Lex

Just another tanks for sharing. I have got to get there someday. Lex

That is really sad. I was in Tokyo a long time (20 years) ago and the motorcycle district was mind boggling, I saw more cool stuff on a Saturday afternoon then I'd seen in my life. Things change, not always for the better. It sounds like the beer is still good so all is not lost. Lex

Skeeve, Thanks for the info. A slip of the fingers on the "Guzzi NA" thing, I guess just habit. Anyway, it seems sorta sad the Piaggio is working so hard to build "boutiques" instead of motorcycle shops. Yet another case of style over substance. Lex

We seems to have a Moto Guzzi shop in San Luis Obispo. The Vespa shop at 1144 Higuera (805-541-2575) has three Guzzis (a Norge, a Griso 8V and a 1200 Sport) on the floor. They have no parts department, zip, nada, nothing. I stopped by yesterday after work to order a side stand switch for my 2001 Sport. They seem to be really nice but they do not have a single part on hand, everything must be ordered. They didn't seem to know much about how to find parts in Guzzi's on line parts system. They took my name and number told me they'd call when they found the part. To be fair it was just before closing time so part of the reason they said that was that they were busy putting bikes away. They also have no signage that I could see. I'm really pleased to have a shop closer then the (nearly as small, minimum parts and no bikes on the floor) shop 100 miles away that was our "local dealer" but if they keep running the business this way it doesn't seem like much of an improvement over dealing with my 'ol buddies at MG Cycle. I really hope the lack of parts and expertise is just because they are starting up and things will get better but it was not an encouraging first visit. Has anybody else see a new Guzzi shop that seemed so unprepared to do business? Is Guzzi NA so desperate for dealers they will allow a place the literally doesn't have a parts department (unless you count a computer with internet access as a parts department, that is all they have) be a dealership? Lex

The post from Karma above has been reported as possible spam but I honestly can't tell what it is. I'm too cowardly to follow the link, has anybody? Lex

Pierre, I think you are right but I'm holding onto hope Stoner will recover. I remember Gibernau and and Biaggi never recovered from the Doctor's treatments. I recall the pass, Gibernau never seemed to come back to his old form afterwards. Lex

First, yes we have alcohol in our gas. I live in California, we are lucky we aren't getting fuel made from banana peels and fairy dust. Second, the Multistrada.net forum is primarily US oriented but is international in scope. If people were having problem in any part of the US or most of the world it would have been a major topic. Finally, I'm talking about the up to 10% alcohol/ 90% petroleum fuel common on the US. Anybody dumb enough to put something like "E85" (85% alcohol/ 15% gasoline) in any vehicle not specifically designed to use alcohol fuel is on his/ her own. Lex

I don't know where this came from but the Multistrada part is, to be kind, wrong. My 2005 Multistrada never had the tank replaced and it never had a problem with the paint on the tank in 12,000 miles and two years. I was a member of Multistrada.net for over two years and I don't recall ever hearing a single report of a tank bubbling. I'm not saying there couldn't a been a few problems I missed or forgot about but I can say for sure it isn't anywhere near common, much less "every bike has had its tank replaced". Lex

I'll add something I learned from a very experienced BMW mechanic years ago: When you take the reading push down on the end if the rocker opposite the valve. There are a a lot of places that can have some slop (cam to follower, follower to push rod, push rod to rocker) and throw the reading off. Once you do that Baldini's description of the feel of the of the feeler gauge is pretty good.

I seem to be stuck being the third person to agree with a point. I still have my Cycles from the late sixties to when it was killed. The quality of writing was so superior to any other English language magazine I've ever read it is silly. A paraphrase from a comparison test between a Guzzi, a Ducati and a Laverda from the seventies: "The Guzzi is a slow acting drug that appeals to your brain, the Ducati grabs you three feel lower". I own a Guzzi and a Ducati and it would take me three paragraphs to put it as clearly. My impression of how the same idea would be written in in the major US magazines today: Rider: While each motorcycle has strong and weak points and you couldn't go wrong with either. The Moto Guzzi might be slightly more appealing to riders looking for an more long term experience. The Ducati, an equally good choice, would be slightly more appealing to an owner looking for gratification on a shorter time scale. Motorcyclist: The Guzzi sucks, the Ducati beat it at the track by over a second per lap. Even more important, the Ducati made my GF hot for me. If you buy a Guzzi to are a nerd, unhip and possibly gay. Cycle World: After checking our advertising records we have decided not to review the Moto Guzzi. Please turn to page 47 for our sixth open superbike comparison test of the year. Motor Cycle Consumer News: After careful analysis of the alloy used in the shift lever with an HP model 50007 spectrum analyzer (not the inferior Dyno Jet analyzer) we have concluded the Ducati is a superior motorcycle due to the higher content of nickel in the alloy used in the shift lever. All in fun, Lex

Add a third vote for Motorcycle Consumer News. Now that they have color I'm wondering why I subscribe to Rider, Cycle World and Motorcyclist. With Cycle Work there is Kevin Cameron and Peter Egan, the other two are in danger of not being renewed. Lex

Contact me if you are interested. Thanks,

I don't normally go that way so I may be off a bit off but I'd SWAG it at an hour. As a suggestion, you will get to 101 fairly close to King City and you can easily take back roads to highway 25, that makes a nice loop.

