This page list some of the improvements I have done to my bike to make it even better. When I bought my bike a couple of years ago, it was in a pretty bad shape but alot of work, money and TLC has change this 14 year old bike into what it's know now as.... The "RUMBLING BEAST"
The Beginning
When i bought this bike, i was very skeptical about it. It looked really run down with like months of dust on it. The battery was flat and it hasn't been used for over 6 months. The purchase was made on the strength of the shop mechanic (A Good friend of mine) that this was a great bike and with a little work, it will be up and running.
Engine Work
The first thing I did after getting the bike was to take a look inside the engine . The cams were in pretty bad shape .I managed to get my hands on a set of VF1000 Camshafts . The ends had to be machine down to fit into the engine block by after that was done, it fitted into the block without any problems . That cure the oil problem that many of the early VF750's suffered from and give the bike a huge boost in power. Other parts change were the Cam Chain Tensioner, Timing Chain and I had all the Valve's polished .
Frame and other parts
The Frame was cleaned and respray and the steering bearings was changed. The paint work was still in pretty good shape so all I needed to do was to use alot of soap and polish to bring out the shine. Had a new set of tires, chain and drive sprocket installed. The previous owner had a set of Laser exhaust fitted . The system was kindy old but in pretty good shape. I decided to stick with it and had the exhaust repacked. It gave the bike a low rumbling tone that's music to my ears.
The Accident
I had an accident a few months later. There was minor damage to the Engine case , manly scratches to the Right Crank Case & Right Exhaust but the Front cowling was pretty bang up and there was a dent on the Fuel Tank due to the Handle bar end .
I had the entire bike repainted a rich shade of black and designed my own logo for the tank.
The Final Transformation
After riding the bike for about a year and starting to feel bored with the bike. I decided to see
what else i could do to make my bike more exciting. I mamaged to buy a set of VF1000 caburators
and it fitted to the engine block without any major problems . All that was needed was a
change of caburator needles and rejetting to suit my engine. The engine was fine
but the rest of the bike couldn' keep up with it, especially in the handling
department. I had a Steering Damper custom fitted and had an aftermarket ABS system
fitted on my rear brake set. The damper helps alot, especially in hight speed runs.
I never like mirrors fiited on handle bars and by chance came across a set of GPZ
mirrors .I had to drill a couple of holes in the upper cowling but it fitted
prefectly. It looks great and gives me a good view.
Overall for a 14th year bike it look's and run's great. I'm not too sure
what was the max speed of the bike before I bought it but I managed to hit
240 KM/H or about 150 mph after all the work that was done (whether it was faster than
that or not i'm not too sure cause' my speedo ends at 240km/h ) Below are some pics of the extras ,
I did for the bike.
The Beast Is Complete
A sad ending
After 3 years of riding this wonderful bike, making countless trips up to Malaysia
and 2 trips to Thailand, the wear and tear finally took it's toll. On my last trip back
from Thailand, about 200km/h from Singapore, it started to leak oil from the gear shift,
the leak was not alot but enough to coat my left swingarm with a thin layer of
oil. The oil level was still fine according to the oil pressure gauge on the bike.
I decided to take a chance and ride the bike back. I took it slow and managed to make it back
home without any more surprises but on bringing the bike down to the repair shop, I started to hear
strange sounds from the rear engine block and the bike was back-firing quite badly. My mechanic
took a look at the bike and concluded that the water gasket in the rear block was broken and water was
leaking in the engine block. That was why the bike was back-firing. He estimated the repair cost to fix
the oil leak the gear shift and the water gasket would be around $600 and he have to order the parts from
Japan . My bike insurance and road tax was also up and there would be another $500. Total cost was
about $1100. I did some soul searching and after talking with my mechanic , I decided not to repair the
bike. It had serve me well but it came to a point that it was not cost effective to maintain
this bike. The bike has been scraped but the memories of the good times I have riding this bike will last
me a life-time.
I took a break from touring to concentrate on my job but after 11 months , I did some calculation
on my finances and took the plunge and bought my Dream Bike. A new 2000' VFR800.
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