Wildguzzi: low brand snob count...

[Kev m]

Kick and Chuck - egg-zactly.

Internal engine work and or building bikes/vehicles from piles of parts....not that it matters or makes more of a man out you  ;D

Hmm, this could be an interesting tangent.

I've always got the impression that MOST people don't tackle this sort of thing, with a higher percentage of motorcycle enthusiasts that do (over auto enthusiasts), and possibly a higher percentage of Guzzisti (and Harley) than some other brands.

But all of that might be my own prejudiced perceptions.

I certainly know guys who have torn into pretty much every brand and plenty of cars too... so I dunno...

<shrugs>

[kidsmoke]

I'm new to bike ownership. Rode dirt bikes in my teens, always belonging to gear head buddies. Never had to wrench 'em, or own 'em, but I learned how to operate 'em. I've mentioned in other threads that I came to this Guzzi through a cousin who is a long time Harley mechanic and longer time "biker" in the best and worst sense. In later years he stumbled onto an old Guzzi that won him over. He found the bike I own for me, talked me into it, worked with me to get my riding skills back up to snuff, and introduced me to a bunch of his brethren, with decades and decades of ownership, riding and wrenching between them, on every brand imaginable.

All that to say, in one conversation by the by...I said something to him about his Harley affinity and how it surprised me, albeit in a favorable way, that he was so taken with the Guzzi's and open to other bikes, and I commented on one of his, now my, friends, a well known motorcycle octogenarian with Ducati's Nortons Harleys Buell's Triumphs and Guzzi's currently in his garage, and his response was, "Well, John and I think alike, at the end of the day, anything with 2 wheels and a motor is COOL!"  Seems that's the only way to be.

As a newb to ownership and this forum, I have to say only your knowledge is intimidating. I look forward to drawing on it quite a bit (starting this weekend, according to the order confirmation I just received). I don't mind wrenching on stuff when I know I've got a good resource available. I've swapped out truck engines and done most types of car repairs over the years, usually with someone or some trusted manual getting a good workout in the process. Already a couple of folks here have hit my inbox with valuable resources at just the hint of inquiry on my part, and a few transactions have transpired without incident.

so, yeah, snob is a term that has seldom come to mind while following along. I say, seldom...  ~;

Allow me to commend yous guys. I thank you. My bank account, on the other hand.....

[not-fishing]

Guzzi was the bastard, red-headed, step-child of BMW and Harley.

And what's wrong with being red-headed (or ginger as the English like to say)  ?

 because my family may resemble your remark

[kckershovel]

    I just took the train down to Virginia to drive a K5 blazer home to try and sell for a small profit. After arriving it was not as described. I spent 12 hours a day for 3 days putting floors in sealing leaky sunroof and tracking down the worst inter-mitten running issue that I have ever encountered.

     I rebuilt the quadrajet carb once. Then put an edelbrock on it. Then rebuilt the edelbrock twice and also jetted the edelbrock. I put on an electric pump full tune up and then an new distributor. Nothing fixed it. I had drained the tank twice and fuel pored out clean and fast. the last time I drained the tank I jumped up and down on the rear bumper and fuel stopped. I was then out of time and made a fuel tank out of a beer keg and ran a line from the keg on the passenger floor out the vent window to the electric pump in the engine compartment and drove it 600 miles home after trying to leave at 3 in the morning I finally got on the road at 2 in the afternoon stopping for fuel every 80-100 miles ice storm snow and alternator belt problems and a detour to some guys brothers house for an extra alt belt I got home at 6am the next day. I had spent 26 hours straight either driving or working on the truck to drive it home. Now I will be happy if I break even on money spent and nothing for my work or time. Does that count as serious? I guess some days are for learning and some days are for earning. That was allot of learning.  

[Rough Edge racing]

 Kev, yes people that do that are not the majority. And many who don't have equal or more talent in other areas. And it's a person's vision of what a bike should look like. If I bought a brand new bike,in a short time everything would be stripped off to the bare necessities...What attracts me to Guzzi is the prominent engine, like a locomotive...And I like to see the mechanical parts so any body work,dash panels etc are just blocking the view.
 Other riders like the style of a complete bike with flowing lines.
 And some riders just ride because they like the feeling and perhaps the machine is not so important...

