Rear hub gaskets & Moto Guzzi's MGX21 Flying Fortress

I was at Two Wheel Motorsport yesterday dropping off the Concours' rear hub to get the inner gasket re-done.  The rear hub comes off easily enough, but the Clymer's manual said that with the special tools required as well as how much a pain in the ass it is to evenly heat up the hub housing to remove the inner plate (you can't use a torch, it'll warp it), this might be one of those times when DIY is more trouble than it's worth.

Looking at the cost I was in for nearly $200 for two tools I'd probably only ever use once, and they're rare enough that you can't rent them.  Between that, the heating bit (they suggest maybe using a hot plate), and the fiddly nature of the internal components which have to be shimmed just right or you end up with a very clunky drivetrain, this seemed like a good time to make use of a professional.  Two Wheel said they could do the job for about $250 taxes in.

The dangerous part about visiting your local dealer is walking through the rows of new machinery.  On my way out they had a flock of Moto Guzzis, which I have to admit I have a soft spot for after reading Melissa Hobrook Pierson's The Perfect Vehicle.

As I wandered down the aisle looking at everything from modern adventure tourers to stripped down cafe styled Guzzis a young salesman appeared.  I'd been reading about the not at all shy and retiring Moto Guzzi MGX-21 Flying Fortress in Motorcycle Mojo and wondered if they had one.  It just happened that they did, down the end of the row.  He pulled it out for us to have a look at...

If you've read anything about my time with motorbikes you'll know that cruisers and their bagger derivatives are about as interesting to me as a plate of spam, but these recent European designed bikes, while heavy, can still actually lean into corners and are surprisingly usable.

There is nothing about the MGX-21 Flying Fortress, so named because it was inspired by the American World War II bomber (an odd choice considering said bombers probably dropped ordinance on and around the Moto Guzzi factory), that is subtle.  The enormous bat-wing fairing, acres of carbon fibre and those big opposing air cooled cylinder heads poking out of it all just in front of your knees make for an over the top look at me statement; this is a machine for extroverts.

As a big guy I find that most machines are tight in the knees and generally look too small for me.  I even look like I fill up the tall Tiger, but Guzzi's Fortress looked and felt like it fit.  The salesman said that like so many heavy but well balanced machines, the moment you start moving the weight seems to disappear.

This big, black Guzzi makes a unique statement.  You can find similarly styled American bikes, but they don't have this red-headed Italian's European flair.  At nearly twenty-four grand (Canadian) you're going to have to be well off or really wanting to make that statement in order to get onto one.  

No one does fashion and beauty like the Italians, and this new Guzzi, while seemingly an odd choice for the venerable Italian builder, exudes charisma and charm.  If I had my own version of Jay Leno's garage this Lombardy beauty would be in there for those rare days when I want to put myself on a pedestal.

It certainly is.
Even if it's not your thing, have a look.  Like an Italian Comtessa, she might be out of your league but a joy to behold.

Mid-November Last Gasps

The Tiger's still purring to the
edge of winter! 

Mid November and I'm still commuting in to work!  It was -2°C while riding past frost covered grass on the way in, but a comfortable 12°C and sunny on the way home.

I should be able to two wheel it in and back for the rest of the week, but come the weekend things take a turn for the worse.  If there's salt down and icy roads this may finally be the end.  Still, riding from the end of March (it would have been sooner but for a carb-dead Concours) until Mid-November is no bad thing.

In a perfect world I'll be back in the saddle in March some time, and might even steal a ride or two in between,weather permitting.  That's four months of waiting... unless I can convince my lovely wife to let me get... THE VAN (it's still for sale).  If that happened there's no telling where we might get to over the cold months.

That don't look good, but it was inevitable.

In the meantime, there was a super moon!

Southern Ontario's Motorcycle Watering Hole

A warm weekend had us out on two wheels yet again.  By this point in November it could as easily be a blizzard as it could a luke warm autumn day.  For no other reason than it'd be nice to have some fresh bakery bread, my son Max and I rode over to Erin.

The Forks of the Credit were as busy as ever with dozens of motorcyclists making use of what may very well be the last weekend of riding before winter finally shuts us all down.

Whenever you see that many people together with their bikes you can't help but recognize all the vastly different cultures that exist within the riding community.  The Harley crowd was there in droves, dabbing around the parking lot on their heavy bikes.  At one point a group (dare I say gang?) left at once, their potatoing the only thing louder than GnR's Paradise City rattling out of tiny bike speakers.

As conversation resumed after the cacophony left the old fella in a well used Roadcrafter sitting behind us said, 'that's all a bit much.'  It's a funny thing, but I have more respect for that beaten up, well used hundred thousand kilometre Aerostich suit wearing V-Strom rider and the words coming out of him than I do for all the noise and attitude.  One is about motorcycling, the other is about something else.

