Brand-new Scura

[chamberlin]

Yea docc, don't know why he'd want that ugly Swedish damper when he could have a nice black Italian damper!      (you can thank me later docc!).

[Scud]

I think I have an old BLACK Bitubo steering damper here if you want to swap for that BRIGHT SILVER thing hanging under your triples . . .

 

Very generous of you. Maybe you could also find some matching black forks to sweeten the deal for me?

 

Seriously - Ohlins parts can be whatever color they want.  BTW - I recently learned from a Swedish friend how to pronounce Ohlins: sort of like "Ehr-leans." Put that in a sentence with "Moto-Gootsie" and the average citizen has no idea what you're talking about. All part of the fun... 

 

My goal is not to black out everything, it's more to knock down the visual clutter and focus attention on the parts I find interesting (like that silver thing by the triple clamp). I've been chipping away at replacing the silver bolts with black (zinc) bolts. Just did the lower frame mounts, transmission and driveshaft housings, and the starter bolts. Amazingly, I've been able to find exact replacements for almost everything at my local True Value Hardware store. The effect is starting to work - more pics later.

 

I'm seeking advice on a fuel door replacement on the linked thread. I found a luscious black billet one that has a gold trim ring... to match the Ohlins bits.  But I can't figure out which one will fit the V11.

[chamberlin]

P.s. I've tried being the 'internationally flavored' guy amongst my buddies, telling them that it's "Uh-leens" not "oh-lins" but they always laugh me off. I've since given up trying to educate my uncultured troglodyte friends! LOL

[docc]

P.s. I've tried being the 'internationally flavored' guy amongst my buddies, telling them that it's "Uh-leens" not "oh-lins" but they always laugh me off. I've since given up trying to educate my uncultured troglodyte friends! LOL

I absolutely love the Google Translate pronunciation by the out-of-breath Swedish woman. Is she putting us on or do suspension companies really make Swedish women so out-of-breath?

[chamberlin]

 

P.s. I've tried being the 'internationally flavored' guy amongst my buddies, telling them that it's "Uh-leens" not "oh-lins" but they always laugh me off. I've since given up trying to educate my uncultured troglodyte friends! LOL

I absolutely love the Google Translate pronunciation by the out-of-breath Swedish woman. Is she putting us on or do suspension companies really make Swedish women so out-of-breath?

 

 

Gheezh! Makes me want to try out some other Swedish words!!! LOL 

 

On a related topic, I just picked up my 3rd set of golden forks... I've got the ones on the V11 Sport, and now two complete sets (one slightly better cosmetically than the other) for my Aprilia Tuono conversion I am doing. I'm so scared to check, but these non-radial brake mount Aprilia legs are *awfully* similar to the ones I picked up for the V11. I am scared because I paid only $1000 for one set, and $650 for the other set of Aprilia forks, yet I paid $2250 plus shipping from Netherlands on the V11 set!!! Granted, I did get the rear shock in that deal. But, is it possible that Piaggio group used the exact same fork for the Ohlins equipped V11s, as the Ohlins equipped Aprilias of the same era? Coulda' saved alot of dollars if so! Dare I get out the calipers for comparison? I know the Aprilia versions are 51mm up top which is smaller than the stock Aprilia forks. On the V11, they (kindly) used the same fork diameter for the Marzzochis as the Ohlins...direct swap out. On the Aprilia, you have to change the triple clamps.

 

[Scud]

Seems there a lot of cross-compatible parts that, when known, can save Guzzi owners a lot of money and hassle.

 

Google's Swedish translator says hoosk-van-na instead of husk-a-var-na when she reads Husqvarna. I have given up trying to get my other dirt-biker friends to at least stop putting the extra A-syllable between the Q and the V  ...now to transition back to our regularly scheduled program... the Google Translate Italian pronunciation of Scura is pleasant.

 

Today I got the tank back on:

• Installed K&N air filter (I see there has been quite a lot of debate on this issue, and I decided to go the K&N route)
• Removed the air intake snorkels
• Removed the balance of the emissions hoses and capped the manifold vacuum fittings
• Re-routed, protected, or otherwise adjusted hoses, wires, and the fuel filter (which was rubbing on the tank)
• Darkened various small bits, including the fuel pressure regulator and hose clamp 

 

As for other 12-year-old, new-bike issues:

• Under-tank heat-shield was peeling away at the edges - re-glued it.
• I noticed some cracks in the hose that returns oil from the frame - no leak yet, but I will replace it next time.
• Cracks are starting in the rubber that connects the throttle bodies to the airbox and the heads. I'll order those four parts in advance of the next service.
• The paint on the block between the cylinders doesn't look quite as good as the rest. It appears that she is not going to spare me the pain and embarrassment of the dreaded bubbling paint syndrome. I hope she doesn't hurt me too soon... just give me 10,000 miles before going all bubbly and nasty. Is that too much to ask? 

