleaning

  • Pre-(air) filter element – it had crumbled to gel/slime

Progress today

Removed lower fairing ass’y.  Cleaned up the mounting bolts/rubbers and left on the frame points.  Need to separate fairing halves to replace rashed right one.  Both screws solidy rusted in.  Used penetrating oil.  Got one off, 2nd still stubborn. Try again tomorrow.

Removed coolant overflow bottle.  

Removed tail section fairing ass’y.  Disconnected rear light wires at harness:

Grab bars already off – need polishing.   Both rear plastic tabs at main bolts broken off. Will have to weld/repair the left half plastic we’re keeping.

right
left

Parts marked L and R, in bag with bolts and cushion washers, which look good.

Removed gas tank with hose and fuel filter attached.

Original fuel filter location - line to carbs from fuel pump below
hose locations under tank; larger is breather drain
small diameter hose sticking up goes to fuel tank. Note also position of main fuel hose to carbs (on left) and breather to airbox (upper center)

Pulled out tank breather/drain tube from bike frame:  has chewed or cut parts. May replace. Tank may still have fuel in it.

Disassembled and removed airbox ass’y with sub-filter attached.

looking forward at sub-air filter housing with hose attached

Note: one of it’s mounting screws is mostly hidden at front under forward breather tube attachments.

Inner screws are captive. Rear-most/lower (3) screws have cap and sleeve.

Removed battery and tie-wrapped wires for each terminal. They appear to be original bike wiring + alarm circuit + charger plug.

as-wired before removal

End-of-day

 

Project overview

I bought my 1994 Honda VFR750F in 1997.

I commuted daily to work, and took several road trips through 1999.  In that year I slid it on its right side after locking the front in a low-speed panic turn.  Other than a failed battery, loose turn signal, and the obvious body and lever scrapes, there was no serious damage.  I replaced the battery and bought some new right-side body panels, but did not install them.

I rode regularly for a few more months, but then stopped commuting on the bike, having a new job downtown convenient to the Metro.  Some time in 2002 I stopped riding altogether, and the bike  has been parked, unridden since.

It’s time to do a decent renovation and get this beauty back on the road.  Here she is, in the new garage (minus mid-fairings, which are stored away in good condition):

I inventoried the bike and drafted a checklist [V1] of tasks, tools, and materials.  I’m using that to log purchases and track work progress.

Highlights of work planned:

  • Clean/rebuild fuel system:  carbs, fuel paths, tank, petcock, cables, controls
  • Clean/rebuild brake and clutch master cylinders, brake calipers, clutch slave
  • New: stainless braided brake and clutch lines
  • New: brake pads, oil/air/fuel filters, fork seals, spark plugs, tires, slip-on silencer, grips
  • New, as needed: Rectifier/regulator, thermostat, thermosensor
  • New: coolant, engine oil, brake/clutch fluid, fork oil
  • Clean/lube: chain, wheel bearings, steering head bearings, center stand, side stand
  • Inspect/replace any brittle rubber hoses, wiring
  • Check exhaust system for rust/leaks
  • Clean/polish: engine covers and frame parts, windscreen, meters, swing arm, wheels, etc.
  • Repair/replace/repaint: upper right, lower right, right rear fairings and seat cowl (tabs); coolant overflow bottle, right front turn signal, foot brake pedal/driver right foot peg

It’s likely I’ll find more things wrong during tear-down and as I open bits.  But this is the starting point.  On we go …