Hi. I got a great deal on an 86' VF 1000R. I took it to a parking lot and dropped it in 10 mins. :( I didnt do much damage. But, I want to lower the bike. I already have a guy that can make a custom seat for me. I swear there is like 4" of padding right now and it is too wide!
Does anyone know about lowering this bike? I am on my tippy toes! you can see from the picture. I looked for a lowering kit cant find one yet. I wanna ride this soooo bad. I jus dont want to drop it!
Thanks
[image: View Post]RedRidingHood, on 15 April 2011 - 10:30 AM, said:
Hi. I got a great deal on an 86' VF 1000R. I took it to a parking lot and dropped it in 10 mins. :( I didnt do much damage. But, I want to lower the bike. I already have a guy that can make a custom seat for me. I swear there is like 4" of padding right now and it is too wide!
Does anyone know about lowering this bike? I am on my tippy toes! you can see from the picture. I looked for a lowering kit cant find one yet. I wanna ride this soooo bad. I jus dont want to drop it!
Thanks
Hi, welcome to VFRD. Sorry to hear you dropped the bike, but it happens. You are on the right track, just having the seat made a bit more narrow can make all the difference. There are a few VF1000R owners here who will know what is possible with suspension mods to drop the height a bit, one will be along shortly.
[image: View Post]The Phantom, on 15 April 2011 - 10:41 AM, said:
[image: View Post]RedRidingHood, on 15 April 2011 - 10:30 AM, said:
Hi. I got a great deal on an 86' VF 1000R. I took it to a parking lot and dropped it in 10 mins. :( I didnt do much damage. But, I want to lower the bike. I already have a guy that can make a custom seat for me. I swear there is like 4" of padding right now and it is too wide!
Does anyone know about lowering this bike? I am on my tippy toes! you can see from the picture. I looked for a lowering kit cant find one yet. I wanna ride this soooo bad. I jus dont want to drop it!
Thanks
Hi, welcome to VFRD. Sorry to hear you dropped the bike, but it happens. You are on the right track, just having the seat made a bit more narrow can make all the difference. There are a few VF1000R owners here who will know what is possible with suspension mods to drop the height a bit, one will be along shortly.
BTW This Thread Is Worthless Without Pics ;)
Here is a picture!
I think the front could come down???
Welcome! We have something in common........being 5'4" myself, I chose to cut down my seat by at least half the stock foam versus physically lowering the bike. Works for me and like the feeling of sitting in the bike instead of on top of the bike. And being stump trained seems to come in handy once in a while :fing02: . There is alittle more vibration felt at higher rpms, do not know whether this is a con or a pro, but I seem to like the riding at higher rpms..... :laughing6-hehe: .
[image: View Post]panamawing, on 15 April 2011 - 10:57 AM, said:
Welcome! We have something in common........being 5'4" myself, I chose to cut down my seat by at least half the stock foam versus physically lowering the bike. Works for me and like the feeling of sitting in the bike instead of on top of the bike. And being stump trained seems to come in handy once in a while :fing02: .
Yeah I hate to mess with lowering it if I don't have to. But, I know a lot of girls have their bikes slammed to the ground. I'm just wondering about the fact that this is an old bike with not as many options??
Welcome.. Just looking at the picture seems to me that the front has been lifted, so lowering the front would help you and the bike if it has been lifted.
Lifting the front slows down its turning, where as lowering it will speed it up, and in your case bring it back to normal.
You need to get the specs on where the forks need to be and work from there.
The good news is that it a very easy adjustment.
I think you can buy aftermarket rear shocks for the VF1000 that are about an inch shorter. It's a fairly significant amount of time and labour do get it changed but a 1" change would make a big difference to touching the ground.
Sargent seats and solo seats are still out there (though rare) which would also lower the seat height.
Good luck with your new bike. Take it easy - still lots of power there for an old bike.
If you look up one of the members on the forum 'jamie daugherty' or do a search for his bike business on google he's a great resource for the old VF bikes.
