Reanimating a greybike RVF400 (NC35)

Whammy

Veteran of Road Racing
Finally I can breathe. I thought I was gonna die.
Glad everything worked out.:thumbup
 

RVFRick

Well-known member
Session 51: A new source of smoke

A buddy of mine whose bike I rode only once 10 years ago in rush hour traffic. It was on 880 between Hayward and Fremont at 4 in the afternoon. It was the worst test ride you could ever hope for especially considering the bike - one of my all time favorite lust bikes.

I had been hounding him on and off for years to sell me this bike but he wouldn't budge. The bone stock gem sat unmolested in his garage ever since his 9 year old child was born. From then on she just sat stuffed in the corner of the garage lucky to get a monthly warm up.

Fast forward to last week when he acquired his dream car after a loooong search (I know the feeling): hello 911 Turbo :thumbup. This development was to my benefit, too, as I realized my prey was weakend. Ha! You see his garage is already bursting at the seams, his bike, his brother's Hawk, a spec miata, two daily drivers, bicycles, all kinds of kids stuff. His wife had also been wanting to regain valuable floor space. Oh yeah, the 911 came with spare wheels and muffler. With that kind of pressure something HAD to give. In a brief moment of weakness he reconsidered letting go of his 2 wheeled baby. I pounced and we struck a deal.

I'm eager to do a pic of the entire herd :teeth
 

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Kestrel

Well-known member
Not fair! One person should not have that many fantastic motorcycles!

Let me know when I can swing by with the trailer and pick up the NC.
 

Krooklyn

Usual Suspect
Nice NSR. I always wanted a tagged NSR, but am just too cheap to pay the premium. Glad to see it's been added to your collection.
 

RVFRick

Well-known member
Nice NSR. I always wanted a tagged NSR, but am just too cheap to pay the premium. Glad to see it's been added to your collection.

Thanks guys. Premium indeed. It's a case of be careful what you ask for as you may get it. :afm199
 

RVFRick

Well-known member
Slow progress but at least I finally ordered tires and turn signals. ebay had a $25 off promo yesterday. I got $25 off each tire by creating multiple accounts :teeth.

In transit are one set each of Michelin Power RSs and Bridgestone S21s. One set for RVF the other for NSR. Which on which I haven't decided.

Are older tires tougher to remove than newer? Any recommendations for properly equipped and trained MC tire pros between Mountain View and San Jose that won't bung up my rims?
 

Pushrod

Well-known member
This reanimation would be worth watching on cable instead of those lame shows that use motor work as an excuse to portray "personalities".

I like your progressive pictures of processes best.
 

ScottRNelson

Mr. Dual Sport Rider
Head to Moto Guild and DIY. Nobody will take as good care of your wheels as you will!
You're assuming the skill to do it right. I'm sure that if I used their equipment there would be a bigger chance of scratching something than if an expert tire changer did it, for example. :laughing
 

295566

Numbers McGee
Slow progress but at least I finally ordered tires and turn signals. ebay had a $25 off promo yesterday. I got $25 off each tire by creating multiple accounts :teeth.

In transit are one set each of Michelin Power RSs and Bridgestone S21s. One set for RVF the other for NSR. Which on which I haven't decided.

Are older tires tougher to remove than newer? Any recommendations for properly equipped and trained MC tire pros between Mountain View and San Jose that won't bung up my rims?

Evolution Motorcycles in Santa Clara has never scratched any of my wheels that I've brought them. They're also a site sponsor. :thumbup
 

RVFRick

Well-known member
I've done Honda Passport tires. Serious question - is it simply a matter of the right tools and just more muscles? :nchantr

Three tires came today. The 120/60/17 Mich Power RS 8lbs3oz is half a pound lighter than the Bstone S21 8lbs11oz. :wow That's a non trivial amount of unsprung mass savings
 

Whammy

Veteran of Road Racing
Just run them over to Evolution they will take good care of you, and a number of their employees are barfers
 

RVFRick

Well-known member
All tires in and picked up two Pitbull stands this weekend. One "pin" and the other "fork" style. Always wondered how these work - now I do. Simple, clever and solid. Wheel's off tonight (Anthony says it takes 10 minutes tops) and I'll bring them over to a shop for install tomorrow.

Just noticed that in my photos the Michelins look oddly outsized by the Bridgestones. Weird.
 

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Kestrel

Well-known member
I've done Honda Passport tires. Serious question - is it simply a matter of the right tools and just more muscles? :nchantr

Mostly technique. If it is hard, you’re doing it wrong. Plenty of great videos on YouTube which can get you started.

Haven’t paid for a tire change since the very first tire change on my Ninja 250 over ten years ago. Done countless tires since then, and the longest part of the whole process is getting the wheels removed/installed on the bike. The tire change part really isn’t that big of a deal.
 

RVFRick

Well-known member
Session 52: Removing wheels

Yesterday I removed the wheels from the RVF afterwork. It took me about 30 minutes but it wasn't too difficult. Haynes manual and Pitbull stands made it easy.

