1985 Honda VF750F Interceptor aka "Mad Max"

[Darkrider]

I did mention i was going to eventually start a thread on this bike..so here it is... I bought this bike in 2006 and rode it the rest of the '06 riding season pretty much bone stock. The only performance oriented mods i ever did to it were the kerker mufflers which will be removed and tweeked sometime this fall hopefully.

Here is where i started when i first found it at the now out of business honda dealership.







This was taken within the first few days of ownership



First stage of mods: Fender elimination and painted windscreen





Ignore the white 4 door in the background...that was my DD at the time....

[Darkrider]

Kinda wish i had left well enough alone at this stage....



But laying it down kinda put a kibosh on that idea....black parts came off of another Interceptor that was painted Yellow....thus why the black paint.



One of the other Interceptors i owned at the time...That bike got the rest of the yellow bikes parts...I once owned 3 of these bikes but only rode the one since by the time i got the other two from spike they werent exactly the most rideable..the yellow/white bike eventually got sold to my buddy joey who then stripped it down to its bare chassis which now sits in my yard with all the bits off of it sitting in boxes in the garage...Since said parts are in much better condition i will be using them to restore Max



Fast forward to about a year and a half ago or so...cant quite remember when i took these pics...it was pre surface mount front signal lights i can tell that much....the front fender was since painted to match the rest of the black body work....it was in this form it earned the nick name "Mad Max" at a bike rally..





and a pic from the event that earned the bike its name....the rider on the yellow kawi is my buddy Joey. That bike got used and abused a bit lol



well this is amusing....Did some spec comparisons between the Interceptor and the new CB500X adventure bike and found out the Interceptor stands 10 mm taller then the CB500. So i guess im on the right train of thought with setting it up more as an adventure tourer.....I knew it felt like a big bore dirt bike on gravel roads before...Hell i have ridden it like it was on a few back roads because i had to go over them to get where i wanted to go. Just stand on the pegs on the rougher areas and away i went. I have seen these bikes converted into full out street fighters...and into full out dirt machines. Could be interesting to see what i end up with eventually...

[Darkrider]

Rough plans as of this time:

Honda CBR wheel conversion which will allow me to run 17" Radial tires
Honda CBR rear shock upgrade with 1.5" lift built into adapter bracket to give the bike better ground clearance.
Replace lower plastic fairing with a tighter fitted metal skid plate assembly that may or may not extend over the exhaust collector box
Change the muffler configuration to be closer to stock set up to relocate the Kerker K series mufflers to a higher mount and more level under Ammo cases
Ammo cases fitted as panniers
Replace front turn signals with stock rubber mounted units
reuse surface mount turn signals on rear of bike if not relocate the current aluminum units back slightly to clear ammo cans.
Pirelli Trail Scorpion or similar adventure bike type tires
Replace upper triple clamp assembly with a custom machined unit designed to accept dirt bike clamps and handle bars
Relocate stock fuse box or replace fully with one from Honda CBR hidden in front upper body assembly
JW Speaker Evolution LED headlight
Crash bars with Rigid Dually or similar off road aux lights fitted
Upgraded Stator if required...which it may not be considering the JW headlight will draw less power then stock Halogen...

[fratermus]

I was in high school when the Interceptors came out so they are imprinted on me. I always wanted a 500 in that dorky red/white/blue scheme

[Adjuster]

I was in high school as well. I am not a motorcycle guy or anything but when the Interceptors first came out I thought they were something crazy from the future.


/

[Weldangrind]

X3. The last one I rode was 26 years ago, and I loved it.

Your fender eliminator made all the difference.

[Darkrider]

Originally Posted by fratermus

I was in high school when the Interceptors came out so they are imprinted on me. I always wanted a 500 in that dorky red/white/blue scheme

Heh...i was an infant when the 1st gen 750s came out...never even knew they existed till my late teens which by that point there had been several generations and had just finally returned to the VFR Interceptor name. I remember seeing the late 750s coming out and wanting one BAD!

Originally Posted by Adjuster

I was in high school as well. I am not a motorcycle guy or anything but when the Interceptors first came out I thought they were something crazy from the future.


/

i first seen one of the 1st gens on ebay when i was 17 and a few months later i ended up transitioning from my Honda CR500 trail bike at the time to a '93 CBR900RR but the desire to own a 1st gen Interceptor stuck in my mind!

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

X3. The last one I rode was 26 years ago, and I loved it.

Your fender eliminator made all the difference.

Thanks, the day i did it i was like "am i really going to hack off a major piece of my dream bike?"

One day i hope to own a more pure example of the 1st gens but because this one has already been beat to hell by previous owners and has been down a couple times in my ownership i don't feel as bad about the idea of evolving it into a mad max/post apocalyptic style build, Perhaps one day Max and a fully restored VF750F will get to share the same space in a garage and/or at a show.

