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Haha, me too, tho quite a few years earlier. Same heart and soul, just a different day, and look. On topic, we have a few makers of spine frame customs on the forum tho the names escape me. They made some beautiful personalized versions. Altering bikes is not everyone's cuppa. And, truth be told, most factory bikes need improvement. Comments about this or that alteration can sometimes, shall we say, diminish ones enthusiasm for sharing. I always try to support someone's endeavor at art. Even if not to my taste, respect is usually due. It's not my fkng bike is it? "well let's see what you can bloody do mate." usually rings in my head before I nit-pick. A recent custom example is @Lucky Phil 's lovely greenie project. More of an engineering custom than a "look" custom, but certainly looks the part of what he wanted to accomplish I think, beyond just sticking that gorgeous motor into a relatively standard Sport. My guess is you were going for 'the Sport they should have built' ? The Sport/LM is a very unique design. An anomaly in factory backed releases imo. The Italians are known for it. Some work some don't. (cough centauro) The Daytona and early 1100 Sports will set the mark for value in the spine line. Eventually our beloved Marabese versions will be "discovered". Close ... but till then... it's your bike isn't it.

Right on point @footgoose ^^^^^^ The critic is easy, I think anyone's efforts to modify, embellish or otherwise improve a vehicle to satisfy their own vision and desire is highly commendable and should be respected, be it a motorcycle, a car, a bicycle or an airplane... As beautiful and satisfying as production designs can be, there is always room for improvement and personalization, one just has to look at how extensive the farkle market is. The result might not be to everyone's taste but, as I said before, if we all had the same taste, life would be rather dull. And isn't that the essence of customization in the first place -"a modification made to something to suit a particular individual". Of course there are times where some efforts might seem misguided >>>

I love the lines of this bike, so much so it is now sitting in my barn. Looked for a long time before a well kept one finally one popped up reasonably close to home. That muffler will be first to go. Then I can call it a custom build...

No, it's a '94 LT-1 engine. Has sequential fuel injection. It was good engine, reverse cooling (aluminum heads first) but that optispark distributor (running with the water pump) and getting to the sparkplugs and wires was awful. The main seal leaking at 160k miles finally did for me. Would I spend a ton of cash to bring this up to spec or spend a little more and find an a nice LS3 'vette? If I was a mechanical wiz like you I might have resto mod'd it but it's easier to sell it and write a check. I love the 'vette BTW..it has 150 more HP but the torque is more an equalizer between the two than one might think. The Z/28 was a nice ride, the 'vette goes to another level and thank goodness it has traction control. Both cars ran the same on 87 ...at least by the seat of my pants. Never a knock, faster than I can go. Note: when I had the Camaro at 18 years old (140k miles), one of my buddies got a new Hemi Challenger (6 SPM like mine). We did a street run, like at 10 mph and hit it on cue, he didn't pull away. He sold the car thereafter. I just thought he was playing with me, I only know he sold it. The bullet Camaro was a head of it's time. easy car to drive with my right toe. The 'vette takes a little more experience to play with. And you can change the plugs and wires in an LS engine in about 45 minutes. who wouldn't like this?

The humidity is the real hurdle. I have been exposed to high temperatures before, in drier climates. This past Texas weather tops it all. I was in N'djamena Chad and temperatures close to the 50 degC were completely bearable compared to this. Everything seems to be excessive. When it rains here, it is torrential. It is not even a matter of rain clothes or good tires. Visibility is impaired by the water curtaining your visor. You need to stop. We are back down in the 90's, so I am planning a little outing today to order Motul oil for the V11. I have covered circa 6000 (10k km) miles already since March.

What people choose to do aesthetically or 'Artistically' to their bikes concerns me not a jot and I fully agree with your assessment that such things are subjective and if people want to do such things? Knock yerself out! That doesn't mean that I can't mock them as ugly and most importantly it doesn't mean that what they have done will be either 'Special' or indeed work in an engineering or mechanical sense. So many people make absurd and impossible claims about performance and functionality it just shits me to tears. I've tried to explain many times why the 8V 'Nuovo Hi-Cam' can't be made to make power and torque figures that can genuinely only be made by much more sophisticated engines but this is either ignored outright or some picture of a 'Dyno Chart' will be produced to 'Prove' the point! Sorry, but trying to use the laws of physics to argue against ignorance and stupidity is a fools errand. Dunno why I even bother apart from the fact I don't want the gullible being taken in by charlatans. With the old pushrod lump it's even more frustrating. Especially when stuck in a Tonti frame with a five speed gearbox and pre V11 final drive. You can, reliably, make mid eighties RWHP from an 1100. The factory erred on the side of conservatism and the donk makes about 76 in the V11. Yes you can get it to make more, but at a price. Now imagine what it's going to be like putting that power, or more, through a clutch, gearbox and driveline designed to handle not much more than 50? Its life span will in the words of some nineteenth century philosopher, be Brutish and Short! So what does that mean? Either these people have managed to change the laws of physics and the sciences of metallurgy, and engineering! Or? They are full of shit! I reiterate, if people like these things as 'Art'? Fine. Knock yerself out. To me they are obnoxious gobshitery! NOBODY HAS TO AGREE WITH ME!

