Steve G.

I agree 100%. The MV Brutale's headlight is like that for a reason, other than style. It's a fairing, and down swept to offer downward pressure to plant the front end during high speed. The Breva's light, as a cosmetic statement, fails miserably. And it is strictly cosmetic with this machine, considering it's speed potential compared to the Brutale. The Griso, I'm willing to cut it some slack, as I'm sure part of the plan with that massive silencer they have on it, is to have a catalist inside for emissions purposes, much like the BUTT ugly silencers currently found on the Ducati Classics series. Luckily, a muffler is easier to replace than a "cosmetically integral" headlight. Ciao, Steve G.

I get 10,000 kms on my rear 020, 14 on the front. They way you ride has more to do with tire life than you might think. If one is a point & shoot rider, [one who takes corners with, umm, caution, but rolls it on once straight] you clearly will wear out the middle of the tire quickly. Straight road cruising over 85mph long distances will do it too. Take a tire repair kit. Low cost, small to pack, will get you home or at least to the next shop. A no brainer. Take a camelback, and gatorade. Dehydration is sneaky. I was through the Beartooth and Glacier last summer. Incredible. Too much traffic in Glacier, but that's the way national parks are in the summer. Ciao, Steve G.

I couldn't agree more with you. If this magazine thinks the Thruxton is more inspiring than the V11, they're smoking drugs. And the Sportclassics, while being visually beautiful, are virtually unrideable by anyone over 6' high. I have to fold into a fetal position, with ALL my weight onto the wrists. And the Voxan? They are'nt serious are they? Ciao, Steve G.

I think the manual says 20,000kms. And you are right, taking the rear wheel off and lowering the shaft make it easy. Ciao, Steve G.

I bought a 27mm [or more easily found imperial equivalent] bolt, and two nylock nuts for it. I cranked the 2 nuts tightly together on one end, and use the bolt head to go into the filter access 'plate'. $5cdn. Not the slightest increase possibility of cross threading the plate compared to the M.G. tool. Don't fool around with the wrong filter wrench. Get the proper number of 'flutes', or flat parts that the filter has. A fram filter of the same size and fitting, the number of flutes are less than on an OEM UFI filter. A filter wrench regularly found in North America has a flute number different from the UFI. You will have to buy the wrench from a Motion Pro outlet, probably your nearest bike shop, where I got mine. Ciao, Steve G.

Damn, I love it!!! Another lad knocking his head against the proverbial wall. Ciao, Steve G.

Indeed, the TL1000 family of engines are now very sorted, after initial teething problems with pistons hitting valves. The high torque variant in the V-Strom [god what a name ] is alot of fun. Ciao, Steve G.

If you were changing your front end in the pursuit of better handling alone, I'd say you have more money than you know what to do with. But considering you've had an unfortunate thing with your bike where damaged parts need replacing, I'd say go for it. As for the stock suspension components, I wouldn't call them crap, but clearly it's far from top shelf stuff. The stock Brembo brakes however are top shelf, and on a par with most anything had from the year 1998, when they were specified on this series of machine. When installing a complete new triple tree/fork package on your series one V11, be aware that the early prototype V11's had high speed stabilty issues, and cured/reduced the twitchiness of the bikes not by changing the rake of the steering head, but by extending the bottom triple tree farther out than the top triple mount. When you put your new front end on, you had better get a very top grade steering damper, as I think your front end will be very sensitive, and prone to tank slappers. Ciao, Steve G.

Looks good, who is TAG Metal, where you got your bar mounts? When you took your clip-ons off, did they leave a mark on the fork tubes? Ciao, Steve G.

As long as a factory supplied product can be had for near the same money, I go with factory. The UFI filters are sold here in Canada for [as usual, You are running great oil [black cap Mobil 1]. Why go cheap on crap filters [and fram are crap]. Ciao, Steve G.

Welcome back Troy Bayliss! Down to business now. Ciao, Steve G.

You nailed it man. Ciao, Steve G.

A locally seen one, "Earth First, we'll log the other planets later". Ciao, Steve G.

Oh, ok. I've used walnut on aluminium before, works great. I'd be concerned about getting the stuff wedged into oil galleries and stuff. Never seeing a bar Guzzi engine like the picture. I'm not sure of all oil lines on Guzzi's are external lines. Ciao, Steve G.