[NCAmother]

The one consistent thing that does annoy me is the constant bashing of altered Guzzis, wether cafe racers or clones or whatever.  I know it turns off a lot of new members here who want to use their (MotoGuzzi) bikes as a platform for personalizing their own bikes.  When I finish my bike, I know I'd get shamed by a few outspoken members here, but I would rather see a cafe guzzi T3 on the road than NOT seeing a T3 on the road at all.  With that said, I am grateful for those people, because they are part of a bigger picture and do offer really good advice at times

[NCAmother]

The one consistent thing that does annoy me is the constant bashing of altered Guzzis, wether cafe racers or clones or whatever.  I know it turns off a lot of new members here who want to use their (MotoGuzzi) bikes as a platform for personalizing their own bikes.  When I finish my bike, I know I'd get shamed by a few outspoken members here, but I would rather see a cafe guzzi T3 on the road than NOT seeing a T3 on the road at all.  With that said, I am grateful for those people, because they are part of a bigger picture and do offer really good advice at times

+1

[Penderic]

Other brands just attract a different kind of rider, like these scrambler and cafe custom worshiping hipsters. Shameful!

New fad: Naked Bobbed Scramblers :D
 

[NCAmother]

Other brands just attract a different kind of rider, like these scrambler and cafe custom worshiping hipsters. Shameful!

New fad: Naked Bobbed Scramblers :D
 

OK, now that was hilarious  :BEER:

[Kev m]

And what's wrong with being red-headed (or ginger as the English like to say)  ?

 because my family may resemble your remark

LOL, I didn't say anything was wrong with that at all...

Kev, yes people that do that are not the majority. And many who don't have equal or more talent in other areas. And it's a person's vision of what a bike should look like. If I bought a brand new bike,in a short time everything would be stripped off to the bare necessities...What attracts me to Guzzi is the prominent engine, like a locomotive...And I like to see the mechanical parts so any body work,dash panels etc are just blocking the view.
 Other riders like the style of a complete bike with flowing lines.
 And some riders just ride because they like the feeling and perhaps the machine is not so important...

We're all different.

As much as I've enjoyed being a gearhead in my life MOST of it was by necessity (couldn't afford to pay someone to work on my stuff... or even moreso, couldn't afford a truck in college, but I could afford a $200 chassis with a blown motor, and a $200 junkyard motor, and a $200 transmission rebuild and VIOLA - I had a truck.

Or a little later, newly married, trying to buy a house, couldn't afford a car AND a bike, but needed something reliable enough to get to work EVERY day. So I bought a new bike...and a few years later when I realized (after riding home over an hour in snow storm on a Harley, or after dropping my beater XS650 on black ice 3 times that winter) I needed a car again.

So I bought a little 2wd Tracker, and then realized in a year or so how much more fun a 4wd would have been...so I made it one.

But I've NEVER chased extra performance on my machines, no blowers, turbos, or serious engine work... no need to cam it and hot rod it.

I've always preferred to do my own maintenance, especially things like brakes, the last thing I want to trust someone else with is my brakes right.

But other than that I've always preferred only to make basic modifications to the form and function of my bikes. Change out seats, add some luggage or a windshield or something that makes it work better.

<shrugs>

The whole current café scene is kinda nice. I get it.

I would love to take a Harley Sportster or even a Tonti Jackal and make something more like a sporting standard out of it.

But man, let's not even talk about the money, it's the TIME I no longer have.

Between work and 3 kids, I don't have time to chase that. If I have ANY free time I want to ride, NOT WRENCH.

Even basic maintenance is getting under my skin as it keeps me away from the kids and a wife that I feel really lucky to be with...

... So yeah, we all got our own stories.

[Aaron D.]

OK, not to make this too much of a love-in..

But we bought two Scouts, so I joined an Indian forum. Ugh.
No, pun was intended.

If I kept reading that twaddle, I'd end up getting rid of the Scout.

Almost all fora are crap. This one is actually one of the best places on the web, period.

[cruzziguzzi]

Yeah, well, ya bring the ugly girl to the dance - but she's got great character - and you tend do less finger pointing.

