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Renaissance Robot posted:Two days in and I've already burned some plastic on to the exhaust headers. Naked bike life I guess. Yes, it will get it off. I’ve never done it on chrome though.
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Aug 8, 2018 13:42
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pyrolytic cleaning is another option. Pin the throttle and run for a bit in a lower gear, get the pipes nice and hot
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Aug 8, 2018 16:24
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I use scotchbrite & wd40, seems to work pretty well without scuffing.
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Aug 8, 2018 19:51
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That's the green fabric stuff right? I'll try that first, thanks, definitely less risk of things going sideways than mucking about with caustic soda.
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Aug 8, 2018 20:31
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It's the poo poo you buy in a five pack from the kitchen aisle to scrub your metal sink/fork stanchions/gasket surfaces. You can get fancy and get the auto parts stuff but the effect is the same.
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Aug 8, 2018 20:59
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Well the plastic's coming off but the chrome's scuffed. Meh, I'll hit it with some brasso later. I'm not super bothered, there was never any possibility I'd keep it showroom clean forever.
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Aug 9, 2018 12:27
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Exhaust burns are a part of motorcycling life. Eventually something will fall on those red hot wxpoaed chunks of metal and fuse itself to it and that’s just how it is. I’ve never had good luck getting stains off exhaust.
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Aug 9, 2018 14:16
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Renaissance Robot posted:Well the plastic's coming off but the chrome's scuffed. Meh, I'll hit it with some brasso later. I'm not super bothered, there was never any possibility I'd keep it showroom clean forever. Don't use Brasso on chrome or steel, it's far too abrasive - use Autosol instead (and put up with endles jokes about piles if people ever see you with it)
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Aug 9, 2018 14:45
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To clean gunk off of chrome, spray it with WD-40 and then scrub it hard with a fistful of balled-up aluminum foil. The aluminum is abrasive enough to remove dirt, rust, melted-on plastic, etc but it's not hard enough to scratch the chrome itself. You have to be careful with scotch-brite pads. The blue ones are safe to use most of the time because they're just plastic, but the green ones have embedded corundum grit and will scuff almost anything. You should never use the green ones when cleaning off an old head gasket, for instance, because you'll get the abrasive grit into the engine. Try the aluminum foil thing; it won't do anything for serious scratches but it can give slightly hazy chrome a bit of a shine. e: and in the future, the chemicals that you can use to remove melted-on plastic will depend on the type of plastic it is. A polystyrene styrofoam cup will dissolve off with acetone, but that won't touch a polyethylene plastic bag, which has to be taken off with toluene. Etc Sagebrush fucked around with this message at 17:00 on Aug 9, 2018 |
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Aug 9, 2018 16:55
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I put an Akropovic strap-on muffler on my bike. It sounds much nicer now. ninja edit: I'm not changing the style of muffler.
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Aug 9, 2018 20:04
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Fhistleb posted:I put an Akropovic strap-on muffler on my bike. It sounds much nicer now. 
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Aug 10, 2018 02:59
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puberty worked me over fucked around with this message at 07:44 on Jan 4, 2020 |
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Aug 10, 2018 03:57
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Your AV leads me to say this: be careful, do things properly, the penalty for being retarded with a bike (I'm not saying you are) is a lot worse than on a car where a wheel falling off is really nbd.
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Aug 10, 2018 06:00
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puberty worked me over fucked around with this message at 07:44 on Jan 4, 2020 |
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Aug 10, 2018 22:52
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Speaking of avatar/post combos and being retarded. 
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Aug 11, 2018 02:25
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It’s very nice if you to take that that bike back to its natural habitat and set it free.
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Aug 11, 2018 03:03
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I rode my - I think - longest tour ever (so far - in my fairly short riding career) today: I mapped the important part of it on Google Maps. After eight hairpins in Annaberg  Moo!  Erlaufsee is a beautiful stop along the way. I met a dog!  I also saw a couple of deer right next to the road, though at least behind some guardrails. They're cute, but I don't want them to jump in front of me. Unfortunately, I felt incredibly uncomfortable in almost every single left turn, and I rode through them much worse than through right turns. I have no idea why - left turns are usually harder for me (in terms of looking into the turn correctly and then actually executing it well), but not nearly as much as today.
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Aug 12, 2018 22:01
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Everyone has a direction they prefer turning, I imagine it's because the bike is asymmetrical and the vagaries of your body and brain find it easier to manage it going one way. With practice and experience you can reduce that effect so it's barely there but it'll never go away entirely.
