So my almost bestest buddy bought an RC-51 this year and he's in the military with no place to keep it....yadda yadda yadda.
He's bringing it to my house for the winter (he'll be out of town for a while) in two weeks. After I ride the crap out of it for a while I'm gonna do him a favor and work on it a bit. The bike has been put down twice that we are aware of by the previous owner. It was owned by someone else before that. When the bike runs, it runs like a champ. Sometimes it wont start because of the crappy wiring job done by somebody putting the undertail tray on and the gas tank is leaking somewhere, I dont know from where specifically yet but it smells.
It just really is time for some TLC. Since I only have a 919, I'll be popping in from time to time to ask some dummy questions if I can't find what I'm looking for in the search function. Wish me luck fellas! I'll post a few pics of my progress, which I am sure will be slow but sure.
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AAAHHHHH. Excess. The spice of life.
When the RC51 first came out, the local dealer let me take one out for a test ride.
I'm old, that was one of my first experiences on a "modern" sport bike - more like a race replica.
At 6'4" it felt so tiny.
I remember pulling up to a stoplight, and getting the worst charlie horse in my leg, I thought for sure I was going to fall over right there and then -
How can anyone ride with those pegs so high? Legs all cramped up, I was never so glad to get moving again and headed back to the dealer -
Took the highway, at the end of which is a pretty good "S" turn - and I hit it at a pretty good clip, and then it happened -
The bike was magical, and I mean MAGICAL in those corners, I had never experienced anything like that before, almost a moment of Zen!
Made me wish I was not only young again, but several inches shorter......
Had one for a while...baddest bike I've ever owned.
I'd have to say...If I could afford it again some day, I'd have another one in the garage just to ride it when I felt the urge!!!
My youngest daughter loved it too
Not pratical for an everyday bike...But very practical when you just want to go out and tear it up
I rode with a buddy for some time with the Sato high cans on his RC ...... not only did I really like it when we swapped bikes it was nice to ride behind an 80mm mortar section, too.
^ +1 what Mike said. There was an unofficial recall on 2000-2001 model year tank due to leak at the rear mounting bracket. You may want to call a local Honda dealer and see what they can do. Be nice to them since few Service Managers know about this problem and still around.
Try searching Speedzilla for tips and tricks on the RC. There are a lot of Rogue/Speedzilla folks here (as I discovered) so post up if you need additional help.
True Mike - but don't tell me the fat pig wasn't fun to ride... regardless of the lapp times!
Oh no the RC is an extremely gratifying bike to ride, probably one of my all time favorite bikes to make it go fast, but it sure ain't cheap to get it to that point and anyone that pushes an RC51 on the track with stock suspension & wheels wads it up period. It's not even a question of if...
Footastic02. I have a spare set of OEM track plastics and fuel tank if you have any interested.
I do not know about he rest of you guys and girls, but I really like my RC. I am considerable older then most of you so the fell of a big twin is very nostalgic. As to the bikes speed, it is not that fast compared to Liter bikes. I was offered a very good deal to upgrade to an 08CBR. By any measure of a performance motorcycle the CBR is a much better motorcycle but to me it does not have the same feeling. Since I am for the time being just riding on the street, ultimate speed is not that important. I just like to ride the RC. It is the last of the point and shot style bikes.
Footastic02. I have a spare set of OEM track plastics and fuel tank if you have any interested.
I do not know about he rest of you guys and girls, but I really like my RC. I am considerable older then most of you so the feel of a big twin is very nostalgic. As to the bikes speed, it is not that fast compared to Liter bikes. I was offered a very good deal to upgrade to an 08CBR. By any measure of a performance motorcycle the CBR is a much better motorcycle but to me it does not have the same feeling. Since I am for the time being just riding on the street, ultimate speed is not that important. I just like to ride the RC. It is the last of the point and shot style bikes.
Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checked by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory or defeat
Oh no the RC is an extremely gratifying bike to ride, probably one of my all time favorite bikes to make it go fast, but it sure ain't cheap to get it to that point and anyone that pushes an RC51 on the track with stock suspension & wheels wads it up period. It's not even a question of if...
HA - I laughed hard when I read this.... because I know first hand its true! Damn that was painful!
And MIcheal... I see a pic of Old Crazy Eyes in that picture... lol... You may wanna hide that!
I'm my 23+ years of riding motorcycles nothing has put a bigger smile on my face than when I hit the start button on my RC51, it just always dose what I want and it has never broke down or let me down in the 4 years I have owned it.
Still have my 2000 RC ...has about 8,000 miles on it. Goes in the living room every winter cause the semi-heated shop is not gentle enough on it. It's never seen a drop of rain...or even wash water. Got a couple of scraps and dings, mostly from trailers on getting hit with something in the shop.
At this point....there would be no point in selling it....how am I going to replace that technology and performance for the $4,000 it's worth?
