her boyfriend will find it.......
What brought you to Moto Guzzi?
- Thread starter Wrinkly
- Start date
her boyfriend will find it.......
I appreciate your support!
I've managed to arrange a short test on Friday on an 850 V7 Stone. I'm hoping I'll like it, the more I've recently read and watched on Youtube about these bikes, the more I am drawn in. I expect I'll buy a used 750 though, but who knows?
Heel toe's great when you get used to it, sort of suits Cali riding.
OK, I'll give it a try first.
Absolutely - It’s part of the wonderful experience
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.....and just another thought Khulu, all T3 Calis have a lot of slop in the linkage for the heel/toe but in all honesty yours is one of the least sloppy I have ever riden......mine must have an inch or more movement between changes 
Johno and I had a discussion about it after he bought the bike and he tracked down a firm in the States that does modified bushes and stuff to tighten up the action so there is a way to do it if you feel the need. Personally I wouldn't, I love the way it encourages slow, lazy (yet assertive) gear changes. It just suits the vibe of the whole bike
Oh and incase you didn't know, your is a 'Merkin import and all the better for it, it's been really well look after and there is not a spot of corrosion anywhere so I'm guessing it came from a 'warm, dry' state. IMHO it's one of the nicest, original, ones out there so do it justice dude
Andrees
Johno and I had a discussion about it after he bought the bike and he tracked down a firm in the States that does modified bushes and stuff to tighten up the action so there is a way to do it if you feel the need. Personally I wouldn't, I love the way it encourages slow, lazy (yet assertive) gear changes. It just suits the vibe of the whole bike
Oh and incase you didn't know, your is a 'Merkin import and all the better for it, it's been really well look after and there is not a spot of corrosion anywhere so I'm guessing it came from a 'warm, dry' state. IMHO it's one of the nicest, original, ones out there so do it justice dude
Andrees
.....and just another thought Khulu, all T3 Calis have a lot of slop in the linkage for the heel/toe but in all honesty yours is one of the least sloppy I have ever riden......mine must have an inch or more movement between changes
Johno and I had a discussion about it after he bought the bike and he tracked down a firm in the States that does modified bushes and stuff to tighten up the action so there is a way to do it if you feel the need. Personally I wouldn't, I love the way it encourages slow, lazy (yet assertive) gear changes. It just suits the vibe of the whole bike
Oh and incase you didn't know, your is a 'Merkin import and all the better for it, it's been really well look after and there is not a spot of corrosion anywhere so I'm guessing it came from a 'warm, dry' state. IMHO it's one of the nicest, original, ones out there so do it justice dude
Andrees
Thanks for the encouragement Andres.
My '95 H-D isn't exactly the slightest gearbox either; or the linkage inst't the most positive in the World.
Guzzi use shitty Clevis joints in their gear linkages with tons of slop, especially in the Cali with extra linkages.
On my old V7 Cali, I replaced it all with home made link rods and rose joints. Didn't cost much and all the slop disappeared.
On my old V7 Cali, I replaced it all with home made link rods and rose joints. Didn't cost much and all the slop disappeared.
Rose joints are definitely better than clevis.
I once owned three different bikes at the same time with heel/toe gear change.
My 1978 Cali, old harley electraglide and 1970 Honda Monkey bike.
I still have the Cali and Monkey.
Looking back through this thread reminded me of another Guzzi experience.
Summer 1986.
Midnight and very warm, riding my BMW along the embankment in London going to collect some 10x8 sheets of film from a night shoot in the city.
Very little traffic around, heading east i pulled up at the traffic lights at the junction with Vauxhall bridge next to a T3 Guzzi.
A couple were on the bike, we looked at each other and i gave them a nod. Then i noticed the girl on back was wearing only a beige cardigan.
I said laughing "what's that all about ?" She said her boyfriend had dared her to go for a late night ride wearing only the cardigan, and here they were.
Lights changed and off we went, i followed them along to Westminster bridge not hitting any more red lights, they carried on over the bridge and i turned left to carry on along the riverside.
That mere two minutes riding experience has stayed with me for 35 years.
