Fitting a Laverda 750 SFC Fairing

[Craig]

I would so try to isolate my fairing from the engine.

 

Yep, I already know how to do that.  There will be rubber washers between the fairing and any hard mounts.

 

Whilst I love the fairing, I keep wondering how much of the total visual appeal is due to the rest of the build? I love the polished forks / wheels / tidy rear end/ de-emphasized pork chops + motor, even the rear-sets look neat. Don't tell my lemon....

 

Yes, it is a total package.  I will not be duplicating the red one, and I don't know exactly where I will end up yet, but it will gel when I get the fairing mocked up.

 

But those low clip-ons - oh, my aching neck!

 

Yeah, I am a little leery of those, but, it's better to look good, than to feel good!  And it will make me think I have the Duc Paul Smart that I almost pulled the trigger back when they were still available new...

 

[Scud]

 

 

But those low clip-ons - oh, my aching neck!

 

Yeah, I am a little leery of those, but, it's better to look good, than to feel good!  And it will make me think I have the Duc Paul Smart that I almost pulled the trigger back when they were still available new...

 

 

I almost got the Paul Smart when it was new too. But ended up with a Sport 1000 (the first year monoposto) - because the bars were a bit higher and I wanted red (it was my first, and so far only, Ducati). Absolutely loved it for short rides after I installed the bar risers. But even then I couldn't stay on it for more than 200 miles - too painful.  Sold it before they got cult status... 

 

Barring financial gain, there's no other reason that I'd trade my V11 for any of the Duc Sport Classics.  My Scura is so much more rare, interesting, and comfortable (not to mention darker).  Color me converted.    

 

Anyway - I hope you end up loving your Ballabio after the modifications.

[Craig]

 

 

I installed the clip-ons tonight.  I will have to do something with the holes that formerly held the bars.  Can someone tell me what the hole in the base of the clip-on is (marked with '?')?

I do have some minor clearance problems with hydraulics bumping into the instruments at lock.  Do the clip-on bikes have different hydraulic fittings or different lock limits? 

 

P.S. I realize the Laverda fairing will probably require me to install the clip-ons below the upper triple clamp, but I didn't feel like taking the front end apart this evening. I only had an hour to spend out there.

 

 

Well, I answered my questions on Google.  It looks like the clip-on bikes mount the instruments to the trip clamp not to the headlight mount like the Ballabios. The holes in the clip-on base are for alignment screws into the triple clamp.  Anyone want to sell a clip-on triple clamp?

[Scud]

Craig -

 

I don't know the answers to all your questions, but here is a photo for comparison purposes. Maybe that will help you sort it out.

 

[Craig]

Craig -

 

I don't know the answers to all your questions, but here is a photo for comparison purposes. Maybe that will help you sort it out.

 

IMG_2320.jpg

 

Thanks! That confirmed my guess from some vague pictures on Google.

[Scud]

You might also like the Napoleon Bar End Mirrors - as in my profile pic (and bigger photo just added to my gallery). These are similar to the ones provided with the Ducati Sport 1000, although the PS1000 had fairing-mounted mirrors. There are a few other pictures of the Napoleon bar end mirrors on this forum too. I like the one in this thread with what appears to be a BMW R100S fairing. The mirrors are a bit tedious to fit (sanding and grinding to reduce the size of the compression fitting and nut) - but they have been rock solid for me.

 

For more eye-candy on the bars, consider the Rizoma clutch and brake fluid tanks (also on my bike). It looks as though the builder of the red V11 we're taking inspiration from re-used the stock tanks and brackets. Nice thing about the Rizomas - the brackets are adjustable so you can get them level (not so on the red bike). The picture I posted above is the factory condition - the "before" picture.

[sp838]

Is your headlight mounted to the forks, or the frame? If not mounted already to the frame, here is another part you might consider: GU01578680, part 16 in this diagram.

 

A smaller bracket for the headlight and instruments that also mounts to the neck tube. Mounting everything to a structure which is only secured to the rocker covers doesn't sound like a very good idea to me, but what do I know...

[Craig]

Is your headlight mounted to the forks, or the frame? If not mounted already to the frame, here is another part you might consider: GU01578680, part 16 in this diagram.

 

A smaller bracket for the headlight and instruments that also mounts to the neck tube. Mounting everything to a structure which is only secured to the rocker covers doesn't sound like a very good idea to me, but what do I know...

