Pressureangle

My first 'big bike' was a '72 non-combat commando. I bought it Christmas 1981, for $350. After getting it running (I don't say tuned, because I was still completely ignorant) first thing I did was learn how to burn out in a circle like in Mad Max. Then, February 27, I and an equally stupid but better equipped friend left Detroit for Daytona. We rode about 30 miles, stopped at his parents' place, where I discovered only 2 of the 6 cradle studs holding the driveline in the frame remained. Fortunately, the marine hardware had exactly what was needed, in stainless steel so expensive it cost near what I paid for the bike. Then it rained from Toledo to Macon, Georgia. Took us 3 days to get there, but the bike ran flawlessly the entire time- discounting discovering that the reserve tube was missing from the petcock on I-75 in the bottom of Cincinnati, forcing a half mile push uphill to the previous exit. My 'snowmobile' suit turned out not to be waterproof, and the blue die stuck to me and I was a Smurf for a week. I remember blasting into Chattanooga sliding both ends in the rain at about 70mph, giving no shits about my safety; a hospital would be warm and dry and I was willing to make that trade. This trip was ten years dead before I could tell the story and laugh. So we make it past Atlanta, the temperature went up to about 55* and the rain stopped. My friend was on a '75 BMW R75/5 which had the precise same gearing as the Norton; the harmony next to each other was beautiful, and finally the trip was fun. On the Macon bypass, at 1 in the morning, at 55mph, I heard and felt a bang and my left leg was hit by something, then very hot and wet. I thought the timing chain had broken and cut my leg; when the State Trooper stopped with his flashlight, he found a hole in the cases big enough to stick the head in. That's when I discovered that Norton used aluminum conrods... I took my license plate, packed what I could in my buddy's panniers, left the key in it and left it against the guardrail never to be seen again. The trip home from Daytona was worse, but that's another story. Then there's that '70 Fastback in buckets on my garage shelf, waiting to redeem the Norton name.

At least the Hesketh had sex appeal. I wanted one in the worst way, even stopping by the importer's house in California, or Colorado...Brian something maybe? *edit* Roger Slater. It wasn't easy to find his residence in 1979. Probably best it didn't happen.

I'm riding from El Paso to Fairbanks in July on the BMW... won't have much time for maintenance on the yellow missile, I guess I'll just wipe it's ass again this year lol

Personally I consider the 'New Commando' a near-miss at best. They really didn't capture any of the proportion or style of the original, and the engine just isn't knobby enough while still appearing dated. Meh.

Upcoming road construction on the section of U.S. 129 known as “The Dragon” in Blount County is expected to affect traffic into July. Expect delays and use extreme caution in the area, as workers will be present. Crews will begin posting signage and mobilizing equipment Monday, April 22, for upcoming resurfacing between Tabcat Creek and the Tennessee/North Carolina state line on U.S. 129.

I actually enjoy some of those reactionaries- they're useful if they're experts in some aspect, like guitar players or voice coaches.

I've always marveled at how a proper Englishman can be so excited and so boring at the same time. Great video, though!

https://www.denniskirk.com/k-and-s/spark-plug-resistor-cover.p2014488.prd/2014488.sku

Man, you stepped in it on your first post lol We've all had it, seems like there is no 'patent' sure cure Everybody will be along soon enough to pile on the thread and direct you to the appropriate historical threads to read. My '97 1100 Sport-i had stock cans with a Feracci crossover- nearly undrivable at 3k rpm. After months and miles of proper tune-ups, replaced sensors, and an aftermarket tunable ECU I could never completely tune it out. Minimal yes, and mostly ok but I'm a perfectionist for drivability. Mine finally completely resolved only with the installation of a cam drive gearset replacing the chain and weak-suck stock chain tensioner. i don't know that anyone else has reported the same, though more than a couple here have the gearset. Put your reading glasses on and your warm garage socks and settle in to the comfortable mindset that it will never be resolved, then you'll be extra happy when you hit the combination that your particular bike needs.

Should have made reservation before now, just made the request...dangit hope there's still space

I have an option to have onesies made; I do not have a price yet, so if DucGuzInd isn't up for a production run I'll get on that ASAP. I have to get a NDA in place before I give them the file.

Yes, not only has the discharge disappeared, but the charging system seems to work better as well.

