tmcafe

Sure it's naive, but I still find it hard to understand. If it hadn't been for the obsessive dedication of less than a handful of top notch dealers, along with Guzzisti, Moto Guzzi probably would have never survived in this country, perhaps even at all, given its microscopic market share. And Piaggio couldn't care less... Very sad. On a similar note, apparently our local dealer has already dropped everything Piaggio, including Aprilia and Guzzi, leaving BMW, Ducati and Triumph in their line-up. Back in December they'd told me it was going to happen, but didn't think it would be so fast.

Thanks again for the suggestions. Here's some stuff you might find interesting: Geeky stuff about screws

Thanks! Sure looks like a mess. I should have added that I had no problem removing the screw with a Philips. In fact at first glance I too thought it was a buggered-up Philips, then same for Posidrive. What's the chance of encountering another one like it? Also I wonder if Luigi decided to use the odd screw head in connection with the fact that of the two screws on the light switch cover, the odd/fake Posidrive is much longer than the reg. Philips. Good info, I'll look it up.

The head of the fore screw on the light switch assy looks somewhat like a tamper proof thing (the aft screw has a Philips head). Forgot what it's called and can't find any info. Also I'm wondering why Luigi put this kind of screw opposite to the reg Philips. Was it somehow intended not to be messed with? PS Sorry to ask one more thing unrelated to this subforum: how do I get the pics more reduced in size? (to be clicked for enlargement rather than be shown full size?). On my iphone I do see them reduced to 25-60 % but not on the computer. Trying to avoid taking too much space on the forum.

Thanks! I actually removed the top halves of the clamps and the bar so I could position the bar to to slide out the "choke"--the Cafe/Ballabio h-bar is very wide and the cables won't reach that far. Actually I noticed that what looked like two rivets on the "choke" cover were (logically) 2mm Allen flat head sunk screws. My bad--or I could blame it on the darkness inside the garage. Anyway, I removed everything, including the clamp bottoms and bolt assemblies. In the images you can tell the damage. However, although I'll replace all parts, some of them look fine, including the handlebar itself, even all clamps and RH bolt assembly. The LH clamp assy was worse, so much that the bolt could not be pulled out of the bushing, and I had to tap out the whole assembly from top triple. Pics: "Choke" case. Handlebar and clamps misaligned RH clamp bolt assy (this one looks okay) LH clamp bolt assy (whacked) I think the rubber in the clamp assembly fortunately helped avoid worse damage. Now how is the new bar supposed to be positioned? There are punch marks for transverse placement, but as far as rotation, not sure. Any idea? Thanks again!!

Thanks everybody for the tips so far! I've already removed all the stuff on the RH side, and partly on the LH side. Now to the tricky part: I have no clue how to remove the fast idle lever. There are no screws on the light switch side. (see pic) It seems to be attached to the clutch M/C assy where that black plastic pin is. It also seems to have a cover that snaps into 2 slots in the case, but not sure if I can remove it. So far I've removed the rear half of the M/C/mirror assy, but the damn "choke" cover is still there, and I don't want to break anything while trying to pry it open. Tips? Throttle cables were easy to remove once I loosened one of them enough to pull out the nipple from its slot in the twist grip. However, the rubber sleeves on the metal/plastic throttle cable casing are really tight, silicone spray and all, as if they're not meant to be peeled out. The screw/locknut adjustment inside seemed to have some sticky stuff on it. The 2 nuts on the bottom of the twist grip case just tighten the metal tubes on the cables in the best position. I may be wrong but the only way to loosen either cable seems to try to get to the screw-and-locknut assy underneath the rubber sleeves. I tried to hold the throttle open at the engine end on both sides but it didn't seem to help loosen the grip ends enough. The on/off engine switch was easy to remove, and as mentioned, it has a small pin that goes in a hole in the handlebar. There are also a couple punch marks aft on the bar where the switch is supposed to go. Happy I didn't have to remove/loosen any other fasteners or zip ties, except for the ones numbered 1 and 2 in the RH underside pic. I taped everthing together to the fairing to hold it in place instead of letting all the controls hanging. On the LH side removing the grip was a breeze. No air (don't have compressed anyway), just two puffs of Ru-Glyde (I've had it around since I did tires/tubes a couple times for the other bike) at both ends was enough to work that slimy stuff under the grip, which was removed with no effort. Next was the light switch--again it has a pin that goes in one of the 2 holes on the bar (why 2--perhaps for other bikes' controls?). I can't really tell if the bar is bent (I'll replace it anyway), only the clamps are totally out of whack: maybe they were designed to take the brunt of impact in a fall and get destroyed while protecting more important components such as top triple, steering stem, even handlebar? It appears that the clamps won't be hard to remove. Any suggestions about the "choke" assembly? Thanks again!

Just after Luigi made the sensor tip out of copper (perhaps according to Dr John's well though-out specs), he realized that he was going to run out of Lire and decided that plastico was going to save costs? Kind of like encasing an expensive gem in some cheap alloy cause you can't afford gold anymore? The shop manual otoh mentions that the case is plastic. Maybe they wanted to protect the sensor from outside temp, so that the tip would only pick up what's inside the cyl head? Bakelite would have prolly worked better. But surely the sensor was intended to pick up as much of the temp, and iirc Pete R saw some bikes that had come from factory with grease packed around sensor. Somehow i suspect it's Luigi who ran out of "soldi" rather than a piece of crumbling crap with a high end purpose.

