NC35 makeover

[dtek]

Hi all..
I'm just about to take the plunge into buying a cheap RVF that runs very nicely, has had a recent major service, but looks pretty shabby: mainly very cheap Nastro Azzuro chinese fairings on it, and also its got a dent in the fuel tank.

Since there's virtually no chance of acquiring OEM fairings without selling a kidney, I'm thinking outside the box a little and attempting an 2005-06 CBR600RR conversion. Two things:

Would I be able to modify the RVF tank in such a way that it would fit under or otherwise accept the 600RR tank cover over the top? Is the outer shell of the RVF tank just a cosmetic skin with a separate self contained fuel cell inside? Or would it be better to try to restore the existing tank and have it painted to match the new 600RR fairings?

Second, are there any other parts I'd need to do the 600RR conversion other than fairings, windscreen, headlight, subframe, undertray, tail light, seats, and fabricating of brackets to mount the fairings? I've seen a couple of guys on here have some experience with this, would be great to get some info on it.

Cheers, Damien

I know some might say to fit a Tyga, Kconversions, or eBay RVF400 fairing but I can't stand Tyga headlights / tail light styling, Kconversions has a bad rep for being a headache to fit so might as well go with 600RR anyway, and as for eBay knockoffs... I do really like the OEM NC35 style but not if it's done in a shonky eBay 'doesnt fit quite right' kind of way. Also, I can't just go buy a CBR600 because I'm on restricted licence.

[Drunkn Munky]

It doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg to have genuine panels or maybe some stock shape tyga panels?
Will be less of a headache fitting them and IMO will look a lot better too, but if you really must atleat the 600rr kit looks less tacky than tyga pointy eyes and arse up aircraft look, its nothing new tho plenty of people have done it.

[pugparcels]

Right, to fit 600rr fairings directly can be done but they do require some work and ideally you need to be fairly practical yourself.

on the wifes nc30, i have kept the tank original. I looked at the 600rr tank i found as standard it was far too big, it would need a lot of work to fit and proportion wise i decided to stick with the original tank for ease and to retain some of the nc's looks.




with regards to the body, i used the original vfr subframe and cut it accordingly. the mounting holes on the 600rr subframe would never fit the vfr. The other option is to make a custom alloy one, but for the cost i decided modifing the original would be just as simple and more cost effective.





i lost this much in modifying the sub frame



The 2005 - 06 fairing had an underseat exhaust so the original undertray will be no good as it is not going to be long enough. again i had to make my own.




fairings wise, the tail and side panels remained un-molested apart from a hole cut in the side for the fuel tap, you will however need to loose the original coolant bottle, hrc styles are available - made my own and mounted it inside the side fairings - the side fairings needed some work due to the vfr's two rads. I had to make new brackets to mount the fairings on to, the choke & idle tick over both needed relocating. you will then need a custom seat, i made one but was not happy so am about to start a second.





As the nc30 has 'right way up' forks the front fender took me a lot of work, as the rvf has usd forks the front fender will be pretty easy to sort.



The front fairing again is standard but the screen brace, i fabricated myself as the 600rr model i used would not be suitable for the original bigger clocks, however i used a rrv fireblade speedo housing with uk speedo, the transferred the original rev counter and temp gauge over from the vfr this also requred a longer than standard speedo cable. ( this was the prototype )




the vfr has a remote res with the shock, as do some after market ones ( dont think the rvf does thought ) but with my subframe & undertray this was not going to be any good so i then changed to a sv 650 shock. not the best shock in the worls but its not like the wife will really tell any difference and its an improvement of the 20 year old original anyway.




if you modify the subframe, and use the standard exhaust or a aftermarket system / can you will need to make a new hanger to cover the extra distance & I think that is about it, some wiring in places will need extending, some relays adding to the headlights as the 600rr runs the one high- one low system.

A tyga system is far easier to fit as it has been 'mass produced' and has been designed to fit these bikes. To be honest, your on a restricted licence its only for a couple of years, i would go with standard fairings or even a chinese set. My guess would be as soon as your licence allows you will move to a bigger bike - is all of the work the time / effort & money?

The nc30 we have is for my wife, she is only small so the size of the vfr is great for her. However she likes the modern look of the cbr so i started to build the above. I have my blade for daily use and she has the car for the kids, it is two years on 10th jan since i started the above. Doing bits after work, days off etc - so if your want to go this route have you another vehicle to get about on?

so im now at this point.





just got a couple more jobs to do. The tank is going back for another re-spray as the colour is not the same as the panels. then time for the mot, do i like how she has come out...yes, do i like the fact shes different....yes, would i have started this if i had known it would take over two years.....erm, ask me when im finished!

if theres anything else let me know.

chris

[dtek]

Thanks for that ultra detailed run through Chris, its given me a lot to consider...mostly do I want to embark on a long and drawn out process - probably not because I'm only restricted until this October. Although if the rvf is running well and reliably I'm not sure if I'd be in a huge rush to sell it and get something bigger.

Think I'm going to go for tyga oem style panels for the front half and a tank cover, plus possibly a cbr600rr tail section using the stock subframe (modified). I might have some questions about the tail conversion but I'll pm if that situation arises... Cheers!

[pugparcels]

i think your making the right decision, i did this more as a challenge for myself to test my skills and understanding of mechanics / fabrication than anything else and the fact i have we both have a vehicle each meant there was no ruch so if somethign did not work i go go back to it with out rushing.

if you opt for a 600rr rear end and if you do not carry pillions i would suggest looking at one piece race tail, more than likely out of fibre glass. I went for oem honda panels as i wanted to make the pillion cover removeable. This is not longer the case, there was so many factors causing issues i decided to fix the two together and make it 'one piece'

I have now made the riders seat removeable for storage - mainly my dinner when i go to work, you cant get much else in!

but any questions just give me a shout.