Intro and my hot rod Rosso Mandello.

[Guest John T]

Hi folks,

 

Been on the other list for years and lurking here for awhile. This list is for me, less whining more action.

 

Been going way overboard on my quest for more H.P. (Isn't that always the case?)

 

To see what I have done so far, check out my article in Guzzi tech labled "J.T's rippin Rosso"

http://www.guzzitech.com/JTsRosso-John_T.html

 

I just finished more mods.

Took the engine out for a new case courtesy of MGNA (bubble problem) so while out I figured I'd have at it.

 

First thing was a set of Carrillo rods. Lighter, stronger and great looking.

Sent the crank, pistons, rods and entire clutch assembly out to get lightened and balanced.

The balancer said my engine was the second most lightening he has done to date. (old Hemi 'cuda was fatter) Balanced it to 51%. (as per Dr. John's recommendation)

 

Talked to Mike Rich at length. No timing gear set. Unless racing, he didn't like them for a street engine. Galling of the aluminum gears and exploding steel gears scared me off. His words: "chains are good"

 

Cam: Yup! Megacycle 620X9. Most radical "drop in" cam you can use without valve clearance problems. More mid and upper power. Just what I wanted...

 

With the cam was a set of Mike Rich racing valve springs. Needed with the more radical cam lobe profile. New lifters also.

 

Mike did my heads last year along with new valves and guides. The cam is the icing on the cake!!

 

Results? WOW!!!!!

My bike was putting out just over 90 RWHP before, now it is more!!

Nail it and the front tire come off the ground and stays there.

The engine is super smooth now and winds out so fast you have to be fast on the shifter or you bang the rev limiter at 8600rpm!

 

I will be bringing it to a PC center next week to have a new custom map done and a final H.P. reading. What do you guys think it will be?

 

Note: I did ALL the work on this engine from taking it out of the bike, disassembly and re-assembling it on the new block. (was easier than I thought)

This was all under the watchfull eye of Alex from Branchville motors in CT. (thanks Alex)

I was slow and meticulous in the whole job. Every gasket and O-ring was brand new. Every nut was torqued perfectly and job was a real joy and very satisfying.

 

Thanks for listening and I will be back with the numbers after the new map is done.

[callison]

In a word. Wow!!!

[al_roethlisberger]

Excellent work, and sounds like a lot of fun.

 

I'll be watching my engine cases this Summer/Fall and if it gets much worse I'll probably go the route you just took and get some engine work done while it is apart, including balancing and rods.

 

However, I wish I had the luxury of being able to take the time, and have all the correct tools, to disassemble and rebuild the engine under the watchful eye of someone knowledgable like you had. That's great I'm sure it was loads of fun, and reassuring to do it all yourself.

 

Question on the cam choice though... there's almost always a trade-off when going with a hotter/higher-lift cam. With the cam you chose, you said you gained some mid and high-end HP, but did it impact driveability, idle, lose bottom/mid torque, etc??

 

I'll be taking mine to a PC center in the next few weeks probably... as soon as Dyno gets mine back to me with the updated firmware release. I sent it in last week, so I suspect I'll see it in a week or two. I'm hoping this will smooth some things out and address the "hot stall" idle problem as well.

 

Great work!

 

 

al

[Guest russ]

John,

 

Glad you gave in and embraced the Dark Side of the force. Better place this, than the other. Less sniping, more cooperation.

[callison]

I had a long talk with Mike Rich two weeks ago. His observation on the MG cams is that they have mild ramps intended to reduce valve train stresses. As I recall, the Megacycle cams only have a bit more lift, but a lot more duration due to the steeper ramps. I've yet to price one, but I am giving serious consideration to doing the cam as well when my heads get back.

[al_roethlisberger]

So, Carl after your long talk.... what did Mike say about the benefits or trade-offs for the aftermarket cam?

 

John, how did it impact idle, etc? How would you characterize the immediate impact of the cam alone?

 

thx! ...always making a new mental shopping list for next Winter

 

al

 

 

:900

[callison]

A hotter cam adds more power. But you have to do all of the things in concert with it. Ignition timing and so on. That's one of the reasons I bought into Cliff's ECU. The flexibility is there, now I'm just trying to get the other pieces together.

[Guest John T]

My goal was to make the ultimate street engine and I think I got it.

Mike assured me that this cam was "plug and play" (he is right)

No timing needed fooling with.

And yes, Guzzi did go with the milder cam so they can use lighter valve springs and reduce stress on the starter system of all things.

Yes, sometimes you can hear the starter struggle a bit to turn the motor over.

 

I was pleasantly surprised to have the motor start right up and idle fine....no adjustments needed.

The bike runs fine at lower rpm's but it really likes to rev to get on the cam.

 

I do hear more valve train noise due to the stiffer valve springs and steeper valve angles.

 

The cam and head work really make this the engine that Guzzi should be making.

 

I highly recommend the cam.

[al_roethlisberger]

Interesting. I'll have to give Mike a call and ask him about this cam especially in combination with his titanium push-rods. I meant to get those when I got the heads sent back, but forgot. No big deal, as they are just a drop-in affair. So when I adjust the valves again I'll have him send a set over.

 

I'll be curious to see if he recommends the cam with his push-rods though, as the rods themselves require different valve settings because the rods are so stiff and don't flex like the aluminum ones.

 

al

[jtucker]

Nice John!

 

You're work is almost identical to what I had planned for my bike... cam and all. Unfortunately, my work got delayed, and the bike has been on the bench since December (detailed in another thread here). Can't wait to get it all sorted out!

 

Have fun!