1995 Suzuki RF900R review from United Kingdom

The odd bulb, front discs warped, fork seals.

I swapped my Aprilia Falco for this with a local biker. He wanted a big sports V twin and I wanted something a little more roomy to tour on.

Man, what a difference. Where the Aprilia was sharp and razor like this thing is just like an oil tanker on a suicide mission! First impressions were not good. The brakes were warped and had little feeling at the lever, and were lacking in power compared to the Aprilia.

The engine... I was surprised how much it needed revving to get anywhere as quickly as the Aprilia. In contrast the Falco was like comparing a sledgehammer with a toffee hammer!

I still swapped though, as I thought the Suzi had potential to be a great bike with just a few tweaks.

Firstly I gave her a damn good service, did the valve clearances, oil, all filters, flushed out the rad and cooling system and replaced the cam chain.

Then I removed the engine and stripped down the chassis, replaced all the bearings, replaced the fork seals and re built with Hagon progressive springs, and got the shock rebuilt by Hagon with a spring to suit my weight and riding style. (£500 very well spent inc forks!)

The bodywork was treated to the odd internal strengthening patch, tided up and repainted Gloss black along with the frame. I then added chrome vinyl decals and gave it 12 coats of laquer for a glass like finish... I was a little happy with the results!

It all went back together no problems, and while I was doing that I replaced all the rubber coolant hoses for red silicone and renewed the fuel line. I also stripped and refurbed the brakes and renewed the rotors and swapped out the rubber brake hoses for braided steel.

Finally I altered the rear sprocket for one with two more teeth for some extra drive!

The result is a bike that now handles, brakes and goes way better than stock, although it is a heavy bike, this is OK as it feels very solid and planted on the road where the Aprilia always felt like it was barely on the road.

This summer I did a 2000 mile round trip around Scotland and the RF performed brilliantly. It was comfortable, reliable, economical (within reason!) and the weight of the bike always made sure it felt stable and dependable.

I would recommend one to anybody, but be aware that they go rough quickly and need looking after. Most people would not have rebuilt the bike as I did, but then I had the time and the worry of a big trip ahead of me, so thought it best to do it. The bike would have done the trip without a rebuild of that I'm sure, but I doubt it would have been as capable when it arrived!