Baldini

Who's Kev? Good luck with it! Keith

Clutch works well hot & cold can discount that. You can adjust lever position by threaded rod (9 on pic 2).If lever sometimes does not return, & you have checked everything has free movement externally, I guess you'll have to look inside the sideplate. Pawl spring could be causing/contributing to problem. Check spring mount diameter & assembly of all parts. It may be worth replacing all three springs (21,25,28 on PIC 1). I have no experience of the adjuster (9 on Pic 1) - try search. Having said that, an occasional false neutral is something I regard as normal for a Guzzi box - indeed to some extent in any manual transmission (tho I have very limited experience) - it's something I put up with & can be down sometimes to my not making the change properly. Don't take me wrong, it's hard to know without riding your bike wether it's worse than mine in this respect but for safety, it's worth always being sure you're in the gear you think you are! As I say I'm just an occasional mechanic on my own bikes, I'm no expert. Good luck. KB

You are talking about No 33 in this diagram. Yes it should be there. You'll have all kinds of crap going into the needle roller bearing without it. I wash out & regrease the bearing sometimes when wheel is out - it needs it. I refit washer using a load of grease & just clean off the excess.

The problem is that you select occasional false neutrals? Not that it slips out of gear once engaged? If, when you first get the false neutral, you disengage the clutch again (blipping throttle to get revs right as necessary) & try to get the gear does it engage ok? After making a change sometimes, does lever feel solid - ie not returned? Does problem only occur when motor is hot? I'm no expert, but it seems to me first places to look are gearchange mechanism, clutch action or technique rather than the box itself. I have false neutrals on mine but always felt it's just me being sloppy. I guess, knowing this happens, you adjust to feeling for positive engagement. When slowing on a closed throttle, motor feels very different gear engaged (engine braking), to neutral. I guess you have to ask, is there a problem specific to your bike, or is it a characteristic of the model & if so can it be improved by adjustment of parts? I had a couple of pawl arm springs break & I only noticed any change of action pretty much immediately before failure. Are you in touch w PO - if he didn't replace pawl arm or turn down spring pivot to correct size, it should be done or spring is likely to break anyhow. If I understand correctly, you have not been inside box at all? I have never fiddled with adjuster screw on sideplate (acorn nut) but there has been discussion here re this. There is reams of stuff on here re the Scura clutch. Some flywheels broke up but the clutch, from what I can make out, functioned normally until this point. If this is a clutch related problem it sounds more likely to be related to the activating mechanism. Michael, is your clutch smooth in action & does it fully disengage drive when lever is pulled in? Sorry I can't offer more help, but I'm no mechanic & tend to have to have something in front of me to figure it out.

As TomM says - get motor/FI in spec first, there is no point in dynoing it when base settings are out. I have no experience of FI & take it to the shop to set - you are local to Moto International who have vast Guzzi experience & good reputation - you may find this is enough to get it satisfactory, but I have similar mods &, at shop recommendation, I got it dynoed after they'd set it up & ... according to the graphs... it improved it. I didn't ride it in between but I was happy, it ran great. You might want to ask dyno shop pay particular attention to low speed pickup/running as they may focus mainly on the other end. It may also pay to ask Moto International to recommend a suitable dyno shop, not all will be as... Guzzi friendly. KB

I think the alignment issue you're refering to relates to the driveshaft. Front/back of driveshaft must be aligned so that UJ's are in same plane. There should be paint marks to assist, but these may have gone? See latter pages of this discussion: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=15638 However, this sounds like a gearbox or clutch issue. Did the bike used to shift well, even when hot? You mention shift deteriorated after riding a while, was it all good up to that point? Is clutch action good - fully disengaging when hot? KB

From your description, I think you mean the weep is around the speedo cable drive (about 4" directly above trans sight glass)? I'm not sure if gbox oil migrates into speedo drive, but if it does & drive is damaged it could be culprit. Bike hasn't had a knock? Sure it's not coming from somewhewre else? How much leaking?