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Aug 12, 2018 23:33
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Slavvy posted:Everyone has a direction they prefer turning, I imagine it's because the bike is asymmetrical and the vagaries of your body and brain find it easier to manage it going one way. Yeah, and it is definitely left turns for me. I did some work on the bike this evening and noticed that the chain tensioners (and therefore the axle) were slightly unmatched/out of alignment. That may have contributed to it being as bad as it was because I had only driven a few kilometers after the last tensioning (when I apparently hosed up).
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Aug 13, 2018 20:00
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I think it's also got something to do with, unless you're putting in track or twisty time, most of the turns you encounter, without having to stop to cross oncoming traffic, are going to be right turns. (If you're in LHD territory, that is.)
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Aug 14, 2018 17:59
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Ridgewell posted:Yeah, and it is definitely left turns for me. I did some work on the bike this evening and noticed that the chain tensioners (and therefore the axle) were slightly unmatched/out of alignment. That may have contributed to it being as bad as it was because I had only driven a few kilometers after the last tensioning (when I apparently hosed up). I took part in a dynamics and safe driving training all day today; now I am pretty sure that the badly aligned chains was a huge part of the problem. Left (and right) turns were totally fine today...
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Aug 15, 2018 16:31
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So I've been MIA for quite some time. Nothing happened for a really long time. Then I got my wife pregnant (insert joke about 'my new ride'). Then I almost quit my job. Then I did nothing again for a really long time. Then I got a big raise. Then I had a kid. 3 weeks off of work and despite being on 24/7 daddy duty, I've never been more productive. I even managed to replace my VFR clutch.  Tomorrow is front brakes and chain and coolant. Wish me luck dudes, I might actually ride it this year. GnarlyCharlie4u fucked around with this message at 05:05 on Aug 17, 2018 |
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Aug 17, 2018 04:59
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Ah yes, the VFR 'basic service' posture. You're right on time to dyno a grom for us.
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Aug 17, 2018 08:39
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:So I've been MIA for quite some time. gently caress Honda for not putting a quick disconnect on the VFR and the CBR1100xx's fuel line
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Aug 17, 2018 09:13
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919 has that awful banjo bolt setup too.
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Aug 17, 2018 10:39
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That picture reminds me... when buying a replacement clutch, is it recommended to buy new metal interleaving plates when you buy the friction plates?
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Aug 17, 2018 14:14
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In theory you're meant to carefully check them for warping, cracks and mechanical wear but in practice they're almost always fine to reuse. If they're not, you'll be able to see it visually pretty easily. If everything is working properly the steels don't wear at all, I've only really 'had' to replace them when the root problem was stupidity or the bike has sat for years and everything has fused together.
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Aug 17, 2018 19:54
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Slavvy posted:Ah yes, the VFR 'basic service' posture. heh I used to think that replacing a thermostat was a pretty basic thing. The VFR drastically changed my outlook on that. Slide Hammer posted:That picture reminds me... when buying a replacement clutch, is it recommended to buy new metal interleaving plates when you buy the friction plates? I think what whole Barnett kit I used (including springs) was like $100 on ebay. GnarlyCharlie4u fucked around with this message at 00:31 on Aug 19, 2018 |
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Aug 19, 2018 00:29
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Barnett's kevlar plates are my go-to when I buy a used bike, especially big twins, Vmax's or big bores. Every dirt bike I've put them on had them last usually till I sold it.
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Aug 19, 2018 01:36
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Got a Barnett in my 125, quality stuff but makes it a lot harder to launch the bike briskly, friction zone feels narrower.
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Aug 19, 2018 01:55
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Got used slicks mounted to my rear and a new-to-me 16.5" front wheel, as well as converting to tubeless.  Now it turns out I need wider spacers on the front hub since it came from a slightly older yz250. Gonna be sweet, though.
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Aug 19, 2018 02:37
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VFR800 saga continues. All new brakes, chain, coolant and oil, ready to take her for a spin! I even got the turn signals working again. The handlebar switch was just gunked up. But... now the dash indicators don't work anymore. gently caress. Tore into the dash to find that there are some VERY badly corroded spots on the circuit, and the right signal indicator as well as one of the LCD backlights don't work as a result.  well it's a good thing I've got spares I suppose...  The poor guy off to the right was never meant to be a donor bike,  but it seems every time I need to get some work done on the '99, I have to steal a hand full of parts from the '98  Eventually the plan is to restore the '99 and sell the '98, but at this rate there might not be anything left to restore. The '98 already needs all new electrical everything. I think the PO somehow hosed up replacing the stator and fried everything on the bike that has a wire. So far the list for the '98 is up to: stator, reg/reg, the whole dash (tach, speedo, and lcd), every lightbulb blew, a few relays, maybe fuel pump, PGM-FI (ECU), wiring harness. There's also other non-electrical poo poo that needs fixing: I'm pretty sure a radiator is cracked. PO lowered the bike all stupid like and I think I'll need new linkages. While I'm in there I'm going to swap the front end for a 929 front end and de-link the brakes.
