Baldini

I'll have one Pete KB

I read this thread cos it was about a technical issue that concerns me. I can't be arsed wading thru all the personal banter to find something that is relevant to the issue. Can't you keep this stuff out of tech topics? - there's a place for it on the forum & we can all go & enjoy it there if we wish. Thank you. My Ohlins seals last between 3.5 & 7k miles. Although stanchion wear is evident, there's no wear thru the TiN coating to expose chrome. 17k miles. The forks are very low stiction, tho how much of that is due to the coating I have no idea. KB

What do you mean by "the forks wore out"? The stanchion surface? the bushes?As Paul says, seals are a loose fit for reduced stiction & fail regularly (I've had anywhere between 3-7k miles) & start to leak. Replacing the seals fixes it. I have 17k miles & AFAIK surfaces are good. If dust scrapers & seals are good, dust shouldn't be getting into wear surfaces??? But I guess if you're in a very dusty area you could have problems, & the fact that botrh ends gave up....what happened to shock? Was fork oil ever changed? I also fitted RSVR guard, but it really needs an extra strip down the side to fully protect stanchion fronts. Martin Barrett came up with an idea that leaving bike on sidestand for long periods may set seals & promote leaks - dunno, but now I try always leave it on workshop stand. Ohlins are really designed for track use hence the problems in road conditions. KB

Praying?

Is that a 4.5" rim?

Pete, See topic "Tyre preferences for 02 lemans" here + loads more views in other topics: search. It's all subjective stuff. Most modern tyres seem to work great. Only ones I've had were not good for me were BT020 it came with. Slow steering/neutral/grippy tyre: Conti Sport Attack (less sporty=Road Attack) which are also CHEAP. Loads of people seem to like the Contis (I've only used the Sport version - incredibly neutral, relaxing handling, plenty grip. Seems to wear at same rate as equivalent Michelin which is much faster steering). Why no Pirelli Diablo in your list? Good handling, predictable tyre, OK wear. KB

Racing on open roads is just bullshit. Why don't you take it to the track, Enzo? "When the flag drops..." etc. KB

...you have a lovely way with words KB

I just tighten locknut by feel too. I find getting clearance right is a bit hit & miss - usually when I nip up the locknut it'll close up the clearance I've set on the screw ...so I back off the screw to allow for retightening the locknut ...& remeasure clearance. Not very scientific but it's the way I've always done it & it works for me. I use an adjustable spanner to hold the screw & a ring spanner to turn the locknut. KB

I find something around Guzzi rec'd pressures mostly work fine on road (2.2/2.4 bar solo). We use lb's here , for me: 32f & 36 or 37r. Tyres differ & I found the Pilot Power 2CT's worked better on higher pressures. Lot of tyre manuf rec'd pressures around 36/42 & this seems to be a default recommendation for sportsbike tyres. However, Continental give 32/36 for the Sport Attacks I now have. It also depends how hard you use tyres as heat increases pressure, hence reduced pressures on track. However, too low pressures also generate heat by increasing tyre carcase movement. Tyres are a bit of a black art & things get more critical the more demand is put on them. I agree w/Ratchet re using the smaller of the recommended fitments for better handling: in my case 170 on 5.5". But again, different tyres have different handling characteristics, some being much quicker steering; so, say a 180 Pilot Power may turn better than a 170 BT020 anyhow. However I'm not sure that you'll have a reduced contact patch using the 170 over the 160, & even if you did I don't believe it's an issue as there's plenty enough. Also I think that for a given radius of turn at a given speed a bike on a wider tyre has to lean more than one on a narrower tyre so you will use more tread, other things being equal (which of course they never are & tyre deformation or other things unknown to me may counter that). If your not getting to the edge of the 170 or 180 tyre, it's simply that you're not leaning it far enough over. All the rear tyres I've tried will safely reach the edge of their tread quickly on a good dry surface. Fronts take much more lean to get to the edge & can differ greatly from tyre to tyre: the Diablos would edge at less lean than the Sport Attack which still has a chicken strip. The 2Ct went to the edge, but wether this is down to rider confidence (grip) or tyre design I'm not sure. Either way, on sports tyres, you're grinding various hard parts by then. Another input to tyre wear is suspension set up. The better suspension, the better the wear - both amount & pattern. I like tyres. KB

