So as threatened, I thought I'd start a restoration thread of my V-Raptor and I have to admit I'm gonna be as interested as anyone else to see how it progresses 60k all weather commuting miles take a lot out of a motorcycle....
Good luck, looks like it’s been at the bottom of the sea for a while. I had one of these for a few years, loved it.
Drained the both the fuel and the coolant. It looks like the (plastic) tank has 'expanded' a little as the front bolt holes don't line up. It's a common issue but I reckon not too difficult to resolve. I'll buy a couple of mill off the seat base to allow the tanks mounting cradle to be pushed back a couple of mill. Oh and would you believe it more rust.... all of which I have now covered in ACF50 to hopefully stop it getting worse.
I nearly bought a Raptor Xtra last year cheap but while I was busy asking questions it got snapped up! Gotta love that motor tho!
Ooo... I've reached the heady heights of a featured thread I'm not looking to completely strip him down just yet because a possible house move may be in the offing next year so would like to leave at least a rolling chassis. So thinking aloud what to remove next... carbs/FI, loom, brakes & bodywork. The latter of which could make for a nice winter job prepping for paint.
Removed the right hand side footrest hanger and attendant brake caliper & gubbins. And lo & behold more rust on the frame... The rear brake was always a pain to bleed out and I've only just realised the two threaded holes in the caliper are the same size & pitch so I could have moved the supply to the lower port & the nipple to the upper. Did feel a little smug mind, in thinking to nip off the caliper bolts holding the halves together before removing it from its mounting plate. The last little low speed tumble (when I ran over a number plate in the road) had bent the brake pedal but I can now see it also bent it's pivot bolt.
However I didn't feel the same level of smugness after realising getting the pistons out would be a pain without the proper tool or even if knowing whether they were seized or not... so I reassembled the brake circuit & pumped 'em out.
It's not a Sunday so how can it be bath time... The after photo shows bits & bobs of corrosion on the calipers bodies but the internal faces & piston seal recesses are as clean as. I cleaned up the switch bolt manually with wet & dry and although it hasn't come up shiney shiney I'm still gonna keep & use it. Same with the other bolts as I'm loathed to just buy new stuff and bolt them on.... plus, and call me an old romantic, these guys have had a tough but reliable life so I think they deserve a spruce up and gentle retirement days in the sun.
It's seems I've got a little carried away in my desire to retain/repair as many of the original parts as possible. Years back I'd cut away some styling fins on the left hand side panel to allow fitment of a different reg/rec and then did the same to the right side panel for matching purposes. You can buy replacement carbon fibre panels for £200 but I find them a little too gauche or there are some second hand ones also at £100 each (plus postage from Italy or some such). So I had a go at repairing them - 'good from far & far from good' does spring to mind but I reckon they'll suit the time served weary but smart look I'm aiming for.
Spent a couple of pleasant hours bimbling about removing, labelling & bagging all the bits & pieces that hold the front fairing and assorted gubbins together.
As per other thread spent a little time brushing di-electric grease on the bare connectors. Also have invested in some plastic storage boxes and am starting to fill them up. Too cold to do much else in the garage.
Oh dear... getting serious now. Have created & are maintaining an inventory spreadsheet of the various rubber grommets, spacers and bolts with their part numbers and possible suppliers etc. Also ordered a second hand sidestand mainly for the two springs that are unobtainium & I have no idea of their dimensions. The order was put in at 11:30 am on Monday & they arrived 14:30 on Tuesday - from Holland! And I've never figured out why sidestands do have two springs for
The last seized footrest hanger bolt has finally been removed. I say bolt but really it was half a bolt after some idiot had years ago tried to drill it out and was only partially successful....
After an idle couple of weeks started disassembling the front brakes. Before removing them from the forks I checked I could undo the mating bolts and then cut out some blanking plates so I could pump the pistons out to ensure they are at least moving and should therefore be easier to remove when the caliper is apart. The nipple & line bolts felt a little too tight to go grunting them off so left them soaking in release fluid and these will have to wait for another instalment.
