BrianG

The belcrank flips easily without changing the location for the shift-lever arm. It alters the throw of the system and seems to be OK, but I can't test it. There's no room under the shifter lever to flip the triangular bit upside down.

So... is that good or bad??

Ok... it's -25 C but I can still hold a wrench! I removed the rear cowl and found some things I'd like to understand. By the ECU is a multi-pin plug. ......Is this for the diagnostic tool? From the same part of the wiring harness there are 2 single-wire connectors un-used. They resemble the connectors of the signal lights. ......What are they for? I want to reverse the shift pattern. I can flip over the shifter-shaft bell-crank easily enough. It won't shift completely when not running. .....Is there enough range of motion in the shifter-lever to accomplish the shifts? I looked at the rear shock and found that it is gold in color, has a white spring, and it's compression and rebound adjusters are anodized blue. .....How do I tell what brand it is? There is a device on the bottom-right side of the fuel tank, near the back. I'd assums this is the fuel pressure regulator. It has an unused nipple oriented horizontally, pointing 45 degrees back-midline. ...What is this unit? Why is the nipple unconnected? There's a start! Thanks!!

Are those valve specs in/ex respectively? Man... this is like back to the NORTON days! Ya, well....... these donuts have a list! The M/G V11 Sport is on the same list as the CBR 900/929/954/1000 and the R1 and GSXR 1000. Someone has a "number detector" up here, because they sure don't know anything about bikes!

Indeed...... So now it's just get the Form 1 from the Customs Broker, wait for the Form 2 from RIV, get the RIV inspection done, get the Out of Province inspection done, and go register the thing........ if I can find insurance for this big "SportBike". By the way...... is LOUD lifter noise characteristic of this engine when it's -25 C?

I saw that Skeeve, but I couldn't find it with the "search" feature, here.

Got it.... Thanks!!

Found it.... Thanks!!

My new (2000) V11 Sport arrived today. Can someone tell me how to remove the seat? I found the helmet lock, and thought it must be coupled to that, because it's sure a stupid place for a helmet lock! But no joy! Does the rear seat cowl have to come off first?

I bet the pilot loved getting on the "impending doom" machine!!

It may or may not surprize you fellows to know that my '86 Lemans has bridged forks with a tire-like air-stem on one. The forks have self-contained damper cartridges inside as well as the spring. The "fork-oil" is simply lubricant (ATF) for the spring to slide on the fork and cartridge, and to lubricate the fork-tube sliding parts. The Owner's manual suggests a pressure of 0-5 lbs. Apparently Guzzi heard this discussion before, tried it, and abandoned it!

Brian, I think you are correct... adding oil brings in the "air-spring" effect earlier, and firms up the end-of-compression-range spring rate. There will be a little effect upon sag because of this shift. Did it have the effect you desired? Does the Sport have preload adjustment? I sure hope so!

I too favor experimentation in things mechanical, and I have found some things seem counter-intuitive. Tangling up With Max, of Traxxion Dynamics, is itself a lesson in counter-something-ness! In the case of motorcycle forks, I have found that using the firmest spring which gives the desired sag numbers...... 20-25% free-sag, and 30-35% loaded sag, with minimum preload.... provides the best feel and responsiveness. The counter-intuitive part of this is that I have found this to also provide the cushiest ride, as well. It is FAR cushier than an under-sized spring preloaded to a high degree. End-point compression progression is another function and feel, and is a consequnece of another independent issue, as Janusz pointed out....... being the air-chamber size. Damping is another separate issue, and it contributes at least as much to the feel of the ride. I'm not certain why this part seems counter-intuitive to a lot of people, but the less damping one can get away with, the cushier the ride will be. That sounds logical to me! The other part of that, that seems counter-intuitive, is that rebound damping is the primary damping of relevance to vehicle handling. Control comes from the application of the gentlest of forces required to maintain tire/road contact. The spring and fork-tube friction contribute quite a bit of compression damping, while one desires as much bump-absorbing compliance as possible, hence as little compression damping as possible. Rebound damping is added just enough to prevent cyclic rebound. So my philosophy is; appropriate spring rate with as few other added forces as possible, to attain the most compliant (cushiest) and best controlled ride. This is how I set up my old VFR, and my current CBR 900RR, and will be for the V11 Sport that's on the truck, somewhere out there! I'm 52yrs old, 225lb (hence the 1.05 springs), and spend the majority of my time cruising around town and some of the outlying side-roads. I spend a little time in the mountain twisties near here, and occasionally have the opportunity to go to the track and spank my 20 yr old son's ass...... (not!!) I want the cushiers ride that I can get, along with great control, because, while I'm old and decrepit, it IS a Sport Bike! Make sense to anyone else?

