Scud

Good info. BSANUT already replied to me and said "I know for sure they don't make kits for 16 mm Master cylinders anymore." So that's a bummer. And he doesn't have 12 mm kits in stock. For the record: Front brake takes 16mm. Clutch 12mm. Rear brake 11mm. So maybe I should disassemble my spare masters and keep the springs and other bits with the rest of my unobtainium.

I just added the remote clutch bleeder hose to the Encyclopedia. Here's a link:

You can replace your damn-near impossible to operate clutch bleeder with a remote hose from a CARC bike. OEM Part Name: Clutch Bleeder Moto Guzzi Part Number: who cares? throw it away. Replacement Part Brand or Source: Moto Guzzi Part number or other identifier: 05606630 - Referred to as Float Chamber Clutch Pipe on Harpers Parts Diagrams Differences from OEM (if any): You can actually reach it and you can bleed the clutch by yourself, while standing up. Other Compatible Vehicles: Stelvio and Griso (probably others) In this picture, you can see the new line aimed to the left of the clutch cylinder. The line is draped over the frame temporarily, but you can see the bleeder valve - just takes two wrenches. Final routing - I passed it under the frame rail and followed the starter cable up toward the battery. It terminates close to the battery. BTW - you don't have to remove swingarm to install this, but removing at least the rear wheel make it an easy installation.

No - that one uses the four treaded fittings on the swingarm, same as the stock one - so it has those four long CF "legs". The Ghezzi Brian one comes with a bracket that mounts with the lower shock-mount bolt. After installation, it looks like it's just floating over the tire. Here is a close-up of the bracket and how it mounts to the lower shock-bolt: Here is the fender from the side: And as luck would have it... the Nero came with the other type of fender. It was beat up (deeply gouged and some chunks taken out). Trash hadn't gone out yet, so I was able to lay it over the top of the installed GB fender for this photo. Surprisingly, you could mount that fender without removing the GB one (you can see it peeking out in a few spots). And if you look carefully, you can see the GB bracket too.)

Tons of detail on changes by year, so it depends on what year you want to compare to. The Ballabio's flyscreen is mounted to the frame, rather than the bars as the earlier sports.

Thanks for the lead on the rebuild kits. I got one for the rear master in the mail yesterday (thanks MG Cycle). I have some clutch and brake masters in a box. Maybe I'll break one down and measure the piston. MG Cycle also sells the kits based on diameter, but they couldn't tell me what kits to get. I'll probably learn that when I complete my "brake certification training." It would be good to document the appropriate kits in our Encyclopedia of compatible parts. I already replaced the clutch line and added the new fluid reservoir, and the master still works (as does the slave cylinder). Do you think a preventative rebuild on the brake masters is worth doing - or will these 20year parts still last for a long time with their current seals and such? As for the CF goodies. I got the rear fender and the belly pan from Ghezzi-Brian for EU 490 including shipping and all customs charges. They don't list prices on their site, but they respond quickly via email. Also picked up a new CF front fender from ebay (an Aprilia uses the same mounting pattern as the V11 with Ohlins - see encyclopedia for details). @nobleswood if you buy one, would you ask Bruno to throw in an extra bracket for the rear fender for me? I'd like to lower the one on my Scura. I'll pay you to ship to me.

Got some carbon fiber goodies from Bruno (aka Brian) of Ghezzi Brian. It's always a happy day when packages arrive from Italy. I rather like the small rear fender, which I have on my Scura, although it sits a bit too high above the tire. So I was pleasantly surprised to find that GB have modified the bracket to make the fender sit closer to the tire (you can actually adjust it till it touches the tire, so be careful). Now it nestles between two rails on the swingarm, (it sat above the rails with the prior bracket.) It was also pre-drilled with mounting holes, which almost lined up with the bracket, and the holes were almost big enough for the included mounting hardware. So let's call those pilot holes. Dremel tool with small stone-cone bit required to get good fit and alignment. So, still kind of a weird shape on one side, still not perfect, but definitely improved. See thread re what makes these bikes quirky... Two reasons I like this fender: 1: it does a surprisingly good job of keeping debris off the lower shock mount and transmission. 2: you can see every inch of the beautiful swingarm, wheel, and final drive (unlike the massive stock unit that hides everything and shovels crap onto the aforementioned areas.) And possibly true but almost certainly irrelevant... it reduces unsprung weight on the rear.

This looks like a pretty good 2003 Red LeMans for $5,000 USD asking price in Southern California. https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/mcy/d/chino-moto-guzzi/7431180688.html

Glad to know it arrived - faster than expected. That clamp was from a 2004 bike. Are you going to put it on your Greenie?

https://www.bikebandit.com/aftermarket-parts/control-brakes/mirrors/napoleon-ap-bar-end-mirrors/p/62776 on backorder... but you've got all winter

Thanks Rox - it's a few years old now, and I expect to release my book this year.

