jrt

Watanabe, I think the engine IS the same, but the clutch on all V11's (except tenni, scura, rosso) are dual plate. Mine rattles a bit as well. Not as bad as a Ducati, but it still rattles. Jason

I don't have these (that I know of) and I know this is a really lousy suggestion, but how do you feel about tankbags? Just pull an ostrich on it, and cover up the problem. On the plus side- I really like having a tank bag- holds a sixpack (bottles, of course) just right. J

Well, you know what they say about crazy girlfriends... But on the bike- Can you drop the starter off, then push around on the flywheel to check for movement (back and forth- not round )? Also, I read that these clutches expand as they heat- could this be the reason behind the noise you hear? I'm slowly tearing down my eldorado right now (weird clutch behavior), so I feel your pain. j

Oh, well then like Gilda Radner used to say.. 'Nevermind' J

I haven't done this myself, but I have suggested that the proper application of a grinding tool (dremel) on the housing would make this a lot easier job. J

Rather than futzing with the air bypass screws, try to richen it up with the TPS. 10 minutes job, tops. Search for the settings Bruce (New Hampshire) uses. I run a little less rich than he does, and my bike runs very, very well. Also, hate to tell you this, but the stock crossover (in my opinion) sucks rocks. When I put a Stucchi on, it made a world of difference in that 3-4000 rpm range. J

I have the Guzzi tank bag, and my laptop fits into that just fine. I have an ibook 12". J

I looked at one of these on Flatland Dan's bike (Hey! Dan). They look real delicate to me. I was afraid to push on it very hard. J

Roberto- got it. I had those bearings go south on one of my bikes. I had to use a torch on the housing and welded a puller on the race to extract, like Paul. Hope you have better luck. Paul, new clutch complete with lighter flywheel is 533. Flywheel alone is 345. My input hub is new ($95), but it's an older shallow spline design. It's really not a big deal. I'm just bitching, because I'm cheap. My major gripe with the Eldo clutch (besides it not working) is that the flywheel is so dang heavy. Anyway, I won't do anything until I have a chance to take it all apart. Unlike Roberto, I am not looking forward to it. J

Another 'trick' you can do is to cycle the kill switch two or three times- so it cycles the fuel pump. You can actually hear the change in pitch as the motor picks up liquid gas. I've done that when the bike is reluctant to start with pretty good effect. On the 'vapor lock thread', I was riding around the other day, it was hot, I ragged on the bike, parked it and could actually hear gas boiling in the tank. Whoa. Jason

Well, $500 US or Euro 400 seems like a lot to me. I could buy new clutch plates for a lot cheaper, but I want to move away from the Eldo flywheel.

Jeez, which bearings are going out? You like the RAM clutch? I'm thinking about fitting one on my Eldorado, even though they are hell of expensive. Jason

Graham in NZ has written up a very nice illustrated description of the iterations he went through to reduce bar vibrations on the V11. Included are changes in the brake lines, handlebars, mirrors (Italian, of course ) and bar ends. The text is here. cheers, Jason

Pete, I never accounted for the oil dipstick in those pictures I posted, so don't forget about it. cheers, Jason

Can't help you much with your UK question, but I know there's at least two. welcome to the asylum! Jason

T: http://www.avalon.net/~jrt/oilpan/oilpan.html Al: Got it. tersely, J

I think we were typing at the same time. Let's see if I can do a surrogate Brian. Valves have certain timings associated with them. They need to open and close at particular times during the revolution of the motor. This is dictated by the profile of the cam. Valve lash is just the space that is set between the valve and the rocker (on our bikes) that allows for valve train expansion. As the motor heats up, the cam follower and pushrod heat up, expand, and close the valve lash to something like .001 or .002. So the valve lash is just the space that allows the valve train to expand to hot running conditions. Loose valves give a little better low end performance, at the expense of top end. If your valves are set too loose, then they make noise, which is a direct result of the valve train bashing against itself. You can have problems as a result of too much valve lash, usually the valve train (seats/valves/rocker heads/cam follower/cam) shows early wear because parts beat on each other. Tight valves give a little better top end performance at the expense of bottom end (hence the poor idle that people sometimes mention). If valve lash is too tight, then it can lead to more insidious problems than too loose valves, because they are not as distinct and they don't make that much noise. If lash is too tight, valves open early and close late. At the extreme, as the motor heats up and the valve train expands, the valves may not close at all- or may even collide with the piston. If valves are set just 'chronically' tight, then you can make trouble because valves may never fully seat when they get hot. This can result in loss of compression (again an extreme case). Valves also rely on setting in the valve seat to dissipate heat (esp. the exhaust valve). If they don't set fully or correctly, then you can burn a valve from overheating. So neither extreme condition is beneficial; set them correctly for happy tappy valves. Hope that helps. Jason

What do you mean, Al? A flat plate with a cut-out to fit around the oil filter assembly should fit right up (see the pictures I posted for reference). Oh- there needs to be a hole for the oil dipstick as well. After that...there's plenty of wide open space in that sump. J

I'd be happy to post it, Graham. Cheers, Jason

Is that a Freudian slip?

Kind of a different strategy. The TM uses friction to act as a static cruise control. The TB is just a lever to make it easier to rotate the throttle. I don't see them as competing with each other. At least that's my understanding. Jason

Check the tightness of the bolts on the linkage. If they bind, then the bike won't shift very well. I just loosened mine up a bit this weekend and wow, what a difference. J

Steve Saady wrote up a how-to on setting the valves on a Cali. Same applies to the Sport (although I leave my bike in neutral....) http://www.webbikeworld.com/Motorcycle-tec...-adjustment.htm J

A real easy way to find the compression stroke is just to put your thumb over the spark plug hole when you turn the engine. If you feel pressure...it's the compression stroke. I then use a wooden ke bab skewer to find TDC (it was handy). The damn marks on the flywheel are inset too deep for me to see easily. Besides, you can get it spot on with the dowel trick. And if not...the cam lobe is gentle enough that you really don't have to be *exactly* at TDC. 'Close' works just fine, and errors lend themselves to looser valves (a good thing). Re: torque on the 6mm bolts. I have 7 ft/lbs written down in my archives, but 3-4 does sound safer. They just need to be snug. J

Sounds a little tight- keep an eye on them and record the before and after settings for a few tuneups. I'll wager it will run better now. The .1/.15 settings are US specific and are still REALLY TIGHT. World settings are .15/.2 and you'll be a lot better off with that. It will idle better and run stronger. Raceco settings are even looser at .2/.25 (intake/exhaust) and they seem to work fine too. As always, you are much better off with loose valve settings than tight. Sounds cool, too. Torque on the 6mm bolts should be 7 ft/lbs. I just snug them up firmly, but not tightly. Cheers, J