No posts this week: Patti & I will be gone this week with the ST1300 to the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive on a 3-day riding adventure. Here's a YouTube video (someone else's) for a sampling of the Parkway (skip to the 1:30 mark to avoid the narrator's whining...)

What: 2010 VFR1200 DCT
Where: Wheaton, Illinois
Why: Low miles, potential bargain
Price: Bidding at $5000, no reserve

Showing only 930 miles and sporting optional factory saddlebags and top trunk along with a windscreen lip and center stand, this Dual Clutch Transmission 1200 has suffered a bit of garage rash, but is otherwise a straight and low-mileage example.

This could end up being a bargain sport tourer for a lucky buyer.

Here's a new idea. This is a rear axle stand with a second component fitted with casters allowing the stand to be maneuvered around the shop.

This would be uber handy for confined spaces or when you have the rear wheel removed for an extended time and want to get the bike out of the way.

<< (click on the image for the eBay link)

It also functions as a standard wheel stand. Nice.

Ships (from Germany) with a model-specific axle adaptor for $160 total.

To stand out in the car- and bike-crazy culture of the L.A. basin takes some creativity, something reader Dave McDonald has no problem with. When he scored his '86 VFR700F from a neighbor for $1.00 he saw it as an opportunity to express his vision, and that's what we have here. Some say the best builds are inherently polarizing — the viewer will love it or hate it. What's your take?

I'll let Dave provide the background....

The story is...I bought an '84 VF1000 a few years ago. It was a beautiful bike but it was top heavy, didn't handle well and had an uncomfortable seating position. Since I didn't ride it that often, it finally would only run on three cylinders. I needed to sell it and didn't want to rebuild the carbs. 

On one of my morning walks I ran into my neighbor down the street and he asked if I knew of anyone who wanted to buy his VFR700F. I said no, but how much did he want for it? He said $1.00! I really didn't need another bike and it didn't run either. Two days later I knocked on his door and gave him a dollar. He hadn't started the bike since 2009 and had retired from riding. I pushed it down the street and parked it next to the 1000. Later I sold the 1000 on ebay and the buyer was amazed at how gorgeous the bike was. Little did he know about the handling aspect.

Paying a dollar for that bike was a big deal because it gave me the psychological freedom I needed to do anything I wanted to it and not feel bad. I pulled the bodywork off and rebuilt the carbs. The plastic around the tail light was cracked and there were other cracks too. I had previously owned a '79 "naked" Goldwing and liked the functional look without the fairing. I happened to set the solo seat on the bike and thought it looked pretty cool without the tail assembly. The big step was to cut that frame member behind the seat. Since I only paid a dollar, what have I got to loose? Now I was starting to have fun. 

I found a new (used) eBay tank ($130) and mounted a phone holder next to the tach. I can never read the speedo, so I use my phone with a speedo app with 2-inch digital numbers. Below is a dual USB and 12V power outlet.

Looking for hoses on ebay, I see I have a choice of red. Same for the chain. A few rusty bolts got the red treatment also. The front number plate I cut out of a clipboard I found. I couldn't figure out the best angle to bend a mounting bracket, so I used a gate hinge from Home Depot. I didn't want to see screws protruding so I bonded magnets on the back. Now it just pops on or off. Most cafe racers use a round headlight that doesn't blend well with the number plate, so I used a rectangular LED light bar.

A friend gave me the large front tire. I know it's not for performance, just looks — I'm not going to try and drag my knee. I would like to get it more proportional to the rear someday. Also, I trimmed the heat guard off of the exhaust because my shoe never seemed to touch anyway. I trimmed the side stand rubber off too. I also removed the footpeg "drag" bolt on the bottom and trimmed the protrusion off that it screwed into, then polished and clear coated.

It rides great, nice amount of torque for around the neighborhood but will scream at higher RPM. I weighed all the parts that were not used and the number is right at 50 pounds. I tried to connect the California smog system but was missing a part and couldn't make sense of the vacuum lines so the system was plugged. The carbon canister went into the weight savings pile, but don't tell anyone. 

I love the bike for its performance but more importantly it gave me a chance to create a fun project!

(click on an image to enlarge)

It would be nice if refinished body panels would just bolt up and play nice with one another. That seldom happens.

Each one interacts with its neighbor which in turn affects the next piece. This is particularly true with the headlight fairing, which serves to locate the lower mid-fairings.

Project 18 is being fitted with its new clothes. I begin with the refurbished turn signals on shortened stalks, followed by the repainted rear fender. Then the tail light cowl is joined with its sanded & buffed tail light, then fitted to the bike. The side cowls slide into place followed by the newly upholstered seat and seat cowl. Next up is the fuel tank. Finally, the headlight cowl is fitted and refitted until the mid-cowls adjust to their new reality. The infill panels are the final piece to this puzzle.

Folks who don't dabble in this kind of thing may not appreciate the time and effort, but it's like this at every stage of the build. 

Kickstands get no love. They live at the low point of the bike, pummeled by road grit, dirt and chain grunge. And of course...kicked at a lot.

Project 18 deserves a refurbished stand. The original had held the bike up for years in a pole barn and surface rust had crept up the shaft. The large engine mount bolt can sometimes be, ahh, difficult to loosen. Once on the bench, I remove the rubber foot and prep for paint.

I begin with a degreasing and thorough sanding. This is followed by a self-etching primer and gloss black wheel paint. Clear wheel paint finishes the job.

Here the assembly cures after painting.

The mounting bolts get a cleaning and mild buffing, the rubber foot is remounted and it's back on the bike.

Also visible in this photo are the Samco coolant hose and refinished shift lever.

Next up, refitting the bodywork.

What: 2005 VFR800 Interceptor
Where: Washington, Pennsylvania
Why: Low miles, well-kept, extras
Price: Auction, no reserve, ends Monday

Another example of why the VFR represents the best value in sport touring motorcycles. This 12 year-old 800 shows only 9000 miles and sports a Staintune exhaust and what appear to be Heli-Bar handlebar risers. "The bike needs nothing and looks like it just rolled out of the showroom floor a few miles ago," according to the seller. 'Nuff said.

UPDATE: Sold for $3450

The host company for this site, Hostgator, has support staff in the Houston area who were affected by the devastation from Harvey and so were off-line since the hurricane struck. With things getting back to normal, I hope everyone can put their professional and personal lives back on track.

With the refurbished exhaust system in place an all systems buttoned up, it's time to make engine noises with Project 18, a 10,000-mile 1986 VFR750F. Everything went as expected and this one is ready for it's restored bodywork.