pete roper

So where did you get the picture from Buddapest in 1981? I was still riding Triumphs back then Pete

Mine is a picture of me on holiday in the tundra. Pete

Sorry about that. People who are waiting, Bento and Andrew Goldberg among others, your plates went out today. the delay was caused by the first batch of the second run not having the dipstick 'ole cut in 'em, Grrrr! All fixed now. Should be in the USA within 5 days. Both MPH and Moto International have also ordered some so if you'd preffer to buy within the USA rather than wait for the carrier Wombat to get to you from Oz. you have that option too now. pete

Nah, I don't think so. What year is your bike? If it has a lambda sensor in only one pipe that might be an explanation, otherwise it's more likely to be TB ballance or simply a result of the firing intervals. The Guzzi, and most other, 90* Vtwins with a shared crankpin have firing intervals of 270*/450 degrees. That's what gives them the loping exhaust note, but it also means there is a *lazy* cylinder. Back in the late '80's early '90's there were even some models built for the Kaliforni-a market that had diffeenetially sized pilot jets to try and keep the emissions down when running on the slide. ell it seemed to work 'cos they got through. Sounds well shonky to me Most carburetted twins will run one plug significantly darker than the other, (the left from memory ) due to the 'Lazy' nature of the cylinder. Pete

No, not while you're actually riding but if you ride and it feels a bit squidgy you stop, get the screwdriver out and adjust. Works for me. I suppose some forks will be different/harder to adjust and of course spring rates are more difficult, especially with the V11's cantilever rear shock, I believe that some of the Marzochhis also have the compression in one leg and rebound in the other so you have to fiddle independently with either leg but it's not difficult and surely anyone can carry a small screwdriver somewhere on their bike? Pete

I saw this asked on one of the other boards (WG.) and hoped that someone else would respond. Honestly. You'll never notice a shred of difference. This is another of those questions that prompts me to ask "How much time and money have you spent on your suspension?". No, I'm not tyring to be smart but it is usually the way that people try and do stuff, the cheaper the better, to their engines in the hope that it will make 'em go faster but they completely overlook chassis set-up and this will pay HUGE dividends instantly and usually a very low cost. Most motorbikes nowadays come with pretty good, and fully adjustable, suspension components as standard but few people actually try adjusting them from the factory settings and even fewer make adjustments year round to account for changes bought about to things like oil viscosity by ambient temperature changes! If you think I'm kidding I'm not, since the temperature is going up here I'm winding up the damping on the 'G' to compensate, on cooler days I'll wind it off a little bit if I plan to ride hard, it only takes a second or two and makes a difference far greater than indexing plugs ever would to the performance of the bike. Pete

Also known as the 'Dummy Spit' . For you Yanks and others a 'Dummy' is what you call a 'Pacifier' I believe, a tit surrogate for noisy infants. The term 'Dummy Spit' should therefore be fairly self explanatory Pete

Whoops. Somehow this got in the banter bit. Can somone who moderates move it to the Tech bit? Thanks. Pete

OK, so lets get this bike up and running again. But lets do a bit of learning too, that means all of us. Gary is going to do all the stuff with the measuring sticks and sort out what's what. But S. has got to get the motor out of the frame and get it to him. Now while this is NOT going to be a huge issue for lots of blokes on this list for many others it probably seems like a major task. Yes? OK, so lets all do some learning here, me included. I've never actually had to do the bottom end on a V11 or any spiney so I've never actually pulled an engine, you can do EVERYRHING apart from pulling the crank with the engine in the frame. So lets start off by helping the boy get it out, (as it were.). Now whenever I've had to get at a clutch I've always 'Crabbed' the frame, not because it's easier but simply because I come from a long history of working on Tonti's and that seemed logical to me. Spiney experienced people seem to think that simply pulling the donk off the front of the gearbox is a far easier option. So lets get a run-down on that from someone who has actually done it rather than from me who hasn't. My first recommendation though would be to disconnect the battery and remove it. That way you don't risk frying anything by mistake. Then start disconnecting anything that looks like a wire OK, go to it! Pete

There is always the chance that the damage is more extensive so lets not get all previous on this. Thing is I've blown up some Guzzi engines pretty extensively and there is usually *some* stuff that is reclaimable! As long as a rod hasn't bustand it hasn't seized the top end is usually salveagle, as is the cam, followers etc. Remember the cam spins at half crank speed. The big ends are the most heavily loaded bearings and the ones most likely to suffer oil starvation so they usually are the first ones to go tits. As long as they are caught fairly early on it is unlikely that the crank will be completely stuffed. In a case like this I'd expect that the pin will need a grind and the mains may too but maybe not, you might be able to get away with a linish. Everything else is in the lap of the gods but I reckon that you'll find that your suggestion of parting it out is laughable That would be like chucking out a Monet painting 'cos there is a bit of a scratch on the frame! Pete

