Author Topic: Calvin brain trust, please school me (Read 73070 times)

Howard R · « **Reply #120 on:** April 02, 2015, 12:55:18 PM »

Quote from: mtiberio on April 02, 2015, 12:20:12 PM

While installing new shocks, and testing my tubeless wire wheel, I had the muffler off and as I reported earlier I could see where the right side muffler bracket had slotted holes at the muffler end. I'll get a picture of the bracket next time I'm into it, but I thought you'd like to see the result of moving the muffler all the way up the slots on the bracket:

compare to my picture from a few posts ago...

IMG_0970 by mtiberio, on Flickr

I'd be curious: are both brackets slotted, or just the one on the right?

mtiberio · « **Reply #121 on:** April 02, 2015, 08:29:44 PM »

Road scum in gap? probably
Left Muffler brkt slotted? no

mtiberio · « **Reply #122 on:** April 03, 2015, 12:35:13 PM »

Quote from: Howard R on April 02, 2015, 12:55:18 PM

I'd be curious: are both brackets slotted, or just the one on the right?

if you zoom into the picture, you can actually see the muffler brackets and where they bolt to the mufflers. you can see that the one on the right extends below the nuts a fair bit. riding high in the slots is what it took to raise the right muffler to the height of the left...

mtiberio · « **Reply #123 on:** April 04, 2015, 06:52:59 PM »

Been looking for more legroom on the CalVin, and didn't like the fact that I couldn't get my foot very far under the brake pedal on the right. I tried to shorten the OEM brake rod and still couldn't get the pedal high enough. Using a piece of Stainless Steel rod and some 6mm Heim Joints and coupling nuts I made a rod just the right length and now I can stick my shoe under the brake lever. I realize this isn't everyones cup of tea, but it works for me.

IMG_0990 by mtiberio, on Flickr

Wildguzzi.com · « **Reply #123 on:** April 04, 2015, 06:52:59 PM »

mtiberio · « **Reply #124 on:** April 04, 2015, 07:01:58 PM »

Along the same lines, I raised the front of the shift lever and lowered the rear. On this side I was limited to working with the OEM stuff as the rod had right and left hand threads on each end (to ease adjustment, cudos to moto guzzi) and I couldn't readily replace or modify it. I originally tried to fit a shift lever from an old convert I had, but the pegs were too high up, even thought theyy had the desirable attribute of being tucked fully to the right. I don't care for the forward peg on the CalVin shifter being doglegged outward. I feel it takes away from (you guessed it) legroom. Right now I'll live with the OEM shifter and rod (although I did shorten the rod up substantially by removing the lock nut), and make do with merely rotating the lever back giving me more leg room up front and providing an easier heel stomp to up shift.

I also used this opportunity to grease everything, and used a bit of beer can shim to tighten up the shifter (only 4k miles no less).

IMG_0991 by mtiberio, on Flickr

Sheepdog · « **Reply #125 on:** April 04, 2015, 09:37:11 PM »

There is a secondary shift linkage adjuster under the transmission. If you'd like to retain your locknut, you might give it a try...

mtiberio · « **Reply #126 on:** April 05, 2015, 02:05:54 PM »

thanks, I know its there under the seat key bracket. Sort of a moot point however, as today I made a new shift rod out of stainless, and fit a shift lever from an old convert that I had removed the heel section from. In the picture below you can see how the OEM shifter on the CalVin doglegs outward and the older one doesn't. With the forward end being tucked in, and the rearward end being gone, I have a ton of room to move my foot around on the left floorboard.

IMG_0993 by mtiberio, on Flickr

mtiberio · « **Reply #127 on:** April 05, 2015, 07:55:26 PM »

Quote from: Sheepdog on April 04, 2015, 09:37:11 PM

There is a secondary shift linkage adjuster under the transmission. If you'd like to retain your locknut, you might give it a try...