[Scud]

As for making the bike Scura-er:

 

I didn't have a clear plan when I started - just let it emerge as I went and lived with the bike a bit. I've got close to 1900 miles on it now - over 10 times the mileage when I got it. Based on the journey so far, here's what makes sense to me. There are 7 different zones:

1. Underseat/rear wheel-well
2. View when riding
3. Front view
4. Back view
5. Right view
6. Left view
7. ...and the hairy-chest (behind the front wheel)

As of today, I'm calling "done" on the first two. Zones 3-7 will have to wait for a trip to my local powder coater - which, in turn awaits my decision about which pieces will make the trip. Passenger pegs, kickstand, and alternator cover are obvious candidates - but I think they'll have a lot of company.

 

The major change to the underseat area is the replacement of the stock fender with the carbon fiber unit, which I posted earlier. The rest is not so interesting, but I've been trying to cure the bike of a bad case of silver-screw-scurvy. In this area, I painted (flat black) the bolts that attach the grey tail piece and replaced about 20 other silver spots with black zinc:

• Battery tray U-clips and bolts
• Tool tray bolt, nut, & washers
• Passenger peg bracket bolts
• License plate bolts and nuts
• mud guard mounting bolts and nuts
• fender mount bolts and washers (the kit came with silver)

 

[Scud]

For the rider view/handle bar area - the replacement parts are:

• Rizoma fluid tanks and brackets
• Napoleon mirrors

Other darkening:

• Removed white "instructions" from hand switches and fast-idle control
• Blacked-out ignition switch
• Added RAM ball mount for GPS
• Replaced bolts: pinch bolt, fairing bracket to triple clamp (2), frame shroud (2)
• Painted bolts: dash (6), tank pad (4), oil line nut.

Here are before and after photos:

 

 

 

[docc]

Oh, man - you darkened fasteners under the seat and on the underside of the rear fender?

 

What you have is much, much worse than previously thought . . .

[chamberlin]

Oh, man - you darkened fasteners under the seat and on the underside of the rear fender?

 

What you have is much, much worse than previously thought . . .

 

Indeed Docc. I think I am starting to feel a little bit better about my 'anal self' after watching this 'darking' thread!

[docc]

I didn't want to name any names . . .

[Scud]

Oh, man - you darkened fasteners under the seat and on the underside of the rear fender?

 

What you have is much, much worse than previously thought . . .

 

The good doctor has correctly diagnosed my affliction - but if there's a cure, please withhold it.  This is partly an escape for me while my wife and three daughters are binge-watching the series "Gossip Girl." The show is so bad that I have to leave the house, so off to the garage I go...

 

It's been a long time since I had a bike that I really loved the look of, AND could ride all day. I never really loved my BMW RT (although it was a very competent bike) and I put the KTM Adventure into too many rocks, trees, and other piles of debris to care how it looked. The last bike I loved to look at was my Ducati Sport 1000 but it was painful to ride. The Guzzi hits the just-right "Goldilocks zone" for me.

 

Honestly, the "darking" of the underseat area does feel a little silly. But I nearly stabbed myself on the tool tray bolt (which was WAY to long) so it had to be replaced, then all the through-bolts from the parts I was actually trying to darken (passenger peg brackets, fender, etc.), and I had the battery tray off to get the CF fender installed correctly and what do you know... down the slippery slope, facilitated by the fact that I have easy access to a wall full of inexpensive black bolts. It's sort of a game to see how many matching black fasteners they will have.

 

Thanks for playing.  This is way more fun than "Gossip Girl." 

[docc]

Pathognomonic poetry!

 

"Honestly, the "darking" of the underseat area does feel a little silly. But I nearly stabbed myself on the tool tray bolt (which was WAY to long) so it had to be replaced, then all the through-bolts from the parts I was actually trying to darken (passenger pegs, fender, etc.), and I had the battery tray off to get the CF fender installed correctly and what do you know... down the slippery slope, facilitated by the fact that I have easy access to a wall full of inexpensive black bolts. It's sort of a game to see how many matching black fasteners they will have."

 

I think I speak for all of us here, on the same ward, that we are happy to share treatment recommendations and secret remedies. Cure? You've got to be kidding!

[Scud]

Got the valve cover bolts in black. FYI - 5mm longer than stock goes in just fine.

 

 

That feels better. The silver-screw-scurvy is nearly cured. Here are before and afters of the right side of the engine (in obviously different lighting), where the fuel pressure regulator and 32 other points of light have succumbed to the darkness   (mostly by replacement, but some painted).

 

Valve cover (8)

Frame bolt (1)

Oil cooler bolts (4)

Machined "tombstone" shapes by oil pan (2)

Chin spoiler bolts (2) (which also hides a bunch of other silver-scurvy)

Transmission and driveshaft housing bolts and nuts (8)

Seat lock screws (2)

Seat lock chrome face

Side panel screws (2)

Throttle-body bracket (2)

 

 

 

The other side is similar - but the helmet lock did not survive its brief encounter with my die grinder.

[chamberlin]

This is becoming a black hole! No incoming light can escape!!! LOL

 

BTW, I hacked off my helmet lock too. Cleans up the rear subframe nicely.