Maybe that's true for all of us, all of the time....& too often we forget ... Why you entertaining us with this squabble? Can't you sort it between yourselves?... KB

I've used.... 020's: didnt like them. Unpredictable, would let go suddenly. no confidence at edge of tyre. unbalanced turn in - front would turn, then rear would follow.. front cupped bad & unpleasant to ride on. 3,300m. Diablos: Liked them. very predictable at limit. good feel, good grip but overheated at edges used v hard. Better steering than 020 - more neutral turn in. 2,500m Power 2CT: Amazing amount of grip & feel. hugely cofidence inspiring. much more lean than Diablos. much quicker steering - more nervous but not unpleasant. seem sensitive to pressures. Wear fast. 1,200m ® 1,500m (f). Now: Conti Sport Attacks: Good grip (not so sticky as 2CT's I don't think). less feel than 2CT's. much slower to turn than Michelins, but great, relaxed, easy & completely neutral steering/handling. Relatively cheap. Look to be wearing at similar rate to 2CT's. My comments are re dry. Dunno about wet - I don't ride in the rain on purpose...if it looks like rain I don't go out. If it rains while I'm out I take it easy. Don't remember any of those tyres causing a problem. KB

I still have the (unused) spring Carl sent to me - I believe it's US supplied rather than Guzzi OEM - Carl can confirm. I can send it to you if you wish (FOC): PM me an address if you want it - not sure how long mail takes to US. NB: You also need to have correct pawl arm spring boss (15mm rather than 16mm diam ). KB

...but at the same time - don't do em to loose or your arse'll fall off

I had bike dynoed after xover/Ti kit/filter/airbox - well worth the trouble. Every bike's different & dyno can match tune to specifics of that bike, generic map will just get you in the ballpark. But to get the most out of dyno it's essential that all adjustments/settings you mention are optimized beforehand otherwise your wasting time & money. Not sure that Guzzis "race" ECU's can be trusted to match their own kit mods - mine ran as well, tho differently, on stock ECU before dyno. KB

I liked that curry sort of mustard stuff the Dutch put on chips....& the Indonesian stuff...& the cheese...errr...sorry, what was the question?

My understanding is that old-style water filled lead acid batteries are safe to charge at 10% of their capacity eg: a 30AH battery can safely be charged at 3amps, a 13AH battery at 1.3amps etc. However charging at a max of half this rate is better for battery longevity. With the new gel type batteries I hear the rules have changed. An Optimate trickle charger works at 0.6amps & that is too low for the 13AH gel battery to charge. I don't know why, or what is a safe charging current. The workshop manual gives no upper current limit..."no current limit requested", for charging. KB

I think normal Optimate trickle chargers do not work with these gel batteries - they do not put out enough current to charge them. PC111, correctly fitted, doesn't discharge battery. Sounds like battery isn't getting charged up - try a car charger or a regulated charger suitable for gel batteries. Spark 500 battery was subject of a Guzzi service bulletin recommending replacement. Not sure if they were still fitted to 05 bikes? Alarms take current. KB

