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another centennial documentary about Moto Guzzi done by the community of Mandello del Lario with a different perspective that i found interesting. and i also liked the sound of lombardian italian voices

from California making it rain. *Somebody's* gotta do it, and they leave it to me. I hadn't been out in 2 years, so they were in pretty dire straits. They don't have to worry for a while now.. "unprecedented" rain fall and cold temps for 3 weeks in the LA area. Naturally, it turned sunny and started warming up when we left. For whatever reason.. my Galaxy Tab4 doesn't play well with this site. Won't let me post or answer PMs, etc.

This "octane" is a flame retardant . Google it and read about the history , development , etc. There is more to the power in av-gas than octane . Octane is to stop pre-ignition in the combustion process . The farther "up" in the air , the leaner , the oxygen . So , this is where the octane comes into play . It stops the preignition from leaner air/fuel mixture . You can't have problems in the air

Just saw Guzzi post this online. Enjoy!

@stewgnu has drawn up another wiring diagram with emphasis on the relays and the relay addition to address "Startus Interuptus". He'll be along to clarify and comment on the purpose.

At least it wasn't on an Airbus where each pilot hides his controls from the other.

I tried to be. Spent 2 days bringing the MZ out of hibernation and cleaning the biggest part of the rust and corrosion..two years of sitting beside the ocean is not kind to a machine.. and then the rains came.

Good to meet you Mr Baak.

I lived ten years in Italy, and had the opportunity to drive the 500 (not the Abarth though) and a Duetto (the Alpha Romeo convertible two seater). I would happily have a 500, however they are very expensive (I am talking about the original, not the recent models). This is my current ride; 22 years old, 50,000 miles.

I have done about 5k miles since I got the Le Mans. I did some long runs you can check the reports in "Motorcycle Grand Tour of Texas". Excepted for the no crank that happened when the temperatures was in the 40's, so far the V11 worked pretty well. I trust it anyways. I am planning to do the Texas grand tour again this year, so I am hopeful it will even do better. I carry the strict minimum with me, what fits in the small bag on the luggage rack.

Phil nailed it back on page 1, AFAIK Octane number does not equate to a "bigger bang" usually the reverse is true. The majority on here are extremely well informed (I'm excluding myself in that statement). AFAIK, Octane rating is poorly understood by the majority of motorcyclists. It's usually equated with more power and that's not the case (unless the engine is designed around the rating), it delays the onset of detonation and to make use of that the engine has to be tuned to suit. Reading about Aero engines during WWII the allies had acess to 100 Octane then 150 (pure Octane being 100 on the detotnation scale). This enabled engines (like the Merlin) to produce more power but to do so they ran at stupidly high boost numbers.

OK, cross-plane V8 raised here. Pretty decent audio of a deTomaso Pantera having some fun and excitement at Monza.

It is definitely a blessing to have a a shop with a reputable "Guzzi whisperer". I'm not so sure I'd rely on the V11 as day to day transport and luggage options are also a bit constrained. To each their own though! I still have a 4-wheeled box complete with windshield wipers and a heater, and a BMW r1150r as a daily summer mule. But the V11 stirs the soul differently. I've got the semi rare and slightly goofy stock tank bag and some Ortlieb panniers and have toured, but it is kinda like bungee-ing a milk crate onto a Lamborghini......

What strikes me the most in this documentary, is that a motorcyclist who gets a Guzzi is special for specific reasons. Why did you purchase a Guzzi, but more importantly, why a V11 in the first place. I know that not everyone on this forum owns or rides a V11; still, it is the rallying call of this site. We all our reasons, but some of those describes in the video resonates strongly with me. They may belong in the previous generations behavior. Today's world is so different in so many aspects. I had the opportunity to be a witness of many of the changes. I noticed that I enjoy the raw pleasures that were those available to me several decades ago. My association with joy remained unabashed throughout the years. I wonder what the newer generations will enjoy doing tomorrow? riding a V11 or getting therapy?

Applying a "Startus Interuptus" fix to a VII is a bit tricky, its not as simple as providing the start relay 30 terminal with a direct feed from the battery because the start relays 87A (normally closed contact) feeds the headlight relay. if you provide a direct feed to the 30 terminal the lights will come on when the key is Off. Heres a simple way around that using an additional relay. I call a booster relay. The relay coil is driven from the original solenoid trigger wire which now only has to provide a fraction of an Amp The new relay's contact is fed from the large positive terminal on the solenoid via a 20 Amp in-line fuse, the other contact feeds up to 60 Amps to the solenoid ensuring it will throw the gear into mesh faster than its ever done before. Its not the only way to boost the starting, you can run 12 Volts to the existing start relay and make other arrangements for the headlight relay, I just put this forward as a simple way of fixing a problem without chopping into the OEM wiring. The first thing to do is test for Voltage at the start relay 30 terminal with the key turned Off, if its present that's the earlier wiring bypassing the ignition switch. If the Voltage is only present with the key turned On thats the later wiring i consider to be weak as its throttled by the switch and extra wiring to and fro. The wiring at the top of the sketch is the OEM start relay, I only show the contact and don't show where the 12 Volt supply comes from. The wiring in Red is new. If you use an old Bosch relay with mounting tab you don't need a base, just use individual spade connectors. Re the solenoid, I thought an explanation might be helpful. I show both the coils in the solenoid side by side, each coil has about 300 turns of wire, they are actually one inside the other. The heavy one I call the Grunt coil because it does most of the work engaging the starter is wound on first, the light one I call the Holding coil is wound over the top. The coils are quite different in resistance, the Grunt coil is only 0.25 Ohms and the Holding coil is 1.25 Ohms so by simple Ohms Law you can calculate the current they draw. Grunt 12 V/0.25 Ohms = 48 Amps, Holding 12 V/1.25 Ohms = 9.6 Amps The magnetic strength of an electromagnet is the product of current x the number of turns. Grunt 48 x 300 = 14,400 Amp turns, Holding 9.6 x 300 = 2,880 Amp turns so you can see the Grunt coil is magnetically 5 times as strong as the Holding coil. Note how when the main contacts close the Grunt coil has +12 Volts on both ends, so the current in it drops to zero leaving just the Holding coil to keep the starter engaged. The time it takes for the solenoid to engage the starter gear is quite short, between 15 and 100 milliseconds all depending on how much current you can cram into the coils which is of course dependant on the resistance between the battery and the coils. If all this has made your eyes glaze over its just the half of it

Nice, @bentombed["Copy Image Link"]: