Excalibur - er, it is rather cute...

[MickeyMoto]

I have just taken delivery of a nice 1993 Excalibur with 11k kms on the clock. It is rather cute, except the toolbox at the headstock and the square headlight which can easily be changed for a nice round one....

I now have a problem, as I have 4 Morinis in the garage. I was going to rebuild the Kanguro with a 501 and now I have one I don't want to remove it from the frame... can't wait to ride the Excalibur.

I'll have a look at the parts, the X3 frame has 2 bits welded to it where the big tank sits, these are missing from the Excalibur. I wonder if an X2 tank will fit, that leaves the seat. I could end up with a low rider supermoto...

Help!

[MickeyMoto]

The Excalibur failed it's MOT on the front disk - it is warped. There was an advisory on the brake line, too which was stopping the steering. I have had it all in bits today and the brake line is at least a foot too short which is why it was routed wrongly..... the caliper was also slightly seized (not free running on the bolts).

I have taken the opportunity to do a service so started by taking the cam belt off - it is stamped Moto Morini... probably the original.... and apparently the oil has been changed but obviuosly the filter has not been touched, as you need to remove the foot peg and master cylinder - it was still filthy - along with a dead spider in the alternator.

Just need to sort these little bits then it is on the road. It does ride very well, and the engine is very good - very torquey, and a lot different to the 478. Maybe I should put the 501 in the Sport?

[peterc]

This might give inspiration: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Moto-Morini-C ... SS:GB:1120

[MickeyMoto]

Er, no!

[MickeyMoto]

erm, I have taken the bike out a couple of times over the weekend - erm, er, oh very well, it handles brilliantly and the engine is excellent, pulling from low revs to high revs - it is low geared though, but I have seen 140 kmh on my private test track at 7,000 rpm....

Had a trip out tonight around Brimham Rocks - lovely views and the correct bike for a poodle.... it is a hoot.....

It was vibrating a lot, but a quick check with the gauges showed why. Need to have another ride.....

[swtuggle]

Another month on, any new or changed impressions of the Ex? That 45-tooth sprocket became annoying, so I fitted a 39-tooth to mine, and now it feels right. In addition, highway speed is much more tolerable now, 5,000 rpm at 70 mph (113 kph).

When accelerating, does your Ex feel as if it's running out of steam after 7500 rpm?

[EVguru]

When accelerating, does your Ex feel as if it's running out of steam after 7500 rpm?

The Excalibur airbox is restricted, just like a Dart. A 350 Excalibur airbox is almost identical to Dart, the 500 a bit different, but the modificalion is pretty much the same.

http://www.compton.vispa.com/morini/dartmods.htm

You will need to re-jet.

[swtuggle]

I "deflowered" my airbox early last year. Took a few more months to get the jetting right, in concert with the 26" reverse cones. The head pipes are still stock with the trombone slide underneath. EV, I remember you saying you only had to enlarge the mains on your 350, however after freeing the intake and exhaust, my 501 was still lean all throughout. Ultimately, I very happily settled on 53 idle/pilots, X6 needles pulled all the way up in 50 slides, 268T atomizer, and 132 mains in the PHBH28BS.

I had briefly thought about opening the mains even further to keep it pulling hard up to the redline (8500), but it doesn't act like it's leaning out and surging or missing, it just doesn't continue pulling as strongly as it does up to 7500. I've only witnessed this in the higher gears on an open road, where I have the time and attention to study the tach and the speed of its sweep. In the lowest two gears especially, it sweeps too quickly to accurately see what's happening. It may easily go to red and beyond in first and second, but I don't want to push it and break anything on a bike that's one or maybe three of its kind in a 500-plus-mile radius.

I have two guesses:

First is the cam. If my Ducati-ignited 501 truly has a 500 cam, its specs are relatively mild. A couple of tests I've found from the '81-'82 timeframe showed the 500's peak HP occurring around 7500.

Second are the 26" silencers. They have a considerably larger ID, and are lightweight. They are baffled though, emitting a wonderful exhaust note, fairly deep, but not very loud, unlike the booming 17" repackable straight-throughs. The 26" reverse cones are sealed, so I have no way of inspecting the baffle design. The exhaust pulses at idle feel fairly soft at the outlet, denoting the reduced pressure. What I don't know is its flow at high rpms. Since they are cheap, I'm sure the baffle plates/tubes cause the exhaust to make several 90 or 180 degree turns.

So, if the motor's soft top end is due to the silencers, it's not worth trading to irritating, deafening noise for a few extra rpm I'll rarely ever appreciate.

[MickeyMoto]

Just returned from a few days in Scotland. Latest views are:

1. It handles extremely well, I need more confidence in the Cheng Shit tyres, had a couple slides in the wet.
2. It is economical. 55-65 mp(imperial)g - 4 to 5 l/100km
3. It pulls well but it is low geared. From 40 to 70 is good, top gear over takes are easy. Pulls from 2k in top.
4. On a private test track chasing down a KTM 990 Sado Masochist I twice saw 160 Ks on the clock at about 7,500. No weaves.
5. Vibrates too much through the bars
6. Nice and thin for traffic filtering
7. Excellent range. 200 miles on the first tank. Two fills from north of Inverness. 400 miles in 8 hours, 300 on normal roads through the mountains.

So I have decided the engine is going in the Kanguro and I'll see about making a 350 supermoto from the remains.