guzzi323

I recently had a very similar problem on my Scura's starter (what is it about Scura's? They seem to be the most cursed of recent Guzzi's). My battery was somewhat questionable anyway so I replaced it at the start. No difference so I pulled the starter to bench test it. Sometimes the solenoid would actuate and sometimes not so I figured it was he solenoid. After replacing that it was the same. The problem ended up being a broken brush spring was only able to hold the brush against the rotor on occasion. After replacing that all's been well. I hope this helps. johnk

I found the rear axle nut to be a very nice fit for the oil filter cover. johnk

I've watched this thread for a while thinking I was lucky mine was still working. Then about a few days ago I noticed the total mileage reading on my speedo looked very familiar. I'm not certain how long it's been at 46670 but I'm thinking it's been a couple of months. I never noticed because the trip odometer and speedo functions still work. Just one more thing on the list to do. Unfortunately I'm in the middle of a kitchen remodel so my bike projects have been backing up. johnk

I've got an RKA tankbag for my Scura and it's a great. Big, expandable and stable. A friend has had RKA tank and saddlebags for about 10 years and they're holding up great. http://www.rka-luggage.com/A01%20Products/prod.html I believe my bag is the 25 liter one. Dr. Gil, you're in Northern California right? Well these folk are in Windsor so you can ride you bike there and check out the options. I hear they're very nice people. johnk

I'll happily second that. The headlight relay setup they sell is really well made and requires no cutting of anything. I've done a lot of wiring myself building complete harnesses over the years but I still bought one of these for all my daily driver bikes because it's just so nicely made and reasonably priced. johnk

What a timely (for me) project you've taken up. As my Scura is currently off-line and I also put a Mille fender on my bike for the added Ohlins protection (though I opted for the plastic not carbon fiber one) I was looking at the fender and all the muck on the front of my motor trying to think of a cheap extension I could make, it didn't even occur to my to use my stock fender. Thanks for the tip. johnk

In the interest of getting more information out there my dilter which came loose was a UNI filter. johnk

Thank you for the clarification Greg. I'm not too concerned about the timeframe on getting the parts. If it takes a few weeks I'm a big boy, I can deal with that. I'm just thankful there are dealers who are willing to put up with/work around the problems with Guzzi North America to help us keep our bikes running. johnk

Unless the hose clamp were to break in two places, it'll just fall to the bottom of the pan but still be captive around the oil filter. I don't believe there's enough room for it to get out. As for the issue of the filter not being tightened in the first place. I've been working on bikes for 21 years. Only the first 6 or so professionally. Since then I only work on my stuff having done the routine maintenance on all of my bikes totalling more than 300,00 miles. That's a lot of oil filters put on. I have the proper filter wrench. I tightened my filter with it. I currently have bearing shells and rod bolts on order because this happened to me. A $3 clamp and a bit more work installing the filter will be in my future maintenance routine. I know I'm just one more 'guy on the internet with an opinion' but that's my johnk

I've had a K&N in my BMW for 150,000 miles or so. When I pulled the heads off at 100K the cylinders still had their honing marks. I put some fresh rings and rebuilt the heads and the bike still runs great (for a BMW) and is as reliable as dirt. When I got the Scura the idea was that it was going to replace my tired old BMW. I love the Scura, but even after 24 years my BMW is more reliable even with the K&N filter. My johnk

It could be there's some slop in the upper mounting bolt hole which allowed my bracket to sit a little on the high side. I didn't loosen it to see if the bracket would move down. I didn't even consider this problem when I was doing this until I couldn't get that lower bolt in. The easiest/fastest thing to do was pull out my dremel and grind away for a few minutes. Looking now at the picture, perhaps if I had loosened the upper mount the bracket could have pivoted forward a degree or so and that might have been enough to get the lower bolt in. I guess once Pete's plates start arriving we'll know for sure. johnk

Well that casting is quite a sturdy thing though if you can bend it I'd think that would work. I wouldn't want to have it bolted to the cases under tension though. These are Italian aluminum castings we're talking about. We're lucky if they hold together without us putting extra stresses on them, you know? I do like your idea about having the bike sit a little more upright when on the stand. I was just thinking about welding on something to the bottom of my sidestand to lengthen it a little bit. I looked around and found the pic I took of the bracket. You can see for yourself what the issue is. I hope this is helpful for you. johnk

