al_roethlisberger

Mike Rich attempted to shave my heads, but in the end removed very very little as he didn't have much to work with before impacting the squish. His new pistons improve the squish from what I understand as well. Because the heads can vary, and MG is notoriously liberal in their CR specs, based on past experience Mike suspects that my real CR will be closer to 10.25 -> 10.5 when all is said and done. He believes the same is true of the FBF "11:1" pistons, but is not certain. As stock, he says the MG heads are a good bit below the CR they market. ...and yeah, you would think that MG would have indeed "refined" every aspect of these engines over the years ... but even though they perhaps haven't wrung every ounce of juice out of them, MG has to be given the credit taking the V11 engine as far as they have and keeping it reliable for the street al

That is just awful awful news.... I can only imagine how angry you must be I'm very sorry to hear this. Please keep us posted. al

I still love the old FJ's.... and miss mine sometimes They also still have a HUGE following, and several members here are past and current owers Forum: Former FJ Owners Thread

And if you have the right make of forks, Ohlins for example... as mentioned in my first post, they do make replacement fork ends for changing out the brake caliper mounts. These too are "bloody expensive" though, not even taking into account the labor required to actually make the change as well. I agree though, that mounting an "adapter" is a waste of time, unless one is simply going for "bling" factor al

Dual-plugging the Guzzi V-Twin is very popular in Europe, and has been for years, but not so much here in North America... for no particular rhyme or reason. Part of the reason may just be the market, as Guzzis in America are relatively rare as compared to Europe it seems. That being said, the "global" experts on dual-plugging Guzzis is currently TLM(forum sponsor). They have a whole "kit" that they'll sell ya, but it's not cheap. Now, the million $$ question: Is it worth doing? .... I have dual-plugged heads, and can't really say unfortunately Part of my problem is that I changed so many things at once(or close) that is was relatively impossible to isolate the benefit of some of the individual changes. Now I know this flies in the face of a scientific methodology of how one should do modifications, but keep in mind that my motivation was quite a bit influenced by the fun of tinkering, versus pure performance That being said, here is the forum dual-plug FAQ put together by yours truly: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2355 And the original "anyone dual-plug..." thread, that is one of the oldest and longest running of the forum http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=320&st=0 Hope that helps. al

Radial - The mounting bolts of the caliper align along a radius from the axle(not perfectly, but in general). This is the latest design you see on most "high performance" bikes. Axial(traditional) - The mounting bolts of the caliper are parallel with the axle. This is the standard mounting arrangement you have seen on bikes for decades. What's funny, I don't think anyone bothered to call this design "axial" per se, before we had "radial" versions to differentiate the two Example: Radial Axial(traditional) http://www.hardracing.com/images/01a1.jpg .... I'd post a picture of them installed, but all you have to do is walk out to the garage and look at your front calipers When it is all said and done, the radial calipers are said to stop better and provide improved "feel" in that the radial mounting is more rigid. At least that is what the marketing says Hope that helps. al

If anyone is interested, FYI: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...&category=35615 $400 doesn't seem too bad. ....of course, you'll need new forks, an "adapter of some sort", or new fork caps to use them. Just an interesting aside, from simply looking at the photo, these seem to basically be built the same as the higher performance "axial mount(normal)" 4 pad Brembos, with the exception of the new radial mounting design. As shown in this thread, these are the 4 pad calipers to which I refer: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=4726 Does anyone know if these radial calipers are really technically any different than the "axial' 4 pad calipers, again, other than simply being radially mounted? Just curious from a technical standpoint, as I don't plan to retrofit my forks with new end caps. al

...could be, but the "Connie" is always in the Top 10 Sport Touring bikes over in the USA, and has quite a following al

...yep, aaaannnnnnnnnnnnd.... they did Man, they are eating up their profits paying Mike Rich to send them new sets of rings every week BTW, back on the tire topic... what pressures do you run in the Diablos? al

I don't like/trust carbon wheels, especially for the street. I've seen two "mysteriously" fail on the track... CRACK... POOF..... WHAM........ al

Well don't fret too much, as it appeared that the paint on the one on eBay was damaged as well, around the nose. At least the photo appeared that way. al

No problem. BTW, my bike is a 2002 LeMans, so "technically" it should fit, but it is a "crap shoot". I think it is safe to say that any 2002+ bike is very hit or miss, LeMans, Sport, etc... If someone has detailed questions, you might want to point them to our Corbin seat "advisory/FAQ".... although I don't know if that would help or hinder your sale al

...it depends. I've found that even the seemingly softest material can eat away a paint job, vibrating over a 50+ hours of riding. Especially if someone really loads them down. I ate the paint off my FJ1200 tank with a heavily loaded tank bag one time after a 12 hour ride. So I always try to check what material the manufacturer uses on the back of the bag. I'm not so certain that a towel would stay in place after a day's ride with saddlebags to protect the sides of the bodywork Anyway, it's just something I check into. al

