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In Chicagoland the Norton Club has put on an outstanding Antique Motorcycle Show every August. 20 years ago I woke up Sunday morning and hopped on my 1993 Daytona and went to it. Not having had my coffee I was a little groggy and when I pulled into the show someone waved me in. I suddenly thought “Oh Shit I’m in the Show”. I was directed to park with the Guzzi’s. I spent my day bouncing between the show and parking lot looking at cool bikes. At one point I walked by my bike and saw a sign on my seat. Move Your Bike To The Modern Bike Section. So I did. I ended up staying all day until the end. When they announced the show awards they started with Best Modern Bike and called my name. I was in shock and had not realized this was possible. The plaque was nice and I stuck in the back of my pants for its ride home. What happened next was a heart felt note that the award announcer stopped to add a special guy. He said the best Norton award goes to Joe Blow. Now his bike is a beauty but I feel that I need to tell you that everything that has been done to this bike was done by Joe. From rebuilding the engine and trans to painting it. I thought what a nice thing to say. As a baby boomer I remember when everyone did this back in the day. I knew how rare it has become to not farm out the work. I got my award because I forgot to get my coffee and park in the parking lot. My hats off to you Joe for a job well done.

Enjoy your holiday and a happy and healthy 2025!

Starting 2025 in all the right ways! I went off on a no destination morning ride. 2010 Moto Guzzi V7 Cafe Classic

Hearkening back . . .

I learned this one the hard way with my wife. I won't make the same mistake twice.

Have a great xmas everyone 👍

The bikes are staged to get out for celebratory rides to establish hopes for good riding in 2025. Having only gotten my little Honda back together a couple days ago from three months of remediatory repairs, I am most excited to have her out for a romp today. Low 40ºs F today, while this was taken day before yesterday on the checkride in the low 60s . . . edit: This New Year's Day, rode the GB500 a thirty mile loop over the river and back. At 43ºF/6ºC, my fingers said, "Enough !" edit/2: Got mySport out 36 miles through the hills. My, but these V11 motors do love to ring in this cool air!

Set up today and pulling great shots. Phil

A few photos of my 2004 Ballabio after the major work

Did the "Decent Tune-Up" this weekend. -- Found the TPS voltage was way low, the CO trim was already at zero, and the vacuum caps on the intakes looked good but were nearly disintegrated ! Throttle bodies only needed a little adjustment to balance nicely at 2500 RPM. My 2003 LeMans is running smoothly -- Thanks to the Forum for the excellent instructions

I hear ya . You will fall asleep on that gelding . Keep your V 11 for when you come to your senses !

It's been some time since I went to this show. Frankly, it's mostly cars, but today I needed a ride. I show up and there's something like 300 cycles parked in a row. Granted, mostly all Japanese, mine was the only Guzzi. I met an Englishman now living in SC that owns a Coppa and a Greenie. Maybe he's on here as well? Hope to see him there again, maybe some others on this board that are local.

Yup, and, providing the world doesn’t end, IC vehicles will end up being an ‘Enthusiast’ hobby, a bit like steam trains are. Oh, they will, at least for the foreseeable future, remain a lot more popular than steam trains simply because unlike steam locomotives IC vehicles were, and are, ubiquitous and everybody in the western ‘Developed’ world will have memories inextricably woven in to the fabric of their lives that will involve them. Be it memories of family holidays as a kid or that thrill of discovery when you took your first trip *Away* independently on your first motorbike or car? Almost everyone will have those and ‘We’ and the generations up to the present will wish to preserve those memories and the items associated with them. I don’t think IC will need to be legislated out of existence. I think it will just fade into the background. What will replace it? Who knows? Whatever it is will still have the potential to be just as exciting, if society wishes it to be so. As it is more and more people nowadays, and not just young people, seem to be more interested in consumerism and living out a ‘Fantasy’ life vicariously through the lives of others on a small, glowing, screen. Is that wrong? Or bad? It’s not really my place to say. I’m an old man at the end of my (Enormously lucky!) life. The world I am bequeathing to my children is pretty f*cked up! If I were young I wouldn’t listen to a godammed word people like me say!

