Gmc28

gotta have the extra juice to keep a guy warm in Norway this time of year! I visited Tim Wendelboe's place in Olso this summer... that was a real treat.

love the lever machine activepop! a good lever machine along with an HG-2 Weber grinder would seem the ultimate combo for someone who wanted the enjoyable work and "ritual" but also wanted excellent espresso. just requires real committment. love it.

Oh my, did we really get into an espresso thread with an Australian on V11lemans.com? It’s about damn time! phil clearly likes finer and/or vintage things (he has a V11!), and he’s Australian, a land full of wonderfully finicky espresso drinkers, so it’s probably safe to say he has no problem with model T’s, but that if you really love to drink espresso, then the model T is going to produce a whole different product than a what a proper modern machine & grinder will do. Less-so for the espresso machine, which is an easier target to hit than a good grinder. (Almost) no matter how skilled you are, pulling a perfect shot using a “model T” grinder is damn near impossible, and at the least requires a lot of work, and some luck. of course it all depends on what you consider the perfect shot, the question which overwhelmingly colors the whole conversation. I’ve owned and used wonderful vintage espresso machines, which looked the part, and with considerable effort could produce a fantastic shot, but never without the right (modern, bloody expensive) grinder. The temp control, plus pressure & flow control of Phil’s new machine is very difficult or impossible to replicate on an old machine. if you like drip, or have taste for old-world coffee, then no big deal….. life is much easier for you! for those who like both old world simplicity and the benefits of modern geek-driven (beautiful) madness, are not worried about budget, the Weber HG-2 is spot-on. And it's not made from wood, for those inclined that way :-> No room in my kitchen for that (lovely) monstrosity, plus for espresso I prefer a flat burr. For the flat burr fans, spend double the already large price and get the EG-1, a fantastic unit, that I’ve only used at a friends house. Fantastic, and consistent. Just imagine, for only $4000 you can get a nice grinder for your counter that your friends will think is a NASA telescope! sad that in Italy, where I learned to love espresso so many years ago (as an eye opener compared the Folgers at home back then), where even the little hole-in-wall places did decent espresso, is now largely overrun with the disgusting automatic machines. Undrinkable, except for medicinal purposes…

Lots of good info offered. surely seems like the early input from audiomick on your charging system would be a smoking gun. but exactly what/where in the system you have failure would be the question. assuming you love your V11 and plan to keep it, and/or just want to cover your bases as you tick off possible causes for this current problem, just going through the charging system from end to end isn’t that painful of a process, and I’d say advisable for about any older italian. As stewgnu noted, solder/connections on the front end, the wire and connectors back to the VR, the VR itself, and then the grounding connections, are all things that can cause headaches. I’d say inlikely that the VR itself is failed, but could be, and even if not, on my “keepers” i just replace it anyway with a MOSFET unit, including of course the connectors with upgraded pieces (probably more important), check and/or replace original connectors in that run from the alternator, and really clean up and/or upgrade the main ground to frame. Whack all those moles at once, and just remove all or most the hassles that can come from that bundle of electrics, and probably solve your actual problem as well. As chuck noted, a battery going to zero volts would normally be unlikely to want to come back to life, but hard to imagine that it actually went all the way to zero (though anywhere close to zero is usually pretty lethal to a batt). if you’ve got it back to normal or near-normal voltage, then roll with it, but keep your eyes on it. i’ve had lead-acids come back to life quite nicely, semi surprisingly, but my last Li-Ion to go down to under 2V was “killed deader than hell”. damn shame, as that was a spendy one, on a Duc that had a mis-behaving relay and sat for a few months without “adult supervision” (Duc service bulletin came out for that known issue, but i hadn’t seen that till it was too late… sigh). but you can check that battery health within reason.