While having a coffee a couple of dozen bikes pulled in or rode past but we were the only Triumph, which might have been why people kept stopping to look the Tiger over.  At one point three Lamborghinis, two Ferraris, an Aston Martin and a Nissan Skyline drove up from the Forks; some kind of rich guy country drive?

We saddled up and went up and down the twisty bits, getting stuck behind a massive pickup truck with motor company stickers all over it on the way back.  I put away my frustration and just enjoyed the last of the Fall colours.  It was all very big and loud but I entertained myself by slowing to a near stop (no one was behind us) and then speeding up on the bends.  I guess being big and loud myself I don't need to compensate vehicularly.

A whole new batch of people had pulled in to Higher Ground's parking lot in Belfountain when we passed back by.  You can do a lot worse than just heading over to the Forks of the Credit on one of the last warm late Fall days.  You'll see everything from Ducati Monsters and race reps to some outlandish chops from the '90s; it's never boring.

Turning Tedium Into Adventure

It was actually warmer this month than it was last as I headed over to Erin for a monthly meeting.  I thought I'd had my last ride then, but instead I'm still at it as November begins.

The commute in to work starts
before sunrise these days, it's
often below zero.

Since we haven't had daylight savings time yet it was already past sunset at 6:30 as I headed out.  Coming back late it was a starry sky that kept me company.  While riding through an inky black countryside full of skeletal trees, a bright flash suddenly lit everything up as a fireball burned across the Milky Way.  Never would have seen that in a car. Riding a bike is awesome.

I was asked why I'd keep riding as winter approaches.  The answer is simple.  Driving a car over to Erin and back is ninety minutes of tedious commuting.  Riding the bike over and back turns it into an adventure.  Just because something is easier doesn't mean it's better.  I'm going to miss the adventure when the snow flies.

Trying out some unusual angles with the 360Fly.

It has snowed the week before on River Road.

There are large patches of sand all along the road.

Not to mention the wet leaves... exciting!

Hibernating a Motorcycle: Oil Changes

That ain't a cheap oil change, but as expensive as it is,
it's way cheaper than rebuilding a motor.

In a previous life I was an automotive technician and then service manager at a Quaker State shop.  For a few years there I was right up on my lubricants.  That background makes me very conscious of my motorbike fluid habits.   One of my standing rules when I put away a motorcycle for the winter is to change the oil before I do it.

You watch someone like Nick Sanders ride up and down the Americas for tens of thousands of kilometres and you wonder how his Yamaha looked like it had barely been used at the end of it:

Engines are designed to be running.  The very worst thing you could do is start and stop an engine over and over again (like we all do every day).  In the case of Sander's epic rides from Alaska to Argentina and back, while what the Yamaha did was astonishing, the fact that the engine was in good shape shouldn't have been a surprise.  It was barely ever allowed to cool down. 

Oils become acidic and moisture seeps in as things continually heat up and cool down.  Leaving old oil in your engine over the winter isn't doing it any favours.  Swapping out contaminated oil for clean oil before you put it away is a great idea, so your engine isn't soaking in the bad stuff.

Swapping it again in the spring is just a waste of money.  Oil doesn't go bad sitting, but once you're into the heat up cool down cycle again keep an eye on your mileage, and keep up on your oil changes, your engine will appreciate it.

Chemistry is where the big advances are happening nowadays.  Today's oils have astonishing temperature ranges and abilities.  Here are some links on what's going on with lubricants:
http://www.motorex.com/index.cfm?oid=1993&lang=en
http://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate/bp-magazine/innovations/reinventing-the-oil-change.html
http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/stop-changing-your-oil.html
https://mobiloil.com/en/motor-oils/mobil-1/mobil-1-4t-motorcycle-oil
http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/475/oil-breakdown

Hibernating a Motorcycle: Tires

Dave Hatch's Motorcycle Experience is doing a series on how to store a motorcycle over the winter (or for any extended period).  The first bit is on how to prepare and look after your tires while the snow flies outside:

So, make sure they are clean and at maximum pressure when you put the bike away, and move the bike every once in a while to prevent the tire from settling on one spot.  It was interesting what Warren Milner, the tire expert, said about what super sticky sport bike tires can do in extreme cold.  It's an issue with all super sticky tires evidently.

Build Your Own Motorcycle Stand

Motorcycle buddy Jeff decided he needed a motorcycle stand for his BMW Airhead café racer project. He found some plans online and proceeded to execute that build!

It's a camera taking a photo every five seconds over a weekend of building.