Lemans riding position

[Baldini]

Docc,

 

What caused the lowside?

 

KB.

[docc]

KB,

 

There's a thread at 24/7 V11 last posted on sept 7 :

 

Good tires but *whack* not great tires

 

In short, I was surprised by a corner which tightened up and went off-camber. The oncoming lane was full of BMW coupe so I was determined to change lines abruptly, which the sport did. For an instant before it broke loose and slid into the Bimmer.

 

The fault was all mine. Now, every corner I enter I'm eagerly looking for the exit before I commit.

 

But there were some contributors from the road and the bike:

 

The turn was marked wrong with no indication it is a dangerous 10 mph hairpin. The pavement surface, decreasing radius and camber conspired against me.(The moral: read the road, not the sign).

 

The Michelin Pilot Road tire is too hard for my taste ( since I don't like the taste of asphalt). I've been running too much air pressure. And the overdamped forks don't keep the tire to the road as well as they could.

 

I'm hoping some tire and suspension changes will give me maybe a 5 or 6% edge against the Asphalt Conspiracy. I've got a lotta work to do on my technique to take care of the rest.

[Baldini]

Docc,

 

Ooops!!!Well good you came out OK.

 

Were you on the brakes or was it just the lean/turn?

 

I'm on Pirelli Diablos, running Guzzi pressures rather than higher pressures Pirelli rec'd. They grip great on the road, much better than orig BT020's but don't last long. It's a heavy old bike...

 

I just read the old thread...Was it a left or right? Sidestand can really smack down hard on left, enough I think to lift wheel...esp if suspension is undersprung...

 

"A Twist of the Wrist" is a great book, well worth reading...

 

Good luck, KB, Wales

[docc]

KB,

 

The turn was a right hander. I didn't feel anything touch before the tires washed out. I would certainly now trade my long lived tires for the grip.

 

Also I am on the 4.5 inch rim with 160/60 tire size. You may be running the 5.5 with a 180(?).

 

I've just picked up "Twist of the Wrist" and notice our Swedish friend recommended "Twist of the Wrist II ". I'll pick it up next. Back to school for me.

 

Reflecting back on Mack's original query (paraphrased heavily), I agree, this is a heavy old bike. Really great for some distance ( it is no Paneuropean), fabulous on the long sweepers, and always attracts the attention of interesting people where ever it goes. As a sport ride it requires a lot of detailed set up and even extensive upgrades ( see the thread Hollow Front Axle which , with 61 posts and counting, is about fitting Ohlins forks.

 

Curious that questions of adding a Guzzi to the stable brings on discussions of riding style, even philosphy.

 

" I am a Cafe Racer myself . . .

 

- and it is one of my finest addictions."

 

Hunter S. Thompson, Song of the Sausage Creature

[Guest JohnInNH]

ConvertiBARS

 

Anyone know if/how these work on a 2002 LeMans?

 

I'm STILL looking for a way to move my bars up and back about 2"

 

I sent a FAX to MPH Cycles regarding the kit they were supposed to have ... been 2 months and no reply. Anyone know the scoop with Michael's kit?

 

Maybe the "ConvertiBars are the answer.

 

What's the latest scoop on moving bars on our LeMans

[Guest northend]

I,m 6 Ft. 4in. tall with a long torso, which is probibly the worst setup for a sport bike unless you like alot of weight on the bars. The V11 is to me, is a bigger, heavier, sport bike. But if you actually ride some miles on the bike(not just to the c

coffee shop and back) you get used to the ergos

 

On the subject of the Convertibars they are still in the R&D stage, but they do list the 54mm clamps and bars as a set. They are on special right now, reg.399.00 USD on special for 299.00 USD. They are the nicest set up I have seen yet, with complete adjustability. The tool to adjust them is even stored in one of the bars They allow 4 to 6 in. of adjustment. Check out their website........www.the-cyclops.com

[Guest russ]

I,m 6 Ft. 4in. tall with a long torso, which is probibly the worst setup for a sport bike unless you like alot of weight on the bars. The V11 is to me, is a bigger, heavier, sport bike. But if you actually ride some miles on the bike(not just to the coffee shop and back) you get used to the ergos

I have had mixed results with my Verlicchi bars sold by MG Cycle. They give the right position but vibrate too much. I just purchased Mani Salamander Bar Ends which are about 2-3x heavier than stock and will install tomorrow and try them out over the weekend.

[Guest J.R.]

I chose to drill the top clamp and install jackal bar clamp and a set of super bike bars from LSL. : PI love the results of the more upright position on the longer trips I took this summer.The only time I miss the lower position of the original clipons is when the road gets REAL tight.Otherwise I've learned to adjust my body position a little more out and over the tank on the tighter turns. A Rich Maund seat compliments the bars nicely with a firm,yet pliable seat.I have no problems with keeping with BMW riders as far as staying in the saddle,and piling on the miles.

Maney of my buddies were amazed that I wasn't wining to get a butt rest more often on our latest 1100 mile sport touring adventure.

I hope to send some pictures of my Lemans with the bars and seat,I think it changes the looks for the better,although some might disagree.

My next project is to fit some type of hard bags,and some muffler and crossover mods.

J.R.

[Guest odyssey986]

Does anyone have a link to information on the Stuchi parts for Guzzis?

