Newbie here. Getting 900F this weekend

Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2016 11:13 pm

I hope this is the right place to post this. A long time friend bought a 900F new in 1982. For the past several years, he has lost interest in it. Last summer I bought a 1982 GS1100G, and contacted him to tell what I bought and asked him about the Honda. He said he got it running (poorly) and has given up on it again. Several conversations later, he offered to give it to me and will be bringing it to me this Sunday. What a pal! Can't wait. I always liked the styling of the 750/900/1100F and look forward to tinkering with it. I'll definitely check out the various threads on tech issues. I also know he needed a new tank, and bought one from an 1100F. He mentioned the petcock was different and had to buy one as well. Don't know too much more about the bike other than he never rode it hard and probably has under 20 grand on the clock.

That's his bike on the right, me in the middle, and my cousin on the XLCR. He sold the Harley and bought an 1100F back in the day, but that didn't end well. It looks like the right lens on the 900 is missing. Not sure what happened. This pic is 35 years old, so I'm sure he took care of that by now, lol!

Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2016 11:20 pm

You are in the right place, good luck with your (new to you) 900f with some very interesting history.

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2016 12:43 am

Welcome to the site, Dave.
These F bikes can be addictive, hopefully your buddy won't want the bike back after you getting it running properly.

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2016 10:03 am

Excellent first post Dave! Very cool vintage pic too!!
You will find many helpful members on this site to help you get that bike just the way you want it, either back to stock or modified.
I was able to get the 11F I bought right back to showroom stock with parts I was able to buy from members on this forum.
Keep us posted on the progress, and we like to see the photographic evidence too!

Cheers!
Chris

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2016 12:43 pm

Thanks for the welcomes and I look forward to learning as I go. Very Happy

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2016 1:08 pm

Great background on the bike and I love the old pic. Welcome to the addiction! I have a spare turn signal lens if you need one. Wink

Tom

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2016 1:58 pm

Cool! I'll keep you in mind. Don't know what to expect till I see it.

Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2016 4:56 pm

Okay, got the bike delivered. He gave me a little history on it and what to expect. I want to strip the body work and see what's underneath. I'm sure there are no butchered wires (he's an electrician) but I know it will need at least carb and brake work. I could smell varnish from the tank when we were unloading it. It turns out, he's had several tanks on the bike. This being the obvious 1100F tank, but he said he had a yellow one, and he believed it was from a 750F. That's why the petcock was different. He said the 1100F and 900F use the same petcock.

Bummer is he didn't have it tied down tight enough, and it fell over in the trailer. There's a small ding in the tank on the right. However, there's a larger one on the front left on a crease near the bottom. It's got a V&H header that needs to come off and be cleaned up. I'm going to try a few of the tricks I learned on the Suzuki forum on how to use tin foil and vinegar to get the rust off. The red on the wheels has got to go, too! I did the seat about 20 years ago when I took an upholstery class in the evening. While not that great, I can now take it to a shop with the design I want. My Suzuki needs a new seat as well, and I'll probably have it done the same way.

I have to clean up my storage room in anticipation of putting parts in, so I won't dig into it until next weekend.

A few shots:

Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2016 7:01 pm

FYI, the 1100f and 82' 900f share the same petcock. I'm sure someone will post the reference page regarding the application of which petcocks go on the various bikes.

Welcome to the website.

Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2016 10:37 pm

Well, I got the bike ready for an initial start up last week after cleaning carbs and tank, and was sidelined by a bad starter solenoid. I got one on eBay the other day and installed with about 3 gallons of gas and Royal Purple fuel additive in the tank. I pushed the starter button to see if it would turn over, and even with the choke off, it nearly started! It was a little crusty sounding at first, but seems to be clearing up. I'm the type that doesn't like to drive something that looks like a work-in-progress, so I have some more cleaning up to do before I'll take her out. My neighborhood is pretty private, so I'll throw a cushion on her and take her around the block a few times to see how she's running. One thing I did notice was how much more quiet the engine sounds than on my GS1100. I have heard Suzukis are noisy, but I didn't realize how much until I heard the Honda run.

I'm pumped now!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zkdF1ht-QY&feature=youtu.be

Posted: Sat Nov 12, 2016 1:10 pm

I love the voice at the end of the clip..."i wondered what the noise was"
It isn't noise, it is the sound of success. haha.

Posted: Sat Nov 12, 2016 10:04 pm

smurdoch wrote:

I love the voice at the end of the clip..."i wondered what the noise was"
It isn't noise, it is the sound of success. haha.

She said she had just hit the button to close her garage door right when the bike started. I'm about 3 houses up from her. She thought it was going to come crashing down on her. Very Happy