Well done in those temps. Barcelona 02, 43c, coming from up north well dressed, TERRIBLE. When over 37c it gets warmer the faster you go. Remember the rear brake plastic container melted, no leak though. Just a 6600km trip right. Cheers Tom.

AudioMick- My father has owned the Kawasaki Z900 and currently owns the V7 850. Both bikes are lookers, the Kawi is another level of refinement and power. The v7 is still a nice bike, underpowered but nice. I would own both. I have a buddies that own 4 different V85TT's and they seem to swear by them for traveling.

They finally arrived! Here are my speedhut gauges. The new design has removable clips for the cables so they can be disconnected during installation. Both came with the inner o-ring to help weather proof the glass seal. The bezels now have two little lock tabs which need depressed in order to unscrew them. Now I need to decide how I want to secure the back housing in the gauge cluster. I think I am going to attempt something similar to doc’s method by using the three screw holes on the back of the warning light cluster.

I still like these....

That one gets my vote... Does that make me a wanker?

Not 'Covered' John but I've built a couple, and by 'Built' I mean built. They weren't just a 1400 motor stuffed into a 1200's cycleparts. The 1200 and 1400 motors are two very different animals. Apart from the radically different cooling systems for the heads the 1400 heads use much smaller inlet tracts. It's one of the reasons the 1400's make less power than the 1200's. My 1400's used big port, single spark heads and have the heads machined for oiling purposes. They both make phenomenal bottom end and midrange torque but not substantially more power. That is down to the side draft head design and camming and they are both outrageously thirsty! Mark had to go to higher flow injectors as the stock ones just couldn't pour enough fuel in at higher RPM. The 8V is absurdly greedy and wasteful, it's one of the reasons it was canned. If you made it meet €5 it would be a gutless pig of a thing! As it is, mapped and piped right it's a lovely thing to ride but *Efficient* and *Modern* are not really two words that should be used in any sentence that has Guzzi 8V in. There are some parts of it that are modern in design. The combustion chamber is very nice, but one swallow does not a summer make unfortunately. That's why they had to go to the 'Ugly as a hat full of farty arseholes' V100 motor for the next generation bikes.

I know Mr. Roper will lose sleep over a Tonti frame being used for this project, but to each his own. This build is deserving of the Tonti, and so is the engine: https://www.bikeexif.com/moto-guzzi-v11-tonti-frame Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

All this talk about more power and faster...it has a place. But no one rides a Guzzi for that. It's the "feel", the inertia of that locomotive flywheel pulling you, the steady feel in corners. I ride my Ducati and it's almost too good. Some times it's just boring. I get on one of the Guzzis, it still gives me a smile. I like all my bikes but I spent so much time on the Duc, I get on the Guzzi and it's a nice change. Lately, the Duc has been sitting. I don't have enough curvy roads for it.

People just wanna have some fun Pete! You've made your point very clear and I think most everyone here will agree with your assertion of all things mechanical related to the Guzzi engine. You've been around these a long time and a lot of folks heed your advice like the gospel, me included, but I bet that three quarter of the motorcyclist population at large doesn't have a clue nor do they give a hoot about what's going on in their engine. As Guzzi legacy riders, your audience, we are an aging bunch and as such we tend to care for and try to understand our machine, but we are not all mechanics, we started as riders, young and careless - Insouciant - with a sparkle in the eye and unattainable dreams... With time, that insouciance has all but eroded and been traded for bad knees and insomnia but the sight of a beautiful bike can bring the sparkle back and the dream is still alive. Surely Pete, you were young and careless once... You like to present yourself as an old drunken bastard and you have a way with words that is rather unique and entertaining but frankly those angry people-bashing rants of yours are tiresome. Of course, like everyone else, you are entitled to your opinion and free to express it in any way you'd like, I just find it sad that in the context of a community such as this, where I'd like to think we're all getting along, you couldn't be a bit more tolerant and light hearted. IMHO... Not cool!

I've wondered that as well. No doubt there is cheap gas in the hose or whatever the last person filled with. Running a bike getting 4 gallons, how much is high test? I'm guessing more that 3 1/2 but I haven't a clue. I've wondered about that just about every time I fill up.

Ha ha I remember this craze... There were quite a few OUT THERE versions in sixties early seventies ChCh NZ! Bloody hell, I can still see my mate pedaling like mad up our steet back in '73! This belongs in a Nostalgia thread ha ha Cheers

The funny thing is, the motivation for bobbers was origionally the same as for cafe racers: cut off everything that is not necessary for function to make the thing lighter and therefore faster and more agile. It's just that the "bobber style" somehow got hung up on tyres that look like they were manufactured in 1938 and various other more or less ludicrous "features".

