Tom M

Welcome Hoggbert and congratulations on your new V11! Those look like perfect roads for your new bike. Too bad the weather didn't completely cooperate. Handlebar vibes could be normal or they could be due to something else. At what rpm are they bothering you? You should generally try and keep rpms above 3000. Your bike should be really smooth at 5k rpm. Other possible cause are throttle bodies aren't balanced or some engine mounting bolts are loose. I agree with guy that you should ride the bike a while before deciding if you really need to change anything. If you do decide to change things the motobits kit that Vincez mentioned are very nice. It's pretty easy to mount higher bars too. There's plenty of info in the FAQ and in various threads here if you decide to go that route. Best of luck with your new ride!

Since I didn't see it mentioned in this thread I'd like to point out that it's easy to adjust the valve lash without pulling the alternator cover or looking for the marks on the flywheel as long as you can raise the rear wheel. Here's what I do. Please let me know if you see a flaw in this method... - Raise the rear wheel with the factory work stand. - Remove both spark plugs and both rocker covers. - Roll the rear wheel forward by hand while shifting up to 6th gear. - Turn the engine over with the rear wheel until I see the intake valve on the right cylinder open then close. As soon as it closes that piston will be on the compression stroke. - Put a probe in that cylinder and slowly bump the rear wheel forward while letting the probe slip through your fingers as the piston ascends. When the piston goes past TDC you will feel the piston break contact with the probe. Bump the rear wheel slightly backward to find TDC. - Check and adjust lash on that cylinder as needed then run the rear wheel through a few rotations and recheck at TDC on the compression stroke. I use .006" (.15mm) intake/.008" (.20mm) exhaust. - Repeat for left side. (I checked my probe method against using a dial indicator for finding TDC and I found that I could easily come within .005" of true TDC with the probe, which is plenty close enough for this job.) Hope this helps someone, Tom

It takes less than 10 minutes to remove the fairing. I usually just pull it before removing my rocker covers. Lee, I believe most here use .006"/.15mm intake and .008"/.20mm exhaust. (Oops. edited for decimal point fault)

The big one.

Vinyl tubing [clear fuel line hose, fridge water supply line, air pump hose from the tropical fish pet supply, etc], water and food coloring [so the water isn't invisible] can do the trick in a pinch, it just takes a LOT more hose and column height vs. using mercury as the working fluid. Safer tho', if something goes awry... Best o' luck! That's pretty much what I did four or five years ago. Clear tubing, scrap lumber, a yardstick and a little ATF. It still works fine.

I can't help with the paint but I do know of two ways to get the filter out. One is buy one of those stamped steel oil filter sockets that fits your filter from a local auto parts store. The other way is remove the screws around the perimeter of the oil pan and drop it to access the filter. If this bike is new to you it's possible that the previous owner installed a hose clamp on the oil filter to prevent it from loosening on it's own. If he did you will have to drop the oil pan.

Congrat's on getting your Rosso on the road Lee! Did you sync the throttle bodies during your tuneup? Having them synced will help keep the vibes down. I got a pair of very heavy bar ends from Moto I years ago. They helped a lot with vibes that I got after installing standard handlebars without cushion mounts. They fit my Ballabio bars so I'm sure they'd fit the stock clipons.

The only way that I can bleed the clutch is with the rear wheel out so I'd say that's your best bet. I put a few turns of teflon tape on the bleeder threads when I use the mityvac to prevent the air leakage there. My bike already had aftermarket front brake lines on it when I bought it so I can't say if there's anything tricky about removing the stock lines. It looks pretty straightforward in the parts diagram. Just don't get any fluid on the paint.

Good to know that you're still around and doing OK big J! That Griso should be the dogs danglies (a term I learned from you). Post up a pic once you seal the deal.

JRT had a writeup with pictures on here a few years back on how to install standard handlebars on a V11 Sport. I don't think it's here anymore . I followed his instructions and installed a set of Ballabio bars & risers that I found on ebay. Something to consider if you try this on a LeMans is fairing clearance. The Ballabio riser have about a 55mm rise and an 8mm setback. The handlebars would have hit the fairing without the setback or with more rise. My bars just barely cleared the fairing at full lock once I repositioned the clutch and brake fluid reservoirs. If you go to wider bars on a LeMans you will find the stock mirrors completely useless. I could only see my arms even when I still had the clipons so I installed Buell mirrors with longer stalks.

