My name is Jake, I'm from WI and I just got a CBR F2. A buddy at work mentioned selling it, and I ended up picking it up from him for $700 with a jacket and gloves yesterday morning. I'll start out by saying I don't know much about bikes, but I'm here to learn.

First of all, it's got ~28k miles. It's been laid down, and resprayed all black, still has scrapes and scratches, along with two small dents on the tank. The chain is fairly rusty so it'll need a new chain/sprocket soon. Any cheap recommendations? The bike wouldn't start unless it was kept on a charger, so something in the charging system was messed up. I replaced the battery today and it seemed to fix the problems. Anything else I should check on the bike? My friend told me the brake fluid looked really low. I'm going to have the oil changed soon as well.


Here's a pic of my two vehicles. The thing on the left is a turbo Miata, runs mid 12's in the 1/4 mile, so that's my main focus, but I thought I couldn't pass up the bike at it's price.

 

welcome to the forum, Jake.

 

read up on testing the regulator/rectifier just to make sure it keeps charging that battery properly. These bikes are known for the R/R having issues - it's a relatively cheap easy fix.

Chain - figure out if it has a 530 size on it, if so stay with the 530 , the cheaper replacements are available in this size.

Oil - don't use automotive stuff, it'll screw the clutch up. Use motorcycle specific, or Rotella T6 like a lot of us do.

Check the manufacture date on the tires - if they're old, they might be candidates for replacing - old tires are hard and slippery.

If you notice the engine rattling like it has a can of nails in the right side - that's probably the cam chain tensioner giving up - there's an aftermarket solution - search for the APE manual CCT. $65 and you're all better.

Second gear is another area that usually has some wear on these bikes - you might notice it popping out on a hard 1-2 shift, back into neutral. Don't freak out, theres a few ways to fix it.

bleed the brakes, check the pads, get fresh oil in it, set the sag on the suspension and have fun - the F2 is still a quick and capable ride , even if it is old enough to get into bars.

Oh and $700 sounds like a deal.

 

also looks like your bike has a F3 tail section swapped onto it - i think they look a little sleeker anyway. get a set of f3 passenger rearsets, it'll de-clutter the rear end a bit.

 

Any way I can tell what size chain is on it? I've heard to use Rotella already so I'll probably go with that. Also, the tires are only a year old so I should be good there. They're Dunlop Sportmax's. Not really sure if the engine sounds like a bunch of rattling nails, but I'll keep my ears open. Maybe see if I can listen to my friend's F4 and see how different that sounds, but I did notice some chatter.

I'll be bringing it to a bike shop this next week and I'll have them check out the brakes, pads, suspension, and probably have them change the oil while it's there.

Also, how can you tell it has the F3 tail swap? What are passenger rearsets? I'll do a search on eBay and see what I find.

Oh, and what are the pegs on each side of the bike called that are rubbery and prevent it from getting scratched up if it were laid down? One side is bent and scuffed a little bit and I'd like to get a new one. Other than that, I ordered some LED's, HID's, new handle bar end's, and new tank protector.

 

Where about in Wisconsin are you located at ?

 

The Appleton area.

 

welcome to motorcycling. bike looks good. hope you have fun with it. definitely a steal at that price.