I was wondering if I could get some advise please?
I have a 1984 Honda VF1000F Probably called an Interceptor in the USA or a VF1000FE.
Because a replacement starter motor isn’t available for the VF1000F I have been advised to purchase a VF750 starter motor which I have part no SMU0100 from Arrowhead.
Is this starter motor just bolt in without any modifications to the bike or the starter motor? Also do I have to empty the engine oil and remove the oil filter?
Sorry to be a pain in the bum I’m new to the VF1000 thing and I need it explained to me like I’m a 5 year old Thanks in advance.
Hi Tony,is a like for like swap.it sits above the oil level so no need to drain,just undo the terminal and two fixing bolts and lever back toward the oil filter
Best regards Bif
Hi Tony OR.
I may be in the same situation re the starter motor and would like to hear how it goes with the Arrowhead unit…I,m tempted just to use a refurb kit just to keep the bike the way It came in 1984 if I can. Do let me know if our American friends units upto the job… wishing you best of luck.
Tom
Hi Tom
changed it today the VF750 starter motor fits and works perfectly in the VF1000F the only thing is the spline on the VF750 motor is a tad shorter but it seems to engage the starter gear with no problems. The other thing the terminal is situated towards the rear of the starter motor so once you loosen the cable clips you can get enough slack to make it fit, I attached the cable last because its a little bit hard to engage the new O ring on the new starter motor.
No need to drop the oil or remove the oil filter with a bit of fiddling and a little bit of gentle persuasion it goes in no dramas.
I took mine for about 45minutes run with the headlight on, stopping and starting and waiting for heat soak to affect the new starter motor, I had absolutely no problems.
Apparently the VF1000 starter was pretty shit from new, it has only two brushes whereas the VF750 had four.
Good luck, let me know if you need anymore information
After all the posts about how good the VF750 Arrowhead starter is I ordered one from the UK. It arrived the other day finally- fitted it up and fecking hell, it has transformed the starting of this bike. It now hardly needs choke to fire up very quickly, spins up faster than it ever did even with rebuilt starter.
Strangely enough, as it needs less choke to get it going, it settles down into a smoother idle between throttle blips- previously it wanted to die if throttle was eased off.
Im looking forward to see how it behaves after giving it a thrashing on the highway. Previously the bike was prone to "hot lock", very hard to turn over when hot after a break, or refuel. It will still be a little while before the bike is back on the road, lots of little jobs to complete- refit front end, registration etc. Its getting a wee bit chilly down here in Canberra in Oz, but probably not as cool as most of you are used to up there…
Greg.
Hi speedygp
I’ve also invested in a vf750 arrowhead starter motor, I’m having problems due to space between down pipes and frame. The o ring is stopping the motor from being
Pushed into position. Could you advise on the correct way to achieve my goal
Regards Pete
I used a rubber mallet and a piece of wood used as a drift and tapped it in. pretty easily from memory. I had to re-route the cable so it’d fit onto the terminal
Gooday Pete, yes, same for me, quite tight- looked like it wouldn’t go with the pipes in place. Mine was complicated as I`d run oil cooler lines through, which made it even more difficult. Like Tony I ended up greasing the o ring housing and giving it a little persuasion with a rawhide mallet.
Again, I had to pull a fair bit of slack through on the power lead from battery, as the terminal connection is further round the starter body with the 750 starter.
Worth the little bit of hassle, has really transformed the starting of the beast.
Hey! I’m from the states. I’ve been reading these posts concerning the 1000’s starter-motor. I was curious as to why people were replacing their VF1000’s starter with a VF750’s starter, that is until I read TonyOR’s post concerning the starter brushes. I have 8 Honda V4’s. 3 1984 1000 Interceptors (called VF1000F here in the states), 1 1986 VF1000R, 2 VF1100C Magna’s ('84 & '86),1 1987 VFR700R II, and 1 1985 VF500F. 1 of the 1000 Interceptor’s I purchased new in Fall of '84, the rest of the bikes used. 2 of the 1000’s starters have 4-brush starters(I haven’t looked at the 3rd), as do both Magna’s. I have Microfische cards for all of them, and I do recall seeing 2 different starters, by 2 different manufactures listed for the 1000. I don’t remember the differences. As soon as I can locate another card reader, I’ll try and post the pics. BikeBandit only shows a 2-brush starter for the 1000,but a 4-brush for the 750 (and the 1100’s), which I guess is why people were converting to the 750’s starter. When I can, I’ll compare the 1000 & the 1100’s starter-motors, which I would think would be a more “powerful” fix, if there is a difference besides the brush count, like bigger armature/magnets! But then again, if that were the case, it probably wouldn’t fit. .Years ago, early-mid 90’s, I did purchase brush-repair kits for the bigger V4’s, all 4-brush. Although I can’t recall if they were all the same kits. I believe from K & L.
Anyone know of anyone who does performance work, or sells perf parts for the VF1000. Back in the day, RC Engineering had all kinds of stuff for it, especially for the carburation and exhaust. “Fast by Ferrachi”, of Ducati fame, used to offer a Golden-Rod stroker kit. But everything was too pricey for me then, now I can’t find anything available. I’ve been contemplating finding someone who could fabricate an exhaust and just putting on a turbo an calling it a day.
Hi, firstly thanks for letting me join. Name is Dean for Wagga Nsw Australia. I know this is an old post but didn’t want to start yet another starter motor post. I picked up an project Vf1000fe anyway working through it and the starter died. It’s always been a screamer when it turned over anyway. Pulled it part found a few things wrong but patched it up for now. Anyway long story long. This thing is very loud on crank and from the posts I’ve read I believe it’s probably a 750 motor. Have any one else noticed a noise increase between the 1000 and 750. Attached a picture of how the gears mesh. Thanks
Hi Dean
I have a VF1000FE and had the same issue with the starter i purchased a new starter motor from a company based in QLD through a bike shop in Sydney for about $100. The starter motor was for a VF750,
I had to re route the electrical cable because it attaches to a lug on the opposite end of the motor and the spline is a little shorter. Anyway it works and it works really well i have no issues at all now
Thanks in advance.