That road is not far from my house. If you like the tight and twisty you will love Nacimiento Furgusson, I do and it is one of my favorite roads. From Highway 1 you run up a steep hillside. This part of the road requires a lot of care, it is generally dirty (rocks, sand, etc.), has no guardrails and steep cliffs on the outside. Beautiful views of the pacific coast, stop and take a look. As you reach the top the road changes, from here to the fort it is a fun place for a little more aggressive riding but still very dangerous, don't get carried away. Note you will be stopped when you enter the fort, you must show your driver's license, registration and proof of insurance to get a pass to ride on the fort. Also note the speed limits are very low and may, or may not, be strictly enforced. You can get gas at main part of the fort, a little north of the road you will be on, ask for directions. Lex

Sorry, let me change that to Young, dumb and full of cum, Scott style In my experience you, dumb and full of cum is pretty universal for males. I would be surprised to see something similar set in Zimbabwe or Chile. Lex

Young, dumb and full of cum, English style. That is a great video, thanks for posting it. I'm off to ride the Guzzi up California 1 with a group much older and only slightly smarter... Lex

I spent 3 weeks riding the south island far too long ago. I can't recommend the trip enough, great people, great roads and beautiful scenery. Lex

230,000 on a ridgid soft tail! Lex

My favorite Harley is an XR750 TT (road racing version of the XR750) but there have been a number great ones in history. For this thread I'll say my second favorite is the one in my garage. The Road Glide, slightly modified, carries me and or me and a passenger down the road in way I've never experienced before and have come to enjoy very much. I was amazed to find beautiful scenery on roads I ridden many times in the past. Besides, seeing the look on the faces of FRJ and ST 1300 riders who show up long enough after I arrive at a stop to have my helmet, jacket and gloves off is more than entertaining. No, I'm not going to pass a well ridden sport touring bike on my Harley but most of them aren't ridden that well. Just to throw a little gasoline on the fire, I find it pretty funny to see people who ride Moto Guzzi's making fun of Harleys. My Harley didn't shed any parts on the way home from the dealership, my Guzzi did. The Harley came with a weak chassis and very poorly sorted forks. The Guzzi came with a fair chassis and both the forks and shock so badly set-up that fixing them was pretty much a start from scratch project. The Harley came with very little power but perfect delivery, the Guzzi came with a fair amount of power and a huge flat spot in the delivery. Other than at idle the Harley is much smoother then the Guzzi. My K1200LT was much faster then the Harley but I sold it to make room for the Road Glide. The BMW was just not fun to ride, the Harley is always fun to ride. My Ducati is much faster and handles much better the Guzzi but I keep and enjoy both. Neither the Harley or the Guzzi makes much sense from an objective point of view but that has no effect on my deep affection for both bikes. JMHO, Lex

Well, the return of this subject finally got me off my lazy ass and in the garage to drill my pucks. I found the situation inside my bike was really strange. Things started to get scary when all the button head screws were properly tightened and came out with no heat or damage to the screw heads. Then I opened things up and found almost no rust and everything in pretty good condition for a bike that has been on the road for five years. Once I got over the shock (Guido actually greased everything and torque the screws correctly ) I cleaned things up, drilled the pucks, greased things and put it back together. I can't say it was night and day but the drive system is noticeably smoother. The bike is more pleasant to ride and it has to be easier on the U-joints and spines. Maybe another material would be even better, I can't say since I lack Ratchethack's physic engineering ability, but the drilled pucks are better then stock. I used a normal twist bits so my work doesn't look quite as spiffy as Greg's but it is pretty close. Greg didn't give a speed but I used 700 RPM, the slowest setting on my press, and it worked well. I found it easiest to just hold the puck in my hands while I drilled it. If something better comes along I'll look at it again but for now I'd call it and hour or so well spent. Make that two hours if you include the time to clean up the big pile of rubber drilled out of the pucks. I would recommend anybody who hasn't done so to read Greg's post and follow his directions. Lex

That looks like te Harley model. I think the Guzzi version does pasta on one side and meat balls on the other.

Kevin, I'll be doing my annual ride to DV in March, thanks for the preview. Lex

Rollers are heavy, noisy, bulky, expensive, weaker and less stiff then plain bearings. Plain bearing are light, quiet, compact, cheap, strong and stiff. The myth that roller bearings have less friction comes from people spinning an engine by hand and seeing how much more easily the roller bearing engine spins. What these people are missing is that when the oil system is supplying the high pressure oil that allows the two bearing surfaces of plain bearings to "float" over each other without contact the plain bearing engines spins just as easily as a roller engine. Rolling element bearings are less, not more, sensitive to particulates in the oil. Rolling element bearings do need less oil pressure. The ability to live with low oil pressure and tolerance for "dirt" is why they were used for decades in motorcycles after they stopped being used in cars. The oiling system in bikes were poor and often unfiltered so the rollers gave better service. The first Japanese four-strokes and Ducati twins started with roller bearings and slowly converted to plain bearings over time. The same pattern happened on race bikes so the change was not entirely due to noise or cost reduction. The differences between two types of bearings are well known to any mechanical engineer, nothing above is controversial or new information. Rather than get into a discussion with anyone who believes the myths about low friction from rollers I'd ask them to explain why every modern engine uses plain bearings for main, rod and cam bearings. This runs from the cheapest Toyota to the engine in every MotoGP bike and Formula One car. Roller bearings are limited to places where oil flow is poor but low friction is required. When you find an engine with roller bearings there is a reason. My Harley has rollers on the crankshaft and rods because weird pressed together "knife and fork" crankshaft design requires them; two strokes can't provide oil to the bearings; a few singles use pressed together crankshafts that require roller bearings, other bikes have poor lubrication (sounds like the Hyland may be one) and need rollers for survival. Lex

Strange SPAM-ish Email from babizheyang removed. Lex

Like I said, it is pretty strange. I'm not sure if it is very poor SPAM, a very weird person or someone who doesn't speak English well. I clicked one of he links (using a Mac has advantages) and it was a link to a tourism site. Still taking a wait and see attitude, Lex