Custom Gen 1 Build

[coreyhill]

Whats up everyone!!

So Ive got a new project that I'm an working on. Need some advice. Its a 83 VR 1200. I plan on doing a custom bobber/chopper type thing. the great thing adbout it is I got the bike with almost everything. the only things I didn't get with it is the carbs, seat, and rubber on the wheels. I'm sure there are other things missing. little things. I want to know how to do the exhaust? Is there any reason why I cant do straight pipes or something like that? And electrical. Is there an easy way to bear bones it? How to? I'm going to try to make it as bear bones as I can for the build. Any info would be great. I'm also going to use the extra plastic and extra parts to restore my 85 VR 1200.

[bongobobny]

There have been a few people here that have turned their venture into a bobber. I'm sure they will chime in soon enough.

 

Some, but not much of the wiring can indeed be eliminated but you are in for building your own harness. These bikes have a very complex starting circuit and a bunch of safety features built-in to it.

 

My feelings on straight pipes are they can sometimes cause issues with burnt valves as they need a certain amount of back pressure. Also, you will most likely end up having to rejet the carbs. Yes, it can be done...

 

Good luck with your project and keep us posted! The best place for finding the plastic you are looking for is eBay. If you are just dealing with cracks and broken mounting tabs then it is financially more efficient to just learn plastic repair which many of us have done. It is pretty easy and there are several effective methods for doing this. Myself, I like using the 2 part plastic epoxy and if needed pieces of plastic to graft in when replacing larger areas. Chances are when you buy pieces of fairings, etc. off of eBay they will need minor repair anyway! For the most part, pieces from all 1st gens are interchangeable but there are a few differences between the MK1 and MK2 like saddlebags, trunk, headlight bezel, and lower chin pieces, so in the case of your '85 try to limit it to '83 to '85. What pieces are you looking for???

[coreyhill]

Thank you Bongo . I don't need any of the plastic. I've got it all. And I'm a auto body/painter. I know all about plastic repair. My 85 VR 1200 Is all there. Just some of the ft flairing will need a lot to repair. Here is a few pics of the 85 and the spair plastic I have

[coreyhill]

I also would like to know if one could do away with the safety features. If one was to spend the time to go through and remove everything can it be done? This is a project for myself. I'm going to be doing all the work myself. And I don't plan on turning a profit on this build. I plan on keeping the bike for very long time after it's done. Both bikes. I love my Ventura Royals.

[Flyinfool]

Yes one could do away with all of the safety features, it is easy to do. But that will make the bike a lot less safe to ride, and is not recommended. With all of the safeties out, you could engage the starter while in gear on the side stand, or the electric fuel pump will keep pumping if the bike is on its side, and all kinds of other silly oh $hit oopies.

[mraf]

About the only safety feature I would leave on if I was to do what you want to is the kickstand one. Mine malfunctioned on my 83 once and I rode away with it down. When I reached that left turn I about crapped my pants when it wouldn't lean left. I would redesign the kickstand so that wouldn't happen if your bent on removing that one feature. Many years ago we had a young man in our town that wrecked his Honda because of this. He laid the bike down hard and slid under a parked pickup truck. His injuries were quite extensive but he lived through it. He is now in a wheelchair and will be for the rest of his life. He sued Honda for their bad design of the kickstand and won a Multi-millon dollar settlement. I see him now and then when he comes to town and is doing alright despite his limitations. Honda in fighting this actually came to our town with a truck and two leathered up riders with the same model and year of bike he wrecked and recreated the wreck on the same curve less the pickup. It was something to see, someone purposely wrecking a bike. I believe that this is one of the reasons why a kickstand on anything made today retracts when striking the pavement or fails to stay running without putting it up.

[coreyhill]

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I will continue to upload pictures as the project progresses. I will get some serious thought about the safety features.

[zagger]

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I will continue to upload pictures as the project progresses. I will get some serious thought about the safety features.

 

Geesh, pitch whatever safety things you find. I cannot even think what the heck they were, but I sure don't miss them. I eliminated all of the stock wiring and just put back what was needed. If you ditch the plastic fairings, then the stock wiring becomes exposed and needs a new home. My venture is very fast and feels quite light since all of the engine weight sits low. I'm sure that you will enjoy your bike after "remodeling".

zag

 

First winter's work - exposed stock wiring:

Edited February 5, 2018 by zagger

[coreyhill]

Thanks Zagger. I would like to know how you did your exhaust system. Are they just sight piped or what? How is tuning the engine. Is there any problems with the exhaust being that way?

