I wrecked my vfr a while back and finally got to riding a little. I'm just really uncomfortable with the front end cause idk exactly what happened. I have theories but I want a steering dampener which I haven't been able to find to fit the 1995 vfr 750 I have. Thinking of swapping the whole front end for a cbr front. Any ideas on what years are most compatible. And by front I mean forks, brakes, triple tree, handlebars, wheel but obviously fork size is the most important thing. Any help?
When you say uncomfortable with the front end what do you mean? I had a low speed(under 20 mph) low side this past summer. My father ended up being close by and had me drive his truck while he rode it home with just enough clutch lever for a finger and a half. Luckily he rode it, much more experienced then me, as the front end was tweaked. I found no damage and just loosened everything up and wiggled everything. As I tightened it up I made sure it was as straight as possible. I may have slightly bent a clip on but it handles fine going down the road.
Why would you need a steering damper on a VFR750, they literally never ever wobble their head.
It'll be one of the following, probably in this order as well:
1. poor rider input (don't be offended)
2. tyres are whack
3. tyres were cold
4. forks unserviced/leaking/not at all set up for your weight
5. hit something in the road to upset the front end
The front end on the VFR750 is good enough for the bike in my opinion. The brakes aren't the best but you just adjust the riding to suit the stopping power. CBR front ends bolt on as far as I've been informed. But you end up with altered steering lock etc.
My incident was a combination of 1-4 in johnlondon's post. I actually went from an improper suspension setup to a proper one the day before, the tires weren't the best choice and were cold. I lost the rear due to incorrect input.
It's probably a lot easier to use an F4i front end, though: 43mm forks, 4-pot calipers, some adjustability. The USD route is more complicated.
Ciao,
Lol not on a 4th gen. On a 4th gen you would still need to run either 6th gen triples or f4i triples to use the larger 43mm forks. So again how is that more complicated than just using cbr954 triples/forks/etc....
The 3rd/4th gen readily accepts CBR F3 forks. Apart from preload the vfrs have there is a damping setting. But the F3 forks are not cartrigde, merely a small adjustable hole in the rod that fits inside the damping rod.
I found no real improvement so when the opportunity arose to sell the F3 forks for good money, I did.
I run Wilbers front springs, 150mm airpocket and am ok with the forks as long as I donot ride another more modern bike....
It's probably a lot easier to use an F4i front end, though: 43mm forks, 4-pot calipers, some adjustability. The USD route is more complicated.
Ciao,
Lol not on a 4th gen. On a 4th gen you would still need to run either 6th gen triples or f4i triples to use the larger 43mm forks. So again how is that more complicated than just using cbr954 triples/forks/etc....
Perhaps it isn't...if you don't bother to address the wrong offset, shorter length and difficult/expensive second-hand parts availability issues! :wink:
zRoYz used "F4i forks, F4i calipers, F4i master cylinder, F4i guard, 6th gen triple clamps, 6th gen clipons, 6th gen wheel, 6th gen rotors, 6th gen axle", and this is how it looks:
Those are a lot of parts to gather, but he'd be buying the same number of parts for an USD conversion. The 6th-gen triples have exactly the same offset as the 4th-gen, and the forks approximately the same length, so there would be no significant suspension geometry changes to deal with. I think the F4i conversion is a nice, sweet upgrade (and I wish it had been available when I did the Firestorm fork swap on my 3rd-gen). YMMV...
I also think that the f4i front end swap is a great upgrade for vfr's. It is especially a great bang for the buck on 6th gens as 6th gen triple trees/wheel/rotors/axle will readily accept f4i forks.
But on earlier vfr's where the triples will need to be swapped out in order to run f4i forks, it makes less sense to go f4i than upgrading to a modern usd/radial front end, especially on the 4th gen where the wheel/rotors/axle/etc need to be swapped and you dont have to deal with delinking the brakes.
I have a 6th gen and I was getting ready to do f4i forks and brakes, but I found a deal on a full R1 front end conversion, so I just did that instead.
