po18guy

Ah, who needs one? I heard those high cam engines have nothing but valve train problems. Now, if there was an MGS-01 body kit for V11s, that would be different...

:eating popcorn:

Gotta suggestion stateside? Cuz' posting it to OZ costs almost what the bike did!

Many thanks! Might have been re-flashed, but PO didn't know.

The '04s are listed at 9.8:1. With air cooling and the deep combustion chamber, it seems to be a reasonable maximum for the street. Spraying decongestant on the airbox and mufflers would be most cost-effective, methinks. I'm halfway there, considering the airbox now. As to ECU re-flashes, anyone know who is good and reliable at this in the US?

Never wanted to be a motor cop. Bikes way too big and one had to have the balance of a circus performer to make a simply u-turn. I would have been sorely tempted had they purchased KLR650s or similar - something big enough, but more suited to easy maneuverability. The Super Motard style now would be excellent.

"OP" Oil Pressure.

Honda sells a ton of Groms. Thing is, you can ride them WOT all day, every day - and no one but you knows this. Meanwhile you are ginning like an idiot inside your helmet. A form of the "Big, dirty fun" of which P.J. O'Rourke wrote. .

The injection, good as it is, is not nearly as refined as that on our cars. Cars require no "cold start" lever, have more engine condition sensors, much more powerful computers, coil-on-plug and particularly detonation/knock sensors. Thus, the highest performing cars can run on 87, or even the gasoline substitute called Pemex in Mexico. Not saying they'll be happy. but they'll run. Hemispherical combustion chambers trace back an awful long way - to a time before flame propagation was thought of as influencing the production of power. Aircraft engine designers had to deal with pistons melting from the immense dome absorbing so much of the combustion heat. Few had yet thought of tilting the valves toward each other and flattening the chamber. As usual, racing forced the issue and Cosworth et al showed the gains to be had in multi valves and compact combustion chambers. Have not really examined the 4-valve Guzzi heads, but they are no doubt much more efficient than the two-valvers. The valve train being the wrench in the gears of the 4-valve Guzzis. 4 valves done right, plus liquid cooling of cylinder and head would show real gains, but at the cost of complexity and increased maintenance - but maintenance is part of Guzzi life, is it not? Sadly, Piaggio has fallen for the "Italian Harley" niche and sport bikes and power production have taken it in the shorts. Even Harley has stealth liquid cooling as they are forced to compete. Ducati consistently shows what a 4-valve V-twin can do with the application of cubic Euros to the formula. Guzzi has not had that freedom since the V8. Oh, but these old hemis do alright for what they are. I have ridden 500s and 650s as my largest bikes, so 1064cc seems like a revelation. Trade up from a smaller bike and the V11 seems much more satisfying. Still the carrot dangles and 100 hp up from 91 seems so close that one can reach it.

Nice job! Will it ever appear like this one on the Mistral website?

In August bought an '04 Ballabio with 4.5K miles for $4,900. Garage queen. Came with Hepco & Becker bags and rack, Staintune slipons, manuals, a Pete Roper plate, various and sundry gaskets and, rather ominously, a spare shift detent spring. They are out there if you are patient.

Thank you and likewise. Was beginning to think that I had a one-of-one.

Wink wink. Back in the day, I helped a couple of fellow wrenches who were campaigning an "Econorail" - a dragster chassis with a single 4bbl V8 engine. They tried a Kendig carburetor - a perhaps too-radical design that was extremely simple but as difficult to tune as a Weber. Talk about stack fires! Here's a link to the Kendig Variable Venturi Carburetor: http://www.tlawebstuff.com/kendig.htm

The secret to the vacuum secondaries on a Holley is to plug the air bleed from the vacuum diaphragm chamber into the secondary venturi, leaving the bleed into the primary venturi open. Some soft solder tapped into the passage with a pin punch does the job nicely. Then, you can get the vacuum secondaries to operate virtually identically to the gear-drive secondaries on the double-pumpers. With the correct diaphragm spring, you can get them to begin opening at about half throttle once past about 4K. Feels a bit like a turbo kicking in, as you need not move the throttle for them to open. The secondaries stay closed when intake velocity is low or manifold vacuum is high. Had a Holley 4239 (700-715 cfm depending on source) on my hot-rodded 283. It was half of a big block chev dual-quad setup. No provisions for choke, power valve, and it had the "whistle" vent in the primary float bowl. Man, when that engine came on the cam and the secondaries opened, life was good!

Resuscitating this DOA thread, I think its a Lilac 200 or 250. OK, maybe not.

Since there does not seem to be one for these "parts bin" neither-here-nor-there models, might as well begin one. ZGUKTC0254M111321 located in western Washington State, USA. EDIT: To include pic.

Might as well bolt a Holley 600 cfm four barrel on it. That'll give it some fuel! Far better, in my limited experience, to work on incremental increases in the flow of intake and exhaust. The '04 models have 9.8:1 compression, and with a very old combustion chamber design, and relatively inefficient air-cooling, that is pushing it. If she could handle more, I think MG would have given that to us. The engine may be close to its thermal limit, and that is best respected.

Just how I came to be standing between timber and Pontiac escapes me. As Paul Simon sang... "Either way you look at it, you lose..."

One of the folding multi-tools, often for bicycle use w/hex wrenches, can be very handy. A Co2 tire inflator is good. Maybe 10/12 and 13/14 open/box end wrenches. 4-in-1 screwdriver. Maybe a 6" Crescent wrench. I'll have to dig my kit out and see what they put in there.

It seems that the '99-'01s ('02s?) have 53mm tubes and the later bikes have 54s. Got a message back from a fellow on eBay and his measurement was 53.25mm. I like the OEM bars, as they have that "safety bolt" which threads into the upper triple to keep the bar from rotating. Might be more show than go, but it offers at least some assurance.

Like to stay Guzzi, but Buell and some GSXRs (that I know of) also used 54mm bars. And Woodcraft is waiting in the wings.

If those are 54mm at the clamping surface, they are exactly what I am looking for. Also appears that they accept standard 7/8" bars?

Now, those bars you have on "Hi Ho Silver", are they the OEM clipons?

At 18mm, I suppose another 12-15mm, depending o the bars. I know that it would slightly quicken the steering, but I believe it was slowed a bit in the transition from short to long frame.

Am thinking of clipons atop the upper triple on an '04 Ballabio. This will necessitate raising the fork tubes in the triples. They are currently standing about 18mm above the upper triple. Apparently, there is no handling or stability deficit? Anyone have a set? Finish need not be perfect. Otherwise, I search the web.