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Aug 27, 2018 17:59
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Is your license plate "VEEFOR"? At what point does salvaging the '98 become a lost cause?
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Aug 27, 2018 18:31
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Dagen H posted:Is your license plate "VEEFOR"? As far as when to bail on the 98? That's a tough call... See, I bought the '98 because it was $900 and why the gently caress not right? But it had a clean title and the dude clearly loved the poo poo out of it right up until he fried everything electrical so I considered it for more than a parts bike. The one thing that is most interesting to me, but I have yet to verify, is that the PO claimed that it has an HRC cam in it. He also said it's bored out which is both exciting and terrifying. I'm not sure I'd want to touch someone else's franken-motor without some idea of parts availability. It would be really neat to have an 870cc VFR, but not if it is going to (or already did) grenade itself. The parts that are good on it are in great shape and really clean. The fairings have a couple cracks, but then again so does the one I ride. I've already got another wiring harness with most of the relays and poo poo for $20. I might need to replace a couple of things but I should be fine for the most part. I just bought a cosmetically busted dash on ebay for $50. Between that one and the other two, I'm pretty sure I can make two functioning instrument clusters. There are PGM-FI on ebay from $125-280. It doesn't much matter if I get a Canadian one or not because I've got a couple of Dynojet units. The left side radiator might be damaged, but I haven't confirmed if it holds pressure yet. I noticed the mounting post is bent so I assume the rad could have a leak. I'll also need to get a new fan switch since I borrowed one from the '98 for the '99. I've got a couple complete front ends lying around. I think the 929 will be the best fit with the least work. I'm still not sure about calipers yet though. Comparably, I've spent a bunch on the '99 already, and I paid $2500 for it and had to drive 6 hours to get it. I spent like $500 on a new replacement headlight for the '99 because the PO fuckered it up so bad that it was basically useless. A brand new stator from Rick's electric, a used reg/rec which blew up, a factory upgrade replacement Reg/rec which seems to be working since replaced that section of the wiring harness, removed the connectors, and spliced it straight in. I also bought aluminum sprockets, and a Corbin saddle, a taillight and side signals, all secondhand from some really nice guy on the VFR forums. He saved my number in his phone and still accidentally calls me sometimes and we chat :3 I just put all new brake pads on it, but I should probably have bought new rotors too (oh well). It gets a new battery at least once a year. I just replaced the chain. Oh yeah and I just went ahead and spent the $40 on a new fairing bolt kit from ebay because gently caress trying to source a bunch of different sized bolts and well nuts and plastic clips. It's worth the money to not have to waste all that time and effort. All in all I'm probably already into the '99 for twice what I'll have to spend to get the '98 into much better shape. That is unless, the '98 has some special snowflake of a motor that needs work. If that's the case, that's probably where I'll draw the line. That is, unless I can identify what parts are in it, and if I can find replacements. In that case I might just say gently caress it and go full-on midlife crisis on it 
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Aug 28, 2018 19:03
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I bought a top case for my 1290 SAR. trying to figure out which bike I want to bring to alaska next year. probably the KTM, but I already have three cases on the BMW and only two on the KTM (SAR, SAS has none) 
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Aug 28, 2018 19:43
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Put in a rear shock from a 00-04 gsf600 bandit in my Honda nx250. Almost drop in, just a slight 5mm trim of the upper bracket and trim down of 1/3 of the preload adjuster to clear the air box. Adjustment seemed good, just gotta ride it and get the feel of it.
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Aug 29, 2018 20:08
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There is a bike where a 600 bandit shock is an upgrade???
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Aug 29, 2018 22:20
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Honda NX250, if I had to guess
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Aug 29, 2018 22:39
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Well, old shock gave up the ghost and became a pogo stick. nos stock is gone, used stock is nonexistent. It's a strange little bike with few similar models. There are a few suppliers who can do special orders with 3+weeks delivery time for a base compatible shock that starts at 425 us dollars all in all with local tax and import fees, or I can get a lightly used bandit shock for 125 usd after shipping and tax(base price on it was 60 usd at the German bike wrecker).
Supradog fucked around with this message at 22:54 on Aug 29, 2018 |
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Aug 29, 2018 22:51
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| # ? May 14, 2024 20:18 |
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gently caress. LOOK WHAT YOU ALL MADE ME DO! ARE YOU HAPPY? IS THIS WHAT YOU WANTED?!?!?! 
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Aug 29, 2018 23:18
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