Started to disassemble the RVF for a bit of a once over and change a few things.
New tires en route
New chain and sprockets here
Stand arrived today.
Hope to start turning and burning in a few weeks when I can break from work and fly back home.
Last edited by Stumpy; 21-06-2019 at 06:49 PM.
^ You have carpet in your garage?
Sorry for the late reply, thanx for the questions.
Difficult one as both are non stock, especially the Triumph which is so far removed from factory stock as to be a completely different bike.
Apples & Oranges and all that.
To give you an idea, the T140 runs a billet steel S/H Weslake crank, termed a "full circle" crank, long no longer made, even when i was still in the trade.
Back then Nourish had taken over all of Weslake's Triumph work and their billet cranks (of which i have bought many at over a 1000 quid a pop back in the 90's) were lightened versions with "triangular" crank webs, more suitable for road racing. My crank came out of a grass track racing outfit, and is so heavy, that when you shut the throttle from around 5k rpm, its as if you have slammed a twin disc set up on full, that is how much engine braking that flywheel gives.
Its heavy.
More heavy alone than a stock T140 crank (which is not a light crank) and con rods and crank cases !!!
I bought the bike new in 79 as a T140E, emissions model with MK II carbs and the first electronic ignition fitted stock to any Triumph. It was very reliable, which was lucky because back then i did'nt know a lot.
I rode it around thru the years, thru various incarnations inc single carb head and rigid frame chop, until it was basically worn out and unloved at the end of the 80's and gathered dust in the corner.
In 1988 i opened a Triumph shop that ran until 2003 when i sold up. During those early years i had a rat combo Triumph sidecar unit and the choice of many customer bikes so it stayed in the corner still in its rigid frame clothes.
In 1994 i wanted to build an advert for the shop, best of everything, all my knowledge and contacts put into the bike, so out she came. I was 34 at the time so, still young and a hooligan.
Motor was never less than 810cc, never more than 870, but generally around 830-840cc. Said Weslake crank, 34mm mk II carbs, American full race cams, valves, springs, blah blah yada nada da bing
Got another frame - chopped the oil tank out, nickel plated it, ridiculously expensive JMC swing arm, ridiculously expensive Fournales shocks, Yamaha FZR1000 RWU front forks, disc and British Billet Brake Company calipers front & rear. Custom machine stuff as i went along as well as CNC Trick Machining yokes and cover in a nice PP paint job. Bish bosh and we were in magazines and the (in)famous Crossbow Calendar in '95.
See below;
She stayed in this mode thru a couple of top end rebuilds and cam changes until around 4 years ago, when i was getting older, the bike did'nt like the weather and traffic lights anymore here and was'nt getting any younger, was getting temperamental and my right knee was not what it once was.
So she needed a detune.
My MK II carbs came off, the swing arm out, the head off, spare new Megacycle cams still in packaging, all of it into a suitcase back to Blighty and sold for Top (unbelievable) dollar on Ebay UK.
Replaced with stock size valves and seats, carbs, late 650 cams, stock swing arm nickel plated and re assembled as a more sensible old man's bike, proper tickover etc.
And easier to kickstart..... But most people will/would have difficulty.... She still aint no girly stocker....
Oh found a crank pic;
Then last year, the above tank was getting a tiny pinhole leak when half full, and as i fancied a change anyway it was time to retire that artwork and put it on the wall with the previous one which was mid 80's -95.
And now the bike is current in Isuzu pale blue metallic or as i like to call it Triumph 50's T100 Blue sheen. Quite fetching.
Sorry, i never answered your question.
My ramblings got me carried away.
Stock;
Both rev to 7k rpm, both similar flat line torque.
Guzzi makes about 65-70 bhp, Triumph around 50 (ish).
Triumph weighed 400 Ibs and the Guzzi 550.
Triumph now weighs 340 Ibs and makes around 60 bhp (and HUGE torque).
Guzzi is stock internally with what is termed the small valve engine with small (30mm) carbs. This model came with 36 AND 40mm carbs - big difference.
But it is very non std externally and has lost at least 50 Ibs in weight.
The Triumph because of the stroked crank, does not like high revs, i never go near 6k anymore because she's my Princess and Garage Queen, but over 6.5k would be pointless anyway.
The Triumph would trounce, stock and especially in this state the Guzzi in a tight, short, twisty race circuit. Or T-T (tavern to tavern) street race in a city.
The Guzzi would trounce the Triumph in every other enviroment inc long distance work, or continuous high speed work. If the Guzzi's redline is 7k, it will happily sit all day long at 115 mph @ 6.5k all day long. Try that on the Triumph and it will have blown up after half an hour.
The Triumph's design can be traced back to 1936 as an all iron 500, and was never designed to go above 650cc and 45 bhp.
The Guzzi's design can be traced back to 1965 (nearly 30 years later) as initially a 700, and quickly followed by 750, 850, 950 and the last ones being EFI 1060's. The first bike designed from scratch with no kick start facility. To compete and better BMW's long distance, high speed touring and police market. Which it did. The First non American police bike - remember CHIPS?
