jtucker

I upgraded mine to a limited slip differential. That way, if the rear wheel slips, power will transfer to the rear wheel that still has traction. Works flawlessly. __Jason

I'm confused now... can somebody tell me on which side of my Guzzi's steering wheel does the choke lever reside? Also, can someone tell me if Guzzis are still having problems with their solenoids? __Jason

Yeah... I can definitely think of some cases where the petcock wouldn't matter, but figured it couldn't hurt to try. That automatic petcock bothered me from day 1 anyway, so I'm glad to be rid of it, in any case. __Jason

Hi Al - Yeah... I was wondering about your bike too. Looks like you made a big move in the interim, huh? To one of my favorite states to go riding in, no less. __Jason

Thanks all! Yeah, I've always preferred the lines of the Magni fairing over the stock V11LM fairing. I guess I'm a fan of that "Buck Rogers" look. I also like the lower clip-ons of the Magni kit. I've still got my old Magni that was busted up in my crash. I've mocked it up against my Ducati M900, and am in love with that look too. If I can figure out how to accommodate the Magni subframe on the Ducati, I might just do it. That will be a project for a rainy day - or many rainy days, most likely. Here's the photoshop hack of the Ducati/Magni... __Jason

I was experiencing this "vapor lock" issue on my bike as well. I started to suspect that the electronic petcock might be contributing to this problem, so while my bike was undergoing its rebuild, I had the electronic petcock replaced with manual. My reasoning is this: Stop for lunch on a hot day, electronic petcock closes, sealing off the fuel lines. Fuel in those lines vaporizes, but the vapor has no place to go. I'm *hoping* that with the manual petcock left open, the lines can vent, and the problem will be solved. Again, this is all speculation. It was easy to swap the petcock, so I figured it couldn't hurt to try. Time will tell if it helped at all. __Jason

Ironically, the one thing I didn't do was dual-plug the heads, which was the subject of this thread in the first place... __Jason

Well I'm back from the ether... I've been ashamed to show my face around here for a long time, since my Guzzi project has taken an embarrassingly long time to complete. Remember when I started this thread... back in November 2002? Well... I can finally say I got the bike back on the road this past weekend! During this time, I've moved, switched jobs, and got married. I still have my Ducati Monster, and have also picked up a MZ Skorpion (for my wife, but I love riding it too!). So, I've had plenty to keep me occupied while the Guzzi was hanging in limbo. So, what was done in that time: Damaged head from 2002 crash was refinished (3 times before it finally was right) Same cylinder head was "lost" for a period by the shop doing the refinishing work Recall work on gearbox was performed Carrillo rods Balanced bottom-end Mike Rich 10.25:1 pistons Mike Rich port & flow Megacycle 620x10 cam Mike Rich Ti pushrods New (sunk) valves and springs from Mike Rich Raceco aluminum timing gears (I know... and I don't want to hear it!) Power Commander w/ custom map from Mike Rich New gas tank to replace one damaged in crash Electronic petcock replaced w/ manual unit New Magni fairing to replace one destroyed in crash I think that's it. All the assembly work was done by Roland @ The Spare Parts Company in Philadelphia. Now I've got to break in the new motor again, but so far she's running like a dream! Still on the to-do list: get a deep-V sump. When the crank was removed, it needed to be honed - it looked like it suffered from oil starvation, which I attribute to poor design of the stock oil sump. Words can't describe how happy I am to be back on this bike. Getting back in the saddle "feels like home." __Jason

This part sounds familiar. One day, I started to notice oddities during clutch engagement... it started getting "snatchy". I just happened to stop by my dealer's shop, and it seemed to get worse, so I left it there. Turned out the rivets holding the friction plate together sheared off. Fortunately for me, it happened at that time, and not while I was hundreds of miles from home... Also a 2000.

For the record, the 2nd (of 2) reason Megacycle gave me was lack of demand. I can understand why they would consider soft valves (or whatever) to be a factor as well. I can only assume that a hot cam could exasperate any underlying problems. If I were them, and I started hearing feedback that engines fitted with my cams were experiencing premature valve failures, I would be inclined to *not* put any more cams out on the market until the problem is sorted out. But that's just me. Unfortuantely, I don't have much more info here. As it was, I was able to locate the cam I wanted, and am having my heads worked anyway, so for me the issue is moot. At the time I had them on the phone, I didn't much care about the details - I just wanted to know if they had the cam I was looking for. What do you consider normal wear then? I wasn't joking when I said Morgan's valves went pear-shaped. I saw them. I layed my hands on them. They were visibly distorted in quite startling ways.

