I've had this project on the backburner for a really long time, but with kids, building a house and numerous other projects, I never had the time to really put some effort into it. So, here's a short history...

I had picked up a complete 2008 CBR1000rr front end, from wheel to clip-ons, for pretty much next to nothing, with the intention of installing it on my VTR. After doing some reading, parts fiche studying, and cursing, I came to the conclusion that it not be such a simple swap as using 04-07 1000rr parts, or 929/954 stuff. Pretty much NOTHING is the same, as Honda redesigned everything that year. Upper fork tubes and some internals are the only things that work. I was somewhat discouraged, but not willing to get rid of it....i'd make it work....3 years later...when I had the time to start working on it again.

After having beers with a machinist friend and staring at it, we came to the solution that was fairly simple, but would require fabrication and machine work...nothing crazy, but out of the range of a DIY person. So if you're curious and want to have a kickass front end set-up that is even better than the 04-07's CBR's, this is what needs to be done.

First off, Make your life really easy and get a COMPLETE front end...I mean everything. You will need all of it. Trying to piece together all the random components you need will make you angry and wanting to kick a puppy. Disassemble it, as you will need to modify the triples. Press out the steering stem from the lower triple, and keep for machining reference and when you're done it makes a perfect underseat billy club for your car. It is the same size as the SP2 RC51 stem, so what I did can be applied for that as well to make that front end fit too. The upper triple needs some work too, so put that aside to go to the machine shop as well.

Now take your VTR front end off, and remove your upper and lower triples. Measure the distance from the top of the stem to the base of the lower and record. Mine was 227mm, so yours should be pretty close to that. The stem will need to come out of the lower, but on the VTR, it is welded in place. So with a grinder, carbide, or dremel, grind off the weld completely. You will now be able to press out the stem, and it will come out fairly easy, but be careful not to damage it, as it will be reused. Grab your VTR upper triple and throw that in the box to go to the machine shop as well.

Now the fun part....if you are a machinist, this will be easy for you. I'm not, so it cost me a bottle of whiskey and some pizzas to get it done. The stem hole in the CBR triple is larger than the VTR's by about 6-7 mm, so a bushing is made to fit the ID of the CBR triple and the center bored to the OD of the VTR stem to result in a tight press fit between the two and this is where your measurement comes in....the VTR stem is a little bit shorter, so this height has to be set up before the next step. Once you are happy with the height, the stem and bushing are tig welded together to be 100% sure nothing can move and its ready for a final machining for fitting into the triple. Once that's done, press your sexy newly modified stem into the CBR lower. If it was done correct, the bushing should be slightly below flush with the top of the lower and the VTR stem height should be exactly what you had on your old one. Install your seal and tapered bearing and its time for a whiskey/pizza break because the lower triple is done.

Now onto the upper...Same as the lower, the stem hole is a lot bigger on the CBR. Even more so than the lower, about 10mm. This hurdle is easy to overcome, but it will require destroying your VTR triple though, unless you want to spend more time machining something from raw aluminum...using the existing one makes more sense, because it was meant to be on your stem. You will need to remove the center from the VTR upper, and machine it down into a bushing to fit into the CBR upper. We left a small flange on the top side of the bushing, just so it couldn't go anywhere and applied some sleeve retaining compound and pressed it into place. You now have a functional 2008 CBR1000rr triple set that will install into your VTR...time for more pizza and whiskey.

The only change I made was that I used a billet upper triple for the 08 CBR that I bought off Ebay from Pit-eck, as i'm using dirtbike bars and the stock one wont work for that. ( stock has a sloped gullwing, this one steps down and is flat to mount my risers on) Its a worthwhile buy, super beefy and looks great..and it was around $100 to boot. However it did require a bit of slight modification to work on the VTR...nothing serious, just 15 mins with a file. If you did want to use the stock stuff and run clipons, I can't see why it wouldn't work, but you're on your own for that.

After all of this, everything installed perfectly and works great. You may be sitting there after reading this novel saying "why not just use the 04-07 front end and bolt it up?". I could have, but with this, you get monobloc Tokico calipers, lighter front wheel and rotors, stiffer springs, black fork tubes and the personal satisfaction of making something fit and work after people said it cant be done. (I think I may be the first on here to make it work, but I could be wrong).....plus I got it for super cheap, so that helps a lot.

I have a bunch of pics on my camera at home of the swap, i'll post them up when I get home so you all can have a better idea what i'm talking about. If you are considering a swap, give this one some thought...I have absolutely no regrets going this route. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

 

Congrats! I felt the same way after reading 49 times how 929 clip-ons won't work, I guess no one really tried!

 

Heres some of the pics of the progress--

VTR triple ground and stem pressed out


Stem welded to bushing in CBR triple


Stem installed with new tapered bearings


Stem installed into frame


Billet CBR upper triple with milled down insert from stock VTR triple.

 

Even more pics...

Modifications required to billet triple for clearance issue on stem bearing washer



Fork legs installed and looking fantastic in black!


Renthal fat bar and Protaper risers installed to triple, this is a very comfy position, but wouldn't work with fairings without a lot of cutting



I'm still working away at it, still not rideable yet. The rads definitely have to come back a good inch, as the lower triple hits the rad hose pretty hard, and doesn't even allow full lock at all. I'll keep posting up pics as I go along and get the whole bike back together...looking forward to finally riding it again!

 

This is a great write-up. I appreciate the put-your-head-down-and-do-it mentality.

I did it with a full front end that just went right on (cbr1000rr) but my next one is with a zx10 fork so will be more like this.

 

Thanks, I really wanted to get it done finally...it just sat there collecting dust and drove me crazy. I wanted to do it, but time was never on my side. Now that I have a little bit of it, it's been alot of late nights in the shop. It doesn't help that I decided to do a bunch of stuff at the same time as the bike is now going to be naked and needs some attention to look good in that state, but i'm determined to get it done!