And tuned remember the Le Mans and other sports bikes?
Up until 6-7 years ago, you could still buy models using this basic bottom end design cranking out 110 reliable bhp and HUGE torque.
So yeah, you were pretty right..........
Much as i love my old Brit stuff, i got into Guzzis 15 years later, and hindsight being a wonderful thing, they could have saved me a lot of pain and money.....
40 years ago.
Same bike, same bloke
34 years ago,
same bike, same bloke
24 years ago,
same bike, same bloke
Last edited by thaiguzzi; 22-06-2019 at 11:16 AM.
Mate, awesome posts and you can feel the appreciation (some may say love) for your bikes.
Do the straight through pipes ever create a issue, thinking cops?
My Bike stories humble in comparison to yours.
I used to ride professionally, as in I was a courier, London and a few other places, but the bike was always in the blood.
My stories are more about the rides (and the scars) then the machine.
Great stuff Guzzi, sorry it won't let me green you again so soon. Getting too old and broken to feel safe to go fast anymore, but still love bikes.
Thanx guys for the kind comments, appreciated.
Yeah going fast on the road has'nt interested me really for nigh on 20 years.
Long trips were/are for sitting at 70/80 mph (in Europe) or 100/110 kph here and taking in the views.
It aint the destination man, it's the journey... as they say...
Yeah, my love for my bikes will continue with my only son. He inherits both bikes, all their history and the workshop stuff.
He's only 13, but he "understands" and he's getting keener, of which i could'nt be prouder.
His mates come round on their Groms and Waves, and watching the Triumph get kick started - they aint ever seen anything like it, tickle carbs? open primary and spinning clutch? the noise...
I've even had kickstart competitions for 'em... One day one of them will start it. No flip flops allowed.
The pipes are loud, but a beautiful noise, and my local cops know me, just smile and wave me along.
I don't travel far these days on the Triumph - up to Nong Khai and back for the day and a relaxed beer or two and lunch on the river is about 170 kms return and the max i take her out. So only 50 miles (ish) each way.
Going further afield up the Mekong east or west with an overnight or two i'll take the Guzzi with panniers.
Re the pipes, they are 37" long, 1 and 3/4" diameter proper tuned length TT type pipes, great for how the bike once was, but now with stockish carbs, cams and valve sizes, they are a bit wrong for the bike, no back pressure and a bit of bottom end performance has been lost.
What with a fixed, full advance magneto ignition, this bike is still not the most practical to nip down the shops for a pint of milk...
edit,
bike couriering back in its heyday as a young man must have been a great way to earn a living...
Last edited by thaiguzzi; 22-06-2019 at 03:52 PM.
Very cool TG.
Might as well get some sort of mount for the GoPro Hero 5.
Would be changing between at least 2 bikes, so a permanent mount probably wouldn't be preferable.
But I don't really like vids taken from the helmet due to head movement, you don't see the lean of the bike etc etc.
Lazada would be preferable due to easiness/laziness.
Any experiences good or bad on which type of mount to go for?
^ cant you just just use a selfie stick as a pillion
Only the little mounts stay on there with those ultra sticky 3m pads. Just screw the camera off and onto the mounts on both bikes.
Maybe stick a couple in different positions on both bikes
Looking forward to the time trials
I am a Luddite.
A proud Luddite.
You should be able to see that in my taste of motorcycles.
I do not do electronics.
I do not do techno.
I do not do social media.
Took me years to finally agree to owning a Smartphone.
I reply to emails.
I read the internet.
I watch some YouTube.
No Twitter.
No Instagram.
No Facebook.
And certainly no stinkin' Go Pro.
Well, may I offer you a fantastic once in a life time property investment opportunity then. 32% RoI and free pink Fino guaranteed.
Not a Bike I own, but thought interesting to share.
Harley Davidson 1800 cc ...
https://www.graysonline.com/lot/0001...cated?spr=true
AUD $19,500
Must be heavy. I wouldn't like to have to pick it up if it rolled over.
Sun's out got the bike insured time to get me knee down.
Nice RG KT, goes like a rocket
As my son has written off my Suzi "looking after it" while I have been in Thailand, I will shortly buy something else once the near 3 month argument over payout with the insurance company is sorted by my return to Oz in November.
I have decided to do some long distance touring mixed with a few small distance rides (100 k/m each way max) so am looking for a medium cruiser. My only stipulation is it is Japanese. I'm tossing up between a number of bikes which all have their pros and cons. Here is my list in basic order of preference. All recommendations and comments (constructive) welcome, hopefully from experienced riders rather than a car driver that can google.
Yamaha
Vstar 1100
Vstar 1300
Roadstar 1600
Honda
VTX 1300
VTX1800
Kawasaki
Vulcan 1600
Suzuki
Boulevarde
C90
M90
All gay.
WTF is wrong with the real McCoy?
ie a Harley?
They are all just poor Japanese copies of the real thing.
Sort yourself out!
Or just stay in the closet.
Seriously.
You want a big v twin.?
Buy a real v twin.
End of.
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