I bought some of the "grand touring" grips, but haven't gotten around to installing them yet: As you can see, the ends of these grips need to be cut off, or a hole cut in it. I have a friend that has them on his Ducati, and their "chunky" shape seemed like it would be more comfortable for me. I haven't ridden with them yet, myself. In fact, thanks for reminding me... maybe I'll actually get around to putting them on this week. __Jason

Just to add more fuel to the fire, when I spoke to the folks at Megacycle, they said that one of the reasons they're not eager to produce any more cams for Guzzis is due to problems with soft valves...

Ratchet - here's some additional details from my friend Morgan: Roland would be our mechanic at Spare Parts Co. in Philadelphia. Apparently, he had to replace the timing chain as well.

A friend of mine recently had his valves go all pear-shaped on a '97 Sporti. Nothing catastrophic, but he had problems with it running poorly for some time, regardless of what tuning he did. And yes... Mike Rich did the repairs for him. __Jason

This is great - I'll start buying my lottery tickets right away. I should have a winner by then, I think...

Yes, you should definitely install vacuum caps over these. Another option would be to run a single vacuum line that connects the 2 together. Either way, you don't want to leave these open, as it will screw up your mixture.

I've never had the Guzzi on the track (yet) but when I do track days, I always take the side stand off. I got a Sport Chock and it changed my life: I use it all the time in the garage, and as an added bonus, it makes securing the bike to a trailer a snap, especially when your doing it by yourself. I got it from the manufacturer - http://www.baxleycompanies.com/ - not sure if they have a source in Europe.

I find that to be a popular misconception about earplugs. With proper plugs, you will be able to hear everything around you just fine, except your ears won't be ringing by the end of the day (mine did, anyway). I always had problems with the soft foam plugs myself. They worked good, but for some reason I always had problems getting them into my left ear, and once in, there was a 50/50 chance that they would fall out as soon as I put my helmet on. Something funky with my ear canal on that side, I guess. So, I got a pair of those custom molded silicone jobs from an audiologist that was set up at the NYC Cycleworld show. I love them - they go in so easy, that I can put them both in (simultaneously) in about 2 seconds. And they don't fall out, ever.

I like it. Modern, but I definitely see some classic LeMans lines peeking through - especially in the front.

Yes, the kit should come with a 90-degree angle adaptor for the back of the speedo. I'm pretty sure its a standard part that any dealer can get, but I'm not sure. I'll see if I've got a part number.

I can tell you from first-hand experience that PJ1 Silver Engine and Case paint is damn near dead-on. http://tinyurl.com/zoexl This stuff was recommended to my mechanic by Mike Rich. I just had it refinished a few weeks ago, and it looks very good.

Awesome! I'll always remember my first track day... far far better than the first time I had sex!

Funny story - A year or 2 ago, a friend of mine was out riding his Ducati in the countryside outside Philly and somehow managed to run out of gas. A guy came along in a pickup truck and gave him a lift to the nearest gas station. Along the way they got to talking about bikes, and the stranger had alot to talk about... it was Dr. John himself. I've never met him, but I know a fair number of folks who have. Sounds like a great guy.

A friend of mine took part in a cross-country ride that was put together by Red Bull. It sounds like that was a complete nightmare as well. For more info on that, here's a blog of the ride that was posted by another Philadelphia-area rider who took part: http://www.teampromotion.com/tpm.php?page_id=feature_072106 Apparently, they allowed alot of people/bikes that have no business attempting a cross-country trip. There was one guy on a Honda GB500 (which I think retired on the 2nd day) and a guy with a GSXR "stunt" bike... you know, the kind with the crushed in gas tank (for standing on) that only hold maybe 2 gallons of fuel

The bars are lower. May be a problem for some, but I prefer it that way... a more "sporting" position, I feel, and it gets you out of the wind a bit more on long trips. The farthest I've gone on that bike in one day is about 750 miles... I didn't have any problems with the bar position... ie, my back was fine, but my ass hurt like a sonofabitch. Of course, YMMV. As for the brackets that mount the sides of the fairing, they bolt to the top of the valve covers. The kit comes with very minimal instructions, and some of the pieces may cause you to scratch your head a bit at first... but its not too bad from what I recall. Can't speak for the black finish, but the silver was a dead match.