Well...... He's partly correct. The comment that a non motorcyclist could jump on a bike and be competitive based on his success on 4 wheels is pure crap I agree with you guys. But he has truth in that the tests Rossi has conducted so far are not a true indication of what it will be like for him. He tested on a fully sorted 2004 V10 Ferarri, whereas the rest of them were on brand new V8's, unsorted. And race pace, getting that last 5% consistantly, is achieved by very few. Certainly Rossi has a much better chance of doing well on 4 wheels than Alonso on 2. But this is because motorcycle racing is much more demanding, needing a much higher gift of skill and daring. I think Alonso's comments are predictable, as in motor racing, part of being a success involves being extremely confident in ones self, sometimes to the point of arrogance. Ciao, Steve G.

So what's your point? Ciao, Steve G.

Yup, that's my issue as well. Brushed anodized aluminium is less appealing to me than carbon. I like shiny things, not matt. Still waiting for that right time for Staintunes. Ciao, Steve G.

Looks like a great unit. With such a small size [comparitavely] I'd keep an eye on condensation buildup, which will start the corrosion process rolling very quickly. Ciao, Steve G.

Among my many pair of motorcycle boots, I own a pair of Altberg Albion Classics. The old high top look, much like the old Gold Tops. 16"high, twin strap buckles on the heal, and single strap buckle on the top, with zipper on back. Goodyear Commando welt bottom. 110pound shipped/landed in western Canada, 7 yrs ago. I would not recommend these for wet conditions. For wet conditions, I would recommend either Sidi, BMW[made by Sidi], or Style Martin. I've got BMW, and Alpine Stars [made by Gaerne]. The Stars are good, but the BMW are simply the best. Of course, if you want dry, warm, and cheap, you have to go with Derry Boots. Ciao, Steve G.

No kidding man!! It's like nothing else!

Hi Jim, golly your right. And here the records show only 6 Jota's in Canada. I'll just throw my list in the garbage. Isn't there word that Moto Guzzi in Canada will no longer have to go through the stupid parts wholesale system through the states first? I heard there is a new Canadian import structure based on Piaggio's plan, based out of the Maritimes. I think that the future bodes well for the Moto Guzzi owner in Canada, but right now it's a joke, even worse off than our feiends in the US. So, if as it sounds, time is an issue [ and it would be with me, spring is close] there are two avenues that will help. Agostini's in Mandello, and Teo Lamers. Probably the best two for parts availabilityin the world. Ciao, Steve G.

I've had seat time on a BCR BMW and other 1100S's, and indeed, the surefootedness of the BMW front end is remarkable, farsuperior in real world use [excluding race track pro riding ] than any regular fork. The BMW after all these years, still has issues with surging on the oilheads, and have had since 1994 to figure it out. A recent ride on a new 1200S confirms that the German idea of a dialed in EFI is not mine, it's still shite. What I think it comes down to for me, is that Moto Guzzi is not really trying to sell these V11's as modern engines, which is correct. BMW's engines have liquid cooling, [oil, but still liquid] 4 valve heads, and modern combustion chamber shapes. They have a distinct advantage, and should be more powerfull with more user friendly power. Buell, which is trying to sell their product using words like "Cutting Edge", and other terms describing these things as the latest greatest, is, in my thoughts, a fraud. An argument can be made that their frame is unique [although the isolastic system was copied directly from the late '60's Nortons] but the engine is clearly a tractor engine from the '50's, made into unit construction with overhead valves. Now, if this is workable for you, then great, get one and enjoy it. But selling these machines using the current sales pitch, is laughable. A perfect example of how far these things are away from current engineering levels: The AMA [American Motorcyclist Assoc] has just allowed Buell to run in the Formula Extreme series, with the first race at Daytona I think in early March. These guys "think" that the 1200cc Buells will be able to keep up with the Jap 600cc's. I tell you what, they are going to have to tune these things to the edge of the cliff, to attempt this over 200 miles. If I was on one, I'd be asking for a scattershield to protect me from the piston that's going to be aimed right at my Bollocks! If you're into seeing engines sent past their service life, watch the Daytona Extreme race, it will be great. Ciao, Steve G.

