GuzziMoto

That was probably the best racing ever at COTA.

Without getting off into the weeds about octane and the pro's / con's of running 100 octane race fuel in a bike not made for it, I would agree with docc that a good place to start when you are having running issues is the Decent Tune Up that he linked to. Has it always done this or is this new, @Daveguzzi1 ?

Also figure I would add that in metric bolts the thread value is the distance between each thread. So, the larger the bolt the higher the value all else being equal. And the smaller the bolt the lower the value. A larger diameter bolt will have a larger gap between threads when the thread is at the same pitch / angle.

I think M20x2.5 is considered coarse thread, and M20x2.0 is considered fine thread. M20x1.5 is considered extra fine thread. I don't know if there is a M20x1.0 thread.

Perhaps, but it also highlights the danger of a disc spinning as fast as the flywheel is spinning. It isn't just a question of how much damage it can do to your Guzzi if your aluminum flywheel lets go, it can do damage to you. There is a reason why drag racers have to use SFI rated bell housings. Anyway, feel free to delete the post.

Not totally on topic, but has anyone here seen this story about a saw blade that made a run for it? https://www.nbcnews.com/news/man-narrowly-escapes-saw-blade-barreling-oregon-rcna145784

Good to have as many datapoints on batteries as possible. I do not take my one bad experience ages ago with the Shorai, or the one bad experience almost as long ago with the Ballistic, as a condemnation of Lithium batteries. I think both bad experiences were a combination of early in the tech and quirks of the first gen Griso that made it less suitable for the battery in the cold. Newer Griso's allow you to override the start abort by holding the starter button down. But the first gen did not. One strong point of Lithium batteries is that they will hold a charge better and longer when sitting, when not in use. And as you note, they are also typically able to put out more current at a time for their size rating.

To make it even more confusing, my wife's V11 manual listed octane required using the Euro numbers. So that added to the confusion. Europe uses the RON number, the US uses an average between RON and MON. That results in the European number being higher.

Interesting thing about air springs, they are not a straight rate spring. A fixed volume like the air gap in front forks of a V11 would have a progressive rate. The more it is compressed, the higher the rate. If you have too high a fork oil level in your forks the air volume is too small and it will mean the air spring part of the forks is too stiff. The first place you would see that is at full compression of the forks, with higher oil levels increasing the spring rate further into the stroke from there. So, a slightly to high oil level in your forks would affect the forks near full compression. But as the fork oil level was increased the effect would creep further into the normal range of suspension travel. Way too much fork oil in the forks and they would essentially hydro-lock. Air will compress, but fork oil does not for all intent and purpose.

I have an old Odyssey battery I pulled out of the wife's V11 years ago because we were going on an extended motorcycle vacation and I didn't want to take a chance. It sat around for a few years after that, then when my lawn tractors battery died some 4 years ago I put it in the lawn tractor. It just started my lawn tractor this past weekend for the first time this spring, and a few times since, despite receiving none of the care listed in docc's write up on how to take care of an Odyssey battery. It gets nothing except what the Briggs and Stratton engine in the tractor gives it. It is dying, but it just won't die. My one experience with a Shorai battery a long time ago was no where near that good, it lasted a couple years and would not start my Griso if it was cold out. Part of that issue was the Griso will abort the start if the battery voltage is below a threshold. Because of that, and other things, the Griso won't let you do the various tricks people do to get some heat into their Lithium battery. I am seriously looking at getting an electric zero turn lawn mower. And we have an EV car. I like battery tech. But my actual experiences have not been 100% great. I had bum luck with the Shorai, and I also had bad luck with a Ballistic Lithium battery. But I put that down to teething pains for the tech.

Come in @Daveguzzi1 Any news? He has not been on site since March 22nd. That is only a couple weeks, though. Likely not enough time to resolve the 3k stumble.

That is pretty accurate. Less air gap means the compression curve of the air that is there is steeper, so it will have a higher spring rate quicker. Keep in mind that a fork is, for all intent, a sealed system. The oil doesn't compress, so all the compressing has to be done by the air above the oil. That means the air above the oil acts like an air spring. Less air above the oil means that compression curve of the air spring is steeper. More air above the oil means the compression curve of the air spring is more gradual. If the air gap is small enough it can make it impossible for the forks to compress all the way. Been there, done that. A little more oil / less air can make the forks stiffer, especially towards the end of their travel. Less oil / more air can make the forks softer, especially towards the end of their travel. The effect of different oil levels / air gaps will be most noticeable towards the end of the forks travel. It can be a useful tuning tool, either on the track or on the street. It is as important in my opinion as getting the right spring rate.

As docc said, the air gap is the more important measurement for fork oil. Whatever amount of fork oil it takes to get the air gap where you want it is what you need. It is entirely possible the factory volume spec for fork oil is right for someone. But it could easily be wrong. For me, standard practice when taking forks apart is to measure the air gap, and add fluid to set the air gap back to that measurement when re-filling the forks.

We have an Anti-Gravity battery on the wife's Ducati Monster. Not a Guzzi, but it uses the same style charging system the V11 does. So far no issues. And no need to swap the R/R. I do like the Re-Start feature.

That sounds like the battery was not being charged and it ran out of electrons. That is a pretty good description of how a motorcycle stops when it is not charging the battery. It could be a bad ground, as mentioned. Or it could be an issue with the headlight circuit, which is the reference circuit for the R/R to charge the battery.

I wonder why the shock is upside down. I remember talking with an engineer from a motorcycle company, questioning him on why the bike he was showing off had the shocks upside down. He didn't understand.

