Wildguzzi.com
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: DoubleGuzzi on March 26, 2026, 06:21:14 PM
-
Another one arrived today, in my cramped (again) garage. :shocked:
It's a sad looking thing with some rusty chrome and has been generally neglected over the years. I've already identified a few things that need sorted out, the simplest being that I had a suitably sized grommet to replace a missing sidepanel one. Fast idle lever is stuck, Monza fuel cap seal has disintegrated, throttle has zero play (top adjusters at minimum) and possibly there's something funky going on with swingarm/rear wheel bearings. I was given a centre stand in a box, so that'll be a priority to fit, so that I can better check what the story is.
Once the flat battery was topped up & charged, I got the bike fired up. I thought the exhausts looked a bit smokey, though it was kinda cold today and the bike has been sitting around for a while, possibly outside. I should've done a hand/nose test but didn't. :embarrassed:
After about 3.5 hours cleaning, it's looking better than arrived but not as good as it does in the pic. Hey, it was relatively cheap, especially for a V7, even with getting close to 30,000 miles showing.
:bike-037:
(https://i.ibb.co/r20WXwQC/20260326-170816.jpg) (https://ibb.co/r20WXwQC)
I guess I'm gonna be a bit busy for a few months, in between polishing the Shiney and tidying up the V50.
[Edit] Came with H/B panniers, in case someone wonders about the rack & rails.
-
They multiply, so, you must have a female in the bunch!
-
Nice!
Doesn't look sad anymore.
-
Nice!
Doesn't look sad anymore.
The pic flatters it a good amount.
A heap of rusty bolt heads and the silencers need a good scrub up. The lower engine has loads of missing black paint. The chrome of the wheel rims is nasty looking especially in the corners. Look closely at the front mudguard stays, to see corrosion on the forks. The exhaust headers have the typical (car owner) neglect and had black gunge melted to the left hand pipe: I'm working on it. You can't see it here but the rear drive is a mess with about 15-20% of the black paint flaked off. All alloy needs some Mother's attention.
Bike looks fine from 15ft away. :wink:
I'll remove the pannier rails and perhaps the rack, until required, plus the large (for my tastes) screen, to better show off the chromed headlamp. If I decide I like the bike enough, then I'll probably replace the Oxford heated grips for my usual cheapo Chinese ones that have an integrated heat controller - much cleaner look. I may even treat it to the original style chrome mirrors.. time will tell. All depends on many pounds (bucks) I need to use, to get the bike up to a decent standard.
[Looking forward to your progress, Charlie.]
-
Yesterday a quick check of electrical functions revealed the front brake switch not to be working; interesting in that it had the same problem a few years ago, noted during a MOT test. That's a wee task for another day.
Got the centre stand fitted - I'm getting too knackered to be lying on the garage floor, these days! Fortunately, as the stand had previously been fitted, the standard frame crossmember bolt wasn't factory tight, so that saved some grief. The silencers got removed and exhaust headers loosened off without any drama. The centre stand was a later purchase, rather than supplied from new - I suspect Hepco & Becker though didn't notice any markings. It's a shorty! Though easy to put up on the stand, the rear wheel hasn't been raised off the ground, so I'll need a block of wood to remove the back wheel etc..
I've discovered what the 'funky' feeling at the rear end is. It has to be the worst worn wheel bearings that I've ever come across! The wheel wobbles that much that there's about a 1-1.5mm gap opening up between the hub and drive unit. How the seller didn't notice seems impossible to me, as handling must be all over the place. I haven't got the wheel off yet but ordered up replacement bearings anyway.