Hi everyone. I’m a brand new owner (today) of a 1984 VF1000F! I’m really excited about my new purchase and i’m Just looking for some info from the guys that know this bike well. Has anyone put a steering damper on one of these? Any tips for mounting one would be appreciated. 
If your tyres and wheels are true It dont need one.
Unless your flat out at 150mph then it might help.
IF Mr Honda thought it needed one then he would have fitted one at the factory.
Then again an Ejector seat would help more… 8)
No disrespect from the group newbie but I don’t know about that. I almost died in 1995 on a FJ1100 at the end of a 1/4 mile run when my bike got into a visious tank slapper speed wobble that sent me up over the tank and windshield. The bumpy track combined with a hard cross wind off the ocean were definitely contributing factors. Mr Yamaha didn’t think their bike needed one either. I installed a steering damper on the bike right after that and haven’t had a bike that didn’t have one since. Guess what… no speed wobble since then either. So although i’m sure it’s not a requirement in most situations I would rather have one. Like I asked earlier. I’m looking for advise on installing one on a VF1000F. Does anyone have any experience with that?
Hi pointer x and welcome to the forum, there is no steering damper to specifically fit the vf 1000 the only one I have ever seen fitted was a ohlins damper mounted across the top yoke with one off cnc brackets which the chap machined himself, one end connected to the stanchion and the other end to a bracket which was mounted to a bracket which Sat on top of the front fuel tank securing bolts and the damper slid through the bracket which allowed adjustment on damper then when it was in correct place tighten pinch bolt, so either a universal kit or hope you have a mate with a lathe, but saying that, I do give my vf some good work outs and have found it to be very good on the front end and if I was you I would rather revalue the front forks and fit new springs than fit a damper, you will get a better bike all round if you do this. The engines are fantastic and have loads of torque and pull really well at what ever speed you are doing, hope this helps
A worn Front Tire will cause a little Head Shake.
So will loose Steering Stem Bearings.
These are higher frequency shakes.
A worn Rear Tire will also cause the handle bars to slow wobble.
But a commonly missed diagnosis is the Rear Shock,… it is garbage, right from the Factory.
Get a After-Market-Replacement, as soon as possible.
Rear Swing Arm Pivots can also cause wobble, but these are well made.
The factory Stem Bearings are round balls, get them out and put in proper Thrust Bearings.
Honda wants the original bearings to be torqued down so hard it take 2lbs pull on one Fork to move it, NUTS!
The smaller bearing surface also means the balls pound a detent into the raceways.
After markets are fine and cheap enough.
If you are doing 1/4 miles, then you won’t exceed 120mph anyway, shouldn’t be a problem.
If there are strong cross winds and bumpy track, then,… why are you there?
I have a damper, ready to install, just not that interested, since its not a problem.
I got it to install on a VF1000F Salt Flats bike I want to prep,…
Along with required:
Metal Fuel Filter,
“Reinforced” Fuel Line,
Dead Man’s Switch,
Z rated tires (up to 150mph)(harder to find for a 16" wheel),
Metal Chain Guard,…
Plenty of wide open roads out west here, never had an issue, even loaded up with Touring Stuff.
Can’t rember last time I was at 120mph (must be gettin old), so have changed gearing for touring (18/42).
Gets great mileage now (4hrs on a tank).
Get a new rear shock and steering bearings first, they are needed anyway.
Metzler Laser or BT45 front and BT45 rear works real well.
Change the Rad Fluid right away,… mine sprang a leak on my Alaska Tour last summer,…
Nuff Said 8)
Thanks guys for your input.
Paul 810: I’m a machinist so I’m sure i’ll Be able to make a bracket up similar to the one you were describing. Thanks for your info. I was hoping that I could just buy something that could work but it will get added to my projects list. Haha
VF1000Fe: Thanks for your advise. I have ordered new steering head bearings/seals, front and rear wheel bearings/seals and for oil and dust seals. The bike will be shipped to me across the country (Canada) and the project will begin when the bike arrives just before Christmas. I will assess the tire situation when it arrives as well as the swing arm bushings etc. I just ordered the things that I know I will want to change right away to start. Are you running the stock size tires or have you deviated a little?
Thanks,
Jason
Hi Jason the tyre thing is personal preference, I prefer to run the std sizes on tyres but there are several people who run radials, if you look through some threads on here re tyre sizes you will get a good idea, I prefer std size as my personal choice due to the 16 front wheel I personally feel they drop in to bends a little to easy on radials as I prefer the feeling of having to lean my bike in, but it really is a personal thing, other people go bigger on the back tyre but again I see no benefit in that, no matter what size tyre you run you only ever have a quarter of an inch of tread on the tarmac when you are leant over and if you can ride well enough to run out of tread on the sides then get a race bike you might be the next rossi, good luck with your purchase and hope you like the bike as much as we do and please keep us posted on your progress
Regards Paul
When I got my first VF1000F, the PO had installed a 160/60 rear. It was terrible.
The overall diameter was smaller, so a higher rpm at 100kph.
It also cut into the plastic chain guard and the wide/low profile resisted leaning over.
Consider that cute little 16" front tire, and that fat/flat rear,… what a geometric mess,…
Stock sizes work the best overall.
For over a decade i used 130/90. It fell into turns easily and was a little cheaper.
If a 140/80 (stock) wears a flat spot, it will resist leans and can give you a slow wobble in high speed sweepers.
As already mentioned, tires are a personal choice.
You can mess with other sizes, but stock works best overall.
I still had slow handlebar wobbles, in high speed sweepers, after I had done almost everything.
Until I changed the Rear Shock. The Factory Shock really is Garbage.
I would get a sore butt after a 1 gas tank ride.
Lost damping and a sticky spring action was always slapping my Butt (some may consider this a feature).
The rear swing arm pivots are not bushings, they are Needle Bearings, and only need service.
The Pivot Bolt threads might be corroded, so assemble with AntiSieze Compound.
Its good to remove the the swing-arm for clean/sandblast/painting anyways.
Add a Rear Fender extension to keep the shock/swingarm clean;
Service the rear Brake Pedal and assemble with AntiSieze, instead of grease.
Consider a 18T front sprocket as standard, bike has plenty of Torque;
Not sure if this could be considered as Handling, but my Front Forks are Stock.
Flush/Replace ATF every 2 years, AntiDive set to Max, Rebound set to 1 (softest), and fork pressure set to 6psi.
Pressure removed for winter storage.
I have a spare set of forks, so I guess I could experiment with Emulating/Cartridging/Drilling/Shimming thingys,…
For long rides, I want Comfort and Reliability.
Spirited Riding happens only occasionally, specially loaded up with Touring Junk.
Your seat foam will be bagged, refoam over the winter.
The Factory Jetting is Rich,… Lean out the Idle Jets.
On my “R” I have a needle bearing on left (clutch) side. On right side (rear break) there was an unsealed double ball bearing. Both ball bearings were damaged and needed to be replaced. You can use industry Standard type bearings. Also most of the seals in rear Suspension can be replaced with regular parts.
BR
Axel