Factory RGS 1000 Executive info and hello from California

I think they made 250 Corsas, 47 of which were allocated to the UK.
This is one of them.
Not as rare as an Executive though, although mine now wears Executive bars and dash pad.
 
Just to throw a little fuel on the fire, one of the local Lavtragics owns a Red Executive.  I'm quite sure it's a proper Executive (though we didn't get the dinky stickers and vin plate which seem to be useful identifiers here) and am reasonably sure but not 100% that it is originally red.  It has silver wheels, and the owner swears it has the Corsa motor too, as a promotion of the new model or something.  Apparently it will out-accelerate, brake and corner a MotoGP bike.  He may be slightly biased (as we tend to be!).
Chances are I'll be seeing him tonight, so I'll clarify the details.  It may be the #2294 bike mentioned above.
Cheers
SteveB
 
Steve-

That would be awesome if you could talk with your friend and the owner of number 2294! If he can help verify that red Executives were available from the factory, that would be awesome!
It would be cool (and this might be impossible) to verify if the fairings on my father's bike were ever changed after the factory. If in fact they haven't, that's all the better!

Thanks again!
 
Hi Steve

never known YOU of all people to ever throw any fuel on the fire.......... ;)

just to be clear, and for Grant as well, I do not have anything invested in somehow proving every Executive ever made came from the factory in silver, it is already clear that anything was possible from the Laverda factory, special order or otherwise......

Paul LeClair
 
I remember getting a letter from the Slater brothers in California in the mid-80s inviting me to come and test ride an Executive. I'm pretty sure that the photos in the glossy brochure showed a red Executive.
I wonder if that offer is still good?

Ken
 
we have #2294 as being in South Australia on our Aussie Laverda register
no idea of where #2296 is
 
redax5 said:
we have #2294 as being in South Australia on our Aussie Laverda register
no idea of where #2296 is
Click to expand...

Thanks for the verification! Someone here turned me onto this registry: http://www.laverdamania.net/registre120.htm
 
Just to throw some nitromethane to the fire, Executives also came in black (well, sort of).

Back in the day, a guy wanted a Corsa, but they had all sold out so he ordered an Executive.  He took up the option of a "European Delivery Program" which existed in the day, whereby you could pick up your bike at the factory, ride it around Europe a bit, then have it shipped to Oz.  These bikes were correct Australian market bikes with ADR plates, they just got an extended test ride at the factory by the new owners.
The aforementioned prospective owner met with factory personell (probably Massimo, my recollection of the story is hazy) and casually mentioned that what he really wanted was a Corsa, but none were available.  Various mumblings ensue between factory chaps, and he is then taken out for an extensive lunch.  When he returns from lunch his Executive has been officially transformed into a Corsa, with all the correct bits.  I love that story, I think it sums up the Laverda experience as it was back then, brilliant.

So you see, nothing was necessarily black and white back in the day (or red, or silver).

Cheers
SteveB
 
breganzane said:
Apparently it will out-accelerate, brake and corner a MotoGP bike. 
Click to expand...

Bewdy! Put Marc Marquez on it for the next MotoGP season. It would be cool to see a 30 year old Laverda road bike (complete with lights, indicators, panniers and skinny road tyres) winning the MotoGP championship  :D
 
So is an Executive that has had the Corsa bits added in the factory worth as much as an executive or a corsa, or both put together?
 
breganzane said:
Back in the day, a guy wanted a Corsa, but they had all sold out so he ordered an Executive.  He took up the option of a "European Delivery Program" which existed in the day, whereby you could pick up your bike at the factory, ride it around Europe a bit, then have it shipped to Oz.  These bikes were correct Australian market bikes with ADR plates, they just got an extended test ride at the factory by the new owners.
The aforementioned prospective owner met with factory personell (probably Massimo, my recollection of the story is hazy) and casually mentioned that what he really wanted was a Corsa, but none were available.  Various mumblings ensue between factory chaps, and he is then taken out for an extensive lunch.  When he returns from lunch his Executive has been officially transformed into a Corsa, with all the correct bits.  I love that story, I think it sums up the Laverda experience as it was back then, brilliant.
Click to expand...