Thanks for that Brad . Great country! KB

I wouldn't worry about it - if you fancy taking the V11 take it. To me bikes are about attitude not age. If someone gets their knickers in a twist over it, that's their problem. It's not as if it's a competetive event - it's just a gathering of enthusiasts? And just cos something's old - doesn't make it a classic. But Classic Bike World is a Mad, Mad World - I don't get brand new manufactured Manxes, G50's etc competing in same race classes as original machinery? BTW - I have an 81 R80GS - it's an ugly old bugger but the only bike I've had running whilst completely inverted (the bike, that is). KB

I dunno. Maybe short spacers from factory (did they tell you that?)relate to odd torque spec in book. Reason that, in my case, I figured it was deformation was that bearing was fine for 3k miles til I took the wheel out, torqued up the axle nut & it was ...gone in 60 seconds. Maybe bearing was OK for a while cos it was torqued up by finely trained factory mechanics precisely to manual (at housing side)& that makes a difference. But I can't see why it should ... & in Mr Hamfist's world he needs a fixing that responds well to brute force & ignorance, so he made his own. Just another episode in the joys & mysteries of the marque. KB

I don't think that the spacers were fitted too short, but that they can be compressed by tightening (or, arguably, overtightening) the axle nut. The Guzzi manual gives an interesting torque setting for rear axle: Rear wheel spindle screw (housing side): 120Nm.. It's unclear to me why they spec housing side. I measured distance between bearings, made a stronger spacer to fit & problem went away.

Yes, they are the same thing. I would pm Pete Roper & ask about availability. It maybe someone in the states still has some - you could try search? Meanwhile, it is important to keep oil level up to max. I keep it slightly over which has not given me any issues. KB

David, I have nothing useful to offer, only my sympathy. Sometimes the effort required to get any satisfaction is more than it'll ever be worth. You are evidently dealing with arseoles. I wish you all the best, after the investment you have made in their products, you deserve much better from Guzzi. Still the bike is working OK at present??? What would it take to get that old LM111 you have going? They really are a pleasure to ride - old technology, proven & simple. Cheers, Keith

I'm surprised more people don't try Contis too. They're cheaper than others (well from my supplier anyhow). Perhaps brand image isn't so attractive I used Sport Attack - a good neutral handling tyre. But I went back to Pilot Sport 2CT's cos I just love the way they work. But like has been said, for general use you'd struggle I think, to find an unacceptable tyre these days, as Ratchethack said - it's "a golden age".

How do you know that he is not once more amongst us at this very moment? Keeping a low profile, biding his time.... Ratchethack & Captain Nemo, Masters of Delusion ... If only Ratchethack hadn't given fullest rein to his phobias & prejudices without discrimination & to the point of tedium...I can't remember what happened to Captain Nemo, but I remember him challenging Greg to a race (or was it the other way round?)...& his blue exhaust pipes... Shame really...but Buzz Lightyear managed to turn it around...there's always hope.

Thanks jrt. some interesting bikes there. I like some of the really simple, minimal styled stuff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhImlbL20xQ&feature=related If your feeling a bit glum, try ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXEfjVnYkqM There's nothing like a good titter ...

thanks bfg Nice bike jrt - where from?

Another fine effort fotoguzzi - the car park/parking lot scene was a masterstroke, & then to revisit that same stillness at the end - pure genius. Did you manage to extract yourself from the chopper repair scene safely - that chap kneeling down looking in your direction appears not to be in the best of moods?

The criticisms above reflect only the surface, to see the true nature of this work we must delve deeper. The journey appears sedate & yet we sense unanswered, indeed, unasked questions. Vehicles pass, inhabitants unidentified, purpose unexplained - as in much of Lynch's work - an allegory of life? Slowly, from the brooding tension develops a sense of obscure malevolence, it's presence brought into focus by it's absence, building to the final, devastating, closing sequence - where have we come to? where to next ? Bravo Fotoguzzi ! A minor masterpiece. You are not by any chance French? KB

That's what I recall too. We don't necessarily want the "most efficient", "fastest", "smoothest" or the best weight distribution (& I agree that is one of the Guzzi's worst characteristics, & presumably why they moved the alternator back up top in the Carc bikes?)or whatever. Liking one bike over another is related not only to it's spec & performance, but to it's looks & "character" & to the history & image of the manufacturer. And - being human we have irrational preferences. KB

Only if distances thru components remain in spec whilst torque increases. I believe that some bearing spacers are poor quality & will compress when axle nut is tightened past the point that they are able to withstand compression. More torque on axle nut = more compression. It is distortion of the bearing spacer that causes misalignment within the bearing(s) & the more torque that is applied, the more the distortion. KB KB

Yes - if all parts are in spec. But if spacer was short & brng outer races are home in the hub, torquing the axle would put a lateral load on inner races causing misalignment = knackered brng in short order.