 

Fortunately the Ballabio already mounts the headlight to the frame as your diagram shows.  I am hoping that the headlight mount already places the correctly for the fairing to look good.  Then i will try to tie the fiaring into where the signal lamps mount.  If that doesn't look right I will have to move everything.  That shouldn't be very difficult for the forward fairing bracket I am imagining.  if the headlight mount does work, some surgery will be in order to remove the instrument mount.  The current instruments interfere with the clip-ons and I can't get full lock.   I am moving the instruments to be mounted to the upper triple clamp.

 

And just to be clear, I have no intention of mounting the fairing only to the rocker covers.  That silliness never even crossed my mind.  There will be a mounting frame that transfers loads to the frame, whether through the steering neck or somewhere else remains to be determined once I mock up the fairing location.  I would like to mount it in such a way that I can get the valve covers off without have to fuss with the fairing at all.

 

I do like the idea of running reenforcing bars to the top of the triple clamp like MotoForza did, just to keep the upper rear fairing and shield from fluttering.  I need to think about how to mount to the upper steering stem. And make sure the mount is somewhat weather resistant.

[Craig]

Screen Shot 2015-02-22 at 11.05.44 PM.jpg

 

Where did you find that diagram? 

[Scud]

I started with the Fileshare section on this forum (lots of goodies there). Here is the direct link to the parts catalog (scroll to the bottom).

[Craig]

I started with the Fileshare section on this forum (lots of goodies there). Here is the direct link to the parts catalog (scroll to the bottom).

 

Thanks.  That is worth is bits in gold.

[sp838]

The workshop and parts manuals are invaluable. Harpermoto also has parts diagrams for almost all guzzi models going back to 1967:

 

http://www.harpermoto.com/oem-moto-guzzi-illustrated-parts-catalog.html

[Craig]

Ordered on 16 Feb from Motorforza in Brno, CZ.   Exactly 3 weeks later it arrived 6,000 miles away, in Tucson AZ!  Box was intact and very light. 

 

The parts were very well packed. 

 

 

Here is the fairing on its own.

 

With the windscreen:

 

 

I am very happy.  The fiberglass looks to be polyester resin using about 6oz plain weave cloth with a good hand layup and nice gel coat.  The gel coat has no obvious pinholes, but I am sure some will show up when I prime it.  I was expecting a chopper gun and Swiss cheese gel-coat for this price.

 

The fairing is about 1/8" thick throughout.  It is a good weight for a racing fairing but less stiff than I like for a street part.  I may add some reinforcements to the fairing just for peace of mind. A bit of hex sandwich core and another few layers of 6oz cloth would make a big difference in stiffness.  I would need to rig up a vacuum unit to do halfway right (halfway because the outer layer is already cured so I won't get a great joint).

 

The windscreen is light and very clear.  The curvature at the bottom is a little sharper than the fairing but it will be easily pulled in with some bolts.  I will have to drill myself. I don't find this troublesome but some may.

 

The cuts on the fairing and the windscreen are very accurate and the edges are finished.

 

I have a family vacation coming up so I don't know when I will be able to mock up and start planning bracketry.  Probably a few weeks at least.  In my mind the riskiest thing was buying this part sight-unseen from very far away.  That is behind me and I think this will come out nicely.

 

[Skeeve]

I received an email from MotoForza this morning.  They noticed that I only ordered 2 screen bolts.  The picture on the website makes it look like they come in sets of four.  I asked them to add 6 more to the order. 2 euros per bolt is a bit steep, but I appreciate that they noticed and asked.  That is a good sign regarding customer service.

 

Jumpin' monkeys!   At that price, I hope they're titanium!

[Craig]

I made some progress this weekend.  I trimmed the fairing to fit around the fuel tank and forks and proved that the Ballabio headlight bracket holds the light in a good place for the fairing.  I plan to fabricate some brackets from the headlight mounting bolts to the fairing itself.  Those combined with brackets from the valve cover bolts should be sufficient.  I will run the fairing mounted and unpainted for a few hundred miles to check stiffness before I finalize the mounts.

 

More difficult is dealing with the brake and clutch hydraulics.  The instrument support interferes with the hoses well before full lock.  I have a LeMans instrument bracket on order from Harper's but Piaggio evidently has to mine the raw materials before they start another production run.  I will probably pull the clutch line and re-route it around the spine to take up some of the slack, and try to gently reshape the banjo elbow. 

 

The front brake reservoir also interferes with the instruments which is another vote to switch to the triple clamp mounted instruments. 

 

I also verified that the bars have to be very low in order to clear the fairing.  They have good clearance, with the previous exceptions, when the bar holders are as far down on the forks as they can go before the fork tube  reduces diameter.