Skeeve

I strongly support your efforts in this arena, but regrettably, do not have the money to throw at this at present. Good luck!

V11 owners generally desire to replace the stock can w/ aftermarket because: -A- The stockers are pretty darn restrictive & -B- They weigh a ton! Losing 10# of excess baggage is like getting a free pony... let alone any slumbering ponies that may get woken up w/ less exhaust restriction!

Cheatin' scooterists! The FIM banned dustbin fairings back in what, '59?..

All things considered, you're doing pretty well! And when you start feeling down about anything, you can console yourself w/ the fact that you two made some beautiful kids together, so it wasn't time wasted by any stretch! Keep on riding, and good work w/ the 'biters.

Business jets, turboprops, that sort. I wonder if they're going to roll Aprillia under their banner like they did Guzzi or if they'll spin it off once they kill off 'priller's scooter division? [Which was the real reason they bought Aprillia in '05, so they could eliminate their local competition in the scooter market... getting Guzzi in the deal was just a "bonus.";)]

Yes, I was being intentionally conservative, 35k/yr was a number I recall was accurate for H-D production some time mid-90s, so very fair to Guzzi for comparison. The 350k peak was after they got the new Sportster plant in Kansas up & running, York was solely FLs & STs, and the Dynas were still being assembled in Milwaukee. Not certain if that includes Buell's production #s too (but think so, since Harley brought it back to a wholly-owned subsidiary around 2002, iirc...) We'll see how The Motor Co. fares these next couple years; they've been pretty conservative w/ the dividends even when they were flying high, I suspect because they've weathered enough economic down cycles over the past 105 years that they like to maintain a strong cash balance... Meanwhile, Guzzi is now a tiny division of an airplane company: let's hope Piaggio keeps our eagles flying high long past their 100th birthday; let's all plan on meeting in Mandello in 2021!

There's nothing wrong w/ a Connie that can't be cured by a radical weight loss program! Seriously, they're like scooters: how can you not like a bike that's twist'n'go?

Ask Ivan de Gier [while you still can; he's been battling cancer...] I've got an outstanding order w/ Amazon for the latest Ian Faloon volume on Guzzi's history, updated through 2005. He's usually pretty good about listing all the stats [usually attributed in significant proportion to Ivan], so maybe I'll have an answer to this question sometime in Nov. [when the book is supposed to arrive. No guarantees; it won't be the 1st time Amazon unilaterally cancels one of my orders I already reaffirmed I wanted kept open because I failed to respond to a message they never sent... ] But it's a pretty safe bet that fewer than 2000/yr were made over the lifespan of the design ['98 - '04; there were no '05s, just leftover '04s sold as '05s, iirc], so that means 35000 bikes a year and having trouble keeping the pipeline full! The few, the proud, the Moto Guzzi V11 Eagles...

The new Avon STorms might be worth a look, but Avon has a long-standing [ie, hard to live down] reputation Stateside for making slippery tires [admittedly, this is probably due more to their old bias designs which were right up there w/ Bridgerocks for their long-wearing properties]. My only exp. w/ Avons was w/ an AV46 that I put on the rear of my SV 650 daily ride: it handled nicely initially, but squared off badly in short order and moreover felt "greasy" in slightest hint of wet; ie, it was about the same level of performance as the stock MEZ4, but this isn't so surprising since the designs are of similar vintage, and just can't compete w/ more recent products like the latest Pirellis, Dunlops or Bridgestones. WRT to the choice of sizes, the smart money seems to prefer the "next size down" for the rear from whatever the stock fitment was on the v11s: early v11s came w/ 170s stock, and handle better w/ 160s fitted, and the later [5.5" rim?] models came w/ 180s and like 170s, but that's just hearsay: I haven't yet swapped my stock 180 for the 170 I have waiting in the wings, myself, but you can tell where my support lies... w/ the many years greater experience of the experts here at v11lm.com!

All versions v11 same-same, wrt the Roper plate. One size fits all! I think the "acid test" is: does your Guzzi have a man-hole cover? If so, then it likely has the in-sump hardware that accommodates (necessitates?) the Roper plate. [but ask someone more familiar w/ all the model distinctions, like Pete or Greg Field for confirmation on this...] But the sloppage sheet is definitely for all our beloved spiney v11s, long or short....