Well, off the top of my head…….. They used a very tall final drive. Enormously tall. Compensated for by lower internal ratios in the gearbox. The driveshaft and universal joint are a ‘One piece’ unit and they use the 20 tooth spline form used on the V11 and later bikes rather than the ‘Standard’ 10 spline system. It is critical to keep the ignition timing spot on as if the motor ‘Kicks Back’ while starting it has a tendency to round off the hexagonal key that drives the torque converter fluid pump. Drive is then lost as the fluid overheats. They are also very touchy about what type of ATF to use. Early ‘Verts had a lightweight, pressed steel, flywheel that tended to rip its centre out. Later ones have an enormous forged steel item that weighs about as much as a neutron star! As well as the standard ‘Vert, which closely resembled a T3/G5 with cow-horn bars and a weird tail light, the engine and transmission were also used in an automatic version of the California II. All their owners are strange, hump-backed midgets, usually with a withered arm, buck teeth and rickets. They tend not to bathe often and may or may not have communicable diseases so it’s best not to touch them. In fact try and keep them at arm’s length and stand upwind of them if possible. I am, obviously, the exception that proves the rule……….

This anecdote comes to mind. I may have first read on this forum: A fellow pulls into his shop with his car barely idling and stalling repeatedly. The mechanic pops the hood for a look and walks back into the shop emmerging with a small screwdriver. Deftly turning one screw the motor smooths out and idles stably. The driver says, "That's amazing! What do I owe you? " The mechanic replies, "$100. " D: "A hundred dollars to turn one screw ?!?" M: "No, just a dollar to turn the screw. The other ninety-nine is for knowing which screw to turn. "

Finally changed the speedo cable, then rode it slow and fast to make sure it was ok 👍

It's the same with everything these days. I needed all the guttering replace on my single story flat block small house a few months ago. 50 linier metres of guttering. No down pipes just gettering. Going rate 100-110/LM! So $5000 for a simple guttering job. Materials? $800. So $4200 labour for 10 man hours of work for a pro doing it day in day out that involves about $500 worth of tooling/equipment. About the rate a heavy jet commercial pilot earns for stick time with 500 lives in his hands. Solution? I bought the materials online delivered and the wife and I spent 25 hours taking our time 4-5 hours a day being super cautious to eliminate any serious errors and doing a first rate better than a pro job on it. I've never done guttering before but I know how to string line the required fall and fit the support clips and I have good quality tin snips and a pop rivet gun. The corners are all done with cast fittings these days so they are a doddle. So that's $4200 net in my pocket. I think a lot of the issues with getting work done these days on anything, houses, cars, bikes is that the average person totally lacks any sort of basic hand and mechanical skills and is at the mercy of anyone in a trade. The value system then becomes distorted. The ultimate degradation of our forbears ability to carve out a life from the wilderness by hand, swearing and sweat. My single biggest fear getting older is losing the ability to do things like this myself. It's just fundamental to who I am and the foundation of my independence. Not looking forward to losing that. Phil

I drilled half of the pucks in my bike back in Mar 2018. Six drilled pucks, with the remaining cavities empty. The difference was barely noticeable, but I liked the idea of lowered shock loads on splines/gears/dogs. I have not felt the need to revert to standard over the last 6 years. https://www.v11lemans.com/forums/topic/30472-rear-wheel-for-tire-change/#findComment-286089

Opening a spin on filter is really easy. Just use an old school, (Only type I possess.) can opener, (As that’s basically what the filter is, a can for the filtering medium.) whizz the flange off, lift off the ‘Dome’ of the container and ‘Voila’! There is the filtering medium. You can also see and work out how the bypass system works which for a lot of people is an eye, rather than can, opener! (F’nar, F’nar! I slay myself sometimes!)

Cheers Doc. All done and dusted for another year down here ( Boxing day ) .... You know about 3 years ago when I took the bike to Chrissy at my nieces place, I put young Austin ( about 4 years old ) on the tank and took him for a ride round the block. Sounds dodgy but he was quite safe. When I got there yesterday he was busy setting up his new play station but he made a beeline for me to tell me all about it and says remember when you took me for a ride on your motor bike? Where is it ? I had to tell him it was resting at home for next time! Priceless and still got a wee lump in the throat typing this.... Cheers to each and all.

That is very good. I watched some experts setting up bikes with Guzzi Diag at the forum rally last year. The bloke on the computer is Beard (Bernd) who programmed Guzzi Diag (the computer is inside the cardboard box that he is looking into). Karsten, orange t-shirt and overalls, was doing the adjustments. Going by what he was satisfied with for the TPS on various bikes, within 2 mV of the target is excellent.