Tony Foale raced Aermacchi-HD singles; they already had a spine frame that worked famously well, which he improved and adapted to other units, most notably MG. The Aermacchi spine dates back to at least 1961.

...and not a disc brake in sight.

What gearbox is it? 5-speed, or 6? My straight-cut 5 speed takes about a quarter mile to take up the slack between rolling the throttle on and off, due to having only 3 dogs per gear.

Heh. My 'Sport is about $100 a month. But I'm in South Florida so twice or 3 times many other places in the US.

Thank goodness it's already Thursday here lol

It wasn't so difficult. The US forces prohibit alcohol due to being in a predominantly Muslim Country; so them sneaky wine aunts' care packages got confiscated. But of course, things being what they are, instead of destroying it and reporting it, them what had their hands on it sold it on the black market, and it found it's way to the receiver with extra cost, and sometimes to the ...others... in the area. The Russians reportedly paid a high premium for American liquor. I wouldn't know about that, of course, since I only played chess with them in their off time.

Rebalancing for piston weight is really a non-issue. Anybody who has talked to professional tuners knows there is a wide range of balance factors for single and twin cylinder engines; the longer the crankshaft, the more critical balance becomes due to torsional harmonics, number of main bearings etc. But for our big dumb lumps, there's a generic recipe for 90* twins, and some accommodation for the resonance in the frame for felt vibration. In my '85 LM1000, I installed Carrillo rods under the stock pistons without a rebalance, and it became dead smooth at all RPMs, losing the annoying handlebar vibration around 4000 rpm. I was as surprised as anyone. Balance factor has only 2 functions, comfort and mechanical durability; for instance, old British twins would literally break the crankcases if the balance factor got too far away from 50% (iirc) On something like a big block 'Guzzi or H-D Sportster, the crank and cases are so overbuilt it's simply not a structural issue. For me, I would never tear down an engine to rebalance it unless it proved uncomfortable, or if it was going to be thrashed within an inch of it's life at maximum effort.

I saw a few of these in Afghanistan, where Russian contractors operated light freight. They had enclosed bodies, looked like they were carrying a VW bus. Goofy, reliable, and fun to watch. Has a console drink holder for the Vodka.

I don't need them, just wondered if anyone had seen these. https://knightdesignllc.com/motorcycle-parts/moto-guzzi/1999-and-earlier/v11-sport-models-1995-2005/1-inch-lowered-regular-width-foot-pegs/

The simple old-fashioned way to check suspension travel is to place a zip-tie on the fork tube, go through your areas of concern and read the travel via the zip-tie which has been pushed up the tube to record the maximum travel. 'Harshness' a LaGrasta stated about his driveway transition is not a function of spring (unless actually bottoming the fork) as it is too much compression damping. That said, if you're a fast rider, you may need that control at high speed which feels harsh at low-speed big bumps. My 'Sport is set up so that if I encounter a big pavement change such as parking lot/driveway, it will actually bottom; if I'm banging through the Dragon, it will compress to about less than an inch of max travel. At higher speeds, nowhere near that as cornering doesn't generate the G force that braking can. Let me make clear that I am no suspension scientist, just have my subjective feels, lightweight science such as zip-ties, a lot of personal experience from Roadracing, flat track, observed trials, and decades of anecdotal education from amateur and professional suspension users.

Shock length... a thread of landmines the likes of tires and oil. The difference between a long and a short shock where the ride height is identical, is zero until you find the circumstance in which the longer shock can extend further than the shorter shock. (or bottom out, but that's dirt stuff) The shorthand of this is that on-road, the only time you'll see a difference is when you're turning on the brakes, hard. A longer shock allows the rear to rise further before the weight of the rear wheel comes into play, which in turn reduces rake and generally eases turn-in.

Find a strong apprentice. Raise your rates Ride more. Happy Trails! Don't be a stranger.

Wrecked an 883 once, it handled so much better after the crash- but could never get the top motor mount in it again... blew the engine in the Volvo 242 endurance car at hour 4 of the Nelson Ledges 24 hour and swapped the owner's wife's car engine out into the racer with rope and a 2x4 lol. Ah, the good ol' days. The call of the wild; "Anybody got a footpeg bracket? Front wheel? 8x25mm bolt? lol