She must be 60 plus years old now. Could be one of those moaning old woman in the queue at the supermarket or bus stop and maybe having similar trouble with her joints as Cookie and Khulu.
Summer 1986.
Midnight and very warm, riding my BMW along the embankment in London going to collect some 10x8 sheets of film from a night shoot in the city.
Very little traffic around, heading east i pulled up at the traffic lights at the junction with Vauxhall bridge next to a T3 Guzzi.
A couple were on the bike, we looked at each other and i gave them a nod. Then i noticed the girl on back was wearing only a beige cardigan.
I said laughing "what's that all about ?" She said her boyfriend had dared her to go for a late night ride wearing only the cardigan, and here they were.
Lights changed and off we went, i followed them along to Westminster bridge not hitting any more red lights, they carried on over the bridge and i turned left to carry on along the riverside.
That mere two minutes riding experience has stayed with me for 35 years.
She must be 60 plus years old now. Could be one of those moaning old woman in the queue at the supermarket or bus stop and maybe having similar trouble with her joints as Cookie and Khulu.
I saw something or other for sale on Facebook marketplace locally. Popped round and the chap had a mint V7 sat in his garage. Never really been up close before but it was lovely...vaguely heard him say he was trading it in for a V9 Bobber the next week. I went back that afternoon and bought it.
No idea why I sold it, now I'm lurking in the Guzzi section daily
No idea why I sold it, now I'm lurking in the Guzzi section daily
Forgot a pic
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
That's a great story!
A particularly unusual combination of people.
This young lady in 1981, followed by Baldrick in about 2018. Not often those two will crop up in the same conversation, greatest respect Baldrick.
You lot will probably know this, but having enjoyed all of the long legged ads in the 80s I only recently appreciated that their (1950s?) racing single, the Gambalunga, translates as 'long legged' so their long legged ad campaign in fact had proper historic roots.
This young lady in 1981, followed by Baldrick in about 2018. Not often those two will crop up in the same conversation, greatest respect Baldrick.
You lot will probably know this, but having enjoyed all of the long legged ads in the 80s I only recently appreciated that their (1950s?) racing single, the Gambalunga, translates as 'long legged' so their long legged ad campaign in fact had proper historic roots.
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Great stories gents. Here’s mine.
As a lad in my teens I had this poster on my wall (Bottom pic, Doh!). I was smitten with the model, whose name was Katrien.
Scroll forward a few decades, I came across the same picture whilst surfing the net, I clicked on it and kept following the links, and bang, I’m in love all over again.
But this time, me, being a boring old fart, had fallen in love, not with the lovely Katrien, but with the bike. This was the start of a 3 year obsession (yes that’s the correct word) with Guzzis and my quest to build my own Guzzi cafe.
The back story to the poster is that a guy called Ben Part was the photographer and also the owner of the Guzzi in the pic. Katrien was his friend at the time. The picture, used in an advertising campaign by Davida, is iconic in Guzzi circles.
Ben’s old Le Mans had been through the wars and he’d fixed it up as a cafe racer, which was quite unusual at a time when cafe racers were predominantly Brit bikes.
One of the bike’s quirks was having Zagato badges on the tank, which is where I got the idea for doing these on my own bike as an acknowledgement to Ben’s original.
Old Guzzis definitely get under your skin unlike any other marque I know of.
I saw Okdrat’s homage to the Zagato yesterday.
It’s a fantastic creation. It’s worth seeing and, if you do, ask to see the seat / instrument binnacle combination in action. Simple (once you work out the quirk to position the switches) and really neat.
Great old thread to resurrect! Thanks Wapping. I've only seen OldRats Zagato in pictures but its definitely impressive. I've also benefitted from some of his other work which I'll explain in a minute.
Many moons ago working in Croydon I commuted from my flat in Crystal Palace on a venerable Honda CB250RS whilst I kept my old Z1000 in the garage for longer trips. I used to cruise past Rotodales in Selhurst which often had Guzzis, exotic Ducatis and other Italian beauties outside. I used to glance longingly but never went in for some reason. Fast forward a few years and Pietro had taken the shop to Sussex to become Motori Di Marino whilst "In Moto" sprouted up around the corner from work as a second hand dealer of bikes (back then) - mainly Italian which I think they brought in from 'the old country'.