Hallelujah! It’s certainly an exciting and fantastic time to be alive! Those of us fortunate enough to be alive and healthy! Apologies to the group for my 2024 lack of presence. I’ve been busy renewing my mind - a riveting and competing passion! 🤣 Looking forward to following on from Downunder Bobby Kennedy and his MAHA efforts after January 2025 Happy revolutions and keep the wheels down… In wrapping up - here in Australia the WA government are soon to be implementing the toughest gun laws in the country - Canada facing a similar push - so those of you who enjoy hunting fill your stockings with guns and ammo! Freedoms being whittled away. G’day and Merry Christmas one and all! 🎄 🇦🇺 🍻👍😎

Merci beaucoup! A vous aussi. Sorry, but she's as Dutch as stroopwafels

Happy Holidays ! I am ready for 95 degrees .

My 2004 Ballabio is in really nice shape and has about 27,800 kms (17,300 Miles) but is 20 years old and was showing a few maintenance needs. My 2012 Stelvio has cut into the amount of Kms I do on the V11 over the last couple years. The bike has never been outside other than when riding it and has only spent maybe 15 to 20 nights away from home where it stayed outside overnight. It is kept in a heated /cooled environment. Earlier this summer I decided it was time to deal with all the items and do a thorough maintenance check to prepare it for the next 20 years. Kind of a 20-year block check (D check in large aircraft words). It had a little bit of oil weeping at the cam case cover, the phase sensor, the rocker oil feed lines at the heads, sometimes some oil dripping out of the air cleaner box, the tires needing replacement, one caliper and one master cylinder showing signs of needing rebuild I created a work scope and have completed it over the last few months. It has never had the TPS or Throttle Bodies touched other than me balancing between them using a balance tube. This Forum with all the Experts and organized information made this a very enjoyable task. I appreciate all the people that have made their expertise and information available to everyone. Included in the work scope was the Decent Tune Up. Bought the suggested cables/box for both Guzzidiag and Voltmeter This was my first time using Guzzidiag, and my computer skills are not what they might have been 10 or 20 years ago. I read all the threads and watched several videos before I attempted to use it. The one item that took me a number of attempts was right at the start where you select Preferences when you enter the program (Language, the Bike Model and Com Port). I didn't realize you had to close that little window prior to being able to Select Connect under File. Workscope: Front and Rear tires Michelin Road 6 Front 120/70 ZR 17 Rear 180/55 ZR 17 (4 rear (one was short life due to tear), 3rd front since new) Rebuilt front and rear brake calipers, front & rear brake master cylinder and clutch master cylinder. Fresh pads all calipers. All flushed and fresh DOT 4. Cleaned from fork seals using the thin film (they were not weeping but as a preventive measure, they were not near as dirty as the ones in my Stelvio) Spark Plugs replaced with same type NGK BPR6ES Valve clearances set to In .006 / Ex .008 Replaced Odyssey AGM Battery with Eliminator AGM battery (third battery including original, first two were Odyssey) Crankcase vent hose – GU30157400 Oil Pressure Switch – GU17768750 Intake Temp Sensor (in airbox) – GU30729331 Phase Sensor/with O-ring – GU01721600 Cylinder Head Temp Sns. – GU29729461 Holder Cyl. Hd. Temp Sns. – GU03163330 Timing Cover Gasket – GU05001231 Timing Cover Crank Seal – 90402840 O-Ring Spacer, Crankshaft (tim. cs) – GU90706178 Crush Washers, Rocker Oil line Feed at Head – GU90706010 (used copper replacement) Roper Plate, Upper sump gaskets (2) GU01003650, Lower sump gasket – GU01003600 Viton O-Rings at oil Cooler Lines and at Breather Return to Sump Line - GU90706010 Exhaust Crossover Gaskets – GU91113230, Exhaust Gaskets at head – GU90718370, and installed a restraint to ensure crossover cannot move in future Air Filter – GU30113600, Oil Filter GU30153000, Dipstick O-Ring GU90706178 Although I had new Rubber sleeves for Airbox to TB and TB to head I did not install them as the originals look like new and are still flexible like the new ones. Oil Motul 7100 15W50 4 L. Transmission & Rear bevel box oil replaced Removed Bevel box to access front u joint, greased 3 fttngs (2 u joints, and spline) Removed Gianelli slip-ons and installed original exhaust. Polished stock exhaust head pipes, front cross pipe / under transmission collector / using 400 thru 3000 grit. Came out very nice. Removed Power Commander 3, measured TPS with TB fully closed (was 300 MV) TPS set to 157 MV using Voltmeter (with everything disconnected), Right Side TB Idle screw backed out TB Idle Air Screws removed, cleaned TB/screws, reset to -1 turn out setting Engine run, Balance tube used to synchronize RH/LH TB at 2500 RPM Guzzidiag used to read CO, check idle compared to Tachometer (it is accurate) CO was at 0, CO Set to +5. Idle set to 1100 RPM using LH idle screw reading on Guzzidiag, correlates to Tach. Also noticed that TB balance is almost equal at idle as well. Cleaned / polished bike. It is now pretty much original (except for heated grips and 2004 Lemans Upper triple tree plate/clip-on handlebars, and speedo cable with the Instruments moved up / forward about 2.5 inches to clear the clip ons. Looking forward to Spring and riding the fresh V11