Golly I wish it were the case, but this machine had 4000, kms, just out from a full dealer prep. Gosh, believe me when I say I wanted this thing to work. I don't go into a new ride on a machine with anything but neutral thoughts. Having 5 totally different machines from 5 different makes makes me think I approach each bike without favourites or bias. I know the shortcomings of a V11, and as it is also a v-twin, I was able to use it as a cross reference with engine characteristics. The V11 has a much more appealing power band. I can understand they may have a bigger flywheel on the Ulysses for off road use. It wasn't it's power output so much as I think Buell still hasn't got the EFI figured out on these things. It stalled at almost every stop light, when I turned the throttle to engage the clutch, it would spit, try to catch, I'd pull the clutch in, blip it to save it, it would spit back again, and die. This would be followed by a mad stab at the starter with throttle 3/4 and clutch out at 4000rpm. Pissed me right off. One thing I failed to enhance on was the minimal lock to lock on the steering, with huge turning circle. Inexcusable on a machine billed as on capable of the odd off road jaunt, but even too much for a street bike. I can only think this was done so they could save money by not having to remold a new fuel [fake] tank. Not sure if the shifting linkage on the Firebolt is similar to the Ulysses, but it was almost the worst I've ever experienced. I honestly initially thought it was a right hand shift/left hand brake, and I was trying to lift the brake pedal. The handling was very odd for me, almost unstable, but I find the all Buells feel inherently unstable, almost as if ready for an instant tank slapper. Again, using my series 1 V11 as an example, with it's known lack of stability compared to the post '02 models, I still feel the V11 has an advantage, as I've ridden with buddies on their Firebolts up to Whistler, and they generally held me up everywhere. I have to get back to this engine, which while it has a place in a cruiser mode, placing it in a frame and selling it as a cutting edge alternative to the current competition, is embarassing. The same goes with the duel purpose competition, gosh it's just embarassing. I don't normally rag on a bike after a test on one. I wangle myself onto most bikes during a riding season. It's just that this one was so bad, I had to vent. Ciao, Steve G.

The warmest day of the year this Saturday. 65 glorious degrees. My buddy the moto journalist stops by to use one of my bikes on a mag article. He's on a Buell Canada Ulysses journalist loaner for a couple months. After taking rolling shots and static shots in and around historic Fort Langley, we traded to head back to the pub. Initial impressions were neutral, as in I could barely get it out of neutral. After heading out it's apparent this thing has a VERY stiff shifter. The thing rattles and shakes, and I'm sure there will soon be lots of bits falling off. As for it being off road capable, I should have been tipped off by the mag wheels. The thing has a turning circle wider than a 4 door Buick. It will not turn inside the width of a North American road. It will be pitifully useless off road. Power, well, it does loft the front in first, but it's all over very fast, disapointing really. It feels plasticy, rattly, loosey goosey. Piece of crap really. Back firing, stalling, surging. Do they actually have engineers at HD? That they are trying to sell these Buells as the latest technogy is laughable, as it's basically a 1950's VL under the fake fuel tank. As we talked over the two machines we had traded across, the Jota was a much more robust and solid machine, with an engine that, even being 25 yrs the Buell's senior, and 70,000 more miles, felt more advanced and tracked through a corner with much more stability and confidence. I then figured it would be timely to take the promised test ride of the big Rocket 111, Hinckley. Off to the dealer and was riding it in 10 minutes. This is a very different beast. I'm not big on the feet forward/hands above my elbows thing. But it was the engine that was an eye opener, as it's all torque. We like to wax poetic about our lovely Moto Guzzi's torque. It is ok for a 1100 cc engine, and I know it's not fair to compare 1100 to 2300 cc. But, shit, this thing is hand of god grunt from 600rpm at 20 kmh in high gear, and I had trouble holding on at 200kms [125mph]. It is a cruiser, and as result I was grinding crap all over, scarey really. But slow speed very easy to manage, way better than the Buell, and handled very stable in high speed corners, where it showed it's girth by having very slow steering, and turning wide on the outside of the corners all the time. No rattles, vibes, everything looked quality compared to the "kids toys" look to the Buell switchgear and guages. I think Triumph has turned the tide, and has found it's identity in the 3 cylinder engine. Buell continues to feel and look like a kit bike. I just don't understand what the appeal is with the 45 degree v-twin, except for the nice sound it makes when on the power. It has no primary or seconday balance, it makes no sense except as a sedate cruiser engine. The Ulysses is a failure! Ciao, Steve G.

Initial break-in of an alloy engine, with minimal head torque values, re-torqueing is quite important. Cast iron engines have a much higher head bolt torque, and is not needed after initial bolt together torque together. With a Moto Guzzi engine, once initial re-torque is done at the dealer, no other re-torque is needed. Air cooled engines which have either cast iron barrels with aluminium head, or, [in very rare cases] iron head/aluminium barrels, re-torqueing is part of the regular maintenance schedule. A previous entry to this thread stating BMW airheads require regular re-torqueing is false. These engines, from the early eighties on, share the same mechanical characteristics with 'modern' Moto Guzzi's, with nicasil coated cylinders. I know of two of these engines, one my brothers, with 160,000kms, and a friends, with 320,000kms, both unopened, and just the later starting to burn oil, and neither having head gasket issues. Ciao, Steve G.