need new steering dampener

[michael8888]

hey all

 

i was just down at my mechanic in phili. the only thing he has found wrong with the tenni was the steering damper's rod was bent and the tires (which he has replaced) were hard as rocks. He has found no bearing, brake or any other problems yet. he says the bike rides very smooth and strong.

 

I have personally spoken to the original owner who went down on my tenni (see $4000 tenni posting) and I still believe he hit the rear brake and slid out at low speed. It seems he may have tried to stop using only the rear (in a straight line) from 30 mph. Nice guy but the v11 was not the right bike for him. He had limited riding experience from what I can tell from our conversations. In the big picture, he wasn't hurt when he went down.

 

I looking for a replacement dampener since everyone says the oem sucks and mine is bent. I don't want to spend the $ on an ohlins or scott. I'm thinking of a Toby or a Hyperpro but I have no idea which model or length or mounting setup or where I can get them. I called all the regular suspects with no luck. Anyone out there with specs on the v11 dampeners and dealers?

 

thanks,

michael

[Skeeve]

hey all

...I looking for a replacement dampener since everyone says the oem sucks and mine is bent....

michael

 

2 questions:

 

#1: Why do you need to wash (dampen) the front of your bike?

 

#2: Are you certain you need a replacement steering damper? AFAIK, the damper was a fix for a non-problem [similar to the SuziQ TL1000 series bikes]: idiot moto journalists ride short-frame v11 Sports, get the front wheel a little light coming over bumps in the road, & complain about "squirrelly handling, dangerous for non-professionals, but we're real he-men, blah blah blah..." and the factory throws on a damper & lengthens the frame to placate the wanna-be experts.

 

Tennis being a special run during a transitional period [2002], I don't know if you have the long or short frame, but given that it's a variety of v11LM, I'd guess the long frame; iirc, only the Rosso Mandelo had a fairing & the short frame.

 

Try riding it w/ properly inflated tires, properly adjusted suspension & no damper, & see how it feels. If you don't get any tire cupping and the front end feels planted at speed, I'd skip the damper. But that's easy for me to say, since mine isn't blown yet...

 

Anyone else have insights into the relative need for a steering damper on a LeMans?

 

[Van]

My Tenni seems rock solid,

l set the damper to full off, and then tighten to the third click, so far l've never had any sign of head shake

My old '82 BMW R100S used to have the damper set to maximum to keep it under control, especially coming off the gas for whatever reason. Back in the day my brothers '70 750 four would get a real slap every now and then ( 3 real quick, hard, heart stoppers, right to the tank and then go on like nothing had happenend )

Cheers

Van

[dlaing]

Anyone else have insights into the relative need for a steering damper on a LeMans?

I think a damper can help save when the unexpected happens, like maybe rounding a highspeed sweeper and then the texture of the road throws you into a wobble. Could that wobble turn into a tank slapper? I don't know and I don't want to find out the hard way

The closest I came to a tank slapper was when a dip in the road launched me into atleast a full one mississippi, possibly two mississippis of hang time, (it is unnerving what the engine torque does to the position of the bike in mid air) landing first on rear tire, but when the front tire came down, the fight began, and somehow I hung on. I wonder if I would be alive today if I did not have that fine damper.

Still, if mine ever wears out (maybe sooner) I'll probably get a HyperPro RSC (Reactive Safety Control) damper, or similar.

Current HyperPro price is $299.95 US, listed as Sport '99+

http://www.hyperprousa.com/catalog.php?cat...ke=Moto%20Guzzi

I think there are some threads that cover fitting Ohlins dampers.

[callison]

I have a stock used steering damper from either a Sport 1100i or V11 Sport (don't remember which, but I think it's the WP unit. Somewhere, out in the shed...). PM me if you're interested and we'll haggle about it.

[Orson]

Anyone else have insights into the relative need for a steering damper on a LeMans?

 

I'm no bike set up expert but I remember seeing Ashley whutshisname race a Tenni at the '02 Isle of Man. Going through Rhencullen, he had a fierce head shake. It looked as if the poor Tenni had a hinge in the middle I later heard that he retired due to a broken steering dampener.

 

So, it seems at racing speeds, a steering dampener might help if Ashley retired rather than continue without one.

 

mind you that might only matter if you're planning on racing at the Isle of Man

[richard100t]

Has anyone tried the Hyperpro rising rate springs yet?

[Gio]

I just heard about a shop in Scarborough, ON called Euro Corsa who are offering to re-build the stock Bitubo for $130 CDN (incl shipping within Canada) ... my stock unit is still leaking (after 5 years!) but I'm not sure that re-building will help based on the track record of the Bitubo ...?

 

Gio