footgoose

very well done and informative Pete. Thank you.

really nice motorcycle. I love the owner comments

I'd like a copy of those cartoons when finished please ...

I can't speak to the knee surgery but can speak to the dark thoughts of an ageing motorcyclist. I'm 71 and in great shape...for 71 and it's a lot harder to move the bikes around in the shop than it used to be. The V11 is the easiest to maneuver among my five bikes because it carries it's weight low, but I don't think I could pick it up from a fall over. At some point we all have to consider the possibility of diminished abilities. Motorcycling is very important to me, and my simple plan is to not acquire any more bikes at or near 500 pounds. The Tenni will be my last big bike. It is very easy for me to ride her now and I hope I can for a very long time. I can't imagine ever getting rid of her. Arthritis in the left hand makes clutching painful with some bikes, but not the Tennis' lightened setup. I have a lightweight DR650 that will be there for me if-when I get too decrepit. I've also had the inspiration from several riding buddies over the years whom I've watched deal with some serious sht and managed to persevere with two wheels (well, Bill's foot was torn off in a crash and he finally got a 3 wheeler). Mark is 78 and with knee pain rides a Bergman with a home-made seat, and it's amazing how fast he rides.

I want to second this post and especially the "it is still good basic maintenance." part. Actually to the point of putting this in the top 3 items to address for new owners. I watched and listened to forum members and when I finally got around to it (regulator/rectifier went bad) I did this: cleaned and brushed/scraped/sanded all surfaces from batt to case (see docc's post) THEN added another wire (same as batt ground) from case forward to a bolt on the frame, and then another from there to the R/R. I used DeOxit and star lock washers at all points. (made me feel better) Potential grounding failure at these points are known and should be addressed first.

That is surprising!

MGCycles has a Lot of my money. I go there first. For replacement oem stuff AF1 or Harpers. Harpers used to have many items in stock, not guaranteed anymore these days. I always call if I think it's something they are just going to order from Italy AFter I pay for it. Sometimes they come back to me with "NLA." Some items are laying around in obscure dealership parts bins and that takes some work and patience to find. For something "unobtainable" I will always get the p/n and put it into my ebay search notifications. It has served me very well. As far as Guzzi goes, as long as you keep passion for your bike, you won't be disappointed.

just scroll up Bill.... Thanks again for the coverage of yet another good time.

you win docc!

I like Sardines. I keep 20- 30 tins in my rotation of canned/dried foods at all times. Not a "survivalist" thing, just a modest store of sustenance that'll keep me from going shopping when it's inconvenient. And the 'best by' dates are about 3 years. What's not to like... good tasting protein quick and easy, and just the right amount. Usually a lunch for me about 3 times a month. Omega 3's, low on the food chain so no load of mercury like all the big fishies. High in sodium but I don't worry about that. My dad got me started as a kid. He had them as a snack with some beers on the weekend but liked all those sauces in the tin. I didn't much care for those. These days I avoid the skin and bones (tho those add healthy benefits) and just get the cleaned fillets. Still under TWO bucks! All the brands I have are from Morocco. What do you think makes these cost $7. It probably says but I don't speak French...

Where did you order from? I'm curious how it fastens. Any other info/reviews out there?

^^^ ditto

I know the feeling of covered in canvas. at least yer not blue

I like it. But alas, to me it's useless. They skipped over a better option by doing that off road upgrade to the Sled.

P/N GU01202830 #15 in the diagram.

probably because I can't have it ... but.. I want it

..... and the process has begun! My money's on Dec. 24th. Nice bike VtStorm. Black is rare and beautiful

To me, this is the only way to actually increase the amount of flow into the airbox while still using snorkels of some kind. The inlets without the rubbers are 40mm and appears to stay relatively the same into the lid tho it does oval out some. The next step up would be scud's holes in the sides or top, which is what the dirt bike tuners do sometimes. If that isn't enough take off the lid and clamp the filter down as suggested. I have ridden in rain hard enough to spray the intake with water if I'd had the lid off. I run it with the lid on and no goofy rubber tips. The stock filter is replaced with a BMC (more or less a K&N) and free flowing exhaust. She's really happy.

I had similar thoughts when thinking about bell-mouthing my lid inlets. The air gets scrunched back down as it goes into the lid a few inches back. So is there any advantage to opening these up?

swap relay 5

If the stock flanges don't work either, then the weld is just a little sloppy. Find the high spots and grind 'em off. The stainless weld will polish up like chrome if it bothers you. (surely those are stainless?) Nice pipes and flanges btw.

little do they know

I've been getting focus back to my 2001 DR650. It's gone through some changes over the years (and so have I) and it ended up in a configuration that was geared and styled for the street and as things change I eventually lost interest in it. Easy to do when you own several bikes. These past weeks have had me putting it all back to 'normal', a stock DR, from which I have begun the 'off road' enhancement. I was never happy with the stock BST (diaphragm) carb, and had done the recommended jetting, and air box mod, and muffler swap, and the header weld grind. Better but still not right. Hoping to end my disappointment I bought a Mikuni TM40 pumper carb and have completed the install and have ridden it about 100 mi. All the things that annoyed me about how the stock bike ran are gone. Anyway... more of that later..... I found a great thread DR650 owners (or any adv owner) should read. An overland traveler has over the years set up 3 DR's and reveals an enormous amount of info about the bikes, accessories, mods, suppliers, updates, and gear. He's traveled the world and been posting since 2015, though it's a pretty quick read. No real travel details, just bike set up. Interesting stuff whatever adv bike you might have for serious nasty road trips. https://advrider.com/f/threads/building-my-ideal-dr650-overlander-bike-build-3.1109914/ check out his facebook page as well. https://www.facebook.com/clinton.logan