Hello everybody, Weather is a bit milder, day a bit longer, and I got a little time to work on my bike again (maybe you remember: while parked at the curb, a van backed into it and bike fell over the sidestand--in the meantime I did get a check from the drivers insurance). Other than lots of cosmetic bits and broken brake pedal, the handlebar and clamps were bent. I already got the most important parts from Moto Int. including some said to be hard to find. Now to the handlebar, clamps, and my mechanical ineptitude (combined with being stubborn and still wanting to understand and get things done): mirrors and Moto I. bar ends already removed, and I did my homework here and in the manuals, but still have some basic questions. For ease of explaining, here's a view: 1. How do I remove the throttle cables and grip? I don't actually want to remove the cables, just detach them from the twist grip. I'm thinking of loosening the cable by removing (or pushing open) the engine end of the cables, then removing the nipples from the handlebar twist grip. Also, there are the 2 nuts that attach the metal cable guides to the bottom half of the cables' grip housing. Do they need to be removed/loosened? Pics: 2. Starter/kill switch housing removal-tips? 3. Brake M/C removal-tips? 4. Is the LH eft grip glued to the handlebar? If so, can it be loosened with some heat? 5. LH light switch removal-tips? Pic: 6. LH (Clutch) M/C removal-tips? 7. Handlebar clamps removal/reinstall: do I need to remove upper triple clamp to access any parts from underneath (see diagram above)? Even a few tips or do's and dont's can be very helpful, be it only to avoid any moments. Thanks in advance!!

Another thing that's been discussed already and experienced by more than one of us was that the Guzzi OEM stand often seems to have a wider than desired span between the points where the bolts sticking out of the porkchops are supposed to rest. Perhaps paradoxically this makes it more likely to scratch the porkchops because all the fiddling it takes to position the stand so it won't look like the bike will collapse if you sneeze When I get a chance I'll try ratchet's suggested fixes to narrow the shopstand's span. And coating the tips helps--I've used some tape.

Whaddaya mean? Were they really named "bests" by some mag? Curious...

+1

Uhh....nobody ever picked those as "best". But seriously, the more time goes by, the more endearing, if not fascinating, some of the famous lemons become. Just do a search for Wartburg 313. And with the stroker engine and rarity, I'm sure it's a pretty nice collectible.

Not the first time nor the last, I'm sure: Worst Bests It would be interesting to see a bike mag do the same about their (and others') bests.

Now that the thread is completely off track , here's one plane that I'd love to see, not to mention fly. For reasons of national origin and more, I'm partial to it, but it also kicked butt against the most decorated US mission in WWII, along with Bf-109s. Sadly none are left, and the bolsheviks confiscated all documentation and turned the factory into a tractor plant: Story Details

This confirms that the guy is a wacko either way. The scary part about this regressive fascistoid drivel (I guess there's some kind of shit like this in most nations) is that a bit of that is present on a much larger scale. Also while there's something unique about Harley, no doubt (who knows, one day I may give in) the righteous cowboy crap like highwayman's delirium is like a parasitic growth--or more like a symbiotic relationship, as it feeds on Harley and Harley has been feeding on it as well. Good thing Guzzi isn't plagued by this kind of legend. As for the plane stuff, I couldn't agree more. I hate flying and never feel secure, screw the statistics. However, a buddy who flies his own airplanes had me join him on several flights around the area, which I was happy to do. Both planes were old trainers (like 1947). Those were the only times I really enjoyed flying, and I felt very comortable, despite the fact that I was cramped like hell in the tiny cockpit. I guess bikes and airplanes like that feel more like living creatures (what's the plural of Pegasus?

That whole "real motorcycling" thread is a blast

Actually you guys over there are just jealous 'cause you don't know what Real Bikes! are about and (rather scary if you look at this stuff as a token for bigger shit ).

Guess we all know what you mean. Speaking of Japanese in-line fours, I often wonder just how much they would differ from each other if they were to be spray painted in the same color. On a different note, here's a gem from one of those "rebels" for which the V11 is some "jap crap" like somebody mentioned in a previous post Sorry, couldn't resist: "Real Bikers" "Real Rebels"

Aye aye, Sir Cdr Ratchethack! Will refill and check oil per Guzzi ditch pump standards! PS I appreciate the reply--but still want a clean mug

Thanks Ratch and Pete for re-explaining clear enough even for me not only why the oil level can be raised safely under the plate, but also why it's better to raise it (by adding about .5 qts to the 4 qts--which is already more than the barely sufficient factory spec). So when Pete says this means adding a little less than the extra .5 qt? (as in "fill with 4.5 qts plus/minus 100-200 ml)? (my understanding is that less extra oil will create less extra crankase pressure while still having the oil level raised enough for safety). Sorry if I sound like a nitpicking nerd, just wanting to understand

Totally dumb question, but why is it better to go up to 4.5 qts instead of just 4qts? In fact I see that Pete feels it's better to err on the "less oil" side rather than on the "more" if the oil level under the plate is to vary. That makes sense given the known problems of too much oil. Got the plate a while ago but never got around to install it. Will do it as soon as I get a chance (in the meantime I'm getting the parts to make the bike roadworthy again--I did get a check from the driver's insurance). And weather sucks now...

Ha, ha, ha... Now that I'm thinking, maybe Harley rebels/Abate could actually fight helmet laws by invoking "juju" (put in there by foreign helmet mfgs to hurt 'murkin' bikers). And they could back a study to that effect, proving that pumpkins have been shown to be far more effective at keeping 'juju' away

Not sure if the Harley "rebels" would consider this . Thinking of some Wehrmacht-style models too: Veggie Rebels