MOTOR CHAT

[kaiser]

Re:

Nice bodgineering, I'm not too unfamiliar with that type of repair myself

I may have acquired a Moto Guzzi Strada 750, not without some faults and I'm not sure how easy it'll be to modify but the price is right

 

[RobMac]

Re:

Look up Guzzi 750S or Lemans Mk1 from the 70's

 

[Mr Panda]

Re:

Here's a nice (although blue) one....





Seriously though - your new hobby has all the characteristics of modding a bicycle frustration/anger/pleasure etc, but with bigger spanners and generally involving more dosh

I've just bought an almost complete ZZR1100 for the exhaust alone

(...if anyone wants any ZZR bits I'm yer man)

 

[epicyclo]

Re: Re:

...Seriously though - your new hobby has all the characteristics of modding a bicycle frustration/anger/pleasure etc, but with bigger spanners and generally involving more dosh...

Bigger spanners maybe, but more dosh?

I've been sitting watching a BMW frame on eBay* at a BIN of £200 and reluctant to pay that much. Yet somehow I found no difficulty paying many times that for a bicycle frame if I "needed" it.

*Which I now realise I've missed.

 

[RobMac]

Re: Re:

Bigger spanners maybe, but more dosh?

I've been sitting watching a BMW frame on eBay* at a BIN of £200 and reluctant to pay that much. Yet somehow I found no difficulty paying many times that for a bicycle frame if I "needed" it.

*Which I now realise I've missed.

I've got to agree with you there, I spend far more on bikes than I did on motorbikes a year.

 

[Mr Panda]

Re: Re:

Bigger spanners maybe, but more dosh?

I've been sitting watching a BMW frame on eBay* at a BIN of £200 and reluctant to pay that much. Yet somehow I found no difficulty paying many times that for a bicycle frame if I "needed" it.

*Which I now realise I've missed.

I've got to agree with you there, I spend far more on bikes than I did on motorbikes a year.

Aye but you dinna dae much wi yours :twisted:

 

[RobMac]

Re:

That was a cheap shot you b#st#rd :mrgreen:

 

[kaiser]

Re:

This is something I'm trying to ascertain, is the Strada the same as an S or how much of the bike is the same as other models? Ideally the Strada would just have been fitted with a 'modern' tank and seat but the engine and frame is the same as thon one above.

 

[kaiser]

Re:

Another question. I've noticed with classic cars a lot of kits for modernising the engine. Electronic ignition and more. Do bikes have the same upgrades available? The guy I'm getting the bike from had bother with the ignition, he changed it for a lucas set up but went through coils like mad. He also said keeping the carbs in tune was a constant battle. I'm hoping there are some modern solutions out there.

 

[Jamiedyer]

I had a MKIII Le Mans for many years and a 650 Lario for a couple.
They are pretty reliable but electrics and front suspension are the downfall. Joe Lucas isn't called the Prince of Darkness for nothing so I would steer clear but Piranha still do an electronic ignition unit complete for relatively little expense and while they will only last a couple of years before burning out at the most inopportune moment they are cheap enough to be consumables. The carbs once cleaned and setup properly shouldn't need much if any maintenance at all. Set of K&N pods on each and tune up should see it right.
I remember when I serviced my first Guzzi back when I was about 20 or so and I somehow set both cyclinders up off the same flywheel mark. Not deliberately mind you. When I went to start it, it virtually walked sideway across my garage One hell of a scary noise, that sort of 'Oh sh**t what have I done to my pride and joy' . Anders from La Guzzi up the road came and picked it up on the trailer and sorted it. He never let me live it down.
Just remember they are only bits of steel, made by man and can be fixed by a man, if not, then throw it away and a man will make you another one. Its never the end of the world, no matter how attached you get to it.

Jamie