It's that sound that still gets me...instant revving v-twin with 4" bores, and those four gear drive cams. Is there another V-twin in the world right now with four gear drive cams?
JohnnyB
Oh no the RC is an extremely gratifying bike to ride, probably one of my all time favorite bikes to make it go fast, but it sure ain't cheap to get it to that point and anyone that pushes an RC51 on the track with stock suspension & wheels wads it up period. It's not even a question of if...
I wish my RC was in my garage... Well parts of it are.
I bought it new in 2002 and beat 23000+ miles out of it so far. Never an issue in the many miles/track days I've shared with it. My recent crash had nothing to do with the bike but only my stupidity...
I thougt only Harley owners needed the oil catching mat under the bike:001_smile:
Just saw this. She actually never leaked oil. Notice how dry the cardboard is. I put it there because I clean and greased / oil the chain almost every weekend.
Mike, so far my 2000 RC hasn't had a tank leak. How universal was this problem? I read about it way back but never took any action on it. Would you consider it likely that it will develop a leak, or is it one of those things where if it hasn't yet, it probably won't?
Thanks,
JohnnyB
(And still a member of Rogue after all these years)
Mike, so far my 2000 RC hasn't had a tank leak. How universal was this problem? I read about it way back but never took any action on it. Would you consider it likely that it will develop a leak, or is it one of those things where if it hasn't yet, it probably won't?
Thanks,
JohnnyB
(And still a member of Rogue after all these years)
Hey if you show proof of ownership via title and vin # Honda will be able to tell you if the tank had been replaced (assuming your not the original owner)
the recall was and has been a live topic since day one on zilla and if I had one I would pusue the replacement warranty sooner than later 2cents
You C A N N O T imagine how much I miss mine !!!!!
A "Chest Freezer"? Is that to make your nipples hard?
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Footastic02. I have a spare set of OEM track plastics and fuel tank if you have any interested..
Thanks.. I'll ask him.
I definately think he's gonna be in the market for some new plastics, just not sure if he'll be interested in track skins.
I actually just got the bike yesterday cuz he was in Vegas. I came home and it was in the driveway, still warm. I rode it immediately, I had to. Even though it's in such rough shape I had a freakin blast!
Like I said, it's been down at least twice, the Yosh pipes are marred up and none of the body is fitting correctly. Also the whole speedo unit is out, which is a new occurance since I saw it last. The clutch is also barely functioning. There are pieces of the body that are missing and on and on.
I think that I'm going to start by pulling it apart and washing the bike down. This thing is filthy and just cleaning it up is going to take a while.
Only one headlight is on with the low beams and both when you select the high beam- which is correct, right?
Thanks about the insight on the tank leak. I'll get on it.
BTW the pics of the bikes you guys own(ed) are gorgeous. I'll start tracking my progress this week and post some pics. It's really gonna take some elbow grease on my part and some money on his, but I think it can be brought back from the dead.
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AAAHHHHH. Excess. The spice of life.
42's at VIR
23's at summit
41's Barber
17's nelson
5's beaver
44's cmp
I know I'm slow. But I was going as fast as I could. Crashed at VIR (blamed it on tires)
Well if you crashed that your entire post is misplaced & I stand by my original statement 100%.
BTW 44's at CMP on an RC is pretty impressive actually especially one without any real suspension. I only ran 43's there on my very well sorted 1000RR. In fact all your times are quite notable for a stock suspended RC, but just think what you could have done if the bike was more compliant & quicker handling...
I left the wheel stock so that I could Race SS class too. That being said.............
I did put 02 wheels on my 01 RC,....... I don't know if thats "technically" cheating but,
I KNOW I saw some guys running aftermarket wheels anyway, but I wasn't gonna be the guy that whinned about it.
Well if you crashed that your entire post is misplaced & I stand by my original statement 100%.
BTW 44's at CMP on an RC is pretty impressive actually especially one without any real suspension. I only ran 43's there on my very well sorted 1000RR. In fact all your times are quite notable for a stock suspended RC, but just think what you could have done if the bike was more compliant & quicker handling...
Thats the NEW CMP, not the old.
And I weight 280, (maybe 300 suited up) which is one of the reasons I think the stock stuff works okay for me, where most people (of normal weights) agree its junk.
Here's the first pics of the RC in question. Since I just got ahold of it this last weekend I haven't even pulled the plastic off to take a good look at it. These pics are just to show "the before" and get a few first thoughts about it. I'll tear into it when the weather takes a permanent dive and I don't want to ride my 9r any more. Any thoughts and opinions are appreciated.
Remember it's not my bike....you wont hurt my feelins!
Just saw this. She actually never leaked oil. Notice how dry the cardboard is. I put it there because I clean and greased / oil the chain almost every weekend.
Even though it's in such rough shape I had a freakin blast! 
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