Not much to be snobbish about. No real cutting edge... anything and when you spend so much time tollerating a chosen product - multiple times, your "glass house" can get a bit shaky.

Too, this has been a relatively mild "winter season" for WG postings. Maybe though, other site's snobishness is supplanted by passive-aggressive curmudgeonliness from time to time.

Also, the opportunity to veer off on tangental threads is a pressure release. Really, to read folk commenting productively on such diverse subjects as; high end watches, aircraft (military and civil) antique (or not) muzzle loaders, several versions of vermin abatement, personal health.... It's a veritable smörgåsbord of intel.

Todd.

[cruzziguzzi]

Other brands just attract a different kind of rider, like these scrambler and cafe custom worshiping hipsters. Shameful!

New fad: Naked Bobbed Scramblers :D
 

And nary a headboard in sight. :BEER:

Todd.

[Bill Hagan]

Other brands just attract a different kind of rider, like these scrambler and cafe custom worshiping hipsters. Shameful!

New fad: Naked Bobbed Scramblers :D
 

The very thought of most Guzzisti trying to emulate that event ... well ... let's just say we probably wouldn't get as many in the pic as that bunch did.   ;D

Bill

[cruzziguzzi]

The very thought of most Guzzisti trying to emulate that event ... well ... let's just say we probably wouldn't get as many in the pic as that bunch did.   ;D

Bill

True, but what would be lacking in numbers would be made up for in (m)ass.

[redrider90]

It's very unusual to find a Guzzi owner who has not owned other brands...in many cases lots of other brands.  Thus, trashing all the other brands would be like admitting that one was an idiot.....oh, wait, that reminds me of my first wife.  Maybe I better think about this just a bit more.....

Peter Y.

Well I was an idiot. Note past tense. I owned not one but 2 HDs and they were both not so hot (62 Duo Glide) to down right awful (72 Super Glide). OK OK that was 40+ years ago but I still reserve the right to hate a brand and also to have previously owned said brand and all the while reclaiming my intelligence when I went Italian first with a Ducati and then a Guzzi. 

[Kev m]

Meh, I never owned a 62 or 72 Ford either, but I wouldn't judge the current models based on em anyway. ;)

[Bill N]

Yeah, well, ya bring the ugly girl to the dance - but she's got great character - and you tend do less finger pointing.

Not much to be snobbish about. No real cutting edge... anything and when you spend so much time tollerating a chosen product - multiple times, your "glass house" can get a bit shaky.

Too, this has been a relatively mild "winter season" for WG postings. Maybe though, other site's snobishness is supplanted by passive-aggressive curmudgeonliness from time to time.

Also, the opportunity to veer off on tangental threads is a pressure release. Really, to read folk commenting productively on such diverse subjects as; high end watches, aircraft (military and civil) antique (or not) muzzle loaders, several versions of vermin abatement, personal health.... It's a veritable smörgåsbord of intel.

Todd.

This is my favorite forum because the moderators are moderate. They allow the discussions to stray and are forgiving of non MG content. I've learned about health issues, guns, astronomy, touring, etc. The members seldom quarrel and I love the topics and discussions. Hey sometime I even learn something about Moto Guzzi's.
Bill

[Petrus Rocks]

Well, I'm in the "modify your bike crowd".  My '72/'76 Triumph is a scrambler, My '74 BMW is a ..something, my '85 Guzzi is a cali cafe...My '06 Buell is modified but for personal taste.
I like the mechanical-ness of bikes.  Guzzis are odd and very mechanical, well thought out (compared to some) and unique!
A Guzzi interests us all because it's different not a cookie cutter bike.

That said I enjoy this site but I'd like to see more guys modifying bikes because it's what I like to do.  Not the just the farkles bit but making them work better, go faster, handle better. 
Different vintage bikes for different purposes is what I'm after.

[Yukonica]

It's very unusual to find a Guzzi owner who has not owned other brands...in many cases lots of other brands.  Thus, trashing all the other brands would be like admitting that one was an idiot.....oh, wait, that reminds me of my first wife.  Maybe I better think about this just a bit more.....

Peter Y.