Well if that's the case, why not get some truck bed liner, tape off the area you want the grip panels to be, paint, add some crushed quartz bright white sand, and tear off the tape? Once cured, you should have the ultimate in grippy tank pads, right where you want them...

What a horrible thing to witness, but at least your internal "dadly editor" has to be giving you peace for being on hand to help your son in his time of need. Very, very, VERY happy to hear his recovery is going so well & looking like it will be complete! That's fabulous news, considering the outcomes of such incidents are usually much less positive. Hope the rest of your summer is much more uplifting!

A kid! A veritable whippersnapper! I remember when pump gas was 94 or 95 octane [this is U.S. (M+R)/2 [leaded premium] or 89 [leaded regular]. Then they phased in unleaded regular (86) and "mid-grade" [90], but you could still get the hi-test leaded [for all the old cars that couldn't run on the required unleaded new swill]; this was when the smart kids bought a tankful of the mid-grade and pumped the last couple gallons of the hi-test in their pre-'74 non-cat equipped cars, because of the synergy of the tetra-ethyl lead with the unleaded octane enhancers [you wound up w/ a tank of roughly 93 octane for much less than a tank of the 94-5 ethyl!] Then the numbers generally crept down a couple points, Regular excepted since it was already lower than many older cars could handle. But there is no "other, better things to raise the octane" than tetra-ethyl lead, barring the whole issue of the toxic lead air pollution it creates.

Stainless steel wool. Regular steel wool rusts from exhaust byproducts, fiberglass matt turns to powder over time and exits the hole at the back, as you're discovering. Actually, the combo of an outer layer of the rock wool w/ an inner layer of the stainless wool to hold it in place and take the brunt of the exhaust pulses is supposed to be the long term best solution, but of course, most aftermarket builders take the easy/more profitable way out...

This procedure needs to be flagged for the "Critical Tips" section!

Hey, I resemble that remark! But I was under the impression that you all went elsewhere on holiday so you could see the sun, and the sunbathing was just a bonus! Which would render the entire concept of nude beaches in the UK kind of moot...

Actually, given the nylon tank, I think surface prep to give the adhesive greater "tooth" to work with is probably key. Obviously, many solvents are going to be suspect, given a plastic tank, but I think good old rubbing alcohol will probably be safe, drys reasonably quickly w/o residue and will manage to strip any surface oils that would mess w/ the adhesive. I believe 3M makes a "high heat" version of their Super 77 spray adhesive that is probably a good choice, but can't provide any recommendation beyond 3M usually knows their stuff.

Thanks for the alert! Horrible news tho'...

Not really. Only mag article I've ever read even dealing w/ developing this ability didn't even mention the term "target fixation." It was about dirt riding [possibly in the long-gone Motocross Action News, Dirt Rider or maybe Cycle?] and learning to see "the Golden Path of Smooth" when bombing across the desert. Worked great, except that you tended to come up on dry washes too fast to avoid them! [DAMHIK ]

That does sound low for a V11; that's about what they do stock, before your mods. Do the HP and torque curves cross at 5252 rpm? If not, the score is bogus.

Bad coil? If your exhaust is stinky and mileage is poor, it's still getting fuel, but not firing. So much fuel it's too rich to fire? Hard to believe at the top end where you describe the trouble as occurring. I say something's wrong w/ the ignition for the troubles you describe, but then I'm not remotely an expert!

The RM will retain notionally better resale, given it's limited production [even including the "unlimited" version, there were only - what - 600 made in all?] but as stated, the Ballabio will be easier to personalize, given that the perfect handlebar is just a bend of tubing away, vs. the clipons of the RM. Personally, I'd go with the Rosso Mandello, 'cause its the one that calls to me more, but that's inevitably a personal choice. Love that red...

Yeah, but less surprising that someone would perform such a chickensh!t act [hard to get caught] vs. popping their car door on you (me) while filtering past at a traffic light.... There's some clown [one of the local homeowners, undoubtedly] who regularly oils the surface on Mulholland in the Sta. Mo's IIRC. I never get up there to ride, but I've heard discussion of him? on my LABiker listserve. It takes all kinds, don't it? Small wonder that someone in London came up w/ "beat down for hire" bizop in London, what with its notoriety for Bike theft!

Well, the swap may be a quick method of isolating where the trouble lies [ecu vs. wiring harness/injectors] so it can't hurt to try it. You're already beyond my limited capabilities, so I'll just shut up now!