I started by taking the bike off the Baxley front wheel chock then using the Pitbull single sided stand to lift the rear wheel up - shove the stand pin into the hub tube and push the lever. Up she went. Removed the hub nut cotter pin using needle nose pliers to unbend the pin end and a mallet to help drive it out. Haynes says to thow it out but seems fine to me so I will I reuse it 😊.

Securing the rear wheel is a large 36mm nut. BTW there was supposed to be a plastic cap over the nut but mine was missing. I had nothing close to 36mm in metric or inch. Next I went looking for my largest adjustable wrench. Nope! Even my 12" Crescent was too tiny. Desperate to finish I dug around and found my plumber’s pipe wrench. I apologized to my baby in advance :laughing. (Edit* apparently I'm not the first to have used a pipe wrench on the nut. Forensic evidence submitted for your review).

Tranny in 6th gear to prevent the wheel from turning, wrench fitted snugly and parallel to the ground. And a push of maybe 15-20 pounds unscrewed the nut without incident or damage to the nut :thumbup. The nut unscrewed, a thin shim came off next and finally the cool looking finned spacer (finnned mostly to look cool I think) :rolleyes.

Pulled on the wheel and it slid off the hub revealing a view of the other side of the RVF's signature SSSA. Plus four prominent pins which couple the hub to the wheel. Cool! :thumbup

Moving to the front I placed the Pitbull “pin” stand in place and lifted the front end up. Unfortunately the stand directly blocks access to the front axle. Now why would they design it to do that I’m not sure - seems like a mistake if you ask me. Maybe that’s why the guy I bought them from had both styles to sell. The fork lifting Pitbull worked aces.

Haynes manual said to remove the two brake caliper bolts with a 12mm socket, slide the calipers off the rotors (required some prying and coaxing) and suspend the calipers using a bungie cord so as to not stress the hydraulic lines. No bungies handy I improvised a plastic grocery bag hanging from the handlebar grips -nice and cozy :thumbup.

Loosened the two pairs of bolts at the fork ends which clamp the axle.

Next loosen the bolt on the right side of the bike that was holding the axle together. I didn't have the correct 22mm socket but a 7/8” fit perfectly well (actually negligibly 0.25mm on the large side). It took a bit of force but came undone with my 18” socket handle. The manual then says to use the drilled hole on the left side of the axle and stuff a screw driver into the hole to help wiggle/work out the axle. I used a punch instead and wrangled the axle out buy turning back and forth while pulling. With the axle pulled pulled out the wheel dropped out the forks. Success!

A photo of the parts is shown basically the axle is a threaded rod into which a bolt threads into and clamps two spacers/bushings to the wheel thru hole. Note left and right spacers differ.

The wheel center has a pressed bearing on each side. I stuck my gloved index fingers into the axle hoke and spun the wheel. They were not smooth and felt rather notchy :(. I may need to learn how to replace/service with wheel bearings. Better yet, I call Evolution tomorrow to get their feedback.

Fast forward to today. Called three places for estimates: Cal Moto in MV wanted $30 per wheel, Wrench Your Ride in Santa Clara charges $60 :wtf. Evolution Motorcycles (recommended by Whammy) @$20 seemed very reasonable and a Barf sponsor so they earned a try.

During lunch dropped off the wheels at Evolution. BTW if you buy tires from them it’s even cheaper (but I bet not as cheap as my stacked coupon ebay deal 😊). Other bonus surprise is they are only 10 minutes away from my work in Mountain View and it seems noon time is an amazing time for light traffic on 101.

I pick up my wheels tomorrow. I need to remember to call them in the morning and ask them to inspect the bearings.

Oh, anything else I should do while the wheels are off?
 

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Whammy

Veteran of Road Racing
Evolution is the ISH.... So close to your work too? Bonus!
Peek in on my Dorso, (Commuter bike) its being worked on.
 

ScottRNelson

Mr. Dual Sport Rider
Removed the hub nut cotter pin using needle nose pliers to unbend the pin end and a mallet to help drive it out. Haynes says to throw it out but seems fine to me so I will I reuse it.

[...]

Desperate to finish I dug around and found my plumber’s pipe wrench. I apologized to my baby in advance.
Don't let that group that dog-piled onto someone else recently about spraying lubricant on a moving chain with the bike running and in gear know you reused a cotter pin or they'll come here and tell you how you'll kill yourself when it fails at speed and your rear wheel falls off. :laughing

A pipe wrench fits everything. Too bad they're too heavy to put in a tool bag on the bike. :thumbup
 

Krooklyn

Usual Suspect
That picture of the pipe wrench made me cringe a little. :(

I can't remember where I got my socket - but you'll need one to get an accurate torque amount. Pretty sure the nut is a 36mm not 35mm. You can borrow mine if you really need, but call around - some auto store should have one.
 
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