I actually made money selling all my old vfr bits after buying and swapping on the R1 front end.
Regarding OP's query of getting the bars lower - you're limited with the VFR by the fairing design. VTR1000F bars will fit the stock 4th Gen forks (need to re-drill switchblock locating points) and are 5/8" lower, but go any lower than that and you'll be pinching fingers against the tank at full lock.
When you say uncomfortable with the front end what do you mean? I had a low speed(under 20 mph) low side this past summer. My father ended up being close by and had me drive his truck while he rode it home with just enough clutch lever for a finger and a half. Luckily he rode it, much more experienced then me, as the front end was tweaked. I found no damage and just loosened everything up and wiggled everything. As I tightened it up I made sure it was as straight as possible. I may have slightly bent a clip on but it handles fine going down the road.
I just have flash backs when I ride and the handle bars shift unexpectedly. I don't do that on my harley. I thinks it's a mental thing plus the steering dampener I wanna add that doesn't seem to exist for the vfr bars and triple
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Why would you need a steering damper on a VFR750, they literally never ever wobble their head.
It'll be one of the following, probably in this order as well:
1. poor rider input (don't be offended)
2. tyres are whack
3. tyres were cold
4. forks unserviced/leaking/not at all set up for your weight
5. hit something in the road to upset the front end
The front end on the VFR750 is good enough for the bike in my opinion. The brakes aren't the best but you just adjust the riding to suit the stopping power. CBR front ends bolt on as far as I've been informed. But you end up with altered steering lock etc.
I hit a groove in the road that sent the bars wobbling. I used to have a gxsr that recovered just fine from similar incidents. As with the entire front end swap it is just a mental thing.a security blanket. I love the bike but if I doubt myself riding I'm endangering a lot more people than just myself . Better safe than sorry.
That's fair enough buddy. A steering damper won't help you though in situations like that.
I suppose you have a few options (list time again!)
1. rebuild the front forks, send to someone great - no idea who's who in your neck of the woods but over here we have Reactiv, K-tech and Maxton who all do fantastic jobs (I have a maxton reworked front end)
2. buy a better rear shock, Hyperpro are the go-to guys IMO
3. bang a different front end in. MUCH easier to come by in the states than the UK and considerably cheaper. The CBR front ends bolt in, albeit the USD ones are a bit shorter, as to how much real life difference this makes is debateable, people will give you boring paper facts all day, but as was proved with the ZZR14 shock swap, not everything on paper is representable in real life. There's loads of people who've done the front end swap who didn't lengthen the shocks or any of that shit and say it's markedly improved. I think it's just the steering locks that need adjusting and the radiator moving back a tad.
You need to go over the front end of your motorcycle completely. Look for anything bent, missing wheel weights, leaking fork seals, etc. What are you running for tires and how old are they or were they replaced after you crashed?
You are worried and getting flashbacks because you probably have an issue with the bike. Fix it and ride it, once you don't have issues anymore you should be more confident on it.
It's probably a lot easier to use an F4i front end, though: 43mm forks, 4-pot calipers, some adjustability. The USD route is more complicated.
Ciao,
Lol not on a 4th gen. On a 4th gen you would still need to run either 6th gen triples or f4i triples to use the larger 43mm forks. So again how is that more complicated than just using cbr954 triples/forks/etc....
What years are we talking about being the best to swap to for the F4i and the cbr954?
3rd gen is 5.5", the 6th gen is narrower I believe to take a 170 (although, the 3rd gen took a 170 on release as 180 wasn't common, so may be the same for the 98-2000 model - someone will confirm the rim width I'm sure)
2001 onwards is a full on 180 rear section, all apart from 3rd/4th gen require the wheel modifying to fit the RC36 bikes..
3rd, 5th, 6th and 8th gen are all 5.5 inch. People are buying out the third gen because its the new must have 8 spoke look/trend. The third gen is deminsionally identical to the 5th/6th gen, but it is a almost a pound lighter, which is a plus, though still a tad heavier than the narrow fourth gen wheel.
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