[Guest vagene]

Interesting that you have a victory and are considering a Lemans. Here is my input for you. I have a 99 Victory and have ordered a new Kingpin. I also own a 2002 Lemans, Aluminimum Red. I can and do ride the Victory to Daytona from Northern VA, about a 1 1/2 days staying mostly on us RT17. I also take the Victory to all the FlatTrack races east of the Mississippi - just mention this so you know that I don't drive the thing around town like so many other crusiser riders. I also owned three BMWs (a R65LS and two K75S's). I am 5'9'' with a 30'' inseam and 32'' sleeve length and my riding buddy (also with a 99' victory and an '02 lemans) has a 34" inseam with 33" sleeve length. The stock Lemans did not suit me, the pegs were too high and the bars too far forward. I changed the stock pegs for the MG adjustable pegs (so did my riding buddy) and put Verlicchi bars on. I also had my seat re-done by Rich Maund. Now the bike egronomically can be ridden all day and I know this because I take it to Mid-ohio for the Superbike race as well as Barber Motorsports(Alabama) and to VIR in southern VA. I tend to stay off the Interstates and look for good back roads, But I will tell you that the Lemans is just as happy on the Interstate as it is on a back road and you can almost use 6th gear. So depending on you own dimensions you should be able to judge from this. The only remaining issue is carrying capacity, I put on the MG luggage rack with tail pack and I have the MG tank bag, with those I can carry enough for a three day weekend. But if I was going to take longer trips I would probably add the soft luggage, a MG accessory. Finally how is it otherwise, I would say that on a tight back road this bike is great and can challenge just about everyhthing out there except for a Ducati perhaps, the handling and torque of this bike levels the playing field - but if you get on a road where raw HP can be used you will be challenged. Two of the guys I ride with have way more HP and less weight(Honda CBR954RR and Kawasaki ZXR1200) and ntaurally if they get a chance to use that to their advantage, they do. Of course they see themselves coming and going and their bikes have no soul or the good looks of the Lemans. Hope you find this useful

[Steve G.]

With 22,000kms in 10 months on my v11, and lots of seat time on my buddies 02' Hire-A-Bussa, I can say that the handlbars are more or less the same reach [bearing in mind a shorter easier reach on the Lemans], but the v11/lemans has less legroom than the Bussa, something my 6'4" frame can feel in the knees after 8hrs. Oh, and the V11/lemans has about 55% of the Bussa's power wack. The v11/Lemans is way more nimble in the tight stuff, but if the road opens up, the Bussa will dissapear.

Totally different bikes, made to suit different riders with different mentalities.

Ciao, Steve G.

[twhitaker]

Stucci parts are available on line at www.mgcycle.com

Gordon is a great guy to work with. You might want to check with your local dealer. They should be available to him if he wants to look for them for you.

[exwtk]

...interesting that you mention owning a Hayabusa, and have considered an FJR1300.... 

 

Honestly if you are REALLY A SPORT TOURING GUY(and I'm going to get some grief for this  )... an outfitted Hayabusa, FJR1300, Blackbird, VFR, et al... are probably better "purpose" bikes for Sport Touring 

 

There is a lot of discussion on said topic at:

 

Sport Touring Forum

 

V11 Forum Thread on www.sport-touring.net

 

And here's an interesting one I found while searching:

 

V11 Forum Thread On Past FJ1100/1200 Owners

 

 

But yes, the Guzzi... V11 LeMans specifically... is a great do-all bike, and lends itself well to ST riding, sport riding, or just cruising around.  Plus it's got loads of soul, and quite a bit of exclusivity... if that matters to you 

 

 

There is a lively topic here on how we all ride the LeMans:

 

V11 Forum Topic/Poll on "how we ride"

 

There's also a topic somewhere on "why" we chose the LeMans, but I couldn't find it off-hand.  But much of what is said there is in the "Introduce Yourself" thread.

 

Regarding the Hydraulic Lifters, coincidentally there is a current thread about 4 steps down the list at 

 

Hydraulic Lifter Thread

 

 

Take a minute to "fish around" the different sections of the forum, and the "search" function usually works pretty well once you learn to be creative 

 

There is a lot of info on many of the questions you've asked already covered in depth somewhere.  But that's not to say your questions aren't most welcome    Just a friendly suggestion 

 

Hope that helps! 

 

al

 

 

P.S.  ...yessss, I realize I get a little "smiley happy" but it honestly helps keep people from getting the wrong idea sometimes.  Better safe than sorry.  Plus some of them are just darned funny... like this one of snot   

 

(OH I'm only kidding, I know it's a pic of Belgium)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(...ok, ok...  now I'm really kidding, I know it's an icon for Guzzi's infamous coolant leaks  )

 

 

 

 

 

Al, sorry to say but your geographics are horrible!

This is NOT Belgium (our friendly neighbours) but HOLLAND,

the Netherlands.

You know Amsterdam= New Amersterdam=New York!

Brooklyn=is dutch for:Breukelen.

 

Keep Guzzioning!

 

Co from

[Guest vagene]

I have had mixed results with my Verlicchi bars sold by MG Cycle. They give the right position but vibrate too much. I just purchased Mani Salamander Bar Ends which are about 2-3x heavier than stock and will install tomorrow and try them out over the weekend.

I agree with you, what I did to solve this was go to Home Depot and get a 5" long 3/8" copper pipe, and put some rubber end caps on it. The 3/8" size is too small for the bars so i wrrapped it in electrical tape until the fit was snug. I then added color matched bar end weights from Rizoma. This changed the whole harmonics of the bars so that even at low RPM the vibration is lower(it will alays be there you are just changing the frequency) and of course once you get to 5K RPM it smooths out. The cost for this is less than $20 not counting the bar end weights. The other advantage is that putting 5th and 6th gear are now possible without excessive vibration at lower speeds(60-70MPH).

[Ryland3210]

There are aftermarket foot control sets to relocate the footpegs and levers to various positions.

 

Motratech ( www.motratech.com ), and Moto International (Greg Field) both supply retrofit kits.