I did take a peak under the cover, and while I may not adjust the length of the inner linkage (as I believe you are suggesting), I may move the linkage to the outboard hole, which will shorten throw at the expense of making it heavier.

mtiberio · « **Reply #128 on:** April 06, 2015, 03:50:45 PM »

like this:

IMG_0996 by mtiberio, on Flickr

mtiberio · « **Reply #129 on:** April 06, 2015, 03:55:36 PM »

read on another thread that the brackets that bolt to the windshield could be reversed right to left in order to raise it. I figured I'd try it even though I think the severe buffeting CalVins experience is due to air rushing up from below. While I had the brackets in my hand, I noticed that the triangular slots forward of the regular mounting holes could be used to move the windshield back. Since the washers were already big enough, it was easy. It gives you a ton of options, laid back, pushed forward (angle wise), up and down. I opted for down and laid back.

IMG_0994 by mtiberio, on Flickr

IMG_0995 by mtiberio, on Flickr

mtiberio · « **Reply #130 on:** April 17, 2015, 07:53:17 AM »

Decided I wanted a secondary quick release on my fuel line. I don't like having to mess with the plastic fitting, and I hope this all metal Jiffy-Tite dry break/quick disconnect will be the ticket. Bought just the plug and socket from amazon/racer parts wholesale for $50. had the hose clamps.

mtiberio · « **Reply #131 on:** April 17, 2015, 08:17:20 AM »

While I had the handlebars off (I'm switching to 7/8" risers and handlebars for greater selection and hopefully pullback and comfort), I decided to find out exactly how far up into the triple clamps you can safely move the forks (I'm trying to lower the bike). I had already done it 10mm after hearing some folks say they have been running at 20mm, but I wanted to know for sure, what hits first, and when. The process is simple, with the bike on the centerstand, and a jack under the front of the motor, you remove the top caps from the forks and lowering the bike, slide the sliders all the way up until they "bottom" internally on the fork tubes. If something else hits first (fender/alternator cover/voltage regulator/fork brace/dust scrapers/tripleclamp), you have the tubes too high in the triple clamps. With the front end now fully compressed, you undo the tripleclamp pinch bolts, and lower the triple clamps on the fork tubes, until (as it turns out for my CalVin) the fork brace hits the lower tripleclamp. In this fully compressed and maximally lowered state, there is a tiny gap between the front fender and the alternator cover and voltage regulator (thank you Guzzi for due dilligence) as well as the dust scrapers and the lower triple clamp. At this point you tighten the triple clamp pinch bolts, secure in the knowledge that if you should bottom the forks, you will not smack the fender into something or suffer any more than you would have in stock configuration. Now jack the bike up and reinstall the fork to caps and you are done. I did this and measured what the maximum fork rise allowable is for my CalVin. You can feel free to use my numbers at your own risk, or you can repeat my process... What I found is the top of the fork tubes can be about 15mm above the top of the triple clamp. What is easier to measure is the top of the triple clamp to the flat of the fork top cap below the hex. This distance is 18mm and I show that below... enjoy

what it all looks like with the fork guts slid up:

clearance here:

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clearance here:

here is where the metal meets first, the fork brace and the lower triple clamp, with a slight gap between the dust scraper and the lower triple clamp:

mtiberio · « **Reply #132 on:** April 19, 2015, 01:36:13 PM »

finished the conversion to tubeless wheels yesterday. Used a 3.5"x18 rear tubeless spoked wheels from a 1998 EV onthe rear, and on the front I used a mid-70's era Lester Mag I had kicking around. Nice to know if I go on tour that I can use my plug kit on (the vast majority of) flats. As I showed earlier in this thread. The '98 rear rim is a bolt on, with however some small gaposis. That I can live with because the splines are fully engaged.

mtiberio · « **Reply #133 on:** April 19, 2015, 01:45:40 PM »

The front had an interesting twist. When I examined the OEM front wheel, I assumed that the factory used the same front wire wheel hub that had been using since the first front disc brakes bikes since 1974. Assuming that I figured that the Lester Mag which is machined to those same specs, and is made to use the standard 300mm rotors/bearing carriers and inter bearing spacer, would be able to use the more modern 320mm rotor/bearing carriers and inter bearing spacer. From this picture, you can see it did work.

