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Silly I know, but I wanted to say thanks to all of you. It's nice to have similar passionate people to discuss details that only we'd understand. Roll on!

Just a quick update folks. The bike is back on the road and have managed to squeeze in 150 odd miles between deluges and can report that the gearbox is smooth as butter (sweeter shift with @Lucky Phil gear lever extension mod at last). No backlash problems, so jobs a good ‘un😊 This bike messes with my head. I only changed the dogs cos I’d got them (but the old ones looked fine) so no real change at all but it is much better than it was….. hmmmmm🤔. Just as changing the plugs which looked fine brought it back to life 🙄 I suspect she just loves the attention😂. Still, I’ll just park that and bank the positives! Ciao

What a story. Go Engineers!

https://www.donohuefuneralhome.com/obituaries/john-wittner

This is exactly the kind of traffic rule that we recently discussed with other motorcyclists in Texas. The bill allows motorcyclists to pass stopped cars between lanes at a speed that does not exceed 15 mph. We need this here in Houston and in every major city. The entire city access, surroundings, is nothing but a continuous traffic jam. Allowing motorcycles to move up would certainly help, and maybe inspire some four wheelers to change from 4 to 2 wheels.

@dbarb3, I did want to bring your attention to this very specific, and common, failure of the lower angle drive where the brass mounting insert extracts itself from the body of the angle drive and the speedo needle wags, then quits:

One item I'll offer, having gone through this last year, insertion. After purchasing the parts and installing with no luck, I disassembled and reassembled numerous times. Eventually it worked, having fully seated. It seems straightforward however I must have not inserted it cleanly more times than not. Since fitting securely, I've had no more trouble. fiddely things, they are.

Reference to the previous thread and replies: While the failed angle drive is usually the one at the gearbox, remember there is an angle drive on the back of the speedometer, as well.

The angle drive is a possible failure point. The gears inside the trans that drive the angle drive are much less likely to fail. You can just connect the cable directly to the output on the transmission. The cable has to make a more severe bend that the angle drive is alleviating. If the speedo works when hooked directly to the trans, you can take the angle drive apart and see what is wrong in it. It can be fixed in some cases.

OEM PARTS Original compound front and rear brake pads GU01654630 front (2 pair required) GU27654610 rear ( 1 pair) REPLACEMENT PARTS Brembo Source: OPP Racing , Washington state, USA/ BC, CAN Brembo Part# 107670810 fronts https://www.oppracing.com/product_display/30979-brembo-oe-brake-pad-set-ferit-id-450ff- organic- for-206800xx-209230xx-caliper-shape-m-107670810/ Brembo Part# 107268625 rear https://www.oppracing.com/product_display/30967-brembo-oe-brake-pad-set-ferit-id-450ff-organic-pad-kit-p32f-7mm-thick-107268625/ Other Comments: This is a reliable Brembo parts dealer. Most Moto Guzzi dealers or Guzzi suppliers have superseded the original brake pads with substitutes of various manufacturers and compounds from GF to SHH. Rotor damage can be an issue. These are the original FF compound "black backing" pads matched to our rotors from Brembo .

As usual I jump to expensive conclusions with out doing the diagnostic work. 1. Speedometer started going all over place and quit, I figured cable without checking. Purchased new cable and installed. Wrong. 2. Figured without really testing that it was speedometer. Found a new speedometer on ebay and installed. Wrong. 3. So I finally did the work and found that when I turn the cable at angle drive by hand it turns at speedo. At this point do I reinstall angle drive and how do I see if cable is turning at speedometer with angle drive attached? Do I leave it unattached from speedo and ease motorcycle forward in gear and watch cable at speedo? If cable doesnt turn when angle drive is installed, whats next.