El Bear's bike, sold a few years ago to Mark S who then left the fuel taps on and banged a conrod, 2 weeks after he bought it, since sold to someone in WA I think
 
breganzane said:
Just to throw some nitromethane to the fire, Executives also came in black (well, sort of).

Back in the day, a guy wanted a Corsa, but they had all sold out so he ordered an Executive.  He took up the option of a "European Delivery Program" which existed in the day, whereby you could pick up your bike at the factory, ride it around Europe a bit, then have it shipped to Oz.  These bikes were correct Australian market bikes with ADR plates, they just got an extended test ride at the factory by the new owners.
The aforementioned prospective owner met with factory personell (probably Massimo, my recollection of the story is hazy) and casually mentioned that what he really wanted was a Corsa, but none were available.  Various mumblings ensue between factory chaps, and he is then taken out for an extensive lunch.  When he returns from lunch his Executive has been officially transformed into a Corsa, with all the correct bits.  I love that story, I think it sums up the Laverda experience as it was back then, brilliant.

So you see, nothing was necessarily black and white back in the day (or red, or silver).

Cheers
SteveB
Click to expand...

great story, Steve...!

Paul LeClair
 
so, I had a lovely chat with Roger Slater.

One of his very first questions was if the Executive under discussion is for sale, and if so, how much....?  ;)

bottom line, Roger remembers the Executives to have come in silver, but if someone wanted one in red that could be arranged. He says he does not remember this bike specifically, but does remember having a dealer in the Bay area as described by Justin.

he got quite enthused about someone bringing the bike back to life, recommended to ditch the stock "horrible" ignition in favour of an ignition conversion, to go through the carbs and throw away the "horrible" original ultra lean jetting that was required to pass EPA, and adding some rubber bands to the carb rack to lighten the carb spring action a bit. I agree with his assertion that replacing the ignition and re jetting the carbs will, in Roger's words, "transform" the bike.

what he most wanted to chat about though, is that he and Evelyn are wintering around Chula Vista, enjoying the brilliant weather, and Roger is spending a bunch of time riding his brand new, new production, Indian, which he just recently purchased and is really enthused about. Very cool.....

Justin, any of us here can specify for you the proper new jetting, what to change the needles and pilots etc., to, or just call Wolfgang Haerter and have him spec and supply them. In addition to rebuild kits, new unrestricted needles and needle jets, don't forget to order new accelerator pump diaphragms, new float needles, and new choke plungers. 

Paul LeClair

 
No point cutting sic on it, obviously fix the consumables, put some braided lines on, replace the rear shocks with something new, get the headstock braced and pu a 530 chain on it, beautiful high speed tourers they are, in capable hands they will keep with guys on modern stuff that think they are capable, moto gp bikes they are not, but they can be deceivingly fast  ;)
 
Paul LeClair said:
so, I had a lovely chat with Roger Slater.

One of his very first questions was if the Executive under discussion is for sale, and if so, how much....?  ;)

bottom line, Roger remembers the Executives to have come in silver, but if someone wanted one in red that could be arranged. He says he does not remember this bike specifically, but does remember having a dealer in the Bay area as described by Justin.

he got quite enthused about someone bringing the bike back to life, recommended to ditch the stock "horrible" ignition in favour of an ignition conversion, to go through the carbs and throw away the "horrible" original ultra lean jetting that was required to pass EPA, and adding some rubber bands to the carb rack to lighten the carb spring action a bit. I agree with his assertion that replacing the ignition and re jetting the carbs will, in Roger's words, "transform" the bike.

what he most wanted to chat about though, is that he and Evelyn are wintering around Chula Vista, enjoying the brilliant weather, and Roger is spending a bunch of time riding his brand new, new production, Indian, which he just recently purchased and is really enthused about. Very cool.....

Justin, any of us here can specify for you the proper new jetting, what to change the needles and pilots etc., to, or just call Wolfgang Haerter and have him spec and supply them. In addition to rebuild kits, new unrestricted needles and needle jets, don't forget to order new accelerator pump diaphragms, new float needles, and new choke plungers. 

Paul LeClair
Click to expand...