“Cats and dogs….”, 70’s Steve martin quote? Ive been reading about your pain, that NC and TN have swarms of people moving into those fair states, finally taking a proper share of the masses!😎

touche. don't rub it in! been my list for a long time to get down that way and tour a bit. dinner last night with friends who just rode 2.5 weeks in 12 countries starting in Budapest, hitting all these little scenic places with no crowds and low prices. They've also toured NZ on bikes some years ago and loved it, saying they had 2 straight weeks of sunshine, which i think might be not quite the norm?

agreed. root causation. that said, seems to me as a “professional tourist” (paid to fly places full time) that notwithstanding the eye popping and unsupportable population change, there was however the most dramatic change after the Covid isolation. That surge in tourism was (is) of epic proportions. But the press says it’s now shifting again, as folks like all us complaining about it on this thread are now looking elsewhere, sick of the crowds. so those of you with hidden gems, be careful, the hordes are coming for your gems! (or so i’m reading) I agree with the several of you that said that despite the masses in italy in the popular places, that there are still plenty of fantastic places to go there and not worry a wit about crowds. Shhhhhh…… Did a family reunion event in Norway in august, and Oslo was a bit crowded, as expected, but not bad. and then the fantastic solitude and scenery when leaving Oslo and heading to the “pretty” parts of norway (most of the country)…. awesome. hope that area doesn’t catch-on with the tourist hordes searching for less-traveled gems, as those roads and areas would not handle it well, and would be a damn shame. There were certainly more sheep than cars or people in the beautiful places we traveled with the (extended) family, which seems a proper ratio for me. Riding there, something i’ve always wanted to do, requires avoiding too much caffeine, given the low speed limits, long stretches of single-lane but 2-way roads, scenery, and loads of sheep. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

for what its worth, and other smart/experienced folks may differ, but i’ve never had a no-spark issue be a bad coil. bad coil connection, or other oddball causes, but never the coil itself on these “middle-aged” italian bikes (MG and Duc). have seen more than once where a coil is shotgun-replaced due to no-spark, the problem is solved, but then putting the old coil back in resulted in good spark again (so, connections….)

yessir. And good clarification!… thanks, as it’s both back of relay attach and fuse block thats of interest, but only the fuse block has that type of access.

I didn’t read in this thread where you pulled/cleaned the back side of the relay attach receptacle, like Docc advised? You probably did it, but don’t think I saw that confirmed. Just spraying deoxit back there isn’t usually adequate, gotta pull the connections, inspect, clean, spray, re-assemble. Sure sounds like a semi-crappy connection.

That is indeed strange… I would have guessed the v11 a lot lower. But that’s another element of the seat width

interesting… I don’t recall the new Stelvio being that tall, at least compared to the V85. I popped off my V85 at the John Day gathering and took the new Stelvio for a spin, and was giggling happy with it, despite an assumption I wouldn’t like it. i think the tank is higher, but don’t recall the seat height being any taller, fwiw. it certainly is a whole different machine than our beloved v11’s. the “involvement” of the slipper clutch when approaching twisties on decel was impressive for me on that brief ride, but not necessarily desirable….i’m just not used to it, and it would add to the existing need to remember you’re on a V11 if hopping between bikes, to avoid bad results on the V11 entering a corner. but she was lovely.

wondering what the newer versions have in the way of changes. mine is quite old, and there are a handful of things i’ve notated in the margins that I prefer different (valve lash) or to clarify, and wondering if those are the kind of things that changed. not that it matters for me, but curious if there are “summary of change” pages in the updates over the years.

thats a great view. thats one of the several great things about the lake, the norway-like views, but combined with much better food, wine, and moto guzzi 😎 not to get carried away with recommendations, but one more: if you are out touring a bit, a great dinner spot is just north of varenna and up the hill (perhaps 15 mins from Mandello?), in an area that the vast majority of tourists haven’t figured out, a little restaurant called Semi di Grano. finding it is half the fun, even though its really close ..… be patient, leave yourself a little extra time to figure out the map guidance (can’t necessarily just follow the google map prompts), and you’ll end up parking in a tight little town square of the town nestled into the steep hillside, then walking up cobblestone alleys wondering if youre in the right place, but its a jewel. see if this google map link will paste: https://maps.app.goo.gl/NRhp44ofC4BuvMEo9?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy ciao!