Ever since I was a small kid I've inflated things other than my ego with air from a pump. When I was small it was a hand pump. Nowadays it's a sodding great big mechanized compressor. Never, ever, have I had any problems with my tyres unless a.) their co-efficient of friction with the surface they were passing over was overwhelmed, (roughly translated this means I fell off.) not the stuff in the tyre's fault. Or, b.) the gas in the tyre escaped due to a Hagan or other sharp object encroaching on the wretched bit of rubber's ability to keep the gas inside. Oddly enough I don't roam the streets of Bungendore looking for highly corrosive gasses to blow my wheels up with. Nor do I worry unduly about what size the molecules that make up the gas in the tyre, or indeed the mixture of those gasses. The ones that I breathe seem to keep me alive in a manner of speaking and call me Mr. Stupid but I reckon a piece of highly modified vulcanised rubber substitute is probably a lot tougher than my lungs, even after nearly 40 years of smoking a pack a day. for this reason I couldn't give a fat rat's arse about the relative merits of what you put in your tyres. You can inflate them with bloody KY jelly for all I care but I'll bet a hamburger joint full of hamsters that it won't make the tiniest iota of difference Pete

Guzzis are astoundingly tough. People whinge about problems bt really the basic donk is practically un-killable as your bike attests too. It DOE'S though have a dipstick. This is a simple thing that screws in and out and allows you to check the oil Use it! Every day! More often if you're flogging the freckle off it! Oh, and I've PM'd Gary and told him that if it goes back together you can have the #1 prototype sloppage sheet for nix as it's simply gathering spiders in the shed. It's mild steel not Stainless and looks a bit daggy but it will do the job and help prevent this happening again. Note I say HELP. Read above about the dipstick!!!!! Yours is a nicely presented bike. Lets get it back together but also let's TRY to not let it happen again. Thrashing the bejasus out of them is fine. Thrashing the bejasus out of them and not maintaining 'em properly will kill anything! Even a Guzzi! Anyone for a basic maintenance and inspection thread????? Pete PS, you WILL owe us lots of beer

I still reckon the page looked better with him at the top rather than that sad budgie that Guzzi use! Pete

Wash the gribblies out of the sump and bolt it back on. Whip the engine out and ship it to Gary so he can find out what's f@cked. I've got serviceable standard mains and a front that is I think 3rd under and a rear that think is second under. They were used in the hot-rod motor with the 750 crank and it ain't ever likely to go again . As I said, I think I've got some 2nd under shells around, if you're lucky the crankpin will polish up and you can use standard ones. The rods came from Howard Reinhart's 1100 sport. I was going to use them in a race motor but his crank failed the crack test so the rods are just sitting around. I can get 'em re-sized here for peanuts if needs be. Most expensive thing will prolly be the rod bolts! I wouldn't recommend re-using 'em! You WILL be checking your oil more often in future though won't you? Pete

I know that Gary and I don't see eye to eye on very much but this is a generous offer, I've got a few 2nd hand main bearings that are useable knocking around and I'm pretty sure I've even got a pair of 1100 rods knocking about somewhere if they're needed. Dunno about shells? I think I might have a set of 2nd undersize ones somewhere. My guess is that the heads will be fine, barrels and pistons will be fine, cam will be fine, followers might look a bit daggy but other than that.......? Unless a rod tried to escape and cut the cam in two I can't see it being a 5 grand job? Pete

I find it hard to believe that the whole motor is donald ducked? One moment you were riding along. Next it made the dogga-dogga noise and was stopped pretty much immediately. Worst case scenario is new crank, mains and big ends and re-size rods surely? The cam hasn't seized in the block has it? Before you go parting it out I'd REALLY recommend taking the engine to bits and seeing how bad it really is. If the bloke who looked at it has simply taken the sump off and pulled the rod caps then it may well look worse than it actually is. Surely you have a mate who can help you do that? Guzzi big block engines are delightfully simple and only require a very few tools to take to bits. Pete

George Fornby's grandad? Karl Marx in a hat? George Bernard Shaw riding a bike, wearing a hat and pretending to be Karl Marx and wishing he had a ukelele? How the f@ck would I know Mind you it might just be this bloke Pete

