Dan M

A radial insert type plug is best. I've been using them for decades. That's the sticky brown rope type. We've repaired hundreds of car tires with this product and at least a couple dozen motorcycle tires. We rarely have a problem, when there is a leak it is generally because the injury was too big to begin with. I've never, ever seen one come out. Ratchet is correct on the reason of why it is usually the rear, the front tire flips up the object. True on any vehicle.

Sorry to hear this Foxy, mend quickly. The bike doesn't sound too bad. I hope the bad luck is behind you now. Ahh yes, the SUV driving, cell phone chatting maiden. Scourge of the North American roadway.

wear your safety glasses

Tom, I think you should experiment on the back side. Scotch-brite 07447 very fine is not going make a big change without quite a bit of rubbing. If you need to get more aggressive start with "fine" or "medium" and then move to very fine. It's possible you'll have to go over the whole can to make it completely even but I don't think it would be too much work. I just did some old goldwing valve covers for a friend. Used the above mentioned Scotch-brite to remove the clear coat and it left a very nice brushed finish. I ended up polishing them but an even brushed finish was easy to obtain, at least on aluminum.

I do have a PCIII and map adjustments will be needed I'm sure. I havn't found a qualified dyno in my area yet but I do have a 4 gas analyzer and may play with some maps I already have. I have been running an off the shelf map that I tweeked primarily at low rpm & low throttle openings. The bike now has M4 carbon cans, a FBF crossover and modified air box lid. I don't have any pinging issues. I'll report my results.

Mike Rich pistons. I'm expecting delivery today or tomorrow

Maybe he was goin' downtown to scoot his old guzzi... edit- or perhaps he was goin' downtown to get a new relay...

I have to chime in here. Yesterday I stopped at my local "dealer". The place is currently Triumph / Moto Guzzi with Aprilia on the horizon. Recently they were a Suzuki dealer but no more and for decades ending several years ago they carried BMW. I needed an oil filter for my BMW and cylinder base gaskets for my V11. Now he hasn't been a BMW dealer since the turn of the century but had a filter for me. No luck on the base gaskets for the Moto Guzzi though. I've tried to buy other various MG parts from him in the past with little luck. My next step was to try the other two newer area dealers each about 15-20 miles from me, both under the same ownership. The call to the first one netted me a phone company recording of the line being disconnected. My call to the second one informed me that they do not stock many MG parts and they take "about a week" to get. So I call old reliable Todd H. The gaskets are on the shelf, I added some CRG levers to the order and he said they would ship this afternoon. I only wish they would open a branch close by.

It is true, a second language is not taught here at an early age. The average student has a year or two of foreign language in high school which is forgotten quickly. As Mattress said, it is not like Europe here with many small countries and languages close together. Up until fairly recently, the opportunity to use another language didn't present itself often. Spanish is quickly becoming our "second" language though, and many people (like myself) have found the need to learn at least some of it to conduct day to day business. When traveling in Europe, I can usually get by OK as least with Spanish & Italian but feel like a "stupid American" for not being multi-lingual.

Ben, These are cool, where are they from?

I'll bet there are plenty that don't want to drive the price up till the last minutes. Watch it soar as the end nears.

Wouldn't be bad if it wasn't for the yellow valve covers and wheels, black front fender, green & white stripes on the tank, or red piping on the stepped seat. Other than that, nice choices.

Here's the response I got form EMA on the subject of PVM wheels: We do not stock wheels for the Moto Guzzi and the factory is not accepting special orders for the next 6 months due to their expansion project. The PVM wheels come with their own cush drive system, they do not use the OEM parts. If you want to check back after the summer they would be available in all of the current spoke designs. Maybe one more season on the stockers

I just went in to my stock room and looked at a few filters. While I have no UFIs here at work, I do have about 70 filters on the shelf from 4 different brands. Every one has either on the box or printed on the filter itself, how to install. The routine is clean the surface, lubricate the gasket with clean oil. Tighten 3/4 - 1 full turn after the gasket makes contact with the surface. I have never seen a torque spec for a spin on filter. The issue is not by hand or by tool but how far you turn it. If you can get a full turn by hand it is not likely to loosen. The hose clamp is good insurance if you loose sleep over it. If you are installing a filter through the access hole then you better use a tool because you will not get a full turn by hand.

Yea, Chicago cops will take the license number, shrug and that will be that. His insurance on the other hand will do some good with that number.

Anyone know if the PVMs have a cush drive? I'm afriad after all this waiting, I'm off the spokes too.

Please Jaap! Please!, put it out of it's misery now.

Got a reply from Paolo today. The next stock of wheels won't be available until after April 10th. The price is 1900 + 90 euros for shipping - (2625.00)to the US. Concerning weight he wrote: "The weight is quite similar compared to the original wheels, the really improvement is on the lowering of the rotating bulk. you can follow this link to find more informations: http://www.alpinaraggi.it/flash_content/it...uperm_naked.pdf " Hmm... the old rotating bulk story. Is this to say these wheels carry their weight closer to the center? Also, does this mean that people who install these on their Ducatis or Aprilias are actually increasing the wheel weight?!? The fact that they weigh the same is disappointing. I'd like to hear from Max Scura about the handling. Is there any noticeable difference? Maybe his switch was all about cosmetics

When you link to it there is a Union Jack on the right of the screen. Click on it for the site in English.

Hey Eric, Go ahead it's quite easy. I just put a set on my LeMans. Once you remove your gas tank and air box, the installation it is straight forward and the parts fit well. Sometimes manual bleeding of the hydraulics is difficult. I do have a vacuum bleeder though which makes quick work of it. Some have had good luck with speed bleeders. Good luck.

It was certainly worth it! I'm afraid if Guzzi did this the woman would be quite a bit heavier, especially in the rear.

Jaap, If it is leaking from in between the two halves (C+D) in your illustration, there are o-rings in there that are easily replaced and likely of a common enough size to find at any auto supply. If the fuel is coming out of the lower nipple on "D" then the diaphragm has gone tits up and the only fix it to replace it. As Ratchet said, you might as well take apart and see. Good luck.

Hey Ratch, Did you ever get a reply from Marz on the manual for the 40mm units?

They are a little slow to answer an e-mail but when I ordered my cardan bar I just used the website. When you link from here click on the union jack to convert it to english. Enter the shop, then the webshop, then aluminum accessories. The cardan bars are for the V11. Select the color you want and add it to your basket. You'll have it amazingly fast.

That's one handsome pig Martin. Looks big enough to hold a substantial motorcycle fund.