1977 3.5 Sport Restoration

[Paz2112]

Moto Morini Sport
Number : A/3 10963
First registered in Barcelona 1977

Considering how infrequently people post into these forums I figured that I should make the effort to post some information and pictures from my own Moto Morini 350 Sport restoration and experiences. I have been lurking on these forums since Jan and after a long period of trying to get registered, eventually my account got started, so here I am ready to share my project with fellow 350 owners.

I have managed to figure out a great deal myself and also gained a huge amount from these forums over the past few months. Also Stuart from North Leicester Motorcycles (NLM) has been a mountain of knowledge as well as a wizard at emptying my wallet.

I am approaching the end of what I think of as the first stage of the Morini refurbish. Basically cleaning, repairing and replacing all the parts that need it and in the process learning everything that I can about this motorcycle. My ultimate goal is not to have a concourse restore but instead a lightweight cafe style v-twin for the purpose of taking my children on Sunday runs. Both my young children want to go on the back of my current RSV-R Aprilia which is not a sensible idea, so to get around the problem I thought a classic would be a good idea. I have always preferred Italian bikes and in particular V-Twins so the Morin was the obvious choice. That said, before taking on this 'find' I have had no prior experience with Moto Morini. In Northern Ireland these bikes are rare.

I purchased the Morini from a guy in Barcelona Spain as a project. I took a gamble as I only had the following images to go on. The owner also sold me a huge amount of spares, parts and bits which were mostly from the 350 but also possibly from the 500.












After a week travelling across Spain and then Holland the bike eventually arrived in Rosslare Ireland and the next evening it was delivered to my home. The following two images are as the bike was taken off the lorry. The plastic crates were full of Morini parts and a seat from the 1980 Morini 350 was used on top of the original seat to protect it when they tied the bike down.

[Steve Brown]

Hi Paz and welcome to the club. Looks like you have all the right ingredients there for a good 350 sport. Looking at the frame number it left the works only 120 bikes or so after mine. Mine was also first registered in 1977 but they are actually a 1976 model and fairly rare. If you've been looking around here and speaking with Stuart I'm sure you already know that though. Good luck and keep us posted on progress.

[norbert]

Congratulacions!!!

The bike looks great and is the most wanted model (except the first Drumbrake Sport)

The guy who sold it is named Agusti? I know a few morinidrivers in and around Barcelona

norbert

[Paz2112]

He was indeed called Agusti and was very helpful during the entire process. Am I to believe that Morini's are so rare that everyone is known around the globe?

I have a lot more images of the progress to also post which I will do soon. To date I have really enjoyed how well made the Morini is and also how clever some of the engineering solutions were. It is truly Italian in its execution of design. A very good looking motorcycle that is also very well engineered.

[RedVee]

I have to say that looks rather nice in the photos and I'm sure will be beautiful when spruced up. I'm quite jealous

[Daddy Dom]

Am I to believe that Morini's are so rare that everyone is known around the globe?

In some countries, yes, but it's probably more that you'll make friends when you own one.
Cheers,
DD

[norbert]

Am I to believe that Morini's are so rare that everyone is known around the globe?

In some countries, yes, but it's probably more that you'll make friends when you own one.
Cheers,
DD

I gues that there are some countries where most of the morinidrivers know each other personaly because most of them stay with that bikes, once morinidriver-always morinidriver, and because of a long tradicion of their meetings (england, germany, netherlands, italy for example) and their active internetplatforms.
I lived for some years in spain (exactly the years when I had no morini). When I fell morinisick again I tried to figure out what has happend to all the morinis once sold in spain and in the end we build up an iberic moriniscene, bringing back to the road more of the bikes every year. In 2009 we organized the first morini-meting in Catalunya (this year in Colombres/Cantabria-Asturias in october) and now most of the spanish morineros know each other.
If you buy a morini and stay with it, it´s quite normal that soon you will have some new friends. To mantain a morini you need some good contacts, otherwise it´s a quite risky adventure

bienvenido al club of the morinisick tifosi

norbert

[Paz2112]

This post is long overdue but alas, real life and a busy working life has meant that I had to stop working on the Morini for a period of time. The following images are just of the bike at various stages of undress and cleanup.


The front end getting stripped down.


The front end getting stripped down.


The front Grimica was in need of a serious overhaul. All parts were further stripped and given a clean in the sonic bath. New seals were purchased from NLM and the rebuild was completed with a new braided brake hose, copper washers, bleed nipple. The lever needed a little more TLC with new piston dust cover, piston and lever bolt which was only available from some guy in Australia.


The front right fork leg had no oil in it and the left fork oil was like butter. I don't think it had ever been changed or checked. Upon closer inspection the right fork leg seals were slightly damaged but thankfully this had not carried over on the fork which just need well cleaned. The entire forks were stripped, cleaned and new seals were fitted as was new dust covers. I also took the decision to replace the original springs with a set of progressive springs and improve the handling while at it. No oil has been put in just yet as I am not at that stage.


Both the VHB Z 25B Dellorto Carbs were in a real state, heavily glazed both inside and out. Their seals were brittle and jets were almost closed over so they were stripped fully for closer inspection. It was based on closer inspection of the carbs that the want for my own ultrasonic bath turned into a need for one and so I headed off to a well know auction site to have a look. Based on recommendations and other people who has posted about this model on different websites and forums I decided to invest in my own, 6L Stainless Steel, Heated and Timed ultrasonic bath.



