Ballacraine Posted April 30, 2006 Posted April 30, 2006 Apples and oranges. (Ducs and Geese?)I have a beautiful, registered, insured 900ss sitting right next to my LeMans. It hasn't seen much daylight in a year. I've even gone to bed thinking "I've got to take the Duc tomorrow and keep it alive"...only to opt for the LeMans the next morning. I just can't justify being out on the public rds. on a machine that is suited a lot more for the race track. 87741[/snapback] You have that one right. I would rather own and ride on the road a carefully tuned tractor than a detuned tempramental racer looking for somewhere to grenade. ( Yes, I have replaced the single plate clutch on the Scura! ) Nige.
Frenchbob Posted April 30, 2006 Posted April 30, 2006 Nige, your Scura has just said more than all this blather [no offence meant, Pete: I include my own!] could ever do. I looked at it and got goosebumps. Now, I'm off to ride my V11...
Ballacraine Posted April 30, 2006 Posted April 30, 2006 Nige, your Scura has just said more than all this blather [no offence meant, Pete: I include my own!] could ever do. I looked at it and got goosebumps. Now, I'm off to ride my V11... 87762[/snapback] My pleasure, Bob! Objective achieved. Nige.
Steve G. Posted April 30, 2006 Posted April 30, 2006 I think my feelings are probably closest to Keiths. The reason I don't own a V11 variant is not because they aren't a great bike, I think they are, but because to me at least they never felt like either a huge leap forward that was needed to part me from my wonga and also the whole package seemed to me bo be a series of hastily constructed compromises and half arsed solutions to problems. I mean the bike was launched in '99? but it still had a cantilever rear end? Where was the rising rate linkage? For a supposedly *modern* bike this was really pretty poor IMHO. Pete 87737[/snapback] It's not that I don't agree with you Pete, but your comment about the V11 not being a huge step forward I find puzzling. This engine architecture is from the 1960's as you know. Anyone looking for a giant leap forward mechanically on a bike need not look to Moto Guzzi at all. Most, but not all people looking for rising rate linkage suspension would look at this engine and laugh, just as they would get all wet looking at the engine of a ZX10 [once you got the fucking bodywork off]. That said, I will agree with you about the [what I will call "kit bike feel"] of a V11 based bike. "A series of components bolted together" is how my buddy put it, which is not a bad thing, it's just this bike was not designed from a clean sheet the way the Griso seems to have originated. I think this feel originates from the spine frame architecture more than the quality of the suspension. Speaking of which, it's 6:45am, sunny and warm, I'm going for a ride! Ciao, Steve G.
Baldini Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 ...your comment about the V11 not being a huge step forward I find puzzling. This engine architecture is from the 1960's as you know. Anyone looking for a giant leap forward mechanically on a bike need not look to Moto Guzzi at all. ..........this bike was not designed from a clean sheet the way the Griso seems to have originated. I think this feel originates from the spine frame architecture more than the quality of the suspension.... Perhaps Pete is just looking for a "giant leap forward mechanically" in Guzzi terms: refinement & improvement of the product with all the bits designed/redesigned to work together, & tested to eliminate glitches. Something like the Griso! The V11's 6 speed box was much shorter than the old 5 speed. The space could (& IMV was probably meant to) have been used with a redesigned frame to give a longer s/a & more subtle control of rear suspension (rising rate or not). That they didn't do this is, I think, to do with cost/effort rather than design. V11 is a pleasant bike to ride but really is a bit of a last minute, needs/must triumph of styling over functional design. The jungle of tubes bracing the s/a plates on the 02 on bikes just proves the point to me. It seems the bits were designed in different rooms at different times & as the company's fortunes fluctuated so did the intentions for the bike, until eventually they had to have something to market. The fact it works so well is testament to the basic strengths of the Mandello factory despite the political/economic contortions it has gone thru. KB
Baldini Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 ...I think the LM2 is very underrated. ...it made a very competent mile-eating sports tourer..... the fairing worked great, it was a lovely bike. That the I is the sought-after model has nothing to do with practical riding considerations. It's often said the III is the best of the bunch.... KB
Baldini Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 ....Nothing these days is built to last. When the Loops and the early Tonti's were designed and built is was still expected by the designers that the product they were designing was going to have a very long life and was expected to be both robust and easily repairable......doesn't mean I'm blinkered or 'Anti Progress' it's just that I'd like to see the progress take a slighly different path than the one it currently seems to be on.... KB
Guest Nogbad Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 Problem is makers think bikes are just Sunday afternoon toys these days so they will neither need good corrosion resistant finishes nor engines capable of covering more than 25000 miles before serious attention. Oops! Did I just describe a Ducati???? Give the current crop of sports missiles 7 or so years and you will be able to pick one up for next to nothing, though I might ask the question why anyone would want to.
Ouiji Veck Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 Problem is makers think bikes are just Sunday afternoon toys these days so they will neither need good corrosion resistant finishes nor engines capable of covering more than 25000 miles before serious attention. Oops! Did I just describe a Ducati???? Give the current crop of sports missiles 7 or so years and you will be able to pick one up for next to nothing, though I might ask the question why anyone would want to. 87893[/snapback] I really gotta disagree with you on this one. My 94 SS is absolutely pristine everywhere you look. even underneath in the dark scarry places. No corosion or corruption anywhere on it. Admittedly it's only got 20K mi on it but it is in much better shape corrosion wise than my 02 LeMans w/ the same milage. And over @ the Duc forum there's guys campaigning 94-95 SSes with 80-90K mi. on 'em. The valves are a bit of a rubricks cube but other than that it's the most wrench friendly bike I've ever owned. What can you say about a bike with out head gaskets...?
Frenchbob Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 What can you say about a bike with out head gaskets...? 87949[/snapback] Er, you could say that any 1950s BSA 350 or 500 single didn't have a head gasket.....but that would be nit-picking!
v50man Posted May 1, 2006 Posted May 1, 2006 Well -- I dumped my stylish but heavy and unwieldy Centauro to buy a V11 -- and I haven't looked back. Because of a heavy workload and extensive travel, I've been away from the V11 for a few -- 'til yesterday. The Buell is a tasty little mistress -- and I love her in my own way -- but I am forever linked with the Guzzi. It is -- for me -- the ultimate expression of the marque. I still love Ducati (still own my Paso), but NOTHING stirs my soul like the V11. Nothing. When I left the house for a ride yesterday, a neighbor who has an old Honda ran down his driveway to have a peek before I passed by. He smiled broadly -- waved -- and then gave a heartfelt "thumbs up." He gets it. And so do I. And so do all of you...
francesco Posted May 3, 2006 Posted May 3, 2006 wow, for me that Scura is really beautiful, more pictures please, especially a front view and one from driving position, please... :!:
V11UK Posted May 3, 2006 Posted May 3, 2006 My V11's monetary value or others perception of it is immaterial to me - I simply love riding it. The V11 ticks all the right boxes .
Ballacraine Posted May 3, 2006 Posted May 3, 2006 wow, for me that Scura is really beautiful, more pictures please, especially a front view and one from driving position, please... :!: 88073[/snapback] Thanks...Aye I am quite chuffed with the way it turned out. I'll get some sorted and post 'em! Nige.
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