In true Guzzi thriftiness and suspender snapping.... I'm thinking of running 91 octane instead of 95 after it cost me $28.00 for 14 litres on Thursday morning. Never really worried about it before but that's beginning to be on the nose! Cheers

Could be worse

Unfortunately, around here we have "bobbers". These really are too ugly to look at. They are not built, they are the opposite.

The original Bitubo damper had failed. I had the Ohlins damper laying around but not the bracket. The original V11 Ohlins bracket I couldn't find anywhere for sale so I acquired the Ducabike item then made the fittings from Ti. Didn't make the Ti bolt and nut though. Made the HDPE washer to control the spherical bearing movement. Phil

That would be the same one as is required for the V11 for Guzzidiag operations. Here is a supplier: https://www.lonelec.com/product/moto-guzzi-ducati-3-pin-to-16-pin-obd-adaptor/ Here is a wiring diagramme, along with quite a lot of info about Guzzidiag and links to it and other useful stuff. The wiring diagramme for the adaptor is quite a long way down the page. https://www.von-der-salierburg.de/download/GuzziDiag/ Without knowing for sure, I reckon Guzzidiag is probably your best bet, anyway, to read out the error messages and generally have a look at what the motor management is doing. As I said, info on that page....

all cool bikes. So far as styling, the V11 Sport/Lemans is still better

This one still has my vote: https://caferacergarage.eu/moto-guzzi-griso-1100-zero-by-officine-rossopuro/

I'll leave that here...

I have been following this guy, "46 Works", and if he was closer to me, I would not mind commissioning something. He has all the machinery and makes a lot of the parts himself. To be totally honest with you, I am no longer attracted to modern bikes. I am currently salivating about the purchase of a Quota 1100ES. I do like the Thruxton RS and the Triumph dealership where I spend time has one since 2020 which they don't seem to be able to sell. It is customized and looks pretty good. If I had the money, I would buy this one over the café. Not because of the looks, but because of practicality. https://www.rideironsupply.com/New-Inventory-2020-Triumph-Motorcycle-Scooter-Thruxton-RS-Jet-Black-Iron-Supply-Powersports-9184236?ref=list

I updated the reporting for my last outing done Saturday 22/23 July 2023, under a hard weather.... I have now done 40 stops out of the 50; I am wondering if I should do the 10 remaining in one go, or split them into two. If I cover the last 10 stops in one trip, it is 1731 miles. If I split them, it becomes 2648 miles. Covering 1731 miles in three days should be possible. But not with these current temperatures. Also, it means that I would have completed the tour in July, and maybe I should leave some stops for later...

While the lines of that exhaust are not disturbing (as some can be), and no "bandages" (relief!), something about the uninterrupted radius and clean sweep of the original V7 Sport is comforting to me . . . a gentle, liquid flowing . . . Comparing that Exif custom to anything on today's showrooms seems a bit an "apples and eggcrates" exercise.

Since we're all having fun with this, 'would love to hear from the forum members which current bikes you could buy from the showroom today that you think is a more desirable design than this. I will confess that my other bike is a Thruxton RS Showcase, but I'd take this custom build with the aluminum tank and better proportions any day.

The more ugly bikes that are out there, the better mine looks. I actually like looking at anything built.

The CARC platforms don't lend themselves to anything like this. The wheelbase is too long so they always look like they've had an unfortunate arse-accident! The exhaust on that thing is absurd, it will be a blubbering mess below 6,000 and then it'll take off like a cut cat for 1,500 rpm before falling flat on its face again. So it's both ugly and ridiculous and we won't even begin to talk about how long the throttlebodies will last with the woeful air filtration.

Pete, How about a modern cafe racer based off of a CARC donor bike?

I don't know how you can claim nothing was done to increase performance - did you miss this part? "It now sports a lightened flywheel, a high-torque camshaft, bigger intake valves, a dual ignition, and a pair of 41 mm Dell’Orto carbs. Paul also redesigned the engine ventilation and oil separation systems, and installed an expanded sump and CNC-machined oil pump" Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

No sleep to loose. That is not a V11 LeMans/Sport motor/drivetrain. Let's say it's a V11 "EV" or "Cali" square fin with a 5speeder gearbox and not our reardrive. So, someone made a slumpy croozer-goozzee into a café ride. (A VERY nice one, I would say!) No Spine Frames were harmed in this . . .

Yes I bought a mill. No point going small and limiting yourself. I want to be able to get a set of crankcases on there. Plenty of projects await. I also upgraded my lathe with a European style QC tool post and have a 2 axis DRO awaiting fitment. I have plenty to learn about using both but it's nice to have the ability to do a lot of things I previously had to put on the back burner. It's difficult to find people to machine stuff these days let alone do it right so this gives me some independence. I have a Centauro crank here that's had the pin reground to the first undersize. The pin has been ground tapered and with the wrong radius so the bearing shells rubs on the radius! Phil