[image: View Post]Knife, on 15 April 2011 - 12:33 PM, said:
Hello,
Can't help you with your project, but I can say welcome: welcome!! And congrats on your new purchase. About the drop, well, many of us have been there... ahem cough cough......... Don't sweat it. Get it lowered and then ride it until it falls apart!! Great machine from what I heard.
Cheers,
C
[image: View Post]panamawing, on 15 April 2011 - 10:57 AM, said:
Welcome! We have something in common........being 5'4" myself, I chose to cut down my seat by at least half the stock foam versus physically lowering the bike. Works for me and like the feeling of sitting in the bike instead of on top of the bike. And being stump trained seems to come in handy once in a while :fing02: . There is alittle more vibration felt at higher rpms, do not know whether this is a con or a pro, but I seem to like the riding at higher rpms..... :laughing6-hehe: .
[image: Attachment] Picture 193.jpg
Welcome! For the "vertically challenged" folks like us cutting down the seat height is a good start. You could also lower the back with after market down bones but this will affect the bike's handling so I wouldn't suggest lowering it too much. Most every one drops his/her bike when first starting to ride. I think i dropped my first bike a half dozen times before I got the hang of it. The key to not dropping your bike is to figure a technique to compensate for being vertically challenged. I rarely use both feet when at a stop since I'll be tipping toeing. Instead I lean to one side and flat foot on that side. You'll just have to experiment with various ways and in no time you'll get the hang of it.
There are certainly a few things at work here besides the seat height. There isn't a ton of foam to lose in the stock seat but even if you take it down to the pan, It's still wide at the frame there and,at 5'4 you'll have an awkward reach to the bars while still being on you toes. Which leads to the other factor...weight. At 600lbs, it's a difficult bike to maneuver around while sitting on it.(difficult even to push it!) I have a hard time backing mine up even the slightest slope and I'm 6'0. This doesn't lend itself to being the safest setup. This bike will tuck under on you at full steering lock with ease and put it, and it's hard to source panels on the ground quick. There is a LOT of weight up high and it takes VERY little to get over to the point where strength and leg leverage is needed to keep it from heading south.Unless you absolutely have to have an R, I would sell it and get something that's more your size. I'm not saying small displacement just something that can be made to fit your frame.
The bike in the pic doesn't look abnormally high. Looks like it's parked up a slight incline judging from the truck. You can drop the front a little(not over an inch certainly) but I haven't heard of anyone willing to mess with the back. Bikes are not like cars, there is a point where you are tossing handling out the window with an aggressive drop.
Any way, welcome to the forum. Perhaps you can get it straightened out to your satisfaction and if so, let us know! :fing02:
[image: View Post]Kel, on 15 April 2011 - 03:52 PM, said:
Unless you absolutely have to have an R, I would sell it and get something that's more your size.
I hate to be a downer, but this would be my advice, as well. Sure, you "can" ride it and keep it up most of the time, but I'm thinking of emergency moves, putting a foot down in a slight depression while stopped for a light, and the like. That bike's huge, and it's going to handle like a huge bike (big/slow), when you'd be better off on a 800 VFR (or 750), SV 650, Ninja 650, Street Triple, SX1000, or any one of a number of more appropriately-sized bikes.
Lowering the seat is good. Lowering the bike means shortening the sidestand and centerstand (if it's got one). I don't know if that bike uses a rising rate linkage w/single shock, or dual shocks. If the former, you may have to have someone who knows to custom make the longer arms for you, after which you (and your later buyer) have to live with the decreased rear suspension travel. If the latter, you're looking a stiff price for new shocks. And that's the rear. You need to make the front match, so that means raising the fork tubes UP through the triple clamp, but that assumes there's room for the fork tube caps to come up, nothing in the way. Also, that removes front suspension travel and brings the front fender into possible contact with the bottom of the triple clamp, or the bodywork, upon full compression.
Nothing's easy, it seems. Again, hate to be a downer, but I am trying to help.