Paul-

Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate it!
I spoke with my father again and before we call Roger Slater (and after I call you, Paul) we're going to dig through all of the old paperwork to see if we can find a dealer name or even the shop owner's name in the hopes of jogging his memory.
My father also told me that in addition to the other modifications I mentioned, that he paid a visit to Mr. Slater back when he got the bike and per his recommendation, my father bought a new set of Euro carbs that could be tuned, thus leaving the stock stuff unmolested. He also noted some Suzuki carburetor part, I think it had to do with the throttle cable but I'm not sure. He also added a "Moto Witt," ignition system (does that sound right?) but said the bike never really acted correctly after the install. He wants us to check to make sure the new ignition system is in working order, but in his true form, he also noted that none of the OEM stuff was molested and he even mounted the unit under the seat so he didn't have to modify anything in order to use it.
I'm still holding out hope that I can track down more info about my father's bike in regards to the color of the fairings and how it came to be red, but I'm well aware this one might be left to mystery. And so the saga continues!
Thanks again for everything, this has been super cool! I'll update everyone after my father and I go digging through all of his old records.
 
redax5 said:
El Bear's bike, sold a few years ago to Mark S who then left the fuel taps on and banged a conrod, 2 weeks after he bought it, since sold to someone in WA I think
Click to expand...

He kept that one quiet - retrospective DHOTY anyone ?

Peter
 
Paul, I never said or implied you had a vested interest in trying to prove only silver ones were made.
All I was saying was that I was pretty sure there were genuine red ones too.
It has been very interesting to discover there may actually be at least one black one too.
Justin, I would listen to every piece of advice given, but apply selectively and at the right time. Otherwise you will be stripping it down, getting it welded and repainted, throwing away parts that may be perfectly.serviceable and generally destroying it's 'factoryness'.
As and when things need replaced or revised would be my suggestion.
Just concentrate on getting it safe and running correctly.
It looks to be in beautiful condition and is a testament to how your father cherished and looked after it.
 
drikko said:
Nope, this years DHOTY is in the bag and decided.....but that's for another thread.... :D :D :D :D
Click to expand...

Anything to do with a Kill Switch?? :D

Enjoying the story of the Executive. I use to live in the Bay Area early 80s, Roger Slater was then based Kenwood?? Got to know him fairly well, would ride my SF2 up there for parts.
Also brought a SF1 from TT Motors for $600. Happy Dazes :D
 
Hi Justin

yes, an ignition conversion from that time period would most likely have been a Moto Witt from Uwe Witt in Germany. Still in production and readily available, Wolfgang Haerter at Columbia Car and Cycle is one source, and has parts, wiring diagrams and manuals translated from the German, etc..

The Moto Witt box has an ignition map selector switch, depending on which generation of the box it is, it has between 10 and 15 ignition maps, only a couple of which will make a stock bike run well, so step one will be to see which ignition curve is presently selected. It will also require a look to see what it is using for ignition pickup and how they are adjusted if it is using multiple pickups, the later WITT systems for 120's use a single trigger with a rotating disc so that the plugs being fired are fired at exactly 120 degrees apart.

The Dellorto carbs are not sealed or locked down or anything, all that is required is to change the EPA needles which are likely either K 14 or K 28, to a K1, middle notch, needle jet to an AB 265, pilot(idle) jet to around a 60 (ish), make sure the tiny little O ring on the idle mixture screw is not perished, and uncork the airbox. There are some other basics that will need doing on a set that has sat so long, but it is all straightforward. If he has an extra set, all the better, but all the carbs are the same, European or North American, it is just a matter of selecting the correct internals which are all changeable and readily available. I have just finished doing up a set of Dellorto carbs for my present 1982 1200 TS restoration, they were still on teh crappy North American spec internals, fairly straightforward to set them up properly with the proper parts once you have done it once or twice.

For any Suzuki parts, I am just guessing, but I know Roger had (still has) a thing for trying to lighten the throttle action against the slightly stiff stock carb springs, he used to install some sort of spring mechanism in the throttle housing, as well as add various bits to the carb rack to try and lighten the spring pressure required to turn the throttle. not sure why he didn't just cut the carb springs, that is what many people trying to lighten the carb throttle action have done.

Sorting ignition and carbs will be straightforward, whatever questions, just ask, someone here will be able to answer pretty much any question.

Paul LeClair
 
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