[cowpuc]

I am with Zag (goes without saying = I LOVE the "Beast" (his bike) = that wild eyed Beast scoot just SINGS to my heart!!),,,, if your gonna do it = JUST DO IT!! Ground up personalized custom build er and ride that puppy till the cows come home!! Create something that is YOURS and YOURS alone!!

Now that said,, I have never met Zag in person but just from his gorgeous 2 wheeled piece of art that he built with his own two hands I can pretty much tell that he is probably not the kind of person who is gonna attack Mom Yam if his throttle sticks on his bike the Beast while he and the Beast are crossing a creek and they run into a tree and takes off one of his legs.. I got a gut feeling that Zag knows that building his own scoot makes him the one responsible for what ever happens...

I know,, pretty hard core outlook but, coming from a lifetime filled with what Zag was probably trying to say with his initial comment of "Geesh" = thats the way I see it too...

Edited February 6, 2018 by cowpuc
I violated 304182.4 of the Code and called Zags bike "Franky" when its name is "Beast" = corrected!!

[zagger]

Thanks Zagger. I would like to know how you did your exhaust system. Are they just sight piped or what? How is tuning the engine. Is there any problems with the exhaust being that way?

 

Each cylinder has its own exhaust. I put baffles into each muffler section so the overall sound isn't overly loud. I don't remember where I got the baffles, but I made the final section of exhaust pipe so the baffles (roughly 18" long) would slide in. I put an air/fuel sensor into one of the exhaust lines so that I could actually see whether the engine was lean or rich under different power demands. It was running overly lean so I put an air restrictor into each of the air intakes (each carb has its own filter and inlet tubing). The restrictor was simply a large steel washer with a machined ID designed to produce a little flow resistance and keep the carbs happy. Looking at the air/fuel gauge, it was easy to see if the engine was operating in the proper zone. Without the gauge, I'm not sure how anyone could figure out what was going on. It is made by Innovate Motorsports. It does require a threaded port into the exhaust system, but once the tuning is done you can take out the sensor and cap off the threaded port. Each of the exhaust mufflers also has a disk clamped onto a steel shaft which goes across the exhaust outlet. The exhaust backpressure can be changed by tipping the disk a little bit. When everything is happy, the disks can just be left in place.

zag

[zagger]

I am with Zag (goes without saying = I LOVE "Franky" (his bike) = that wild eyed Frankenstine scoot just SINGS to my heart!!),,,, if your gonna do it = JUST DO IT!! Ground up personalized custom build er and ride that puppy till the cows come home!! Create something that is YOURS and YOURS alone!!

Now that said,, I have never met Zag in person but just from his gorgeous 2 wheeled piece of art that he built with his own two hands I can pretty much tell that he is probably not the kind of person who is gonna attack Mom Yam if his throttle sticks on his bike Franky while he and Franky are crossing a creek and they run into a tree and takes off one of his legs.. I got a gut feeling that Zag knows that building his own scoot makes him the one responsible for what ever happens...

I know,, pretty hard core outlook but, coming from a lifetime filled with what Zag was probably trying to say with his initial comment of "Geesh" = thats the way I see it too...

 

Hey Cowpuc,

Not sure about "Franky". All of my biking friends started calling it the "Beast" and so I guess that is its name.

zag

 

Stuck on a rock in a river.

 

At a local bike meetup.

Edited February 6, 2018 by zagger

[cowpuc]

Hey Cowpuc,

Not sure about "Franky". All of my biking friends started calling it the "Beast" and so I guess that is its name.

zag

 

Sorry about that brother!! Fixed it!!

[coreyhill]

Thanks everyone for the post. I will keep everyone updated on the build.

[CaseyJ955]

Some time spent with a schematic, multimeter and soldering iron should be able.to get the harness down to the bare nothing. Im a fan of the kickstand kill switch but you should be able to retain or eliminate any/all of the features not needed. Aside from ignition and lights you probably need very little. I have a speedo and tons of stuff from a gen1 Vmax par-out if any of it might be useful give me a shout. I really love these projects and look forward to seeing it unfold.

 

One thing that occurred to me as possibly cool is to leave the OEM fuel tank where it is and use a dummy bobber tank as a place to store tools, filter pods like in the stage 7 kit take up so little space. Darn I love bobbers. Good luck with the build, keep us updated!