[image: View Post]Misspent Youth, on 15 April 2011 - 05:06 PM, said:
[image: View Post]Kel, on 15 April 2011 - 03:52 PM, said:
Unless you absolutely have to have an R, I would sell it and get something that's more your size.
I think u guys are right! I'm going to keep this bike lower the seat and restore it. I'd love to jus use it as a show bike ! Im gonna look for a ninja 600 or something .....
I hate to be a downer, but this would be my advice, as well. Sure, you "can" ride it and keep it up most of the time, but I'm thinking of emergency moves, putting a foot down in a slight depression while stopped for a light, and the like. That bike's huge, and it's going to handle like a huge bike (big/slow), when you'd be better off on a 800 VFR (or 750), SV 650, Ninja 650, Street Triple, SX1000, or any one of a number of more appropriately-sized bikes.
Lowering the seat is good. Lowering the bike means shortening the sidestand and centerstand (if it's got one). I don't know if that bike uses a rising rate linkage w/single shock, or dual shocks. If the former, you may have to have someone who knows to custom make the longer arms for you, after which you (and your later buyer) have to live with the decreased rear suspension travel. If the latter, you're looking a stiff price for new shocks. And that's the rear. You need to make the front match, so that means raising the fork tubes UP through the triple clamp, but that assumes there's room for the fork tube caps to come up, nothing in the way. Also, that removes front suspension travel and brings the front fender into possible contact with the bottom of the triple clamp, or the bodywork, upon full compression.
Nothing's easy, it seems. Again, hate to be a downer, but I am trying to help.
Just curious about your prior riding experience, Just being on the short side doesn't mean you can't have fun on this one. I probably wouldn't encourage learning on a 1000, but ability has a lot to do with keeping it. Hubby/boyfriend ride? How does he feel aout it? Brave girl for putting a pic like that on a mostly crazed old guy site too! :0) Riding is obviously an exciting hobby, just be careful, take your time, and spend some more "boring" time in the parking lot.
And, to be clear, my comments were "skill-neutral." She could be Rossi-lina and I'd say the same thing. I was speaking only to the physics issue of a 5'4" female whose presumed muscle mass (relative to a 5'4" male) will have difficulties (and less fun) horsing such a big/tall bike around town, or anywhere. I've got a '04 Concours that I think is no/less fun to ride (relative to my smaller mounts), and I'm 6'0/185/male. I limit its use to bad weather and two-up, as a result.
I love the ninja 600 idea (consider the 636 for a little more low-end torque, or GSXR 750 - a brilliant bike), assuming you want a supersport 600 (a handful in a different way).
That's a big bike. BUT, IF your heart is set on keeping it, there have been some great suggestions already (seat, lower suspension a bit,) but what has worked for me (5'6" 132# 28 in inseam) is a set of good quality logger/wildland firefighter boots with about a 2 " heel. They come in womens sizes and if I were going to buy a pair today I would look at the Chippewa Super Logger. I have a '97 VFR with no lowering done to it and with these style boots I can flat foot it at a light. They aren't as cool as SIDIs but they are fairly protective. (stiff leather, heel counter, reinforced shank). RE: bike selection-Nothing wrong with a 600 either. The older Honda F4i s were GREAT bikes. Good luck. :fing02:
The key to not dropping your bike is to figure a technique to compensate for being vertically challenged. I rarely use both feet when at a stop since I'll be tipping toeing. Instead I lean to one side and flat foot on that side. You'll just have to experiment with various ways and in no time you'll get the hang of it.
This is what I did to manage the DRZ400S i used to have. It worked OK once I got the hang of it, and I never dropped the bike.
On the street. Dirt is another matter. Fell off a couple times there.
Sold it because it was too tall for me at days end, and too heavy for me in the dirt.
Plus, I decided to stick mostly to pavement. FTD. :biggrin:
[image: View Post]VFR4Lee, on 15 April 2011 - 08:55 PM, said:
Quote
The key to not dropping your bike is to figure a technique to compensate for being vertically challenged. I rarely use both feet when at a stop since I'll be tipping toeing. Instead I lean to one side and flat foot on that side. You'll just have to experiment with various ways and in no time you'll get the hang of it.