Welcome back enzo. Glad to see you're still pursuing the grail. KB

Guzzi shift is unlike Jap boxes, & takes a bit of getting use to. Compared w Jap box V11 has very long lever throw - you have to move it quite a way to shift - if you only move it half way you can end up with false neutrals. Lubing & adjusting the external shifter mechanism may help. There is an eccentric pin held by a locknut on the gbox side plate. This controls the position/limits of travel of the plate on the end of the shift lever. You may find adjusting this helps. It is very instructive to look inside this cover to see how the change is effected - then you'll see why the action is the way it is. I found Redline Heavy Shockproof oil helped action. Mine shifts positively, rarely misses a gear except thru my bad technique. Lower gears are the more difficult esp around 3rd (Bento said "tird gear is not your friend" ) but not a real problem. One of the ratio jumps ( 2 to 3 I think) is a bit long & that can cause problems where you ideally need something in between. I find gearbox actually responds much better to quick, well timed, changes. On a recent trackday, trying hard, it did not miss one shift. I'll often fluff the odd one on a road ride. Slower, more deliberate changes are actually less easy. But used fast, focus & co-ordination of throttle, clutch (if used) & shift are everything. Hesitancy/laziness ruins good shifts. Of course, track shifts are only around 3 - 6, the easier end of the box! Listen to it & it'll tell you - get a feel for lever/shift action (you can actually feel the seector working), but be prepared to change your approach...Concentrate on co-ordinating throttle/engine speed with shift/tranny & wheel speed - there's a lot of moving metal to get synched - Try giving it a good, quick, blip on downshifts - sometimes I find it necessary to blip the throttle a little on upshifts where I've been a bit slow & lazy too. If it feels good it is good - you should not have to apply strength to get it to work. If you do, then something is wrong either with the equipment or the way you're using it. It'll never feel like a Jap box, but in it's own way it works fine. Good luck. KB

On their website Michelin recommend 2.3/2.5 bar f/r (33.5/36lb) for road - same as Guzzi recommended pressures. I had Pilot Power 2CT's. Fantastic grip. V quick steering. Will whiteline a bit - not sure if cos of the pointy profile or longditudinal tread pattern or both...but fairly sensitive to tyre pressures - other than that no problems. Got around 60% the miles I'd get out of a Diablo - but grip is in a different league. On track they were great. They warmed up v quick & didn't overheat. Not used them in the wet. Maybe they have too much grip for the road...you get crazy lean & speed on them. Haven't tried ordinary Pilot Powers. KB

Best of luck Bruce KB

Laden sag should be between 25-33% of total travel. Like Geno says tyres make a huge difference - by type, size & pressures. What tyres you got? I've used 020, Diablo, Power2CT & now Sport Attacks. Of these the Power2CT's were by far quickest turners. Sport Attacks are much slower but very neutral in feel. Going to a 170 rear gives a much more balanced (front/rear) turn in but 170 is not available in most sticky tyres. I dropped triple clamps on forks (Scura Ohlins about 12mm as I recall). Made a big improvement on getting front planted into a corner & staying on line. If you do this, watch all clearances - wheel to frame & bike to ground when ridden. It really helps to use body weight - get yourself as far forward over front, & low onto side you're turning (you don't have to hang off) as you can. V11 wt is v rear biased. Again, as Geno says, I've found softish settings on damping help handling feel - as long as tyres are good it's good to have bike tracking the surface & moving around a bit rather than bouncing along off the bumps. KB

Transmission isn't much fun in those conditions. 1/2/3 aren't favourites. Tontis are the same so I don't know wether it's this gearbox design or just nature of heavy engine internals, big clutch (single plate is v direct take up too) & shaft drive. Lower speeds/lower gears make more of a meal of inertia of the moving parts? And they have never liked getting hot. I like the Redline. Probably better on track cos your using higher gears anyhow, & with less interruption in the momentum of all moving parts? You're changing quick & working the motor to match. Tend to be a bit lazier on the road... It's not a clutch problem is it... ? KB

Belfast - did you check the shift plate travel adjuster (acorn nut on outside)? I've had the Redline Shockproof Heavy in for a while. Seems good. No longer leaks. I haven't checked temp but others say it runs cooler. Nogbad, you were worried about bearing skid with this oil??? I talked with Redline tech who assured me it would work well: "HS is a 75w90 oil, but has an EP rating of 250 - way higher than a conventional 90 weight with the moly added". KB