Yes. That's what it says in the linked article.

Here's a sharp looking Cafe that one of our members had a hand in building. http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2013/03/greydog-guzzi-greydog-guzzi/

I had an issue a few years back where my fuel pump was not consistently priming when I turned the key on or cycled the kill switch. I eventually figured out that I could make it prime every time by moving the wire loom around at the ecu connector. My ecu was mounted with the connector facing up and apparently the seat base had been flexing and hitting it which eventually cracked an etch in the ecu PC board. I installed my other TI ecu with the connector facing down and haven't had any problems with the fuel pump since then. If the bike in question has the same symptoms that I had and the ECU is mounted with the connector facing up the mechanic might want to try moving the wires around with the key on to see if that makes the pump prime. If so it's probably either a wiring or an ECU problem.

I too have had the gearshift stick down when downshifting on a very hot day. I could lift it with my boot so it wasn't a big problem, it just wasn't returning to center on it's own. Like you I also assumed it was the preselector shaft sticking in it's bore because I had recently cleaned and lubed my shift linkage. The next time that I had it apart for a pawl spring change I greased that shaft before I reassembled the preselector. I don't remember the shifter ever sticking since then so that might have helped. Also it could be that the gearbox just wasn't as hot as when the shifter stuck in the past too.

I really liked the way my bike handled with the Road Attacks but they only lasted about 4k miles for me. I see that Conti now has a Road Attack GT that's supposed to last longer. I'll probably give them a try when I wear out the Michelins that I have now.

Hello Lamedog! Good to see that you're still here. No need to disconnect the PCIII and as far as I know the idle TPS setting should be the same regardless of which ECU you have. I set to 530mv @ 1100rpm. I think the 521mv is for a 1050rpm idle? Either way you should be fine.

Sorry to see you go Okie! Now who's going to remind us when to make our annual donations? Good luck with the sale and with your flying

Welcome back Piper1! I'm no electrical wiz but I'll take a shot at it. That connector might be for the kickstand switch. What color wires go into it? My bike has a light red and a white wire coming from the wire harness to the KS switch, and two yellow wires going to the switch itself. The battery light definitely shouldn't be on with the key out so my guess is you have a problem with the ignition switch. The kill switch on the handlebar will prevent the fuel pump from priming. You might want to give that a quick check with an ohm meter to make sure it's working. I assume that you've checked the fuses. Something else that you might want to consider is a full set of new relays from dpguzzi.com. They're pretty cheap and help rule out a flaky relay. Hopefully Roy or somebody else with better electrical system knowledge will weigh in soon...

Hi Gio, I really liked a set of Conti Road Attacks that I had a while back except that they wore out too quickly. I see that they're advertising a high mileage version of that tire now so I might give them a try the next time I change tires. I liked the Angel ST but I was a little disappointed with their mileage too. I'm currently running Michelin Pilot Road III and I have no absolutely complaints other than cost. They corner well and so far they seem to be wearing very well.

Joe, The pop rivets that I used are 3/16" diameter (5mm) x 1/8" long (3mm). Stephano, A good IPA always makes wrenching a little less stressfull . Harpoon is good stuff but I have a new favorite...

Hi Joe, The rivets are standard aluminum pop rivets sold at any harware or home improvement store. Sorry but I don't remember the pop rivet size. I'll check when I get home and try to get back to you this weekend. 3M Scotchbrite pads works really well for restoring the brushed finish on the Ti cans. I used a fine grade gray colored pad and blended in some strap marks perfectly. The titanium sleeve is very thin and easy to work. I didn't need to add heat to get the results above. Tom

Fantastic job Paul! If I didn't already have VDST and a power commander I would be all over this. I still might give it a shot at some later date...

IIRC someone here reported a poorly routed tail light wire that rubbed through and shorted out at the back of his '04. You might want to check that area.

I'm the guy who suggested flipping the ECU on wildguzzi. I had an ECU ruined by my seat base flexing and contacting the ECU plug when it was facing up. Here's my thread on the subject: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=14852&hl=etch&do=findComment&comment=160520

If it's the rear brake caliper that's sticking believe it or not this is fairly common, even on V11s that are ridden regularly. The brake pistons tend to stick because they are mounted under the swingarm so they collect a lot of crud. I have to clean mine about every 3-4k miles.