Deep Cornering

[docc]

In Greg Field's book"Moto Guzzi Big Twins" John Wittner talks about getting the "polar moment of inertia" of the motor aligned with that of the bike's polar moment in a lean. On the race bikes he acheived this through very high spring rates untenable for the street.

 

 

The real advantage and impetus for the six-speed was to lower the output shaft so the motor could be rotated down to better align the polar moments. Adding the sixth cog was probably more for marketing IMO.

 

While Wittner is no engineer either, he had the chance to work this out on the track then join the design team at MG to develop and refine what we're riding.

 

I, for one, am eternally grateful.

 

docc

feeling all in the groove

with my polar moments

all aligned

[Mike Stewart]

When I first bought my 00 V11Sport, the grinding of the side stand was welcomed becaused I used it a an early warning sign to lean angle. After I changed the wheels to the Dymags which has a 5.5 inch rear rim width, I havn't touched down the stand. Yes my lean angle is still the same but now I have a 1 inch wider rim, which means 1/2 inch. more clearence for the side stand when in a full lean.

 

By the way, one of the first mods. done on my bike were to bypass the sidestand and clutch lever switches. I just hate to be stranded!

 

Mike

[Dirtybill]

Well, I've had to resort to backing off on rear preload more than I like and upping the damping in the front more than I like to try and get more clearance from the left side. The mountain roads we have here frequently are not at level, involve positive and negative camber and often require heavy braking into 20 mph corners. This all conspires to make that sidestand a pain in the ass. I'd much prefer to be touching folding footpegs than parts of the sidestand that aren't flexible.

 

For a bike that says "Sport" on it, has WP,Brembo and Marzocci components, is made in Italy and is very flickable, I would have thought the engineers would have enough sense to move the stand rearwards.

 

It's my only real gripe with the bike.

[docc]

Apparently, the early spine frames had the stand mounted even FURTHER forward. It was moved back on the 1100i.

[Murray]

Yeah but on the crabed sports they had a 18 inch rear wheel and don't have big loopy wire thing to grind away. Easy to put down with you hand always left it springloaded cause my legs aren't long enough to retract it whilst sitting on the bike.

[docc]

'Zat make it a 'hand' stand?

[Paul Minnaert]

The stand on the v11 was made that way, because in every review of a daytona/sport1100/centauro the side stand was made a minus point, a example of strange italian engineering. I had the "imposible "stand on my daytona for 8 years, no problem, just use my hand to put it down. Now I have a v11 stand, just can do it with my foot, very easy. So I have something easy on my bike:-) But when I want easy, I take the Volvo.