ARRRRGH!!!!! What's f@cking air made out of mostly?????? Pete

Is that the illustrious Mr. Morris by any chance? Pete

Gladly. The actual clearance of the bearing between the shells and the journal is primarily a function of sizing. This is checked by installing the shells in the rod, tightening both the bolts to their specified torque or stretch and then measuring the diameter of the inside of the rod eye with the bearing shells installed ether with an internal micrometer or a bore guage and external mike. This should be done in several *directions* across the eye to ensure that the 'ole is perfectly round. This measurement can then have the journal diameter subtracted from it to ascertain the clearance. Alternatively the rod can be installed on the crank and plastiguage used to check the clearance but this is generally less accurate. The thing is that to prevent the bearings spinning in the rod pressure has to be applied to the bearings to force them out against the rod and cap. For this reason the shells will have an ever so slightly larger diameter to the rod eye. If they are too large though the bearings will deform, producing high spots and buggering up both the roundness and clearance. If they are too small there won't be enough pressure to minimise the back-clearance and the bearings will have a tendency to loosen in the rod and spin. The way this pressure is guaged is by a process called checking the 'Nip' on the rod. The bearings are installed and both bolts tightened to their specified torque/stretch. The rod is then held in soft jaws in a vice or whatever and one of the bolts is loosened. The pressure of the shells will spread the cap away from the rod on the loosened side leaving a small slit betwixt rod and cap. This can be measured with a feeler guage. From memory with Guzzi rods the nip should be about 8 to 10 thou. If the rods are sized properly and the correct bearings are being used this won't be a problem. If the nip is too small or too large then the rods will need to be re-sized again. When rods are removed from a crank the shells can be pried from the rod and cap and the back of the shell and the surface of the rod/cap examined. If everything is as it sould be it will be clear where the bearing back has been crushed up against the rod/cap surface. The greater the area where the bearing has sat flush in contact with the rod/cap the better. Guzzi rods are generally very good in this regard. Pete

But Ratch, Ryan sez he has new bolts! Hence the suggestion that it would be an easy enough thing to do. If he's suggested just dropping off a cap and bolting it back up again with the old ones all the bells and klaxons would be going off now! Having said that I know of at least one experienced Guzzi wrench here in Oz who always re-uses rod bolts unles there has been a major whoopsie! Would I? Would I buggery! On the subject of bearing mount? This stuff is designed to stop loose roller bearings spinning in their seats in cases. I always work on the principle that if the rod is correctly dimensioned and the journal and the bearings are the right size the BEST way of doing things is to stick the shells in the rods as clean and dry as possible. You don't want lubricant behind them because this will encorage the bearing to spin. You don't want anything else because this will inhibit the transfer of heat and also there is the risk that some of the glue will end up getting on the face of the shell causing a high spot. Also even the thinnest smear of glue will alter the bearing clearance, you don't want that. If you klook at the rod faces where the bearing sits you can see how good the ciontact is by the darker areas on the rod face. Guzzi rods tend to be darn good here, I can see no need for any sort of gloop. Remember it is the friction imparted by the 'Nip', (Yes that is the correct term ) that stops the bearings from spinning, not the ears on the end of the shells. pete Jason, the 1100's use different rods and bolts. ecause of the increased stroke of the 1100 motors they had to re-design the rods and they now use bolts that screw into the shank of the rod rather than bolts with nuts inserted from the *top* of the rod. The reason for this was that the earlier type rods requiring the bolt head on top of the shoulder of the rod shank were too *tall* and with the extra stroke the heads of the bolts would biff on the cam. This is one of the reasons why I'm a bit perplexed as to how they have managed to stroke the new 1200 motors? Have they made the top crescent of the rod shank thinner? if so how have they maintained strenght????? Pete

Slipping in a new set of hells with the motor in situ is fiddly but quite doable. Unbolt the caps and wriggle them off, (This can be a pain on V11's as the rod s have dowels where the bolts go through.). You can then push the rods up he bore a ways and pry the rod cap out and install a new one after making sure you wipe the inside of the rod eye to remove any dirt and as much oil as possible, you want it dry if you can. Then replace the shell in the cap also making sure that the surface of the cap and back of the shell are clean and dry. Slather on lots of assembley lube onto the bearings and as long as the crankpin looks OK you can then pull he rod back down onto the pin and re-install the cap with the new bolts Make sure the cap goes back on the facing the same way as it came off and torque the bolts in three steps to their specified torque. Repeat for other rod. Now turn the crank to make sure the bearings aren't binding. If the crankpin shows any damage it will most likely be in the form of little bits of the shell that have melted and welded themselves to the crank pin. Ideally you should remove the crank and linish it but it is quite possible to use a length of 1200 wet and dry tape wrapped around the pin to give it a polish and get off the bits of bearing. After you've done this rinse it thoroughly with carby cleaner or some such before re-installing the rods and shells. pete

Last week has been daft. A week ago we had snow. Today it was 37*C Pete

It's sounding more and more like you've run the big ends. If you're lucky the crank will be reclaimable with a bit of elbow grease but if you were pushing on a bit I'd strongly recommend re-sizing the rods before they go back in. Id also suggest doing something to prevent it happening again, the cheap option or the expensive one, they both work. Pete

Look, these sort of *tests*are really crappy anyway as they are simplistic and offer no opportunity for debate. There were also no questions about seal clubbing which was a great disappointment. Oh, yeah, surprise, surprise I came out one line to the right of Dave and only a couple of lines up towards the authoritarian which I find really funny as when I look at myself objectively I have lots of attitudes that are positively medieval, especially when it comes to crime and punishment Interpretation of the data is also obviously very subjective, so much so as to render it all pretty meaningless. Pete