I recalled some conversations about air boxes like this one I just got a new 3D printer (Bambu P1S) and I've been busy making stuff. As part of this I'm learning OnShape, which I'm finding more intuitive than Fusion, which I also tried. I'm finding that if I find practical (or even semi practical) projects it helps me learn the CAD app better. The nice thing is that the printer is nearly flawless. I had a small printer many years ago (something like 2016) and I remember having to futz with the printer a lot. Now it's nearly pushing a button and waiting. And even though the printer is much, much faster it still takes time to print. The other thing that's changed is the materials you can print with. There is a huge variety with a variety of properties. Where was I? Ah, projects. In thinking about fun projects I thought that a custom air box would be interesting. The print area is approximately 256mm cubed so it will need to be made in sections. I may just start by making some velocity stacks. Then go from there.

We're in the fire biz (3 planes on the current fire), but I grew up in the woods with a cedar roof. Needed to replace it, and was just too cheap to get it done until some winter storm damage finally helped force the issue, and it's all metal now. i'm embarrassed to admit how long it took me to replace that roof. we're not in high risk area, but have had some big ones not too far away in the last decade. Those cedar shakes from the roof, i'd use them for kindling in the wood stove whenever we'd get removed shakes after doing some repair or trim work, and literally just a little paper and a match and that stuff lit off and burned so easy. crazy. Now I have to remove my favorite cedar tree next to the house, that would go up like a torch... And then there's the issue of US homes (in the NW) vs so many old world homes that still stand after hundreds of years. "When in Rome" is the thing, and I live in a timber rich area (and actually in the forest), so there's all that great building material right at hand, but it has always seemed at least less-than-ideal to build homes that you know won't survive like something built of longer lasting materials (and as it happens, fire proof/resistant).

It's a V11 Guzzi. First thing you do when you have any electrical issue/gremlin is do a full wiring harness/fuse block/connector/ignition switch detailed inspection. Then move onto parts replacement/testing. Phil

I can't press the like button to this . I can only say prayers for these folks and hope for a safe exodus .

The fitting on the tank is an externally threaded 20mm diameter fine thread, the internal diameter of the fitting 10mm smooth bore. EDIT For Info I think the pitch is 1.0mm as best I can measure The sender slides into the tank through the smooth bore and a lip at the its base holds it captive on the base of the nut seen at the bottom. The top hex part of the nut is 20mm and screws onto the external threads of the tank fitting (a bit confusing but it's the best I can do to explain it) The fitting on the Steinse Dinse sender is 16mm so it's too large to install into the tank. Some sort of collar/adapter nut to extend and step the 16mm thread to a 20mm might work, but it would be "Heath Robinson" at best and probably look horrible. It would also lower the height of the sender in the tank, altering the volume of fuel left in the tank and reduce reserve capacity. I reckon it would be easier to purchase a thermistor and purchase parts to make a new thermistor, as Phil did in this thread, although that's not that easy either. https://www.v11lemans.com/forums/topic/30780-fuel-level-sensor/page/2/

Probably because people that own bikes over 15 years old won't pay the going service rates and the work will usually be major and parts availability almost non existent. Then they will need to put too many hours into sourcing parts and probably have the bike taking up workshop space for months on end. A close friend of mine that ran a specialist motorcycle marching and race bike building business for 40 years had a customer leave him an Triumph twin aluminium head for a full rebuild. This was only a few years after he started his business in his garage. New valves, guides and seats, the whole 9 yards. The old guy came to collect the head and when he was presented with the bill told my mate that for that sort of money he could keep it, he wasn't going to pay that. My friend advised him of the hours he's put into the work but this guy was refusing to pay, obviously trying to negotiate the cost down. My friend confirmed that he wasn't interested in paying the bill and the customer then watched as he went to the bandsaw and cut the head in two. Apparently the look on the guys face was worth it. People don't like paying for the complex stuff old bikes often require to make them run well again. Phil

My January 1st ride was on my Jones Flagship snowboard at Mammoth Mountain.