what was interesting is the hub of the OEM wheel had the 6 holes at 100mm centers like all the mid-70's wire wheels, but it also had a set of 5 symmetric holes as well. When I saw this, I was a bit concerned, but that concern was unfounded. Seems this hub is used for multiple purposes by possibly other manufacturers. After assembly, the only tweaking I felt I had to do was shim the left caliper 1/2mm inward to center it over the disc. For all I know it was the same way with the OEM wheel.

mtiberio · « **Reply #134 on:** April 19, 2015, 05:33:27 PM »

Oh, and I forgot another great feature of these wheels. Besides being tubeless, they are 4 pounds lighter than stock. The rear went from 36# down to 32#, and the front went from 32# down to 28#... rotating mass and unsprung weight. incredible benefit for handling and acceleration/braking...

Cam3512 · « **Reply #135 on:** April 19, 2015, 06:24:10 PM »

Really, a mag up front and spoke in the rear??? I know, I know, function over form...

mtiberio · « **Reply #136 on:** April 19, 2015, 06:41:08 PM »

the spoke in the rear is mostly hidden by bags... I'll keep looking for a matching front, but the deal I found was just for the rear...

Cam3512 · « **Reply #137 on:** April 19, 2015, 06:53:24 PM »

Quote from: mtiberio on April 19, 2015, 06:41:08 PM

the spoke in the rear is mostly hidden by bags... I'll keep looking for a matching front, but the deal I found was just for the rear...

Got it.

mtiberio · « **Reply #138 on:** April 26, 2015, 02:19:14 PM »

While I liked the look of the front of the CalVin (directionals, running lamps, matching scooped out windshield), there were enough technical deficencies in this package to warrant a rework. The lamps and the signals are far enough behind the windshield that they send light onto the back of the windshield at night, unsat. Running the lamps in the day runs down the battery, also unsat. Putting in weaker bulbs kind of defeats the purpose. And of course the lamps weight a bit and they are on the forks. So the running lamps had to go. Then because of buffeting from wind that I believe comes from below, the windshield will have to be replaced with a full length job once I identify either an undrilled police shield, or a manufacturer that will work with me. Before I do the windshield, I wanted to move the directionals down where the lamps were, using a trucker style turn signal, to mimic the missing lamp look. It took a while to find some alternative directionals that had a 3/8" stud (most all trucker stuff is 1/2" stud). Found some and got them yesterday. Today I removed the OEM directionals, and installed the new ones where the lamps went. Jury is still out, and whether or not they stay depends on my final windshield solution. They were only $5 each from http://www.slclighting.com/ so if they end up on the shelf, my retirement will not be significantly delayed. Had to reuse the 10W bulbs from the OEM directionals as what came in my new directionals was a mismatch to the rear and caused the flasher unit to not flash.

Note roomier floorboards without floating platforms, still not coated with bed liner, good news, vibration is not noticable. Also note I removed the oem crashbar and lower wind shields. Interestingly enough, since removing the leg shields, I am experiencing less buffeting around the face by wind from below. Could the leg shields be directing some of the deflected air up?

New look:

caugh mid-flash:

Cam3512 · « **Reply #139 on:** April 26, 2015, 04:22:49 PM »

When I had my Calvin I put NOS police style Dietz turn signals in front and back. Dual sided up front, and running lights in back. I needed to replace the flasher with a heavy duty from the auto parts store. The stocker wouldn't flash the 1157 bulbs.

PIAA 30W superbright bulbs in the spots were about the same brightness as stock 50W.

Personally, I like the crash bars ON and the protection they offered. I also removed the crappy leg shields. I replaced the screws into the bars with finishing washers, and swapped left for right so the screws faced rearward.

mtiberio · « **Reply #140 on:** April 26, 2015, 05:44:36 PM »

Was thinking of a cali II crash bar. Stout. Hadnt thought about swapping sides on the oem, neat idea. Still think it is a poor design with minimal strength and high damage potential.

mtiberio · « **Reply #141 on:** April 26, 2015, 05:45:29 PM »

Where did you attach dietz?

Cam3512 · « **Reply #142 on:** April 26, 2015, 09:12:06 PM »

Quote from: mtiberio on April 26, 2015, 05:45:29 PM

Where did you attach dietz?