I spotted a sad looking T3 California out front at one point and had always like the look. After a quick test ride a few days later it was mine and I started enjoying it immensely. I did have to retrain myself from what I'd learnt riding around on old Zeds from the '70's and one of those XS1100 Sports with "exciting handling". I used the Cali as a rally bike riding all over with a tent and gear strapped onto the back rack. Even mated it up to a massive sidecar briefly when I had a toddler in the household as I thought that may be a good way to keep riding. This was the bike that introduced me to Baldrick as I took it over to Morden a couple of times at his old place of work to do some odd bits to keep it going.
With the Cali long gone, more recently I bought an immaculate 2v 1200 Sport (from the front of In Moto again) after spotting it on the way home from work. It was a low mileage beauty and really different from a T3 - but still unmistakenly Guzzi. My fondest memory was charging around twisties in the Ardennes forest, coming out of turns in third gear and blasting up to the next bend. What a glorious noise and it was fun to surprise a few mates who couldn't keep up ! Big regret selling the bike - but it went to a good home and is now with 'the other Paul' of this parish.
The 1200 was replaced by a black and gold Le Mans II which I'd spotted on-line. Turns out I was the third owner since OldRat had refurbished it. What a fab bike, looked like new still from all the work done to it and went really well. I ended up touring in the Picos with a load a mates on modern stuff and didn't regret it for a minute. Hilarious fun and another case of blasting along and leaving one or two behind in the twisties.
So I can say the Guzzi illness has definitely taken hold. Also between covid and today I've also owned a single cylinder Nuovo Falcone which was a different kind of fun and I still have a '71 V7 700 project in the shed. Don't think I will be without a Guzzi whilst I can still ride
Many moons ago working in Croydon I commuted from my flat in Crystal Palace on a venerable Honda CB250RS whilst I kept my old Z1000 in the garage for longer trips. I used to cruise past Rotodales in Selhurst which often had Guzzis, exotic Ducatis and other Italian beauties outside. I used to glance longingly but never went in for some reason. Fast forward a few years and Pietro had taken the shop to Sussex to become Motori Di Marino whilst "In Moto" sprouted up around the corner from work as a second hand dealer of bikes (back then) - mainly Italian which I think they brought in from 'the old country'.
I spotted a sad looking T3 California out front at one point and had always like the look. After a quick test ride a few days later it was mine and I started enjoying it immensely. I did have to retrain myself from what I'd learnt riding around on old Zeds from the '70's and one of those XS1100 Sports with "exciting handling". I used the Cali as a rally bike riding all over with a tent and gear strapped onto the back rack. Even mated it up to a massive sidecar briefly when I had a toddler in the household as I thought that may be a good way to keep riding. This was the bike that introduced me to Baldrick as I took it over to Morden a couple of times at his old place of work to do some odd bits to keep it going.
With the Cali long gone, more recently I bought an immaculate 2v 1200 Sport (from the front of In Moto again) after spotting it on the way home from work. It was a low mileage beauty and really different from a T3 - but still unmistakenly Guzzi. My fondest memory was charging around twisties in the Ardennes forest, coming out of turns in third gear and blasting up to the next bend. What a glorious noise and it was fun to surprise a few mates who couldn't keep up ! Big regret selling the bike - but it went to a good home and is now with 'the other Paul' of this parish.
The 1200 was replaced by a black and gold Le Mans II which I'd spotted on-line. Turns out I was the third owner since OldRat had refurbished it. What a fab bike, looked like new still from all the work done to it and went really well. I ended up touring in the Picos with a load a mates on modern stuff and didn't regret it for a minute. Hilarious fun and another case of blasting along and leaving one or two behind in the twisties.
So I can say the Guzzi illness has definitely taken hold. Also between covid and today I've also owned a single cylinder Nuovo Falcone which was a different kind of fun and I still have a '71 V7 700 project in the shed. Don't think I will be without a Guzzi whilst I can still ride
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