Check out the tail-light/fender-elim FAQ: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=460 .... about half-way down, see Kelly Baker I like the unit, but it was a bit complex, and it's not as clean as it could be. But I like it. Here is the thread with all the info: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?...hl=kelly++baker Here are some ancient photos: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/al_roethlisb...m/ph//my_photos al

It looks exactly like the clear coat that is peeling off of my Suburban... and that peeled off an old Miata I had as well. As mentioned, it simply looks gray/whitish as it peels away

Unless you REALLY plan on carrying a lot of stuff for an extended trip, you might look at a quality tank bag, or something like the Ventura Pack systems. Many folks have initially thought they needed panniers, only to realize they are more of a pain than what they really required for a weekend trip, or even longer. In the end, many have ended up selling their bags, and survived just fine with a reasonably sized tank and tail bag setup. I know I've found it much more "liberating" to travel as lightly as possible... if possible So, if you aren't sure that you need panniers, I'd recommend visiting sport-touring.net and their Gear section. Give a quick search on bags, etc... and you'll find lots of solutions. http://www.sport-touring.net/cgi-bin/msgbo...cgi?;act=SF;f=3 In fact, here is one thread in particular: http://www.sport-touring.net/cgi-bin/msgbo...=ST;f=3;t=29243 The Wolfman luggage systems for example, are quite versatile. ....anyway, just a thought. But if you are set on bags, Hepco Becker makes a hard set for the V11(just do a search on HB, Hepco, etc) or visit Harpers Moto Guzzi online for more details. Other than those, and the Teknos, I don't know of any that are a specific fit for the V11, but there are some threads here on "bags" you can search for that probably have some generic alternatives. And again, sport-touring.net has LOTS of alternatives, although admittedly probably few with a V11 focus/feedback. But hey, you could always ask. There are at least a couple old-timers on sport-touring.net that ride V11s, so they may have some thoughts(ksann comes to mind). Good luck. al

Yeah, this is different from the paint failure on my bike, and the RM I saw before. In my case(and RM), the color coat under the clear coat, actually cracked/failed first, then "erupted" through the clear coat. It was quite interesting to watch progress over a few months. Yours looks like the clear coat on my 16 yr old Suburban.... which just started peeling off last year. al

....I hope the teacher doesn't call me to the blackboard in the next few minutes.

A few guys here have made them street legal I've heard, but I don't know the details *shrug* Question: If it was sold in the South Bay, wouldn't it have been sold new by someone like Moto Italiano(who had a SuperTwin for a while), the Moto Guzzi dealer, as opposed to Britalia in Santa Cruz, who before MI bought them about a year ago, were not a MG dealer?? I understand G&B are not MG, but.... al

...hey, funny you mention that. Someone just found a HUMAN FINGER in their bowl of Wendy's Chili here in San Jose yesterday. It was all over the news... very very weird.

Your offer sounds suspiciously like a "Nigerian Scheme" .... can you prove you are really Mike Stewart?

Very cool, you should mass manufacture and sell these. I'm sure a lot of folks with ITI gauged bikes will need one eventually

...obviously not the same bike, swingarm, etc, but hey, if the details don't bother you, and it's about the looks Heh, you have to give them credit... good job al

In case it isn't covered in the old thread I linked to above, you can find more info in my various "tank" threads by searching on "tank". Check out the "wasted fuel" and "2003 retrofit" threads for more info on painting these tanks. Basically though, you can't do it well/easily yourself. The tanks are made from a plastic, the same stuff those white cutting boards are made from, that is basically inert and nothing sticks to. So, one has to have special primer and paints to adhere, and if not prepped perfectly, the paint is just going to come off again. If you choose to repaint your tank, take it to a professional. I spent $300 color matching and painting my 2003 tank I got from salvage, and although expensive, the shop did a top-notch job. And I feel confident the paint will last a long time, versus something I could try to do myself. But I sold my warantee 2002 tank for about $300 also, so I got about half my money back al

Here ya go: Bubbling Tank Paint Thread ....this seems to not be an uncommon problem, especially with the 2002 and earlier bikes that suffer from tank suck. Although it is not uncommon, I don't mean to suggest it is a "common" problem either... if you get my drift... but it isn't unheard of. I don't know if my failure was from tank suck, but I had seen photos and heard stories of the paint on the tank failing in the same area as mine eventually did... the rear of the knee cutout. Check the thread above for more details. Sorry to hear about this, but if under warantee... they'll replace it. If not, think of it as an opportunity for that cool new paint job you've always wanted ....oooor like in my case, an opportunity to go for a 2003 salvage tank and upgrade to the new in-tank solution, then sell your old tank(or the warantee replacement one) and come out just a couple hundred in the hole And of course, since it is a Scura with the matte finish, you could always just try to touch it up. It should be easier than trying to do so with any other finish, although matching the black might be a bear, and you'd have to prep the surface with a special primer to get paint to stick to the poly Sorry to hear you fell victim to MG's 2002 paint woes as well al