Don't touch it till the warranty is up. If it goes wrong there is no way to prove you are competent as you are not a Honda mechanic.

If you cant get another bike (As your father says) then do what I did and just buy the engine. I have a 600 bandit engine I strip and rebuild to get the practice for when I need to anything on mine. You can get them cheap if you ask in the right places (forum, etc but not ebay) I got mine for £30.

Good luck.