This is what I did to manage the DRZ400S i used to have. It worked OK once I got the hang of it, and I never dropped the bike.
On the street. Dirt is another matter. Fell off a couple times there.
Sold it because it was too tall for me at days end, and too heavy for me in the dirt.
Plus, I decided to stick mostly to pavement. FTD. :biggrin:
I can't even tippy toe on my Yamaha WR 426 dirt bike. It's just too high. However, I manage to get on and off the WR 426 just fine on dirt trails without any issue. And once moving I need the full suspension travel going over whoops and jumps. There's no way I could balance the bike while stop at an intersection with my vertically challenged legs. Thank goodness I do not ride the dirt bike on street roads...
I'm also wondering how a little lady came to buy a tall bike, too. What turned you on to this Honda? Why is it "the one?"
Seems that seat height is at the foremost of most womens' motorcycle buying experience.
Standing at 5'7" and most of it long legs, I have no problem with streetbikes made for men so I get to ride basically whatever I want (and can afford), but I do remember very well being a new rider wanting to "flat foot" it.
So, I cut down my own seats. And I lowered bikes. But the seats were uncomfortable and the lowered bikes couldn't corner.
Still, if you just love this bike, some time spent committed to learning how to ride it well should pay off. There's a lot to be researched and practiced on slow-speed skills. And remember, as long as the balls of your feet touch down, you are in control of the machine. You have all the leverage you need.
If you're only on tippie-toes for real, you might look into some kind of alterations...or another bike.
And I'm just sayin'....my '86 VFR700 may be old, but it's an absolute blast in the twisties and I can flat-foot it. That means you could get the balls of your feet down....
[image: View Post]Kel, on 15 April 2011 - 03:52 PM, said:
There are certainly a few things at work here besides the seat height. There isn't a ton of foam to lose in the stock seat but even if you take it down to the pan, It's still wide at the frame there and,at 5'4 you'll have an awkward reach to the bars while still being on you toes. Which leads to the other factor...weight. At 600lbs, it's a difficult bike to maneuver around while sitting on it.(difficult even to push it!) I have a hard time backing mine up even the slightest slope and I'm 6'0. This doesn't lend itself to being the safest setup. This bike will tuck under on you at full steering lock with ease and put it, and it's hard to source panels on the ground quick. There is a LOT of weight up high and it takes VERY little to get over to the point where strength and leg leverage is needed to keep it from heading south.Unless you absolutely have to have an R, I would sell it and get something that's more your size. I'm not saying small displacement just something that can be made to fit your frame.
The bike in the pic doesn't look abnormally high. Looks like it's parked up a slight incline judging from the truck. You can drop the front a little(not over an inch certainly) but I haven't heard of anyone willing to mess with the back. Bikes are not like cars, there is a point where you are tossing handling out the window with an aggressive drop.
Any way, welcome to the forum. Perhaps you can get it straightened out to your satisfaction and if so, let us know! :fing02:
:+1:
I'm 6'1", 200lbs and still found the 1KR tough to push around and maneuver at slow speeds.
If you want to keep it I'd look at lowering the front end as much as possible, easy enough, and going with an aftermarket shock from Jaime Daugherty to gain another 1" or so in the rear., more money though...$$
If you love the engine and the ride, 5th or 4th gen VFRs are lighter and much easier to lower. Look around for a '94 to '01 VFR. Good luck. :fing02:
Welcome! Always good to hear another big ole 1000R has survived! From what I remember the stock front end cannot be lowered much do to the air cross over set-up, but you can raise the clip ons to help your reach (won't help the height though...). Lowering the rear wont do you any favors when it comes to handling, so I would say taking foam off of the seat would be your best route. Try that first, and if you are still struggling to control her than I would have to agree that you may want to look for something easier to move around.
And if you wouldn't mind, post a pic when you have the Chippewa Super Loggers on...
Best of luck!
