Dan M

Like many here, I always felt like if the goose had a little more power and a little less weight things would be ideal. I've made a few weight saving modifications, some trimming an ounce or two and some cutting several pounds. Here's the skinny. Parts changed that resulted in a lighter bike: Front & rear wheels, mufflers, crossover, foot controls, front rotors, rear hugger, rear muffler hangers, cardan bar. Parts that have gone away: Carbon canister, passenger pegs, some of the rear fender. Total difference, just under 29lbs. Bottom line, not as much as I hoped for, she's still a porker. I love her anyway though.

I thought the lull was because one of the major contributers was busy finding a bike for his wife. Hopefully it can be back to business as usual now.

As good an excuse as I've ever come up with

You got that right Mike. Weight matters. I put Z6s on my RT a couple of years ago. The front was showing the off center wear and starting to cup in a few thousand miles. I did have an issue early on with it losing some air and consequently put some miles on it with less than optimum pressure. I'm sure that contributed to the wear pattern. I have yet to have that type of wear on my V11 with any tire. I always ride the V11 solo and often ride the RT 2up.

The steering is noticeably lighter. I'm sure some of that can be attributed to the switching to the taller, narrower 170/60 rear tire.

and...

Finally got around to taking a couple of shots on the Marvics on the bike

Not nervous at all weej. Riding on dirt will make any rider better on the street. When ever I come across a new rider young or old I worry about them not realizing the different mind set needed for motorcycling. We feel nervous because we've been there, been lucky, and know street riding must be taken seriously. The fact that she took a safety course before anything is a big plus.

I know Johno, when these bikes are running right it's hard not to bubble over about it. Enjoy!

The smaller contact patch and lower rolling resistance of higher pressure will effect fuel economy but if you have a heavy fist on that throttle you'll never notice it. Riding technique and fueling set up are the major players for gas mileage.

A good indicator of what's going on will be cranking voltage. If you can't test the starter's amperage draw, see what battery voltage is while cranking. Assuming your battery is good and fully charged (12.5V) the voltage while cranking should not drop much below 10. If it is cranking slow and the voltage is drops very low (way below 10), the starter is drawing too many amps. If it is cranking slow and the voltage stays high (11ish) there is a bad connection in the cranking circuit and you are not getting enough power to the starter. The bad connection can be on either side + or -, at the battery or the starter or inbetween. These voltages are just examples, your result should be obvious. Remember, this assumes your battery is good and can produce the necessary amperage. edit: your dc voltage of 14.2 above idle is normal

Well put GM. I think most will find it hard to distinguish the handling difference made by a pound +/- on the street. I would err (or is it air?) on the high side. Modern tires grip so well, an extra psi or two will lengthen service life without giving up too much adhesion.

Good for her! Those little jap cruisers have pretty low seats. Many smaller beginning riders gain confidence on them. Tell her good luck & be safe.

This is very nearly a tire thread. You'll get a few opinions on this one johno. I have Pirelli Diablos and run 35psi front and 38psi rear.

That cush looks better (cushier) than the Marvic. The Marvic has next to no give. The question is if they make a MG sized spline drive to plug in. \/ marvic ---------------------------------- durrani \/

It is no new news that with fuel costs, scooter sales are soaring. Every dealer I've been to has very few bikes in the show room. There is nowhere near the amount of scooters on the road here as in Europe but the numbers are rising and I was wondering what the long term impact will be. When I've ridden in Italy, car drivers were far more aware of and courteous to two wheelers than what I've been accustomed to stateside. One theory is that nearly everybody started on a scooter. They understand what it is like to negotiate traffic on two wheels. I feel if more people ride, be it motorcycle or scooter, they will become safer car drivers in regards to cycles around them. Then, just as I'm having that thought I see this idiot buzz by my shop. I'm on a fairly busy 4 lane city street. This guy comes by at about 50mph on one of those new large scooters. He is in shorts & flip flops, no helmet or glasses and riding with his right hand on the throttle and left hand holding his phone to his ear. He is going fast enough that he has to crouch down behind the windshield to hear his phone. There is little doubt that this is a future crash statistic. Imbeciles like this will likely lead to more safety legislation and higher insurance rates for the rest of us. I just don't know what to think.

This rally turned to be pretty good and not very boring at all, although 600 mile days to and from are about this geezer's limit. I have never viewed trials competition live before, quite impressive. There were approximately 1000 assorted bikes, mostly BMW but I spotted several Guzzis including a green V11 Sport and a red/gray V11 LeMans. I wondered if it was anyone from here but the owners were not near either of the bikes. Later I'm at a long table with my friends and a fella and his wife sit across from me. He is wearing a Moto Guzzi hat. We start talking and it turns out to be our own "fotoguzzi" Small world we live in.

I'm with Steve on the Brough Superior

I's swap the shaft. I'll bet the bike is smoother at speed with joints that have fluid motion

You may be on to something Dave. Acid reduction. Hmm. Maybe it is ground up Pepcid tablets. They work reducing acid for me. The color is right too. Those on a budget can buy run of the mill gear oil and add a few Tums. Brilliant!

In almost every (other) circumstance I would disagree. FI is usually trouble free and accurate. The MM system on the Guzzi is a different story. It can be wildly inaccurate and seems to need a bit of fiddling, and the addition of aftermarket devices to get it right. I'd say you have an excellent solution John

WTF man, are you going to just put up one every few days or what? We're waiting...

Here: http://www.mikerichmotorsports.com/ Call him up, I'm sure he'll be happy to talk with you about it.

+1 on Tires unlimited

When I was running a 180 rear tire I had it at 12mm and liked the combination of fairly light steering and stability. With the taller / narrower 170 I dropped them to about 8mm. (I'm running Pirelli Diablos)