txrider

That's disappointing to hear because the V11 has everything I want except for the nagging concern about imminent shift return pawl spring failure and the seat/riding position which I could have addressed but instead had to open my trap about selling. Of course you're right about doing a long test ride to tell for sure. I like the Sport 1200 looks, the 6 gallon tank and some of the refinements that have been incorporated into the newer model Guzzis but I hate to give up the torque, sweet running and handling my bike has for a newer, less performing machine. Sellers remorse already... And thanks for the input.

Sorry I didn't get any takers on the question concerning bearing preload but the work went well including cleaning and regreasing the bearings which again, looked like new. I used a bearing adjustment method of applying approx 5 lbs torq then backing off 1/8 turn which produced a smooth but controlled turn in of the front end and considerable improvement from the previous "floppy" feel. Problem now is I've agreed to sell it and I have seller's remorse after taking it out this morning. Crap. Looking ahead though I have a plan of acquiring a Breva 1200S but have an impression it is an altogether different bike than this 2004 LeMans. Anyone ride the two bikes I'd like to hear your impressions.

I found some leakage at the TDC sensor/pickup on my bike also. Removal of the sensor showed what appeared to be an undersized o-ring as the leak cause. Once that was replaced with a one a size larger cross section and re-inforced with some Yama-Bond all has been well since.

First, this marks a long overdue return and I like the new look. Also see some new names as well as old ones missing. But to the point- My 2004 LM has been parked for months and as I unmothball it I want to correct a looseness in the steering evidenced by too free a movement in the handlebars particularly noticeable when moving the bike around in the garage. So I decided to remove the steering stem and check for lubrication while attending to this since my bike showed dry joints at critical points in earlier work. There was grease in both bearings sets by the way. Finally to my question- My factory shop manual is next to useless in describing preload set of the steering stem bearings. Is there a torque preload, then back off a prescribed amount, or what? Can you experienced wrenches advise on the best way to do this? Objective is to have free movement without too much drag I know but I'd like to know the recommended way to proceed. Thanks in advance for any pointers on this.

I tried a variety of solvents and found that max strength paint stripper worked better than most but still required some wire brushing. Berryman's Chemtool only softened the stuff.

Try clicking "Options", located upper r/h then select "standard". All of thread then shows.

I'm surprised and pretty bummed out by this news. Don't know the issues but I'm a big admirer of MPH for the kind way they treated me with my first dumb questions several years ago when I got into Guzzis. And Todd has been first rate in parts service and response. Here in Texas they were the go-to guys on parts and service and I'm sorry to see them end the Guzzi corporate connection. Mike and Todd, you guys will be missed by all but I hope you will continue, as Pete said, with service and repair work.

I noticed this on my bike (2004 LM) too right after I bought it used. After putting some miles on it the squeak stopped. Sounded like the clutch splines with some clutch debris in there.

Not to add to any dissension here but I think docc has a valid point.

I agree those caliper piston seals need to be looked at for heat damage. By design/application they're selected to handle high heat but those pictures show an extreme heat situation. There are lots of bikes that have rear calipers mounted under the axle like the Lemans does and yet have little problem. I guess the inverted bleed nipple could be contributing to the problem but could be the caliper isn't well suited to the application. In any case I want to pass along an experience on brake bleeding we had recently in hopes that it might confirm something already mentioned. Last Friday a buddy and I could not get a firm front brake lever on his K12RS. I figured all the ABS plumbing was partly to blame and had finally brought the Vacula vacuum system out for an ultimate attack on the problem. After a run with that we had improvement but still a spongy lever. Then we dismounted one caliper, removed the pads and pushed in each of the 4 pistons. Big result with air bubbles and fluid rushing up into the master cylinder. After repeating that process a couple of times on both front calipers we had the best brake lever he'd ever experienced on that K12. So, I suggest the ultimate bleed is to dismount the rear caliper, clean it up ( pistons extended to get out all the crud) then press the pistons in to displace any air/fluid mix that might be in there. Cautionary note- Use a paper towel to cover the open mastercylinder top as fluid can shoot up and out when this is done. Another idea I want to try is to use a dry film lube like Dupont's Teflon/Krytox General Purpose lube on the caliper pistons. This might contribute to keeping those pistons free moving through all the crud/brake dust buildup. Dunno but I'm going to give it a try and will post any results.

Greg, Todd, Pete thanks for your input on this. And dlaing, the link you provided was informative. Thanks all.

