New RGS owner. Thankyou!

I fill up my RGS to the top of the filler neck, then immediately ride off....sometimes I even pay:D. This way I get maximum range as here in the wilds of Canada gas stations are not always convenient. If you fill it right up and leave it parked in the sun, the gas warms up, expands and runs out the filler cap, down the inside of the fairing and drips down on or next to the right exhaust pipe. My insurance includes loss from fire....
 
Holy sheeet....what fun! I have a blazecut fire suppression system in my VW Vanagon; maybe I should get one for the RGS and mount it in the fairing somehow for peace of mind?? A baking soda makeover would probably win out over getting roasted!:unsure:
 

Attachments

  • BLAZECUT-2T.jpg
    BLAZECUT-2T.jpg
    59 KB · Views: 11
darmahsd said:
Holy sheeet....what fun! I have a blazecut fire suppression system in my VW Vanagon; maybe I should get one for the RGS and mount it in the fairing somehow for peace of mind?? A baking soda makeover would probably win out over getting roasted!:unsure:
Click to expand...
You have a better chance of getting hit by lighting than the leaking fuel causing a problem. Gasoline ignites at 495 degrees F (257 degrees C) so if your motor gets this hot, you have bigger problems. The amount of fuel leaking on a full tank under hard braking is only a small amount and the wind at 60 MPH evaporates it in a few seconds. I have been riding my RGS for 32 years and have never worried about the fuel leak.

If you want to fix the RGS leaking fuel problem, cut off the top of the filler neck and have something welded on that does not leak.
 
darmahsd said:
I am not at all worried; I just think it's a hoot all the effort that went into this design that I have never seen on any other bike
Click to expand...
Indeed. Did you hear Laverda went out of business..? Adding expensive features didn’t help.
I still think it’s a pretty cool feature, always good for a comment (after the inevitable “Jota” reference), although my panel beater would have preferred a normal filler cap…. don’t ask 🤫
 
darmahsd said:
I am not at all worried; I just think it's a hoot all the effort that went into this design that I have never seen on any other bike
Click to expand...
The reason for the RGS fuel filler neck was not Laverda's idea but the result of the California Air Resources Board proposing that all motorcycles for I think the 1983 model year had to accept the evaporative fuel filler nozzle the same as a car and had to also have an overflow tank and charcoal canister. As California was their biggest market in the USA, they felt they had no choice but to do it. The rest of the motorcycle manufactures fought the rule and it was eventually dropped after Laverda had already spent a lot of money to design the RGS. The fuel tank cap is from a Fiat and was never designed to see fuel splashing against it.

Similar to the reason they designed the 120 motor as noise and emission rules in various countries made the 180 obsolete.
 
Thanks 1200ts that's great to know what the motivation was for this set up; I've had quite a few old fiats so that cracks me up; I heard that the dash was a fiat item as well.!
I was looking at the marzocchi piggy back shocks on the bike and was wondering how to top up the oil level? I took off the bleed screw on the back side and was wondering if it could be filled up with 10wt oil using a syringe? I realize that these aren't the greatest shock and read a thread on the forum about rebuilding them but I wasn't clear on maintaining the oil level. It looks dry in there and was hopeful I could just fill it up until it starts running out the hole? thanks much.
 
darmahsd said:
Thanks 1200ts that's great to know what the motivation was for this set up; I've had quite a few old fiats so that cracks me up; I heard that the dash was a fiat item as well.!
I was looking at the marzocchi piggy back shocks on the bike and was wondering how to top up the oil level? I took off the bleed screw on the back side and was wondering if it could be filled up with 10wt oil using a syringe? I realize that these aren't the greatest shock and read a thread on the forum about rebuilding them but I wasn't clear on maintaining the oil level. It looks dry in there and was hopeful I could just fill it up until it starts running out the hole? thanks much.
Click to expand...
They're gas shocks.
The valve is for pumping air in. If oil leaks, they need a rebuild. (or recycling)
I met a professional bike mechanic at the top of the ballon d'Alsace in 1981. He had a series 2 Jota. He'd split the sprocket cover by pumping grease into the hydraulic bleed nipple for the clutch.
It takes all sorts.
Paul
 