Scura black magic. The nappies come with rubber bushings. I just shaved them down till they were a tight fit in the threaded bar ends. (bar weights removed). Then used the included hardware to compress the bushing. I've done it twice... first time I shaved down with a knife - second time I used the wire wheel on a bench grinder. Wire wheel was faster. I think it might be possible to machine something to attach to the bar weights in lieu of the bar-ends, but I have not tried that.

And you know what? Some people complain before they read the instructions... Spiegler also sent very clear instructions as well as special little tools to clamp the lines in a vise and rotate the fittings. I retract that portion of my rant. All is good in the brake line department. But while I'm in a ranting mood... First step of Spiegler's instructions say that the lines should only be installed by a certified brake technician. If you are not certified, stop here and hire someone. That's what Brembo should do with their rebuild kits.

Small rant... so dumb that Brembo won't sell rebuild kits. They should at least offer a core exchange service. I mean the castings never go bad, why not make every buyer just waive liability? Dumb. Continuing my rant... I got two special orders delivered and they are both going back for a redo. Speedhut and Speigler are good companies and I'm confident they will make it right, but damn... Speedhut changed the surface of their gauges and the fine-line eagle logo didn't print right (which would piss me off every time I looked at it). And Spiegler angled the brake line fittings the wrong way (and I mean 90 degrees rotated wrong, not a simple bend). And I sent them a set of lines to duplicate (not just measurements). End of rant.

Hey Goofman. How much for the GB500?

California may have some problems these days, but we can get cool black plates for our motorbikes.

Emotional attachment to a machine? Surely you are not the only member of this site to suffer such an affliction. But if somebody wanted my Scura, I'd tell them $20,000. They'd say "I'd have to be crazy to pay that much." And I'd say, "That's right. Are you crazy?"

Thanks - So MG Cycle sells kits to rebuild the rear master, but not the clutch or front brake. Although they sell kits for clutch and front brake masters on other models, just not the V11s. I've ordered a rear kit and will leave the clutch and front master alone for now. Even the caliper kits are getting hard to find. I got them from the UK.

Thanks Phil. Just ordered one of those - better performance, and probably a lot lighter than the stock Brembo. I've also got new brake lines, pads, and caliper rebuild kits on the way. Was thinking it would be a good time to refresh all the seals in the master cylinders too. Does anybody know if there are kits for rebuilding the master cylinders? I rebuilt a set of calipers on my red LeMans and was astonished at the difference in feel. I think the rubber seals harden over time, and these V11s are about 20 years old.

It was the LH boot that burped off. I just found that the LH spark plug was loose (spun out by hand with only the socket) - and the LH exhaust valve was tight. Both intakes were at .005" RH exhaust at .007" and LH exhaust at .004" I just set both exhausts to .007" and we'll see how that does.

Separated at birth... My Scura is 375. Dang... we almost got them together that day we rode with Rox on his Scura in Santa Monica mountains. But mine was spitting oil out the timing cover that day - so I brought a red LeMans to Scura rally. Yours really needs to be moved back to the mountains so she can be ridden again in the manner to which she is accustomed. No more of this long, flat, traffic citation harvesting.

Re mirrors - I don't know anything about Valentin. But they are genuine Napoleons. And like others have said... you really need to get that bike tuned up. Don't try to cure the symptom at the bars, try to cure the problem in the engine. The Napoleon mirrors look cool and give better visibility than the stockers. Those are the only reasons to buy them. And on the down side, they somewhat limit your lane-splitting ability. Re the BMW cruisers - I rode them at a BMW demo day at my local dealer. I really wanted to like them, but they shook terribly at a reasonable mid-range RPM - and the seat vibrated (which I guess is a "feature" for some people). So you either had to lug it or wind it up. Apparently this was done intentionally so it would feel more like a Harley... so sad... they sure look pretty though. Instead of a new BMW cruiser, you could buy a low mileage Audace and a California Touring and still have money left over.

Making some progress: Disassembled and cleaned ignition and starter switches, and various other electrical connections Got a bunch of powercoated parts installed, including the top triple clamp (steering bearing had almost no grease) Noticed rear brake disc is badly worn (thanks to the sintered pads...) Plastic T lamp holder is barely holding itself together (fortunately I had a new one already tucked away) Cleaned injector and throttle bodies (god I hate those tiny screws that hold the injectors in) UFI oil filter characteristically left the O-ring stuck in the engine. There's a Wix in there now. Still waiting on some goodies... but the Speedhut gauges have shipped. Looking forward to getting those in place. Thinking about gloss black powdercoat for the wheels. Building a list of little bits needed from Harpers.

Sorry, no Kindle version of the second edition. The publisher of the first edition retained the digital rights. Here is a link to 1st edition Kindle.

Thread drift noted and approved. Continue the story...