I can attest to the perfect seat. I bought a system from this company about 15 years ago: https://www.hearsafe.de/ It included the moulds, a set of drivers for listening to music (intended for in-ear monitoring on stage), and two different sets of filters, all of which can be fitted alternately in the moulds. On set of filters provides very little noise protection ( 7 dB) but "catches" short, sharp noises like when someone starts hammering on a bit of truss just behind you. The other set of filters provids 15 dB of protection, and is "flat" enough that I can mix a band with them in. The drivers for listening to music don't fit under a helmet, but that doesn't bother me too much. Like many others, I don't want to hear music whilst riding, and I don't listen to what the navigation device says, I only look at it. The point is, the moulds are really very comfortable. I can wear mine for six or eight hours constantly, and they never get uncomfortable. The problem is more that one forgets to take them out. A note on the side: mine are probably too old by now. The ear canal changes a bit over the years, and one is recommended to have the moulds re-done after a number of years. Mine still work well, though, so I'm not planning on having them re-done yet. Getting the mould done is no big deal. The man cleaned out my ears with a cotton bud, and squeezed some sort of silicon stuff in there. A bit weird for a couple of minutes, and then it was all over. Difficult, because wind noise is not "a frequency", but very broad band. More lows than highs, but everything. The various filters they offer may have different frequency "responses", but they will most likely be principally more or less damping. but... that's ok. Firstly, protecting your ears is the main thing. Less noise in means less damage. Secondly, if the general noise level is lower, you can hear what is going on better. I didn't read about that, that is my experience. If you have good earplugs in, your hearing system isn't "screwed down" to protect itself (yes, that happens. There are muscles in your ears that tense up in loud conditions to "tighten" the ear drums and thereby protect the hearing mechanism in the inner ear ...), and can sort out what it is hearing better. The frequency curve of the filters is relevant. If too much of the high frequencies is damped out (read: cheap filters), you wont hear things like valve clearance ticking or destructive engine noise, but if the frequency curve is flat, you will be able to hear everthing better than if it were all too loud.

Good luck convincing anyone these days that letting someone else go ahead could be in their best interests. More likely to stir infuriation.

For what it is worth, it looks bit like it might be possible to buy the hydraulic pre-load adjuster as an accessory part, i.e. buy it and retro fit it, or in your case (maybe) put it back on: https://www.wilbers.de/en/products/shock-absorbers/optionsaccessories/hyd-preload-adjuster/hydraulic-spring-preload-type-625.html However, as has been said, if you're planning on selling, let the new owner worry about it.

Not silly at all. There is not enough of that positive stuff in the world. And yes, the forum is fantastic. I'm glad I found it.

I haven't seen those. I own an old school KTM, a two stroke 440 EXC. While I would buy a KTM, I don't care for their origami styling. Too many edges and folds, too angular. I like the Husqvarna styling better. But that is what it comes down to, which one of the three looks best to you because they all perform the same.

KTM and Husqvarna run steel frames. The exact same steel frames. Our Husqvarna 401 have the exact same steel trellis frames used on the KTM 390's. If you compare the KTM 250 SX-F it has a WP XACT-USD 48mm front fork and a WP XACT Monoshock with linkage rear suspension. The Gas Gas MC 250F Factory Edition has a WP XACT-USD 48mm front fork and a WP XACT Monoshock with linkage rear suspension. For a while KTM was pushing forward with a linkage-less rear suspension. But at some point they stopped that and now run the same as Gas Gas and Husqvarna as far as I can tell. Really, look at them in a showroom and see if you can find any differences. Again, not complaining, but saying they are different bikes is stretching the truth. The bodywork is pretty much the only difference. The same is true for the 450's, and for Husqvarna. With their streetbikes they do tend to use different numbers to describe the displacement, like a Husqvarna 401 vs a KTM 390. But the motor is exactly the same motor with the exact same displacement. Same thing with the bigger motors, a KTM migt be a 690 while a Husqvarna is a 701. And a Gas Gas is a 700. But they are all the same motor with the same actual displacement.

I had several exchanges with the UK based Snugs people. One of my worry was the actual noise filtering, since I want to be able to hear traffic around me, emergency vehicles, police, honks. The only noise frequency I want filtered out is the wind. Now that I have a little experience of riding in Texas, I know that a lot of our westward highways are frequently subjected to wind gusts. If you look at the Snugs-Moto page, they have an option for "filter", and this is actually an additional input for external sound. They have a selection of filters to decide how much you want to let in, or you can install a plug for total isolation. Once I receive the set, I will be able to share my experience. On errands around home, I do not wear earplugs. I always start my bike without my helmet on, so I can listen to any changes; this is why I know there is something amiss with my starter. The cranking sound is not as it was before.