I serviced a set I had on the Jota as they were rubbish - got new seals , new oil , pressurised the canister correctly - couldn’t tell the difference and it was such a bastard compressing the spring s - have scrapped them and fitted a set of YKK which are far better and actually damp - incidentally I had a set on a Shaft drive Z1000ST they were equally rubbish !! In my youth IMG_2934.jpeg
 
I bought a set, back in the '80s, assuming they'd be better than the, by then, old OEM Ceriani rear shocks on mine.
Kept them on for about three weeks of bone-jarring bouncing around, which spurred me to buy a new set of FAC shocks. Those were a paradise of comfort and control when compared to the Marzocchi piggybacks.
 
thanks for getting back to me. I realize the valve on the top is for air pressure; I was wondering about the screw on the back with the O-ring; it looks exactly like the drain screw on the bottom of the Marzocchi forks. I just assumed oil went in there? I will end up upgrading the shocks for sure but was just curious. Anyway, I'm psyched that I have the fork seals changed out, the calipers rebuilt and the new brake lines ready. Just waiting for brake pads and other items to arrive in the mail from Wolfgang.
 

Attachments

  • 20240404_080619.jpg
    20240404_080619.jpg
    103.9 KB · Views: 18
  • 20240404_080654.jpg
    20240404_080654.jpg
    113.2 KB · Views: 18
  • 20240327_103347.jpg
    20240327_103347.jpg
    143.4 KB · Views: 18
  • 20240327_105658.jpg
    20240327_105658.jpg
    159.1 KB · Views: 19
  • 20240326_192224.jpg
    20240326_192224.jpg
    94.1 KB · Views: 19
The screw on the back seems to be a bleed/oil level hole, oil is filled into the main body with the damper rod removed and to the correct level before reassembly…..I wish like you it was as easy as pumping some in from the back 👍

Love my piggy back shocks, not quite sure if there is any oil in them but nothings leaking out so that’s a positive in my book 👍😂
 
darmahsd said:
<snip> I was wondering about the screw on the back with the O-ring; it looks exactly like the drain screw on the bottom of the Marzocchi forks. I just assumed oil went in there?
Click to expand...
Nope. A Schurminater has said, it's simply a bleed screw to get air out when re-filling the shock.
 
"I heard that the dash was a fiat item as well.!"

close but no cigar, the dash is a Lancia item
CLEM
 
If shocks require "topping up", they're shagged.

Sometimes a rebuild is possible, sometimes not and sometimes simply not worth the time and effort. Marzocchi Stradas fall under the last category imo.

Lots of quality shocks out there, you gets wot you pays for...

The RGS fuel cap will leak by the time you return from paying the fuel if filled up too far, at least on a reasonably warm day and depending on how hot the engine is. Heat from a hot engine will quickly expand the fresh fuel to over-flow level.

Yes, the instrument pod is basically from a Lancia A110/112. Seems some variants of Fiat Ritmo also had these instruments. The Lancias are rare enough, but try finding a Ritmo these days, not even in junkyards. :rolleyes:
Anyway, not much to be salvaged from the auto instruments, don't recall the little Fiat mills as used in the Lancias revving to 8000+. The idiot lights are also arranged in a different fashion.

piet
 
Schurminater said:
The screw on the back seems to be a bleed/oil level hole, oil is filled into the main body with the damper rod removed and to the correct level before reassembly…..I wish like you it was as easy as pumping some in from the back 👍

Love my piggy back shocks, not quite sure if there is any oil in them but nothings leaking out so that’s a positive in my book 👍😂
Click to expand...
It’s a level plug when the shock is at an angle - I used a calibrated syringe- but they are definitely in the crap suspension group serviced or not - the difference when I added the Maxtons to the Corsa was palpable but just showed how rubbish the front suspension is 🤣 it’s never over
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top