#3 for me... some of us take longer... :beat_horse

[canuck750]

The one consistent thing that does annoy me is the constant bashing of altered Guzzis, wether cafe racers or clones or whatever.  I know it turns off a lot of new members here who want to use their (MotoGuzzi) bikes as a platform for personalizing their own bikes.  When I finish my bike, I know I'd get shamed by a few outspoken members here, but I would rather see a cafe guzzi T3 on the road than NOT seeing a T3 on the road at all.  With that said, I am grateful for those people, because they are part of a bigger picture and do offer really good advice at times

I like to see the modified Guzzi'a, there is a lot of talent out there. From my own experience I want to see the V7 Sports and LeMans models saved but 'improving" on a 850T or T3, Cali etc is fine by me. Those who knock the custom angle are the minority and I don't hold stock in their opinions.

[mach1mustang351]

I consider myself a generic "motorcycle" fan.  I have a deep love for Guzzis, but I wouldn't say it is excusive by a long shot.  I appreciate all brands, even if there are bikes I would never own personally.  I usually lean European as my personal preference.  We all have different priorities and that drives people to choose the bikes they do.  One thing that drives me crazy is the haters out there.  You go to some of the other forums and things and you get people hating on Ktm, the Japanese bikes, and especially the BMWs.  No reason to hate and try to understand why people make the bad decisions they do  ;-T

[rboe]

Can they tell me how to attract 25 year old hard bodied way hot women?

Attracting them is easy, keeping them is an entirely different problem.  ::)

[blackcat]

Can they tell me how to attract 25 year old hard bodied way hot women?

One word: Shoes*

*but be prepared to shell out some cash, and not those little dollars for Sidi's,etc.

[Lannis]

One word: Shoes*

*but be prepared to shell out some cash, and not those little dollars for Sidi's,etc.

Shoes?

You mean shoes for THEM?   Or shoes like in "every girl's crazy for a Sharp Dressed Man?"

Obviously I have no idea of the role of shoes in the lives of 25-year-old women.   And I don't know why I should think YOU have an idea either ...  ???   ;)   :D

Lannis

[blackcat]

Shoes?

You mean shoes for THEM?   Or shoes like in "every girl's crazy for a Sharp Dressed Man?"

Obviously I have no idea of the role of shoes in the lives of 25-year-old women.   And I don't know why I should think YOU have an idea either ...  ???   ;)   :D

Lannis

Yes, shoes for them.

And I have spent a good deal of time with my in house professional shoe buyer observing other woman buying expensive shoes. Of course this is just from casual observation with no hard data to back up my opinion.

 

[charlie b]

ROFLMAO

Yep, my "in house professional shoe buyer" can give lessons too :D  Her specialty is boots...not the motorcycle kind....much more expensive  :)

[Kev m]

Can they tell me how to attract 25 year old hard bodied way hot women?

Jenn was an 18 y/o college student/athlete when we hooked up...


...the amazing part is she's stayed all these years.




EDIT - she does LOVE shoes... though I think I spent more on her Ducati jacket this year than I did on her Uggs and Toms...

[raul]

Kev m , we are pretty sure there was some magic , or voodoo , or something similar involved  ;D Magic dust maybe  :o ~;

  Dusty

Quite possibly an undiagnosed eye problem.

[AMGeneral]

Gee in this thread I have been called;

Different, even had that pointed out on a ride to Turner Bend store on the Pig Trail. After my sandwich and a fuel up I went out to head back to camp and was promptly asked "Did you buy that bike to be different?" I said yes as I started the Jackal and clunked it into 1st. :bike

Unusual, for not owning anything else. My Jackal is my first and only ride. Maybe down the road find a garage mate, but for now I'm unusually happy! ;-T

Quirky, Ok guess you kinda have to be to put up with all the looks, questions, comments about the Guzzi you are riding. What is that? They still make those? A Moto What? How did you pronounce that again? No bike looks, sounds, rides like a Gootzi. Could be a good thing or a bad thing. Depends on a bikes particular attitude that day. ~;

So I wish to thank you for those nice compliments! Nice to be noticed, but I don't ride a Guzzi to be noticed. I ride it because I'm different, unusual and quirky! Just like my Jackal! Cheers! :BEER:

Thanks!!
Rod