We’re jealous Phil! hopefully the post-covid “revenge travel” crowds are receding for your visit. the masses of people over there have been maddening the last couple years (a topic i think elsewhere on this forum). That east side of Lake Como has for many years been one of my favorite places to visit, just hated to see such crowds jamming up everything. we usually stay in Perledo, close to Mandello, and high up the hill for the outstanding views, while the masses of people were confining themselves mostly to the towns of varenna and bellagio. the moto-touring to the east (or northeast of Mandello) to Esino and Passo Agueglio is truly enjoyable… no cars, great scenery, enjoyable roads. If up there, I recommend a great little cafe in Esino, Locanda Montefiori (sp?). and can’t remember the name of the guy upstairs at agostinis… he’s been there for years, doing parts sales and guzzi rentals. nice guy, and good to put a face with a name for if you ever order parts/gear from Ago’s.

sounds like you’re trying too hard… just watch the races, and the pre-race commentary, with the sound on 😎

Agreed that it sounds like a typical v11 with that mid range. I have 2 v11’s with crossovers, and I’d say adding that it was an improvement for both, though not dramatic. Both are tuned the same, both have crossovers, but one is like a big 2-stroke in that it explodes above 5000rpm, while other has a smoother, more consistent pull through the rpm range, though still with the noticeable (grin inducing) change at 5000rpm. mapping would would probably be the hot ticket for mid range, however you chose to go about it.

absolutely. we just took a tangent for the sake of banter.

first, you cheeky monkey 4corso… posting such a goofy click-bait topic. :->. But I clicked! i agree KINDOY2, the V85 holds its own very nicely, except on the straights, where it’s just not as comfortable at the real high speeds. But thats why i sold the harley’s 20 yrs ago… why have a bike thats focused on what I like least, which is blasting straight on a highway? Well, in fairness, the GS and even more the big multistrada’s will pass someone in half a blink of an eye, which the 85 won’t quite do, but it’s plenty fast enough for riding within sane limits. Very little wrong, and pretty much everything right on the GS’s, but I still prefer the V85tt.

Who knew... the evil love child of an R9T, a V85, and Frank Herbert

Sounds about perfect. Renting a V85tt there at Mandela from Agostini’s is what turned my attention to that bike…. loved it, and didn’t really expect to. Might be old news for you, but the roads above Varenna, up from Perledo toward Esino, then keep on wrapping up higher in elevation past paso agueglio, and over toward Parlasco, thats some real nice riding. Of course finding good roads over there is like shootin’ fish in a barrel, but thats a nice little run near to Mandello. Jealous, except for the heat. But not exactly cool over here…. I was over not too far from your home turf, at chico, where it was 107F, and windy, and watched that Park Fire explode right before my eyes. enjoy

cruise ship in front of st marks? i’ve not sent that in my biannual visits, they're always over at the cruise ship parking area on the south side. that said, venice is certainly a place that used to be sort of busy when i was younger and would visit, but has become a total zoo. but even there, there are ways to enjoy. spend the hard-earned $$ to stay on one of the islands at a fancy hotel, and just shuttle in on the private hotel shuttles to mingle with the masses and see those sights, then back to the quiet of isola delle rose, or one of the other islands. i’ll save money at other places, but if i’m bringing someone to venice, i tell them to pony up, to transform that stop into something worth doing. i’d think neuschwanstein would be one of the good spots to hit in the “roper season”, the off season he spoke of. used to be the shoulder seasons were good, but those are jammed now as well, so gotta go full-scale opposite of prime season! Roper also mentioned the non-anglo areas, a great option. mainland japan has been crowded in its huge cities forever, but the smaller islands of japan that i’ve visited are full of beautiful sites for touring on a motorcycle, thin crowds, and such pleasant, non-self-centered people. i look forward to getting back.

aha, thats the parts catalogue i’ve been looking for….

which bleeder system do you use? i’ve got an older bleeder i’ve been using, and its been fine but not loving it.