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General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: Chuck in Indiana on July 14, 2017, 03:33:47 PM

Title: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 14, 2017, 03:33:47 PM
A week or two ago, we had a thread about the true weights of various Guzzis, including the Monza. Someone posted that there was no way a Monza could be much lighter than a modern small block. I said it certainly "feels" lighter.  :smiley: A quick search didn't find the thread, but the results will be posted tomorrow.
I ran out to the airport and got our local EAA chapter's scales for doing the weight and balance on newly finished airplanes.
I did a quicky (ahem) Indiana engineering thingy so I'd be able to roll a motorcycle on them and get the true weight of the front and rear wheel.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4291/35535684850_bb182cf1ef_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/W9aF4y)2017-07-14_04-23-07 (https://flic.kr/p/W9aF4y) by Charles Stottlemyer (https://www.flickr.com/photos/107188298@N06/), on Flickr
I'll do the totally stock Monza, the Aero Lario, and the Mighty Scura. I know this is short notice, but if you want to weigh your bike.. bring it here tomorrow. We'll get er done.
This should be a test of the accuracy (or not) of Guzzi owner's manuals.  :smiley:
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Lannis on July 14, 2017, 03:40:56 PM
A week or two ago, we had a thread about the true weights of various Guzzis, including the Monza. Someone posted that there was no way a Monza could be much lighter than a modern small block. I said it certainly "feels" lighter.  :smiley: A quick search didn't find the thread, but the results will be posted tomorrow.
I ran out to the airport and got our local EAA chapter's scales for doing the weight and balance on newly finished airplanes.
I did a quicky (ahem) Indiana engineering thingy so I'd be able to roll a motorcycle on them and get the true weight of the front and rear wheel.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4291/35535684850_bb182cf1ef_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/W9aF4y)2017-07-14_04-23-07 (https://flic.kr/p/W9aF4y) by Charles Stottlemyer (https://www.flickr.com/photos/107188298@N06/), on Flickr
I'll do the totally stock Monza, the Aero Lario, and the Mighty Scura. I know this is short notice, but if you want to weigh your bike.. bring it here tomorrow. We'll get er done.
This should be a test of the accuracy (or not) of Guzzi owner's manuals.  :smiley:

You'll probably find some small lies/large fibs on the weight thing.

If you really want to lose your faith in humanity, get a dynamometer .... !!     :shocked: :rolleyes:

Lannis
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: LowRyter on July 14, 2017, 03:56:55 PM
Maybe you should run a pool.  My guess:

Monza    455 lb
Aero      465 lb
Scura     570 lb

fully gassed or half tank?
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: kirb on July 14, 2017, 03:57:54 PM
I used a semi-axle scale...

http://stelviontx.blogspot.com/2013/11/big-bikes-hit-scale.html
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: leafman60 on July 14, 2017, 04:22:18 PM
Several years ago, I rigged up a set of digital scales designed to weigh 400 lbs and less so that I could weigh motorcycles.  My Stelvio NTX came in at about 640 as I recall and a similarly equipped BMW R1200GSA came in at 635.  This was a wet weight.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 14, 2017, 05:08:11 PM
Maybe you should run a pool.  My guess:

Monza    455 lb
Aero      465 lb
Scura     570 lb

fully gassed or half tank?

I'm filling them up so all will be equal. We'll take the tank gallons X 6 lbs and subtract that to figure empty weight.
My guess empty. <throwing dart> Monza 375. Aero 425 Scura 525.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 14, 2017, 05:25:27 PM
Empty, (fuel), would put my CX at 456#

Not bad for the old girl.

Yeah, that's pretty good for a big block. According to Guzzi, as nearly as I can tell.. all big blocks weigh five fiddy.  :smiley:
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: LowRyter on July 14, 2017, 05:37:18 PM
I'm filling them up so all will be equal. We'll take the tank gallons X 6 lbs and subtract that to figure empty weight.
My guess empty. <throwing dart> Monza 375. Aero 425 Scura 525.


geeez,  you're calling me overweight?  or jus' plain fat?
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: twowings on July 14, 2017, 05:43:06 PM
Let's just leave it at 'circumferencially challenged'....
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Sasquatch Jim on July 14, 2017, 05:46:22 PM
 That means , FAT.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: jas67 on July 14, 2017, 05:48:58 PM
Let's just leave it at 'circumferencially challenged'....

