I live outside of Philly and am looking for someone to either help me restore or do the whole job on a 1971 Bonnie & a 1969 matchless that are in “barn” condition. I would like to get them rideable not show bikes.
Note from Reader:
Hope this response will still help the owner. There is a shop in Philadelphia called The Spare Parts Co. located at 406 Vine St (4th and Vine). They do a lot of Moto Guzzi’s and BMW’s but are fairly knowledgeable about Euro bikes. They could probably point you in the right direction if they can’t help you. Phone # is 215.922.2214.
I’ve dealt with these guys before because I wanted them to rebuild an engine for a ’78 BMW R100/7 that I have. Never got around to stripping the bike though.
Trivia fact:
If anyone has ever read the book by Melissa Holbrook Pierson (The Perfect Machine), this is the same shop that she picked up her Moto Guzzi from.
My Response:
Thanks for the post, and for the book recommendation. I’m going to give it a look!
Does your R100/7 need a complete tear down? Or just a top end? I did a conversion on an R80/7 not too long ago and bumped it up with 900 pistons. Sweet little bike
Hi Evan.
I think the R100/7 needs a top end minimum but my thinking was that if I was going to remove the engine anyway, why not see what else needs done? I was hearing this tapping noise from the right cylinder and it was really bugging me. I checked the valves and they seemed ok but I am by no means an expert on this stuff.
Unfortunately, it’s still sitting under a tarp as I’ve been spending most of my time working on an 85 Honda CB700SC. I’m having vacuum problems I think on the inline carbs and I can’t figure it out. I have a feeling the intake hoses aren’t tightened properly because they look off. I had a hell of a time getting them to meet up and tighten the clamps. Any suggestions would be welcome. I am going to take them off again anyway to do the boiling trick you wrote about.Glad to see that you made it through the cow incident down in Mexico ok. Safe travels.
Oh and thanks for putting this site together!
Thanks for the update.
Airheads will make a tapping sound when the valves are loose. As they say, loose valves are happy valves. But if you checked them and they’re in spec then they may not be the issue (unless they’re worn out). How many miles are on the motor? What does the compression look like?. It could be a little bit of piston slap.
If you suspect your vacuum hoses they I would just replace them. You can get hose at home depot that will work. You shouldn’t actually need the clamps at all to make the hoses seal. The clamps are just so the hoses don’t fall off. What is the issue you’re having?
I’m definitely going to check out that book- Title: the Perfect Vehicle