Joe Roberts has not been that impressive, but he has done better with the switch in tires. Funny how a change like that can make all the difference. That is why I am not a fan of spec tires in GP racing. People say it levels out the playing field, but it really doesn't do that. A spec tire will always suit some people better then it suits others. The only question is who it suits and who it doesn't. As to Joe Roberts, while his results have not been that impressive, the same can be said for Fabio Quartararo. He was not that impressive in Moto2, but when signed to ride for the satellite Yamaha he was suddenly very impressive. In the end, Moto2 is not that good a predictor of how well someone will do in MotoGP. You never know, he could do much better in MotoGP for the right team. I am just happy he seems to be doing better on the Pirelli tires. Sounds like he prefers the Pirelli front to the Dunlop front. Based on my ancient knowledge of the Dunlop front (which is probably no longer valid) I think I get what he is saying. I prefer a front tire that is grippier, more planted, and if there is any slip involved I want that slip in the back. But the difference in tires alone can be a major factor in which series a particular racer does well in and which he doesn't.

I think financially it was his best option. But from a competition point of view it was not. he likely could have signed with Aprilia and had a faster bike that probably suited his style. But he would not have been signed at Aprilia for anywhere near that sort of coin. Sad thing is, Yamaha could have used that money to develop their bike. It is in a way counter-productive to sign FQ for that sort of money when your bike is in need of wheelbarrows full of money thrown at it. But it is true that having him stay will allow them to better evaluate the required changes to the bike better. As long as they can still afford to make all the changes and don't start rationing.

I think it has some well done aspects, but like others here I don't like the seat. It looks like it is at an awkward angle, and it seems like you would be sliding into the gas tank. But aside from that, I like it. But in the end, selling a bike you have customized to that extent is a crap shoot. It may be exactly how you want it, but what are the odds you find someone else who sees it the same way as you. And those odds got even smaller when it was a Guzzi you did that to.

I could see a resistor in series with the LED light being able to reduce current flow enough that the LED doesn't light until the thermistor has heated up enough. But you may need to try various values for the resistor to find one that is suitably high enough to stop the LED from lighting when the thermistor is cool while allowing enough current through to allow the LED to light up when the thermistor heats up. Although I really don't know. I would rather go with a relay or a fuel level sensor that is straight up on or off. The thermistor does not seem well suited to an LED light, as the properties of the incandescent bulb seem to be an integral part of the circuit.

I would think your issue is the LED light takes much less electricity to light then the bulb does, and even when cool the thermistor can flow enough electricity through it to allow the LED bulb to light. Adding a resistor in parallel to the LED bulb probably won't change that, but maybe it will. I am not an electrical guy. Perhaps it would give the small amount of electricity that is lighting the LED bulb an easier path through the resistor so it doesn't go through the LED. Electricity does like to take the easiest path. That is the only way I can see a resistor in parallel help. But I am not sure it will. I know if you used a relay that would switch when 1.2 watts of 12 volt power was applied to it, and put the LED on the output of that relay, that could work. But that is starting to get too complicated and I am not sure about the availability of a relay that would switch reliably at 1.2 watts / 12 volts. What is that, a tenth of an amp? I know this isn't the answer anyone wants, but I would keep the stock bulb. It is tried and true in this application. Anything else is just going to introduce reliability issues, additional points of failure.

Odd as it may sound, I like that the tires fade. I think that can make for better racing. Racers have to use their tires as a limited resource. Use them up too much early on and they may not have enough later in the race. In fact, limiting tires could be a better way to slow down MotoGP bikes then reducing engine capacity (which has already been shown to NOT be a good way to slow them down).

In Moto2 Joe Roberts is sitting second in points two races in. That would be partly due to the lack of consistency by most everyone. For example, Lopez is 5th in points with a win and a 25th place finish. Canet is in first place in points with a win and a 10th. So consistency in the first two races hasn't really been there. Roberts in second has a 2nd and a 7th it seems. I only know all that because when I heard Roberts was second in points and rumors were swirling about him and Trackhouse I looked at the results. I respect Joe Roberts, he works hard at it and has put in the effort. But his results have not been very good, despite being on one of the best teams in the class. He does not seem to have the natural ability that someone like Acosta seems to have. But he does make up for his lack of natural ability with hard work and commitment. So in a way I see a little of myself in him. I never felt I had that natural ability to ride motorcycles. But I was still able to do well through hard work and commitment. So I can relate to Joe in my own way.

I am not a fan of the traction control and wheelie control aspects, but it has been much better since they switched to the standard ECU. Before then, traction control and wheelie control was too big a factor in who was fast and who wasn't. Now, with the standard ECU those systems are much less sophisticated and how good your electronics guy is becomes less of a factor. The playing field is more level. It still matters, look at Yamaha. They haven't been able to get the same level of performance out of the standard ECU, in part likely because they did not immediately hire a Weber/Marelli guy like everyone else did. While I think the ride height control is seriously cool, I don't think it helps the show. And the aero stuff clearly hurts the show. So I will be happier if those things go away. I do think the reducing engine size idea is stupid. If they are serious about slowing the bikes down, they have already proved that isn't going to do it. It will only make the bikes less exciting to watch, as super high corner speeds are less impressive visually then slower corner speeds followed by brutal acceleration. Better to slow their corner speeds down. Slowing them by reducing engine capacity doesn't make them safer. And it really doesn't slow them down. Speeds in the corners will likely be higher, and final speeds down the straights may only be slightly reduced. Again, they already tried that and it didn't work, it didn't make MotoGP safer. Didn't these guys pay attention? What is the saying? Those that fail to remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

When I converted the wife's V11 Sport from clip-ons to handlebars I was able to make the cables and lines work by re-routing them. But I had to be pretty creative. Eventually I ordered a longer brake line as I did not like the "creative routing" required to make the stock line work.