I'm just too short for my weight.   :boozing:
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: 80CX100 on July 14, 2017, 05:58:08 PM
Empty, (fuel), would put my CX at 456#

Not bad for the old girl.

     Interesting,,, It must be the low bars on my CX, giving me poor leverage,,, but when I move my different bikes around the garage, jostling for space,,, my CX seems to be the heaviest and unwieldy,,, whatever weight it has, is very compact,,, hopefully when I finally get higher bars on it, I'll feel more comfortable moving it around,,, out of all my bikes, it's the one that makes me nervous, always feels like I'm a hair away from dropping it,lol. Riding is completely different than pushing it around. fwiw

     Kelly
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Sheepdog on July 14, 2017, 06:03:07 PM
I'm "fun-sized."

My Vintage was listed as 580 lbs. Cycle world listed the wet weight as 629. Five gallons of fuel only weighs about 35 lbs, so there is about a @14 lb fib...about the weight of a battery and some engine fluids. The horsepower was rated at 75 vs the CW rear wheel dynamometer at 69.2. Small lies...
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Guzzidad on July 14, 2017, 06:33:49 PM
    I was real surprised when I weighed both my 01 EV and my 2012 Norge on the truck scale at work. EV was 620 and the Norge was 640. I thought the Norge would have lighter.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Idontwantapickle on July 14, 2017, 08:23:36 PM
I look forward to seeing what you come up with, here is a thread that has some real life measurements.

http://wildguzzi.com/forum/index.php?topic=60921.msg929968#msg929968
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: oldbike54 on July 14, 2017, 08:55:19 PM
I'm filling them up so all will be equal. We'll take the tank gallons X 6 lbs and subtract that to figure empty weight.
My guess empty. <throwing dart> Monza 375. Aero 425 Scura 525.

 My guess , no fuel , the Monza will weigh 395 , the Aero 435 , and the Scura about 530 .

 Dusty
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Rick4003 on July 15, 2017, 05:16:36 AM
I weighted my T5 after the rebuild and got 197kg. I weighted it before starting the teardown and got 250kg. I just used two bathroom scales and yours is probably more precise.

I will add a few more things so I will probably cross the 200kg line, but not by much. I think it was dry weight on both of them

Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk

Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: SmithSwede on July 15, 2017, 11:03:37 AM
Here's the earlier thread that launched the quest for empirical data.

http://wildguzzi.com/forum/index.php?topic=90957.msg1436754#msg1436754
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 15, 2017, 11:35:17 AM
Ok.. here we go.  :smiley: The results truly surprised me.. as I mentioned in the above thread, the Monza feels like a bicycle compared to the Lario. Perceived weight? Yes.
The method..roll the bike up on the scales, and keep it balanced while Dorcia ran the switches and dials on the readout.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4261/35805903281_23a9d55fed_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Wy3BA2)2017-07-15_10-27-44 (https://flic.kr/p/Wy3BA2) by Charles Stottlemyer (https://www.flickr.com/photos/107188298@N06/), on Flickr

First, the Lario. I filled the tanks so we would be at least have the same "ready to ride" weights.
The Lario weighs 205 lbs on the Front wheel and 234 on the rear. All up weight 439 minus 29.7 lbs of fuel= 409.3 empty. I would have thought it was heavier. The Lario *does* have HB racks.. call it 5 lbs or so for a little over 400 lbs empty.

The Monza. 186 front 210 rear=405 lbs all up. minus 26.4 lbs of fuel= 378.6 empty.

Scura. 247 front 290 rear= 537 lbs all up. I ran out of fuel.. it was about 1 inch below the filler neck, so I'd say a gallon or less, but if it was full it carries 37.95 lbs of fuel for 499.05 empty. I'll say it was a gallon low and call it 505. I would have thought it was heavier.

