Where’s Piet

Groucho Marx ( no relation surely ) once said he would never join a club which would accept him as a member ( or something like that ) ........

In the UK there used to be ( may still be for all I know ) a club called the PEMC ......... which stood for the Professional and Executive Motorcycle Club ......... obviously formed to provide a better class of person with that certain motorcycling experience , without having to lower themselves by associating with oily , smelly , leather jacketed oiks who had nothing better to do than drag the name of motorcycling through the mud ...........

I`m not sure which criteria any prospective had to meet in order to become a member ........ maybe a certain minimum salary level , reside within a particular postcode , hold a position in the City ( preferably not in the gents on Hampstead Heath ) ......... who knows ........ probably a nicer bunch of people you could hardly expect to meet ............. probably .......
 
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In the first 1 or 2 editions of Two Wheels Magazine back in 1968 I think, they had an Editorial Policy where the wearing of Black Leather jackets was discouraged as it apparently was a BAD look. Around the time of The Nices People rode Hondas advertising.
 
I try do a search before so hopefully avoid asking the more dopey questions, but sometimes you just need confirmation that you are not about to do something really stupid. There is a lot of conflicting info out there and I would hate to think people won’t ask for fear of looking daft. If you don’t know, you don’t know. This forum has great info and has fantastic support,
 
I’ve seen two knowledgeable guys from here run off screaming- always due to people asking advice then disagreeing with it because it wasn’t what they wanted to hear. We are lucky there are few knowledgeable people left that have actual experience with Laverdas now the dealerships have all but disappeared . I’ve learnt stuff on here that isn’t available anywhere else, so for me it’s been invaluable. I’m also on the Morini forum who only has one expert- who is a great guy- without him it would be a bullshitters paradise.
 
Managed to keep my Laverdas running reliably for the first 35 years of ownership without the help of the internet.
Last issue for me was the charging problem on the Motodd and John IIS came through with technical input way over my head but with the help of youtube and Johns instructions we solve it and I learnt heaps from John. Without the forum I would have still solved it by changing the components
one by one till I had voltage. A alternator stator and 2 RRs as well as the connector later it worked. Now have a spare stator and RR on hand for next time. A combination of Duetsch connector and RR was the end problem. It was the combination of 2 faults that was doing my head in.
John came through with great knowledge but I would have got there in the end anyway.
I can understand Piets frustrations, some really dumb questions gets posted in the technical section.
 
Your allowed to disagree but it must be respectfully done. I remember the old Guzzi forum and the ignorant shit Pete Roper copped there and it eventually wiped the forum out of existence.
 
Tah Rob, hard won knowledge is just that, hard won, a smile.

Common enough theme what Piet is indicating, distilling down on how/where the unhappiness originates from, we extend ourselves in advice and information backed process, establish a working solution or process, for then some self opinionated motor mower mechanic that discounts all the good information and process imparted and the owner then challenges me! Mower mechanic tells the owner what they want to hear. Had me on my bike vowing never again. Not so much owner issues, its the discounting of solid help and advice which can cause much ill will.

There is a Hungarian trade only site, for electronics repair information and all important service information, traded for free on this web site. Have a trade test to gain membership with a time limit on answers, prevents the youtube university amateur hijacking the site. Absolute bliss, overall here is not too bad, most folk are able to see the benefits, advice taken or not is any persons final choice.

For myself i will not justify what technical acumen possessed, to a self serving motor mower mechanic, at risk of disrespect to any that stick to lawn mowers.

Suppose Piet the many here respect your decades of experience, value it and save significant amounts of money, having a minority overtake the many supports is allowing the lesser individual to dictate conduct and response. Better would be to identify the time wasters early on and dispense with any further interactions. You know the early signs, just like Laverda repair, observe and act.... same skill... enough ramble...j
 
Vince said:
Your allowed to disagree but it must be respectfully done. I remember the old Guzzi forum and the ignorant shit Pete Roper copped there and it eventually wiped the forum out of existence.
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I don’t know anything about that but from what I’ve read on Guzzi forums they seem to hit everything with a screwdriver and get Brownie points for using cheap oil.I’ve read a lot of what Pete Ropers written and he is real smart guy with an understanding of Guzzis- unfortunate if he comes across as arrogant/ rude. I used to work with a few guys who are top of there game in the motorcycle industry, the more they know the less tolerant they become.
 
SkinnyPinny said:
I try do a search before so hopefully avoid asking the more dopey questions, but sometimes you just need confirmation that you are not about to do something really stupid. There is a lot of conflicting info out there and I would hate to think people won’t ask for fear of looking daft. If you don’t know, you don’t know. This forum has great info and has fantastic support,
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I was searching here for info on the right way to assemble the damping components in Ceriani forks. I still managed to assemble the items the wrong way round even after reading the various threads on the subject and studying the pictures. I only discovered the mistake after finding a diagram on Laverdamania. It can be difficult to get things right sometimes.
 
The argument on that Guzzi Forum involved the use of timing chains or gears and descended into WW3. Make your case, listen and use what you think works, it's not life and death. There are a lot of Alpha Males riding Motobikes apparently, who knew?
 
Unfortunately I think, as I grow older and more time starved, I m starting to believe the adage ‘you can‘t teach an old dog new tricks’. As much as I would love to be a more competent mechanic/electrical wizard, realistically, I don’t think it’s going to happen. I just want to get out and ride more and leave it to someone else to fix my bikes.
 
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This forum was not very encouraging or welcoming to the owner who saw fit to cut out the lower frame rails odf his tripple, stating that they were only there to have a something to hang the centre stand onto, it would have been difficult to aproach this with sympathy, he got slagged badly ( I was probably one of them) and has never been seen again, I expect that triple is now either languishing or has a new frame.
CLEM

ps I am glad that (You) Andy Jessop are not getting involved in your bikes, that thought is very scary.

I remember the old duffer in his late 70's watching my every move as I stripped his triple motor and installed a rebuilt crank, he genuinly wanted to learn but he just was not capabale, and I kept telling him this rebuild will outlast him, I was right, so why other to get educated, it takes decades, not just watching one engine strip/clean/rebuild.
 
What can add to frustration when dealing with New and even Hero members is this is a worldwide forum where everyone is trying to communicate in English, which may not be their first language. Things can get twisted in translation.

George Bernard Shaw: "“England and America are two countries separated by one language.” Toss in some Aussie slang and see what happens...
 
I'm told my grandpa was the first registered mechanic in South Australia. A good tale in the family folklore is that he had an acquaintance come round to his house to ask if he could show them how to put the gearbox from a British bike of some sort back together. So he showed the guy, assembled the gearbox, then proceeded to pull it apart and gave him back the box of bits. I guess the was jack of people wanting not free advice but a free job into the bargain.
 
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