Same place as stock.

mtiberio · « **Reply #143 on:** April 30, 2015, 11:49:41 AM »

Don't ask me why I bought a touring tonti. I'm probably speaking heresy, but ever since my first tonti, a 76 Convert, gave me sciatica, I realized that the hip to floorboard distance on the touring tonti's was too tight. No problem with loop frames, which is why I built my EldoVert. So I bought this CalVin last month thinking it has been years, well sure enough, I still felt scrunched up. I have had the stock saddle reworked by a local auto upholstery shop, which allowed me to move back. They moved the hump back (much like the factory did with the original Cali II's saddle), better but not so good that I didn't order a Corbin last week. I have changed out the risers, so I can fit 7/8" bars, and I now have some pullbacks, and may pull them back further later with yet another set of risers once the saddle comes in. Another place to look to gain legroom is of course the floorboards. The mounting design doesn't lend it self to lowering unless you are willing to cut and weld. One thing I noticed, is that the CalVin comes with these rubber ball suspended floorboards mats which raise your feet 1/2" or more:

I could get a set of old style convert boards, but they have to be cut on to fit the CalVins lower frame rails, and finding a primo set could get expensive/tough. So on a whim, I removed the suspended mats from my CalVin and drove around for a while and realized, the extra leg room was real nice, and vibration wasn't a problem. So I got to thinking, I can't glue the fixed mats from the early floorboards on because the CalVin floorboard is to convoluted. So I decided to use some bed liner with suspended rubber bits and paint it on...

while drying, the matrix contracts and more of the rubber bits emerges:

after drying, you get this, needs a little touchup, but this stuff is great, you can paint it over itself...

mtiberio · « **Reply #144 on:** May 01, 2015, 07:48:35 AM »

Quote from: Cam3512 on April 26, 2015, 04:22:49 PM

...
I needed to replace the flasher with a heavy duty from the auto parts store. The stocker wouldn't flash the 1157 bulbs.
...

any part number or deeper description?

mtiberio · « **Reply #145 on:** May 04, 2015, 05:10:54 PM »

So I was adjusting the length of the brake rod to lower the pedal since I ditched the raised floorboard platforms and gained a bunch of legroom, and noticed, hmmmm if I move the brake rod to the lower tab on the lever (the one where the heel nub normally goes) the brake will have longer softer travel. Since the rear brake was too firm and hard to modulate on this bike, this could be perfect. So I have yet to ride it, but the below picture shows the geometry. It also shows the bedliner coating that I did...

Cam3512 · « **Reply #146 on:** May 04, 2015, 08:21:48 PM »

Quote from: mtiberio on May 01, 2015, 07:48:35 AM

any part number or deeper description?

No number, it's been a few years. I just remember it being a similar round style "heavy duty" flasher off the shelf.

mtiberio · « **Reply #147 on:** May 06, 2015, 12:51:33 PM »

Quote from: Cam3512 on May 04, 2015, 08:21:48 PM

No number, it's been a few years. I just remember it being a similar round style "heavy duty" flasher off the shelf.

Thanks, I see from the descriptions, they say things like "can handle 6 bulbs" or "can handle 10 bulbs", I'd assume that is heavy duty and could handle the "high wattage" 1157 bulb...

ccoli · « **Reply #148 on:** May 07, 2015, 11:58:29 AM »

Is the wheel centered properly? I would figure it is too far to the left. I'm doing the opposite mod. Putting Stone wheel hubs on an EV. Had to get a rear drive to match. Traded with the guy I sold the EVs wheels to.

mtiberio · « **Reply #149 on:** May 07, 2015, 02:20:58 PM »

As far as I can tell it is centered. The difference is the CalVin OEM hub has an added flange at it's right outer periphery to close the gaposis. That appears to be the only dimensional difference I can detect. The tire seems centered as before, meaning the rim is laced with the same relation to the hub whether OEM CalVin or 98 EV.

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Author Topic: Calvin brain trust, please school me (Read 73070 times)

Wildguzzi.com