Guzzi Bob is one of the regular contributors on the Squadra Guzzista Forum...see? there are benefits! We love his le Mans and asked him if he would be so kind as to share it with you...good ole boy that he is, he agreed!...here's his story!

I was born in the Uk. Live NSW Australia. I have been riding bikes since I was 16, now 52. Why a Guzzi?It’s the only bike I have ridden that gives me what I like in bikes. Easy to maintain, good supply of parts, lots of upgrade alternatives, goes like a bat out of hell with the unmistakable roar of a bike, looks like a bloody true motorbike and admired by all.

I rode my first Guzzi,a Mean Black, bikini faired 1000cc in the year the shuttle blew up, a mate rode up from Sydney, a 3000kms trip. Had just arrived when he offered me a ride, "do fish fart?" I said...

That was it, hooked on Guzzis. Spent the remaining years wishing I had a bike like that. Went through the Harley years, Big fat, “Hot & Juicy” Wideglide in Sweden, now they know how to build ‘em over there but only Egli can make ‘em go! Had a BMW RS 100 next …Nice tourer with some reasonable go fast bits inside producing huge grunt, great maintenance, typical German design. Just don’t mention the war... ;-)

The beast I have now I won through E-Bay…He He. I had been after a Le Mans III for a few years now, have a mate with a Mark 1, in boxes in the loft, tried many times to convince his wife that it was just junk but it didn’t wash. Bu***r! So when I finally saw this bike sitting on E-Bay, I had to have a look. So I arranged a meeting and drove a few hundred K’s to satisfy my desire.

Well, when the bike cover was removed my instant thought was “Shit can’t afford this". I didn’t even take it for a blast, I was in awe. The bike had two owners; this one had never ridden it. Just changed all fasteners to Stainless, new rubber all round, pegs et all.. Air Pods, Sealed Battery, Carb spring conversion for easier twist grip. He had won it on E-Bay too a few months earlier but unfortunately he was crook, sick as a dog, terminal I thought.

Well I left disappointed, but I followed the auction with great interest the next week, especially as the wife had agreed to a "FEW BIDS” Boy those brownie points sure came in handy that week. Bu***r me dead, there was only one bidder interested enough to take a punt. So it was him and me, he bottled out after his first bid and I ended up with the beast...my immediate thought was that I should have taken the beast for a ride before bidding…had I purchased a Lemon or a Le Mans…

Especially when the owner was against taking the bike home by riding, better a lift on a trailer...just in case, as he had never ridden it you see. Well to cut a long trip short, got the beast home, fired her up and returned home after a hour of True Italian Lust, with a grin as long as the bike.

It is standard trim, the bike actually came with Timing Gears but I flogged ‘em on E-Bay and went back to the standard chain and good quality tensioner, I found the gears noisy and had fears of the nylon centre cog collapsing...I have removed the air-box and fitted the pods, just love the growl from the inlets. The bike has covered 51000 Mls. Running gear Koni dial a ride, which are Ok on the lowest preload and the Max damping.


Tyres are Michelin, electronic ignition by Dyna . I have just replaced the seat, I found riding the stock seat, felt more like having sex with a brick….oh baby those edges… The main purpose of the bike is to extent the length of my penis…but really it keeps me going in this sometimes boring old life.

Nothing like living in the high revolutions, with a mean Italian beast. Sure you have to line ‘em up for that tight corner but when mastered, they go there and go well. Maintenance I find relatively easy, I have the time and money to play around with it but the wish list keeps growing…boy you can really blow some dough!

My next bike will be a 850 Guzzi Café Racer, single seat rocket, black and aluminum, you see I cant get away with a single seat on the first bike , didn’t have enough Brownie points for that.

What I like is the brakes...I love the brakes, they really work. Another reason I can enjoy going fast is that I can trust the brakes. Unlike the ol’Bemmer I had .Not to even mention the Harley that went like a rocket in a straight line and stopped just as your life started to flash in front of your eyes!

What I'm not so keen on...well, the riding position…only good when the telephone poles become a blur. Then you can relax and enjoy the ride. The exhaust note could be better. I just ripped out the two small baffles that sat in the front of the pipes, they rattled. But the sound isn’t as good as it could be but the beast seems to breath easier. I do like those “Lafranconi Competizione” drool, drool. But they will have to wait.

I don’t think I would recommend the bike to a friend, first I like to be different, second I maintain my bike and only my bike.

Well the new Guzzi stable looks like an improvement on some of earlier models post 1980’s (being polite here) mind you I wouldn’t have one; I’m of the old stable, stuck in the 70-80’s. But I just might change my philosophy if I straddled a MGS-01. Be like sending a lamb to the slaughter I think. “Squadra Guzzista” Came to me in a dream, “Get of ya fat arse and ride” They said……… Regards Guzzi Bob

	A thousand thank yous to Guzzi Bob for agreeing to share his fabulous Le Mans Mk III with all of us! Feature your Guzzi here! Contact joe@guzzista.com

Bob's stunning Le Mans is undergoing a rebuild at the moment, although I have it on good authority that it is almost complete. We will endeavour to catch up with Bob in a couple of weeks time to find out how it's gone over the last couple of months.

Rebuild update!!!

As stated in the text above, Guzzibob has been furiously beavering away over the last few months on his rebuild project. It's no mean feat to have the courage to take your pride and joy apart but he has done it. I wonder whether at any time he regretted the decision to strip the bike as, like most rebuild projects, it wasn't all plain sailing. To me, it doesn't seem that long ago that Bob first started showing me pictures of a le Mans in pieces, strewn all over his house. Looking at it from the outside, whenever Bob sent another photo on a new part he'd rennovated, to me it seemed the pieces were in the same state as the previous update...but it is now finished and I'll let you be the judge of the quality of Bob's end result...well done Bob!

Bob's Le Mans III

Further Reading

More featured Guzzis / Mike's CX100 / Dave's 850 Le Mans / Darry'ls 850 Le Mans / Andre's cafe racer /

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