Filled with Carburetor cleaner and ready to do some work. The purchase of the bath is one of the best decisions I have made. It has been used for everything from carbs to brake parts, throttle parts as well as rocker covers and many other small parts that were hard to get cleaned.


The stripped down Dellorto ready for a quick dip at 60 degrees.



Some 'typical on this bike' wiring modifications that are less than suitable.


I am sure most of you will have had to tackle this mess before. To add to my issues most of the wires were brittle and needed replaced, one of the fuse holders was broken and all the earths were very poor. This started me off on the rewiring of the bike at which point I discovered that the handlebar switch-gear was from a Yamaha motorcycle, hmmmm not good.


I have progressed well past these pictures but I wanted to get these posted first before continuing my story.

[Emmohaswheelsagain]

Hi Paz,

Looks like you are making progress.
I am sure you will enjoy the process.
Our editor is always looking for content.
Not all of our members are on line, so an edited version for ATG would be welcome.


Regards


Paul

[corsaro chris]

Nice work Paz, and thanks for the update.

As Paul says, the potential for a lovely set of articles for the Club magazine ATG here...

Also - in the 1970s replacing the original switch gear with Yamaha items was seen as a sensible, and desirable, modification. The Clubs' founder, Simon Pancheri, makes reference to it as one of the more popular owner changes at that time.

Good luck with the ongoing refurbishment,

CC

[Paz2112]

Nice work Paz, and thanks for the update.

Also - in the 1970s replacing the original switch gear with Yamaha items was seen as a sensible, and desirable, modification. The Clubs' founder, Simon Pancheri, makes reference to it as one of the more popular owner changes at that time.

CC

Very interesting, I did not know that and assumed that the bike must have been dropped at some point, even though there are no other signs of an accident at all. This would then make sense. Either way the current Yamaha switch gear is in a pretty bad state and not easily repairable. I have opted for a new tiny set in keeping with the cafe racer feel that I want to give the bike.

[EVguru]

The original 'snuff box' style switch gear is not particularly nice ergonomically, particularly if you add an indicator switch too. The latter combined switch is much better, but some people don't like it either if they're used to 'press to cancel' indicators.

The brakes on the single disc 350's often feel rather wooden. A swap to the smaller bore 250 master cylinder feels much nicer and some people go even smaller.

[Paz2112]

Most likely this 2nd post will result in a banhammer being swung but while I have managed to find the images I thought it prudent to create the post.


This is the most recent image of the front of the bike. Brakes fully serviced and disc cleaned. Serviced forks are installed (no oil yet). Front wheel bearings and dust covers all replaced. I chose to remove the black paint from the top and bottom yoke and instead simply cleaned them. This is the same finish that I have on the fork legs and rims.

I decided from the start that I did not want a concourse bike, even though it would be possible with this Morini. Instead I am working towards a well maintained racer look. The sort of finish that results from a bike being raced regularly. Clean, oiled, lightweight with the emphasis on function and less on concourse. I have also (at this stage) decided to not powder-coat the frame but simply clean and oil it. I might change my mind once this build is complete.

The original headlight bracket and rubbers was in fairly good condition but the bracket for the headlight was very rusty, so I had a friend CNC machine some lightweight ones from allow, they look better up close and add to the true race look.


The rear needed bearings as well and so with the rear of the bike pulled out I decided to put all things right. New lightweight sprocket was matched to new drive sprocket and new chain. The old rear springs were past a refurbish so Hagon shocks were added and in order to (do it right) I also started to replace all bolts, nuts and washers with stainless steel ones and allens where suitable.

I have not chosen to re-spoke the rims yet. When checked they were all tight and well adjusted so a simple clean will do for now. That said I would have loved to properly clean the Borrani Rimms and show them to their full potential, but that will have to wait until after this build is complete.


When I first opened the timing cover, the inside was crammed full of old chain wax/dirt/oil/bugs so much so that I had to use a stick to remove the heavy lumps before attempting to use petrol to clean the crap out. The image shows the bike just after the front sprocket was replaced. The timing belt was also replaced and the flywheel given a good clean before replacement. I also fitted the new clutch cable and correct rubber cover (missing for years) before putting the cover back on (with new allen bolts of course). The replacement breather pipe and new baffles are also visible.


This is the current state of the bike, a lot of good progress has been made but there is still a lot to do. While working on the Morini a lot of people comment on how good the bike looks. The engine in particular I think is very pretty in design but also in function. There are many clever ideas at play with the engine.


You can see how well the carbs turned out after their bath in the sonic cleaner. Other than the float bowl, mixture and idle screws being polished, nothing else was used on the carbs and they look new. I was so pleased with the Dellorto Carbs, they are a very visual part of the Morini engine and deserved some love. The old inlet rubbers were perished and so I replaced all four of these as well as the clips. I also took the opportunity to clean the rockers covers in the sonic bath while I was setting the rocker gaps and replacing the rocker gaskets. A light polish before putting them back on helped the (working) look of the bike. Also visible in the picture are the new red high tension leads going to two new plugs and the clutch cable.

The Morini Engine is a thing of beauty, simply built but with clever design. Nothing is wasted and everything has a purpose. It reminds me of how all children draw a motorcycle engine, two pots in a V with a gearbox underneath.

By this stage I am falling for the Morini and starting to understand why people own multiple bikes.

[corsaro chris]

No hammer from me Paz - that looks like 'the proper job'

Keep the work up and the posts coming (and pen a version for ATG!!!)

At this rate it'll be ready well before Cadwell next year, so

Good riding

CC

[acemorini]

Looking very good Paz, a credit to you. Regards Pete.