Thanks for the response guys and you're right, Todd about the product name. As usual I managed to mangle the spelling, it is Sil-Glyde I used. Not too happy to learn it isn't suitable for caliper piston seals, however. I was mislead by the product description as being suitable for "Brake pads, calipers, rubber boots, fan belts, V-belts, weather stripping, trunk seals and bumpers, speedometer cables, window channels, hood strips and pads, and rubber gaskets". Hopefully I won't see problems stemming from my woops. Brakes are too critical to be experimenting with but I had hoped to improve the brake performance another step over caliper cleaning. One brake pad was dragging a bit due to a semi-stuck piston although the calipers had had a recent cleaning (well, 3000 miles ago). A reclean and lube freed up things nicely but that's after a very limited test and few miles. I found it interesting when working the pistons in and out of their bores just how stiffly and what lack of movement they exhibited even when spotlessly clean. Of course, they only have to move a very short distance ( a few thou) to do the job. The lube fixed that but for how long and with what long term results I can't be certain. I'll let you guys know as this gets more of a trial.

I'd like to pose a question about brake caliper seals and lubricating- I've read somewhere about using an application-specific lubricant for lubing caliper piston seals to extend seal life and improve brake feedback/sensitivity so I did this using a NAPA product, Sylgard. That is after cleaning all the gunk out of the caliper, extending pistons far enough out to clean and lube as well. Due to inclement weather I've only done a short ride but the improvement was noticeable. So, in my rambling way I'm getting to the point- For the experienced pros like Greg Field, Pete Roper, Todd Haven what is your take on this? Recommended? Have you tried this? Problem with contaminating brake fluid?

My 2004 LeMans might be diferent from your bike but I changed out the grips with no partucular problem. Slid a phillips screwdriver between the barrel and grip, put a couple shots of WD 40 in there and removed the grip. Of course this required a throrough cleaning after to remove all traces of WD 40. I seem to recall a raised rib pattern on the throttle barrel but this presented no issue wuth the new Oury Roadgrips I used. These are slightly larger outside diameter than the originals and to me are more comfortable.

Thanks for the link, dailing, I read the bit about passivation and realize this could be a source of further problems. So, no more steel wool on stainless pipes for me. And I regret if I mislead anyone with the info I posted. Now where can I find that finest grade Scotchbrite? Is it white?

And "sprout " rust spots? I used this process to brighten the exhaust sytem, remove light oxidation and some deeper reddish brown corrosion near the head and to date, 15 months later it looks pretty good with the gold hue having returned but no rust. Of course my bike hasn't been ridden but a couple of thousand miles since the work was done.

SemiChrome metal polish used with 0000 steel wool makes the pipes look as new...in fact better. Do the rubbing/scrubbing around the circumference of the pipes for best results.

I don't have the miles nor the cable replacements to prove this works but try mixing 1:1 moly (like Kalgard Engine Guard) with Mobil1 10w-30 and see if that works better as a cable lube. Then take the time to dribble this into the cable up top at throttle barrel until it comes out the other end. It is messy, but it certainly improves throttle action/ease of use.

You're welcome and the Tuono owner is mucho happy.

I screwed up and scratched a new Leo Vince pipe on a Tuono last week. A red rubber eraser rubbed along the scratch removed the darkened line and continued rubbing began to wear down the sharp edges. I finished with light polishing using a Bounty paper towel and SemiChrome metal polish. Now, after a couple of heat cycles the two relatively deep scratches are just about invisible.

Amsoil in engine, tranny and bevel drive with moly added to bevel drive.

Ratchet, we used to produce curved instrument panels like used in throttle and flap quadrants and we used ovens to first heat the acrylic (not polycarbonate) to 260f, removed it from the oven using thick gloves then laid it down over forms and cinched tight using band clamps. When cooled we had the correct curvature and dimension. Once the yield temp is reached the stuff is very flexible, almost like spaghetti and requires some kind of support during cooling. My best judgement from doing this kind of work is that a heat gun is too localized, that is it does not maintain desired yield temp over a large enough area to give predictable results. As for cutting, I've used a saber saw with the finest metal cutting blade I could find and fed the saw slowly to avoid too much heat. Excessive heat can cause stress crazing which appear as tiny cracks in the cut edge. Face the material with 2" masking tape to protect the surface. Finishing edges is best done with a palm sander beginning with 120-150 grit paper then 220, then 400. Last paper grit of 600 will give a nice edge. If you want smoother finish MicroTech paper goes all the way up to 8000 grit but the sample packs come in 2" x 4" squares. I've used 1500 grit then Novus #2 polishing compound to finish out scratched acrylic/polycarbonate windshields with good results.

Greg. Pete and co., thanks for the response and explaining oil levels and a different approach in dipstick checking. Gives me something to think about when I do my oil change tomorrow. Makes one think that between oil starvation under hard acceleration on the one hand and oil pushed out of the sump and into the breather system on the other we don't have much room for variance in oil levels.

Greg, with all due respect, realizing you work on these things as a vocation, when you state the factory manual is wrong that runs up a red flag for me and I naturally want to ask- how do you know this to be true? Has MG advised this with a tech bulletin or is there some other authoratative source to substantiate this? And don't get me wrong, I'm not the challenging sort, just want to be sure of what I'm doing with my bike. I'd hate to overfill and then have windage and weird pressure signs with oil running up and out strange places. (More guzzichondria there, huh?)