[Louis Angel]

Originally Posted by fratermus

I was in high school when the Interceptors came out so they are imprinted on me. I always wanted a 500 in that dorky red/white/blue scheme

not sure where you live, but there is a 1986 red/white/blue one for sale for "$2000" ( $1700 cash would probly bring it home) in my hometown of Puryear Tennessee, not too far down the road from where I live now. Back when I drove the church van on Wednesday nights, I picked up 2 kids at that house. I was looking at maybe buying it, but then got to reading up on bearing failures and hard to find parts and decided I have already wasted way too much money this year on motorcycles as it is. ( over $7K already! 0_0 )
So I am leaving it alone.
It can be found on Facebook, just do a facebook for sale search. They have it posted in the West Kentucky section, since Puryear borders the KY state line.

[Darkrider]

Originally Posted by Louis Angel

not sure where you live, but there is a 1986 red/white/blue one for sale for "$2000" ( $1700 cash would probly bring it home) in my hometown of Puryear Tennessee, not too far down the road from where I live now. Back when I drove the church van on Wednesday nights, I picked up 2 kids at that house. I was looking at maybe buying it, but then got to reading up on bearing failures and hard to find parts and decided I have already wasted way too much money this year on motorcycles as it is. ( over $7K already! 0_0 )
So I am leaving it alone.
It can be found on Facebook, just do a facebook for sale search. They have it posted in the West Kentucky section, since Puryear borders the KY state line.

I know the 500 is a bit more difficult to find parts for but there are ways to avoid the bearing issues with aftermarket oiling kits that can be installed one of two ways...one via a fitting in the bottom of the block like the HRC racing bikes used and one via a sandwich adapter between the block and oil filter. At least those are the options with the 750 and 1000. Not so sure on the lil brother 500.

[Darkrider]

So after reading threads about aux lights on the RX3 i have been thinking more and more about ideas for this project. One idea that keeps coming up for running aux lights especially is the idea of fitting a second aux battery inside one of the ammo cans specifically for the aux lights and possibly fitting a small isolator in the other can to allow the bike to charge both batteries but not risk draining the starting battery if i accidentally leave the aux lights on too long or something. I have also given a lot of thought to the idea of simply forming a mild skid plate to go over the stock lower fairing to protect it and give one extra layer of protection to the underside of the bike. So in a way i may aim this build to make the bike more like a large 750 cc version of the Zong RX3. I have seen where people have fitted dirtbike front ends to them to run a normal sized dirt bike rim but the CBR upgrade will allow me to run Supermoto sized rubber so im not worried there.

[keithmaine]

I always loved the MadMax styling

I was a bike junkie back then and the bikes used in the movie were KZ1000, Z900, Z1000, SOHC Honda CB750 / CB900, Yamaha XS1100E w/sidecar, KH250 triple. Interceptors did not come out till what 1983 I think they would have been used as they had the style I think they were looking for.

I had just purchased 1978 Z1R-TC and was loving this movie.
I have slowed down since then. Most likely kept me alive.

Good luck on your project

[Weldangrind]

Originally Posted by Darkrider

...possibly fitting a small isolator in the other can to allow the bike to charge both batteries but not risk draining the starting battery if i accidentally leave the aux lights on too long or something.

I don't trust isolators. I'd be inclined to use a HD solenoid instead. It only stays latched when the bike is running, so one battery is always isolated when the engine is off.

[Weldangrind]

Originally Posted by keithmaine

I always loved the MadMax styling

Me too! That style has transitioned into the zombie apocalypse style, which is also very interesting. http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=15313

[keithmaine]

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

Me too! That style has transitioned into the zombie apocalypse style, which is also very interesting. http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=15313

+1

[Darkrider]

Originally Posted by keithmaine

I always loved the MadMax styling

I was a bike junkie back then and the bikes used in the movie were KZ1000, Z900, Z1000, SOHC Honda CB750 / CB900, Yamaha XS1100E w/sidecar, KH250 triple. Interceptors did not come out till what 1983 I think they would have been used as they had the style I think they were looking for.

I had just purchased 1978 Z1R-TC and was loving this movie.
I have slowed down since then. Most likely kept me alive.

Good luck on your project

Thanks!, Yea the Interceptors first year was 1983...ironically enough the year i was born...

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

I don't trust isolators. I'd be inclined to use a HD solenoid instead. It only stays latched when the bike is running, so one battery is always isolated when the engine is off.

Ahh so an HD or Smart type solenoid...i have seen those used in expo vehicles before...good idea! Nice and compact!

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

Me too! That style has transitioned into the zombie apocalypse style, which is also very interesting. http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=15313

Originally Posted by keithmaine

+1

I would love to build a Yamaha XS650 in that style!