Just for grins, since I haven't weighed Mouser since certification, and it's a proven fact that airplanes gain weight as they age just like the operators..<shrug>
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4306/35937956815_21ce3941ce_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/WKHqv6)2017-07-15_10-25-38 (https://flic.kr/p/WKHqv6) by Charles Stottlemyer (https://www.flickr.com/photos/107188298@N06/), on Flickr
She is a portly 563, and carrying 36 lbs of fuel (she has 6 gallons presently) for 527 lbs. empty. 35 years ago, she weighed 500, but has gained a secondary ignition with 2 dyna coils, etc., a heavier but more reliable fuel delivery system, com radio, and seat cushions with pretty heavy but much more comfortable NASA foam bottoms.

At any rate, it was instructive for me, and hope we all learned something from it.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Antietam Classic Cycle on July 15, 2017, 11:41:35 AM
The Monza. 186 front 210 rear=405 lbs all up. minus 26.4 lbs of fuel= 378.6 empty.

I was never very good at math, but shouldn't that be 396 all up and 369.6 empty?
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Old Jock on July 15, 2017, 01:49:06 PM
Thanks Chuck

Informative and useful thread
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Unkept on July 15, 2017, 02:11:42 PM
Thank you for doing this Chuck! I was certain there couldn't be a 70lb difference in the Monza vs the Lario / a new smallblock... 34lbs sounds much more realistic.

Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: LowRyter on July 15, 2017, 02:20:41 PM
very interesting.  Lighter than I guessed.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: bad Chad on July 15, 2017, 03:45:49 PM
Good stuff. :afro:
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 15, 2017, 04:01:17 PM
I was never very good at math, but shouldn't that be 396 all up and 369.6 empty?

Yer right, Charlie  :embarrassed: I must have transposed something. <shuffling off saying, man.. and I used to make my living with numbers..> :smiley:

Ok, found it. Looking at my notes, the Monza is 219 rear for 405 total. I fat fingered the calculator. (roll eye)
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: guzzista on July 15, 2017, 07:19:16 PM
Thanks for sharing all that Chuck. Those big cylinders on the Aero Lario look positively bad ass
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: pete roper on July 15, 2017, 07:29:39 PM
Nice 'Wheel Pants' on the Mouser Chuck! :grin:
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 16, 2017, 08:37:27 AM
Nice 'Wheel Pants' on the Mouser Chuck! :grin:

Thanks.  :smiley: Another place she has picked up a little weight. The originals were (light) cheesy abs plastic. These are fiberglass..
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: guzzisteve on July 16, 2017, 09:13:14 AM
I weighed the Cali 2 w/SCF sidecar 16ga steel and it weighed w/1/2 tank fuel 700lbs on an grain elevator scale. Just shows how fat the engineers make them now, frame on the 14 is like a goldwing.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Darren Williams on July 16, 2017, 10:05:05 AM
I really want to cycle my fleet over the Toledo shipping scales at work (my department does the calibration of the scale with certified test weights) so I know it is pretty accurate (certification says +/-2 lbs through it's range of 200 lbs to 10,000 lbs).  But... there were some abuses to using company equipment and materials for "personal" projects by the Union members that changed the policy to "not allowed".  So I have to go in after hours when nobody else is there and we are working so much overtime over the two shifts that it makes it real difficult.

While it really doesn't matter how much a bike weighs that much, I still want to know. The two places that it really matters are pushing it around and how it feels in strong cross winds.  To me, low speed parking lot handling is as much a clutch/throttle/flywheel combo than weight. Example is my FJ09 is somewhere around 100 lbs lighter than the R1200GS but the FJ's power is so twitchy and it has such a light flywheel that it's hard to keep the RPM's at a moderate level that smooth lock to lock turns are tough for me. Much easier on the GS.
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: LowRyter on July 16, 2017, 10:54:12 AM
Chuck, did you fill those tires with helium?   :popcorn:
Title: Re: True weights of Guzzis
Post by: Chuck in Indiana on July 16, 2017, 11:10:24 AM
Chuck, did you fill those tires with helium?   :popcorn:

I don't think so. "The Book" sez the Monza weighs 160kg dry. That translates to 352.7 lbs. Mine is bone stock and weighs 378.6.
The one that really surprised me was the Scura. I'm aware that Guzzis are all about lightness.. :evil:..but right around 500 lbs. is pretty good.