If you say so. But the only GasGas parts on Barcia's factory GasGas is the bodywork. The frame, engine, KTM. Not sure how it is this year, but in the past the Husqvarna factory bikes were last years factory KTMs. Now that they have three factory teams I assume they no longer do that, but all three factory teams are running the same bikes with different bodywork. I was just in our local KTM / GasGas / Husqvarna dealership. It is classic badge engineering. They are all KTM's, with pretty much only the bodywork being brand specific. That is even more the case in racing, whether it is Supercross or MotoGP. Don't get me wrong, we own a pair of Husqvarna's, and I would buy another. But the three brands are all really the same brand. GasGas is not its own standalone brand.

The 130 is probably the spring free length and one of the 50's may be the springs ID.. Phil

The Wilburs should be worth retaining if the preload adjustment can be sorted. That is no cheap aftermarket shock . . . I replaced my original Sachs after seven years 49,000 miles/ 79.000 km with the last Öhlins MG127 remote preload unit known to be available at the time (2007). This was part of a strategy to set up the suspension to my weight and style which included spring selection both front and rear. The outcome was exquisite and has served me exceptionally well to this day.

It's the rebound adjuster. The reason the pre load collar is wound down so far is probably because the shock was originally fitted with an hydraulic per load adjuster that was removed, or another spring was fitted for use with the hydraulic pre load adjuster which are shorter or the wrong spring is fitted from another manufacturer. The spring probably doesn't have as much preload as you think because the spring is short to make space for the hydraulic pre load adjuster. Phil

That is a Wilbers rear shock and appears to have a spring fitted to suit the optional hydraulic per load adjuster. Thats why it looks short. Phil

I have my audilogist custom mold these earplugs, but they are attenuaters only, no monitors. I tried in helmet communication, but found it distracting. I only use visual cues for navigation anyway, and won't even answer my phone when I am off the bike . . . edit: The only downsides I have found are once having to reshape the outer surfaces for clearance in a particularly tight fitting helmet, and discovering they filter out high pitch mechanical noises. Like when my other bike ate up its cam and rockers over time and I didn't hear it.

When you are four, and you can only afford a single guitar....

This is beginning to feel more and more like Formula 1 now with drivers bouncing between constructors trying to find that elusive combination of mechanical advantage and good voodoo to win. I just hope we see Marquez on the podium a few times this year and even more hopefully Acosta on top in a few races as well.

The original Sachs has a white spring, light gold anodized body, and blue anodized adjusters. Its remote is black with a blue anodized adjuster. One of the two 2001 V11 you are looking at likely has an aftermarket shock . . .

I know someone has done it. @Moto maybe? I was thinking of doing the same because of all the bling and trickery on modern RBW machines the only one other than ABS that I would really like would be cruise. I simply haven't worked up the enthusiasm to do it yet though and since I've been riding Grisos since 2006 I tend to think the likelihood of me ever getting enthusiastic enough is probably pretty slight!

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/rizoma-side-mount-mirror-adapter I chose a 2000 Ducati Monster 600 SKU: 1849964 https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/rizoma-dynamic-mirror-1?sku_id=1277814 SKU: 1277814 https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/highsider-bar-ends?sku_id=10292106 SKU: 10292106

My rejuvenated Tachometer and Speedometer are coming back from Germany this week. Once it is back together, I will be using it to do the Motorcycle Grand Tour of Texas stops.

And a good version of George Brassens Copain d'abord:

Unfortunately when connected directly still doesnt work.

Well, I did say wimpy. There are some numbers on the spring. I will try to trace it off of that. I wonder what I could replace it with so I dont break the bank? I probably would like to sell this bike in a month or so, and would prefer to sell it with a bit more proper rear end.