VF 500 INTERCEPTOR
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contributed by: Paul Laskowski, plaskows@hns.com
Last revised:  April 1995 original version
distribution:  may be freely copied with inclusion of this header
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  [ Paul Laskowski contributes this list of performance modifications
    he has made to his 1985 VF500 Interceptor, along with some other tips
    for care and feeding of your motorcycle.   -- rblanders]


        Glad to see there still folks who love and appreciate 
the baby 'ceptors, cause I also believe they are the best VF 
ever made. I've not done alot to mine but here are some brief notes.

- Progressive Suspension fork springs with 15W/20W fork oil 
  made a huge difference in front end feel and balance.  
  I use either PJ1 or BelRay fork oil.

- I dropped the triple clamps 10mm.  Initially I dropped them 5mm, 
  and decided to try another 5mm and this worked even better.  
  The steering is slightly faster, and the standup in hard braking 
  in corners is drastically reduced.  I believe the conservative 
  front end (27degrees rake and 4" trail) allows me to get away with 
  this.  Most modern spoke bikes should only be dropped 5mm.

- Ferodo Brake pads.  Definitely worth the money, I also use Castrol 
  LMA brake fluid exclusively.

- I've replaced the front intake cam.  Got fairly pitted by 15k miles.
  American Honda would not pay for it (the cam replacement program was 
  only for the VF700/750F).  Interesting the replacement cam had oil 
  holes in the downside of the cam lobe, the original did not (I'm sure 
  this improves cam lubrication dramatically).

- I use Castrol GTX 10-40W.  The flame wars over oil is oil are amusing.

- Metzeler ME33/99 tires, I used to use ME33 CompK/ME55 but didn't ride
  aggressivly enough to really use them.  I've tried other brands 
  but always came back to Metzelers: "when all you make are motocycle 
  tires then you better make great ones to stay in business" 
  (my motto on Metzelers).

- Replaced rear shock fluid with 30W PJ1 fork oil.  This helps but 
  not as good as a REAL replacement.  I'm looking to replace the 
  spring soon.  Can't really justify a $500 Ohlins/White Brothers 
  shock for a bike worth $1k.

  - To get the oil into the rear shock takes some care and time.  You
  remove the shock, pump about 20PSI into it, turn it upside down and
  press on the schrader valve with a nail.  The old fluid comes out in a
  fairly messy stream.  To put new fluid in I removed the schrader valve
  and clamped a long clear hose onto the air hose attached to the shock.
  Raise the clear hose up high (to get a descent pressure on the fluid)
  and attach a small funnel to it.  Pour in the fork oil, this will take
  a while of waiting for the fluid to drain into the shock (especially for
  thicker fork oils).  I used a hose about six feet long, took about 1
  hour to get 8 oz. of fork oil into the shock.

- Check the caliper slide pins on VFs every couple years. They tend to
  get corroded and freeze giving very poor brake performance.

- Change the brake fluid in the hydraulic clutch once a year.
  The engine oil will mix with the brake fluid and slowly ruin 
  the clutch slave cylinder seal.

- The gearshift lever pivot gets very sloppy with wear, I "made"
  washers out of thin sheet metal to shim it back into less play.

- Use powered graphite on the throttle grip shaft and handlebar.
  This gives a big reduction of friction and allows quicker rollons.

        Other than that I just enjoy riding it.  Right now I am 
replacing the water pump (for the first time).  One cam and one water 
pump in 40k miles and ten years is pretty good in my book.