:beer:
She's already told us why she bought the bike - she got a great deal!! :) Awesome find RRH, great looking bike!!
I know many of the guys here RRH and around 70% of them have dropped their bikes too. Me as well, more than once. When a bike that weighs nearly 500 pounds is going down - well it's just going.
I'm 5' 5.5" and my bike has been lowered. I bought my bike in 05 as a leftover 04 and have 37,000 miles on her. During most of that time the lowering hasn't bothered me except when in the twisties a bit and I did feel restricted on my first track day. A lowered bike is going to scrape things sooner than a bike at stock high will. You can compensate for that by getting off the bike more but it still is an issue. DO try shaving the seat down first and see if you can avoid lowering the bike. However, if your style of riding is not hanging off the bike trying to get a knee down, then lowering it won't be an issue anyway! The dealership where I bought my bike found a guy on the net who made kits for VFR's because his wife keep dropping hers. I wish I could remember his name but his kit may not fit your bike anyway.
As far as being female and manuvering such a heavy bike? Well that's what the ENGINE is for! The only times muscle mass is any issue at all is when you may need to back her up an incline. Watching where I park eliminates that problem. 90% of my riding has always been alone and I've never had a problem..
You can drop the front at least an inch. Pull the fork tubes and have the air holes welded up. The air function is over-rated and my guess is your weight will not warrant any added air pressure.
Consider removing 1/4-1/2" or so from the rear shock shaft and reweld the clevis back on the shaft. Just make sure you lower the front as well or it`s chopper city.
I haven`t done the math yet but this should get you close. Maybe VFRCapn Mike can jump in with the math.
Don`t make the sidestand shorter just yet, you may be able to remove a small amount of metal from the side of the bracket the sidestand stops against to take care of that after you lower the bike.
It`s still big and heavy. I actually ended up raising the rear of mine to get the handling I want and I`m still 5'8" so I sit on it close to how you do at a standstill.
I will say I`m relatively certain I am much stronger than you though. Be careful.
I would think a combination of a lowered rear suspension (work with Jamie on that for starters), lowered front (find out where the ford are supposed to be relative to the top triple per factory, talk to Jamie again about how much lower to match with whatever he suggests at the rear) and an aftermarket seat with a lower height should really help things out. There probably isn't a seat off the shelf but the people at Sargent Seats could be pretty useful in either modifying your existing seat for you or selling the parts you would need to mod it yourself. Stiffer foam, new cover material, etc. With some good stiff seat foam cut shorter than stock and to a width you prefer this should be an easier bike for you to handle.
Hey,RRH GO FOR IT1 With everyone saying you can't ; I will offer a contra view. So what if you fall down in a parking lot,garage,muddy hill,toll booth? So what if it a beast.
To me, bikes offer such a great melding of the mind,body and spirit that every single ride is an adventure and a chance to really focus the mind. Bikes are a challenge at a level that pilots and boat captains can understand and that the rest of us can afford.What other machine can replicate 90% of the absoulute best in the world for 1% of the cost? (MotoGP to any new sport bike.)
Plenty of all sized people ride all sizes of bikes and started on other sized bikes. Some people started on mini-bikes when they were hardly old enough to know what a purple crayon is. Some people started out on a big 'ol Harley before they knew better.
Ride every day that you can - Big Mo has tons of great rides.
Welcome aboard RRH and congrats on your new ride - very nice! I'm also new to VFRD and finding this to be a great resource. You'll be certain to get very useful information (from all sides :bliss: ), which should help. I like texasvfr's take and will suggest to give it a bit of time, you may adapt much quicker than you think.
hello and welcome..
as allready stated.. weld up the air hole crossover air holes.. lower the front..shave the seat, lower the rear .. forget the Chippewa Super Loggers.. go to a punk rocker store.. i have seen girls with 5 inch heals on steal toed boots riding everything from sport bikes to choppers. :fing02:
RRH......I see this as all good info.... I'd like it if you could give us a riding history....... So far all I've seen for sure Is you just wanted some info on setting up your bike for yourself being shorter than the bikes now set up..... and dumping it in the parking lot doesn't mean you haven't been riding much before, since peeps with experience seem to do it themselves.