[coreyhill]

Some time spent with a schematic, multimeter and soldering iron should be able.to get the harness down to the bare nothing. Im a fan of the kickstand kill switch but you should be able to retain or eliminate any/all of the features not needed. Aside from ignition and lights you probably need very little. I have a speedo and tons of stuff from a gen1 Vmax par-out if any of it might be useful give me a shout. I really love these projects and look forward to seeing it unfold.

 

One thing that occurred to me as possibly cool is to leave the OEM fuel tank where it is and use a dummy bobber tank as a place to store tools, filter pods like in the stage 7 kit take up so little space. Darn I love bobbers. Good luck with the build, keep us updated!

 

Thanks CaseyJ955. Ive been throwing around lots of different ideals on how to do the seat/tank. I'm fighting with the ideal of a v-max tank with a old tractor seat the will left to have access to the fill of the tank. or going with a 70ds Kawasaki 750 tank with a cut off VR1200 seat. I have so many ideals knocking around.

[CaseyJ955]

Thanks CaseyJ955. Ive been throwing around lots of different ideals on how to do the seat/tank. I'm fighting with the ideal of a v-max tank with a old tractor seat the will left to have access to the fill of the tank. or going with a 70ds Kawasaki 750 tank with a cut off VR1200 seat. I have so many ideals knocking around.

 

I wonder if the Vmax faux tank would not be to wide and sparse around the sides where the contours meet the scoops. My guess is your right on with just about any retro tank with a little constructive surgery and a sprung tractor style seat. If your lucky you might find one with a nice authentic patina depending on what direction you take it. So many cool possibilities. Any ideas on exhaust?

 

I wish someone made a 4-2-1 to fit the Venture, its flat out musical on the Vmax. I definitely prefer it to the 4-2 system sound, but maybe Marks still does a collector for Ventures that you can incorporate somehow.

[coreyhill]

I wonder if the Vmax faux tank would not be to wide and sparse around the sides where the contours meet the scoops. My guess is your right on with just about any retro tank with a little constructive surgery and a sprung tractor style seat. If your lucky you might find one with a nice authentic patina depending on what direction you take it. So many cool possibilities. Any ideas on exhaust?

 

I wish someone made a 4-2-1 to fit the Venture, its flat out musical on the Vmax. I definitely prefer it to the 4-2 system sound, but maybe Marks still does a collector for Ventures that you can incorporate somehow.

 

I haven't decided on the exhaust yet. I'm thinking about single straights or a 2-1 shorty type of thing. I'm still in the ideal/parts phase.

[zagger]

I haven't decided on the exhaust yet. I'm thinking about single straights or a 2-1 shorty type of thing. I'm still in the ideal/parts phase.

 

My Venture has 4 pipes, one for each cylinder. Each pipe has a muffler with baffles and a steel washer mounted on a shaft near the outlet so that the back pressure can be adjusted. Once you find a setting that seems to work well, the washer can just be left in position. I thought that it was interesting to have 4 exhaust pipes mostly because most people assume that the bike is a V-twin. When they see 4 exhaust pipes, they know for sure that it isn't a V-twin! So, I guess, I built the pipes mostly for the amusement factor! But they do sound good and the engine runs great. I also like not having a conventional gas tank. Most people cannot figure out where the heck the gas tank is since a tank under the seat is pretty unusual. I like the low position since it helps keep the center of gravity low on the bike and makes it feel much lighter than it really is.

zag

 

[coreyhill]

Hay Guys/Gals.

Just an update on the build. I've got the motor out of the frame and have the frame almost ready to go through to modify/paint and repair (if needed). I've finally have decided to build a Café Racer style bike out of this one. Wont be a traditional style Café Racer. More bobber then café. I'm going to make a custom tank, custom air intake, battery box, wiring harness. I'm going to be making a old school Springer Seat with a new style. The motor spins and was suppose to be running when I got the bike. I Just need a set of carbs for it. I cant wait. I have a motorcycle junk yard here in Oregon that has a set of carbs. I just hope I can get the money before they get sold.

Edited February 11, 2018 by coreyhill

[bongobobny]

The main area of concern with the '83 frame only was the area where the bracket for the rear shock is. There was a rusting issue from the inside out which was corrected with the '84. Other than that you should be good...