'76 Strada....

[mhsilverw]

Non std, 3 previous owners - but think a UK bike supplied by NLM back when Stuart was selling these for £800 or so (he seems to be asking a bit more than that now!)...and in need of some solvol.....
Wonder how the front brake will be - mixed reviews in older tests it seems. Still I do love wire wheels and drums (even if its not the double one on the Sport) - it's all Mark B's fault and his wonderful Blue Strada spied at Cadwell and in the odd photo...mind u his double disc Sport is cracking too. The rims on this are alloy and the pipes/silencers stainless and produce a lovely noise - I think they are Armours hope they are ok - believe they have mixed reviews with 'pattern' british stuff - anyone experience of these at all?

[Ralph]

Armorers silencers can upset the carbs but for some strange reason seem to settle down after a few hundred miles, the front brake lacks feel and as a definite servo effect, 2 fingers are enough and once used to it you can
squeal the tyre from any speed the bike will reach but get used to it first or you will lock it up, run it on 10/40 semi synth and you wont go far wrong.

http://s235.photobucket.com/albums/ee11 ... i-clip.mp4

[buzby]

I've got a 1975 Strada much like yours,with Armours SS exhaust system and Akront rims. I bought my bike in 1976 and I must admit I have fallen off a few times when the front brake has locked up at slow speed on wet roads.

My other Morini has cast wheels and disc brake .It does not look so good but is a more practical bike for all year round use.

[Ralph]

Yes it can bite a bit that 2LS a mate always wants to ride mine, he will turn up
on some twin disc equipped concoction and even with warnings ringing in his ears
will manage to lock the front, I have tried chamfering the linings off and so
on but no noticeable difference, but you do get used to it and I prefer it to something
with lots of feel and no power.

[72degrees]

I could tell you a story about the original Devimead Strada demo bike and an unwary rider who road tested it soon after I did.

I had a 2LS drum on my original 76 Strada hill climb bike in 79, but that had been tweaked by Ernie Hall when the previous owner of the bike found it too "stick in ther wheel". I don't know what he did, but it was much better than the standard one on my first 75 Strada.

I'm finding the double disks on the Shiver a bit sharp. The Nordwest setup was powerful and the Voxan even more so, but the big double disks on the Aprilia need a wary hand. A bit of a re-learning curve each time after getting off the 2C/375.

[MarkB]

I'm pleased you've got a good-looking bike, Mark. I have to say that the TLS drum on my Strada doesn't have this biting tendency - maybe I'm polishing the brake linings too much. The brake's powerful enough to lock the front wheel on the rolling road at the MOT centre, but it's good and progressive in action. After my last modern Italian bike with a couple of dinner-plate sized Brembo discs up front, I'm careful never to grab the brake lever and, once the weight's been loaded on the front end, it's surprising how much stopping force you can put through the front wheel. Now where's some wood to touch? A good sticky Roadrider may be a significant factor.

Cheers, Mark.

[mhsilverw]

......it appears to have the original toolkit too lurking beneath the saddle!

M

[corsaro chris]

Mark;

The bike looks lovely - get a picture in to David Marlow to earn yourself a calendar for 2013!!! Lovely paint job and great photo

As to the brakes - a well set up drum should work fine, and once you've adjusted yourself to the fact that it works the same in the wet as in the dry (source of much debate when discs were originally introduced) it shouldn't cause too many problems.

The best thing is to enjoy using the 'bike...

Good riding,

CC

[spub]

I bought a stainless set from FEKED that looks very similar to the one on your bike, Mark. Very nice bike, and the pipes on my bike make a much better sound than the stock pipes it came with, so maybe FEKED sources the pipes from Armours....Looks like you have the stainless headers and "H" Xover too...

[EVguru]

I haven't heard any complaints about the construction of Armours' exhausts, but sometimes the fit is so bad you begin to think they were made for a different bike!

They are by no means alone in this.

[3potjohn]

My black Sitos are on their way out and I am told are now extinct in the wild. Anyone tried Stainless silencers from Keihan?

[mhsilverw]

Hi,

Regarding....

My black Sitos are on their way out and I am told are now extinct in the wild. Anyone tried Stainless silencers from Keihan?

...did have some once (but on a BMW aircooled twin back in the 80's or early 90's) seemed very well made and bike always ran well. If I had needed to look for any silencers for the Morini I would have looked at a pair of those myself.

I am sure I read somewhere in one of those magazine articles about buying and riding older classics that featured 350 Morini's (Classic Bike maybe) that Morini's were/could be sensitive to silencers - seem to think it may have been a quote from Stuart from NLM. That was the original reason for the query regarding the Armours ones on my bike.....

Regards

Mark

[SteveMRC]

I think the perceived 'problem' with Armours pipes is that they are extruded where they are bent and so the diameter of the bend is very slightly less than the straight parts.
Hardly noticeable but some reckon it affects performance.
(probably a rumour spread by the bar-stool racers who have never had a set on their bike)

I have had a full set on my 500 for 20 odd years and they still polish up like new.