Lucky Phil

I suspect the Dynotec "special" triple clamps are just 40mm offset same as the std slightly later V11 clamps but reduced from the probable earlier 45mm clamps. Ciao

On the front subframe. Ciao

Check the relay holder, connectors and the wiring behind it. Ciao

I own one because I'm into self flagellation. Ciao

Well you could try a 7/64 allan key which is a fraction smaller than a 3m or you could apply some corse water based valve grinding paste to the 2.5 key tip to give it some grip. Note water based not oil based grinding paste. Available at any auto spares store. Ciao

I've always liked this colour. Even looks great on a car. Ciao

I'm not even all that sure the additional frame member on the later bikes is anything to do with mitigating gearbox cracking. I postulated a few years ago that when they added this they also at the same time changed the front engine support frame to one which was less triangulated and maybe the gearbox brace was to regain some fore and aft support due to this. Dunno. Mario at Thunderbikes Perth an old style Guzzi shop and at one time the original sole importer for Australia has been around Guzzi's for well over 30 years and was closely involved with Ted Stolaski who originally owned the place. Ted had close ties to the factory and Dr John and Magni and was supplied with pre production prototype Daytona engines straight out of the factory and also the same for the Magni Australia bikes to race here and in Daytona. Anyway Mario goes right back to that era and before in the early 90's with Ted and Guzzi. I spoke to him about the gearbox cracking issue and he'd never heard of it! I'd be interested to see how many and what models had actually had issues. It's easy here on social media for things to seem more common than they actually are. There must be thousands of bikes out there with no cracking issues still running around. Ciao

My early 2000 doesn't have the bosses nor does the Centauro engine now in the bike or the 2 other centy cases I have. Personally I dont quite understand the extra bracing but then again the engineering rationale that goes on inside Guzzi often leaves me confused. There's so much internal and local politics in Mandello it's sometimes hard to rationalise engineering decisions. I personally would simply have added extra material around the upper mount area and eliminated the sudden cross sectional change and invested about $100 in a few bull nosed cutters for machining the mount faces to remove the total engineering fopar of the sharp edge on a stressed mount. That in particular is such a rookie mistake engineering wise. Ducati coped with engine case cracking for years on the belt engines and just added extra material and webbing in a quite a few updates which solved the problems. No need for heavy clunky extra bracing when some minor adjustments to casting and machining would solve the issue. Guzzi, try working them out. Ciao

They'll just end up in the bottom of the sump and picked up by the mag plug. Ciao

My "belief" was put out there as an engineering opinion for others to consider and believe or not believe based on actual hard physical evidence from a repair. It's not the same as "having a stab" based on no measurements or physical evidence or even verified information from a reliable source. By all means give us your thoughts on materials/housing designs/availability from outside suppliers but it needs to be more than "a thought I had at the time" you need to back it with some evidence, measurements, information from a supplier, what you found from a repair etc, otherwise it's just guesswork and suspect information that muddies the waters. So currently we are chasing down the "triple tree stagger" theory and postulating various scenarios but the outcome will be based on measurements I will eventually take when I pull my bike apart. Why are we in this situation? Because someone years ago "threw out there" a theory without physical evidence of a change. Extricated a "truth" based on hearsay and part number variations. I've never seen or heard of any differences in any way shape or form for gearbox housings from anyone except you. So far you have put out there, different materials, remanufactured housings, and design changes. All I'm saying is, you may be absolutely correct but where is your information coming from or is it just a "theory" you have with nothing to validate it. No measurements, no skilled welder thats weld repaired both old and new housings and can tell the difference in material etc. This is not a point scoring argument but an effort to sort fact from assumption. Ciao

If your 2005 Coppa Italia has no additional gearbox support from the pork chops to the engine cases then I'd suggest it's not a genuine Coppa Italia. Ciao

Thanks for the images. The casting details around the mounts looks identical to the earlier gearboxes. Ciao

Or the fact the later bikes have additional gearbox supports via extra frame members. If you have "theory's" you should be specific about labelling them as such not present them as some sort of information you have. Give us the theory and explain why you have it so it can be tested otherwise it just ends up as a more "fake facts" and confuses people trying to fix and troubleshoot issues with the bikes and wastes time as was the case here. HMB sourced their gearbox housings from the factory and haven't had them for approx 3 years. Ciao

So why postulate it if you don't know? It's a thought bubble thrown out there by you alone and just leads to confusion. You could have measured the ones you had and compared them to original early gearbox cases of course and that would be some solid information but that's not the case. So it's in effect typical internet scuttlebutt without any proven merit. Ciao

I'm looking at this image and thinking, wow, "what mufflers are those" they look great. Seriously, anyone know what those cans are? Ciao

These are not available new anymore and haven't been for at least 32 months. I ordered and paid for one almost 3 years ago and was advised by HMB that the factory don't have stock anymore. You have mentioned previously "different alloy" for later versions but never produced any evidence of it and now it's "re manufactured" by the original producer and "maybe" changes to the casting? I'd like to believe it's true but I'll need to see some evidence. If we are going to add to the body of knowledge we need establish facts based on something solid, either comparative measurements or documented updates etc. Ciao

ThreeBond 1104 neo and 1215, Hylomar, Permatex thread sealant, Ford TA-30 and Permatex Ultrablack. But if you want the best I've ever used this is it, dries clear as well so it's invisible. Used it many many times for vertically split Ducati crankcase halves and engine covers. Omnivisc 1002 is also excellent. The 1050 is it's successor. https://www.scooter-center.com/en/liquid-gasket-loctite-omnivisc-1050-90g-3600017 You can obviously buy it from other sources as well. Number 1 thing after an immaculately clean surface ( I use MEK to clean down the joint before applying sealant) is to let it cure for whatever the manufacturer recommends, usually 24 hours before subjecting it to oil or running. If you want sealants that can be used immediately they are available but the amount of really labour intensive jobs I've seen botched from not allowing curing is staggering. Ciao

This is true but as a retired aircraft engineer of 42 years you need to bare a few things in mind. The piston engine technology you're referring to is around 75 years old or more and materials evolve. Also old aircraft practices/technology tends to not evolve much as the process of re certification is so onerous, so outdated practices hang around not because they are necessarily superior in some way but because they are a "known" and "approved" practice. I've been using and still use Hylomar or "Rolls Royce" compound as we also called it for as long as I can remember but there are modern sealants better suited and superior for motorcycle engines these days. Ciao

Yes Chuck on the LHS mount you're right. My repair was to the RHS mount so thats where my head space was. I removed this sharp corner on mine with a small round file wrapped in and wet and dry to finish it off although mine wasn't cracked here. It did undercut the mount a little but the trade off was worth it in my view. I also dressed the radii on all the sharp corners with the die grinder and a tiny ball shaped cutter as well which you can see in the images. I also did the same on the RHS mount although this isn't where mine was cracked. I'd have prefered to do it with a small Bull nosed cutter in the mill but I didn't have the facility. My repair looked a lot nicer before I peened and dressed it back. It's rock solid now though.

This theory's been mentioned before and I'm not convinced this is the issue. I believe it's a micro crack initiated when the casting cools and is due to the sharp edge at this point and the large cross sectional change which causes a differential cooling rate. The crack then propagates over the miles and heating/cooling cycles. Yours is way worse than mine and well beyond any JBweld temporary solution. You may as well get it properly repaired because the chances of buying a second hand one that already has a latent crack is high. Part of owning an old classic like a V11. You need to do some "engineering" eventually and more often than not on a few different areas. To effectively repair this you need to chase out the crack with a die grinder and get it welded by someone that knows what they are doing. The idea is to heat the case to around 150 C before the welding starts and in your case half way through the weld repair stop and peen the weld to stress relieve the area and then finish it off and peen the finishing weld. It's not a complex scenario to someone that knows what they are doing. My gearbox mount showed no signs of any cracking, I just checked it because I'm a physco and knew of the issue. Seems it was a good decision. My original gearbox needs the same done to it as well. Ciao

The gearbox repair information you need is here including the repair and gearbox re assembly. To me it was just an engineering thing but to others probably more scary. You need a good welder whos dedicated to getting it done without distorting the case sealing face which wasn't a problem with mine. I'd suggest an licenced aircraft welder. Mine now stronger than a std one and I also run the additional frame support. Ciao

What sort of battery? If it's an Odyssey it'll still probably be ok after conditioning. They start better in my experience if you set the high idle lever on and don't touch the throttle until it's running. Ciao

I'm trying to understand the relationship to the oil pump and ignition switch. Do you mean the Low oil pressure light or the fuel pump to prime? If you need to jiggle the key in the ignition switch to make things work then you should consider it "broken" and look into fixing it. You can disassemble it. hard to start? what have you done to it so far in the restoration. How long has it sat dormant? Ciao

Very cool. This is my favourite Leon Rusell song. Ciao

Pull the tank and clean and inspect, same for the injectors and fuel filter. The injectors will probably need professional cleaning and the filter changing. Pull the plugs and rotate the engine by hand then on the starter with the plugs out make sure the LOP light goes out then drop the oil and filter and replace both. Replace all the brake and clutch fluids and bleed. Check the airbox and filter for dirt and critters then the usual stuff. Unless it leaks after you get it running then any engine and gearbox seals seals should be fine. Ciao