I'm looking for straight-rate springs, too. I've done quite a bit of work with Max, at Traxxion Dynamics. He can be a bit acerbic at times but he knows his stuff. His fork springs are superior! I've had him do the fork revalving/springing for my old VFR and for my 900RR, and supply the Penske shock, and the difference from stock was nothing short of incredible. If sprung properly, the fork action is wonderful... if it's wrong it sucks, and progressive springs just feel mushy to me. Picking the right spring is quite easy, it's just a matter of having some to play with, or a table set up from experience. Picking a Honda unit is easy...they have a list. The issue is simply selecting the spring that gives you the desired sag measurements. Valving is another issue, but apparently the Marz units are pretty good. Once sprung properly, minimal rebound damping is set to control "jounce", and I leave compression damping basically off. I'd just like to order the springs now... before the bike arrives on it's sojourn from Pennsylvania! So I needed the numbers!! Thanks dliang!!

I'll bet it'll be unavailable in Canada................ except possibly BC!

How about Pennsylvania to Alberta for a mere $900.00! And the bugger is still hung up in Customs!

So, Todd, does this mean that I can buy a PCIII from you with the appropriate map for the modifications, and then use my multi-sensor LM-1 system to mess with specific parts of the A/F map? Can I then restore the map to the original through some default process, after I'v screwed things up so badly that it won't run anymore?

Tex, don't ya think that twiddling with 1's and 0's is cleaner and handier than diddling with needles and jets? They are both just fixed A/F map algorithms!

This is the tool we use to set the A/F mixture on the S/C P-928. We use a rising rate fuel pressure regulator to bump up the fuel delivery curve of the original Bosch LH (ECM) map, in proportion to the boost. This cute little tool allows us to see real-time A/F ratios and to quickly adjust the RRFPR. The add-ons allow storing and graphing other data sources ( we record actual fuel pressure, RPM, and boost) against the A/F data. Which would be great if we could bend the map, but there's no PC III for that ECU. As it is, the proportional fuel pressure boost works well in the 6-9 PSI boost range.

Dave, if Jim gets the Centauro registration thing figured, for Canada, I may just pursue ownership of the only champaign Lemans in Canada.

There should be 2 sensors on the induction side........ temp and pressure. The temp sensor can probably live outside the induction system, but it may have the potential to give too high a reading in a rapid restart situation after sitting above a hot engine for a number of minutes. The induction pressure sensor will throw an inaccurate value for certain, if it lives outside the induction system. I don't care how great those "pod" filters are supposed to be, there will be a depression inside vs outside, and the amount of difference will correspond to the throttle position. This can't be good for drivability.

Owning multiple motorcycles in Canada!! That's just nuts!!

Sweet......... very Centauro-esque!!

I've reviewed the posts on fork spring setup for the Marz equiped V11 Sports, and have concluded that I'll need the 1.05 kg/mm units, but I can't find the needed numbers for free length and coil diameter, in order to acertain that I'm ordering the correct units. Does anyone have this information??

OK, Jim... I want you to keep a detailed journal of this process. If your experience nets me the #2 Canadian registered Moto Jimoozy Centauro, the beer's on me! By the way, how the hell did you even get it across the border?? (or is it still on a tourist visa??) My freakin' LEGAL V11 Sport is still hung up on the wrong side of the damn border!