Can't choose between V11 and 2v CARC bike. Help!!

[Icenian]

Right, OK, so "buy all of them" seems to win 

Thanks for the views!  An entertaining read.

The Le Mans vs. Ballabio comments are interesting.  I probably wouldn't have considered the Ballabio, but the Le Mans is in the worst condition of all the bikes I have looked at.   Nothing that needs fixing, but lots flaking engine paint and fasteners, brackets etc. that are corroding.  It would be lots of work to go through everything.  Also availability of specific Le Mans parts like the fairing could be an issue, whereas the Ballabio is closer to other naked/handlebar-mounted fairing V11 models -- I would be less upset about doing that to a Ballabio than losing one of the things that makes the Le Mans so distinctive.  

 

[Icenian]

BTW, comparing a 1200 Sport to a Griso, and I right in thinking the riding position is actually pretty similar?

At first glance they look like totally different types of bike, but having sat on a Griso (have only actually ridden the 1200 Sport) it seemed more like a sports bike than I had expected.  In particular, the bars seemed low enough that the absemce of a fairing would be fine.

It's one of the ironies of bike design that if you don't get a fairing to keep the wind off, the designer seems to think you want to sit upright.  To me, the less wind protection you have, the lower the bars want to be.

I had one of the early model (T300) Speed Triples and loved it.   Would be too radical for me now, but clip-ons below the top yoke and no fairing were a great combination for me.   If I had had the Daytona with the same riding position but a large fairing I think it would have crippled me!

[Joe]

If you are looking for a vintage Guzzi with a handlebar, then its the Ballabio, the 1200 sport/Griso if you want the carc version. The original T300 was a top heavy spine framed bike w clip-ons, which would be similar to the V11 Sport variants. I'm getting older also and decided to put a MPH bar riser kit on my V11 Sport Rosso Mandello, its perfect all day comfort for me, something to consider.

[Icenian]

Rosso Mandello with higher bars must be pretty close to the Ballabio (but with a nicer fairing set up)...

[Joe]

6 minutes ago, Icenian said:

Rosso Mandello with higher bars must be pretty close to the Ballabio (but with a nicer fairing set up)...

Icenian, you could do this to V11 Sport early models.

 

https://mphcycles.com/handle-bar-risers/

[Icenian]

That's a neat solution for bikes with clip-ons.   Saves having to change the top yoke, as you'd have to do with a flat bar conversion...

[audiomick]

1 hour ago, Icenian said:

...having to change the top yoke,...

I'm not sure you'd have to do that with a V11 Le Mans. Mine has two holes in the top yoke that appear to be intended for the handlebar mounts that aren't there on that model.

[Guzzi-in-Vancouver]

2 hours ago, Joe said:

https://mphcycles.com/handle-bar-risers/

Joe,

 

What kit is it in your pictures? Is it from mph?

On the mph page they seem to only be selling a kit for handlebars, and not for clipons.

 

[Icenian]

I have to say, rated on the principle of "buy the seller not the bike", the 1200 Sport is currently in the lead...

[Joe]

1 hour ago, Icenian said:

I have to say, rated on the principle of "buy the seller not the bike", the 1200 Sport is currently in the lead...

https://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/moto guzzi/moto_guzzi_1200_sport_07.html

[GuzziMoto]

I rode a 1200 Sport, and compared to my Griso or the wife's V11 Sport it was something of a marshmallow. Too soft for my tastes, not precise enough. Also, the seat was not comfortable after 30 minutes. But you do you. Go with the one that floats your boat. A bike can always be fixed up if in poorer shape. And it can even be customized to suit. We replaced the clip-ons the wife's V11 sport came with (ironically) a set of Ballabio handlebars. Drill out the stock triple clamp and the Ballabio bar mounts bolt right up.

[pete roper]

With any CARC bike there are a few things you should be aware of that will need addressing if they haven't been already, and they rarely have.

Most critically on the 2V models are the swingarm bearings and shock linkage bearings which are rarely, if ever, greased properly ex-factory. By now, sixteen years on in the case of any 2V bike, the bearings will be a mass of rust unless the bike has only ever been ridden in the dry in somewhere like Arizona! 
 

While you're fixing that up is also the ideal time to dribble a tiny bit of Loctite 'Super wick-in' down onto the threads of the pinion nut in the bevelbox which will help prevent it loosening if the bearings loose their preload.

The third and final thing which isn't vital but is wise is replacing the sump spacer gasket that goes between the spacer and the block with one of the thicker aftermarket gaskets as the factory ones have a habit of blowing out around the front delivery gallery diminishing oil pressure and causing big end damage. This is more prevalent on 8V's but can happen on 2V engines as well.

The actual tuning of a W5AM Guzzi has been covered here before so I won't repeat it but it is vital that nobody messes with the throttlebodies unless they are fully conversant with how the system works. If you do a search for my vids on YouTube I've actually done an explanatory video on CARC bike throttlebodies which you may find useful. The TB's in the vid are a set of 50mm ones off an 8V but exactly the same principles apply to she smaller units used on the 2V bikes.

[Joe]

6 hours ago, Guzzi-in-Vancouver said:

Joe,

 

What kit is it in your pictures? Is it from mph?

On the mph page they seem to only be selling a kit for handlebars, and not for clipons.

 

It’s for the clipons. 

[Joe]

7 hours ago, audiomick said:

I'm not sure you'd have to do that with a V11 Le Mans. Mine has two holes in the top yoke that appear to be intended for the handlebar mounts that aren't there on that model.

 

[docc]

2 minutes ago, Joe said:

 

What are we looking at on the this LeMans?