Actually, since the top bolt of the bracket mounts to the timing case you'll have to elongate the lower bolt hole and recess for the bolt which goes into the side of the sump. I thought I had a picture of what I had to do to mine but I can't find it right now. I'll keep looking and post it if I do. johnk

I'll chime inwith my 2 cents. I took the fairing off the Scura (with the fairing which turns with the bars) and found the ride was much quieter. For my 6' height, the fairing puts all of the turbulence right at the bottom edge of my helmet. For purely vanity related reasons I put it back on. I wish there was a way to bleed a little air into the space behind the fairing, that'll sometimes help with these issues. For me the noise/buffeting isn't enough to detract from my enjoyment of the bike so I decided against worrying about it further. johnk

I've gotten them from Aprillia and Ducati dealers. Give those a shot. johnk

I usually end up changing my brake pads as often as I change my oil and seals. Only once have I managed to notice the seal failing prior to fouling my brake pads. It's these extra items which really makes these forks expensive to maintain. johnk

OK, well I'm a 'murican and I think he'd look better in a wig. johnk

My Ohlins were showing a bit of un-nitrited surface area since almost new. I could have screamed and yelled and had my dealer pull the front end off of my bike for a year while I waited for replacement tubes to arrive but then I would have been without the bike for that time. I don't like it, but Ohlins are higher maintenance items. If I get 10K miles out of them between seal changes I feel lucky. I'm looking at various things I can do to keep them happy, but I console myself with the fact that at least they're easy to work on. Though I just got this tool and haven't had a chance to try it with my Scura, it has helped a weepy seal on another bike I have. http://www.motionpro.com/motorcycle/tools/seal_mate It cleans the 'gook' out from behind the seal. It's a bit of a pain on upside down forks because to use it properly you need to remove the wheel and fender which is half the work of replacing Ohlins seals but it is a bit cheaper than a full seal change. My johnk

I've got a starting point for you here. http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8251 Note that you'll have to make the filter/pickup hole larger along the lines of the red area in the pic. Also, something I forgot about in my original post, since this spaces down the sump just a wee bit I had to slightly elongate the lower sidestand bracket mounting bolt which goes into the sump. johnk

I'm guessing all of the Scura owners out there will be aghast at my recommendation but my favorite rear tire I've used on my bike has been a Metzeler ME880. It sticks plenty good enough for me, is very predictable and I got over 10K miles out of my last one. As an experiment I tried a Diable Strada and it's wearing way too quickly for my taste. Once it's gone I think I'm going to be running 880's on the rear until they stop making them. My 2 cents, johnk

I've got a Corbin that my buddy Tony (rrbasso) gave me because he had an extra. I think it's great though it is much firmer than stock and took a while before the two of us came to an understanding as to the shape of my rump. johnk

Not to toot my own horn but maybe this is the next step. http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8251 I haven't 'tried' to make the light come on since installing it because I think rod bearings are good things and I want to keep mine happy but I would expect the pressure switch to respond faster than the guage. To my knowledge most gauges of any type (oil temp/pressure, speedo, etc) have a damper in them to smooth out the readings. This little bit might be enough to make the momentary pressure drop. But what the hell do I know? I'm just some wierd guzzi guy on the internet. johnk

I've never had a problem with plugs failing on me though the thought that occured to me was the tire goo might be lubing the plugs. I'd try one or the other, not both. Actually, having worked in a bike shop where we always cursed (and eventually started charging extra for) people who put goo in their tires, I'll stick with plugs and forget the goo. My 2 cents.. johnk

Damn, 1/4" grid paper would have been brilliant. I'm not however and it's now mounted on the bike. If I ever have cause to tear into he bottom of the motor I'll happily do that but I'm hoping to not have to see that plate again for quite some time. What gauage steel? Again I show my less than completely thought out process. It was thick enough that it didn't want to bent easily. I'd guess it to be in the .060" - .080" range? It's think enough that I'm not worried about vibrations causing fractures to it. Sorry that's the best I can do. johnk

Well I don't know if I'll be going out and doing a bunch of wheelies but driving into work this morning I was starting and stopping more aggresively than I would normally with no oil light. Of course my oil's topped off so it normally wouldn't do it now anyway. I like big wheelie's as much as the next guy but that's not my Scura's primary thing. I've got my DR350 for that. I think only time will tell on this one. johnk