Some US insurance companies won't insure your car without a separate tracker fitted. People have bought second hand cars and have battery drain issues and subsequently found a tracker wired into the system they were unaware of the previous owner was obliged to fit. Maybe the DD preppers and tin foil hat brigade aren't looking so silly now,lol.

I've posted this before. This guy is worth listening to on the subject of not only cars but WW2 aircraft as well. His stuff is extremely well researched and he runs a side company in tuning cars as well as a writing a few books on turbocharging. His full time Gig is a commercial heavy jet captain. Where does he get the time.

Suspicious, but it could be that your pump simply lost it's prime, and you swapped filters just before it caught on. I'd cut the paper filter open and inspect the guts just to have peace of mind.

To cap it off we now have the Guzzi lawyers trolling the world threatening Guzzi Forums with legal action for using "their" corporate property. So you pay to advertise their product for free and in return they crap on your good intentions from a great heigh. Not restricted to Guzzi I know. So it's the middle digit to them from me, lol. The irony being that less money spent on lawyers and more on R & D and quality control might mean that there wasn't such a need for forums where fellow enthusiasts make good the gaps and shortcomings of Guzzi's output. Sent from my SM-S901B using Tapatalk

I guess you pick and choose your complications these days. Life's a lot simpler and just as satisfying when you "dont know what you don't know". As a kid in the supermarket I had a choice of 3 tomato sauces and was happy as a clam with that. Now when I go into the supermarket I'm faced with at least 50 choices of meat sauces and apart from choice anxiety there also the anxiety of thinking that maybe I made a wrong choice. All that matters is you enjoy what you now have.

It's funny I suppose, I have this position where I refuse to wear any "branded" clothing unless I get it for free. I'm not paying my hard earner for the privilege of giving free advertising to a corporate entity. I'm not talking about the consequential logos on a polo shirt or the tag on a pair of Levi jeans but the sort of Jacket the OP has shown and similar. Nope, you want me to be a walking Billboard then you foot the bill and I'll wear it, if I like it that is. It kind of started years ago when I was at a bike show and Australian Motorcycle news had a stand and on the stand was a pile of stickers and I thought I'll grab one of those for decorating my toolbox. The Journo at the stand then said that's $2 mate as I walked away. I turned around and put it back then let him know how I felt about me paying my money to advertise his rag at no cost to them. Baseball caps are another surprise these days. Weren't baseball caps giveaways at the start? They were here for sure. Then some corporate advertising clown found out that punters will hand over now, what $50 or more for the privilege of providing free advertising for a multinational or a sporting club owned by a gazillionair! To cap it off we now have the Guzzi lawyers trolling the world threatening Guzzi Forums with legal action for using "their" corporate property. So you pay to advertise their product for free and in return they crap on your good intentions from a great heigh. Not restricted to Guzzi I know. So it's the middle digit to them from me, lol.

That looks like a nice Griso, and the owner's garage is also well-organized with a few other well-kept toys. That's a good sign. If all the stock parts are included, you can undo any modification you don't like.

Looks like a steam punk dildo washing machine!

Back at all-y'all! Christmas Eve here and loving the peace of this "Silent Night" . . . Best regards to everyone, and a very Merry Christmas, indeed.

I tasted a Red Bull one time and that is all I needed

Live like I do , ride it til it sputters , learn how to lay it over to the left a little while , ride it til it does it again . REPEAT . Ride it til you get to gas AKA petrol .

Merry Christmas, and God bless! Thankful for this community. …slidin' into 2025!

Merry Christmas from down here folk's.....

Wishing All the best for you Lovely People 🙂

1995 1100Sport carb edt 28k. 1996 1100Sport inj edt 96km. Only 8k rpm. Whatever they had on the shelves. Cheers Tom. Sent fra min SM-S906B via Tapatalk

after owning and touring on over 15 V11s I’m having a change to a newer motorcycle and it’s a BMW, my last V11 is up for sale in the UK proving just as difficult to sell as all the others, I still have a few bits and pieces if anyone is looking for something, this site has been useful over the years and I’ve got to know a few of the inmates here in the UK, you meet the nicest people on a Guzzi

You will eventually miss your V11 and shall return to us. We shall be here, waiting for you!