Though we all love a mystery, the info might be better if we can hear a little more........ If you want, of course.
[image: View Post]Kel, on 15 April 2011 - 08:54 PM, said:
[image: View Post]rangemaster, on 15 April 2011 - 08:50 PM, said:
I would look at the Chippewa Super Logger.
Doesn't every girl dream of footwear named Chippewa Super Logger? :fing02:
'
LOL! Well, there's always Whites Smokejumpers or Drew's Roughshot boots! :biggrin:
One thing to keep in mind if you decide to try the taller/thicker boot recommendations: getting your left toe under the gearshift lever can be tricky, depending upon the boot/footpeg/shift-lever combination. (It works for some people & some bikes, but not everyone has success with it.)
Another boot option to gain a little bit of height - not as much as with some of the Doc Marten lookalikes, but without looking like Doc Martens / logger boots - are the Daytona Ladystar boots, which will give you somewhere around 3/4 of an inch. No first-hand or second-hand experience with those, but we considered a set for my wife several years ago when she first got her CBR.
[image: View Post]Nicole, on 16 April 2011 - 08:50 AM, said:
Welcome!!!
She's already told us why she bought the bike - she got a great deal!! :) Awesome find RRH, great looking bike!!
The dealership where I bought my bike found a guy on the net who made kits for VFR's because his wife keep dropping hers. I wish I could remember his name but his kit may not fit your bike anyway.
Enjoy that bike!!
The shop with the VFR lowering kit is Sygma Cycle in Brownsburg Indiana. You can view their web site here: Sygma Cycle Ron and the rest of the folks there are an absolute pleasure to deal with but I know they do not make any lowering kits for the VF1000R. My wife is 5'1" and the only bike she has been able to flat foot is a lowered Ninja 250.
Is is just me or did this topic get an inordinate amount of 'views' and 'replies'? I can't remember there being that much interest in VF1000R's before. Ohh...its the 'little girl' in title. You know of course, this being cyberspace and all 'I'm a little girl" might be code for 'I'm a stumpy legged gargoyle with a humped back and no friends, but a wonderful personality" :ohmy: not that there's anything wrong with that...
As others have said in the past, Welcome to the nut-house. :biggrin:
[image: View Post]DDO-VFR, on 17 April 2011 - 09:18 AM, said:
Is is just me or did this topic get an inordinate amount of 'views' and 'replies'? I can't remember there being that much interest in VF1000R's before. Ohh...its the 'little girl' in title. You know of course, this being cyberspace and all 'I'm a little girl" might be code for 'I'm a stumpy legged gargoyle with a humped back and no friends, but a wonderful personality" :ohmy: not that there's anything wrong with that...
As others have said in the past, Welcome to the nut-house. :biggrin:
Ohh...its the 'little girl' in title. You know of course, this being cyberspace and all 'I'm a little girl" might be code for 'I'm a stumpy legged gargoyle with a humped back and no friends, but a wonderful personality" not that there's anything wrong with that...
[image: View Post]DDO-VFR, on 17 April 2011 - 09:18 AM, said:
Is is just me or did this topic get an inordinate amount of 'views' and 'replies'? I can't remember there being that much interest in VF1000R's before. Ohh...its the 'little girl' in title. You know of course, this being cyberspace and all 'I'm a little girl" might be code for 'I'm a stumpy legged gargoyle with a humped back and no friends, but a wonderful personality" :ohmy: not that there's anything wrong with that...
As others have said in the past, Welcome to the nut-house. :biggrin:
Brian
Hey -- not that there's anything wrong with that indeed!!!
Welcome to VRFD and after they finish rutting around you'll get the information that you really need. Finding a bike that fits can be a challenge - on both ends of the scale.
By the way --- VRF means Vfour Riding Fast - you joined the right group.
End of thread · 44 posts recoveredWayback Machine snapshot 4 Jun 2011