Last weekend, in preparation for Steve Rossi's  Tiddler Tour, I fired up my Moto Guzzi Airone and noticed sparks coming off the outside flywheel.  It was hitting the footrest, but why?   Turns out, I had a ton of up and down slop in my crankshaft.  It seemed wise not to run it until after I stripped the motor.  Once again, my brother Doug came to the rescue, offering me his '65 175 CZ, which he had recently gone through.  About seven Tiddlers show up and Doug & Amy's house Sun. morning and we rode over the Connecticut River to Steve Rossi's house.  About 32 in total showed up.  Oldest on the tour was a '52 BSA B-40, that reputedly came out of Borneo, ridden by one of the two fellows from New Hampshire.
 
 Newest on the tour was a 2009 Aprilla 125 two stroke the Bud Clauer had somehow managed to register.

 

After the Tour, Bud let me take this little pocket rocket for a quick spin.  It's utterly civilized, but you have to  ring it's scrawny little neck to make it fly, and fly it does.  Killer brakes, too. 

Smallest on the tour was this '81? Kawasaki AR 80

 Before taking off on the route, a tour of Steve's garage is always a must.  New items from last year were a Hercules wankel and a '51 Aermacchi 125 scooter

                                                      Steve's  '56? Moto Guzzi Galetto

Steve's 65cc Moto Guzzi Legarro

Steve's latest acquisition, a rotary engined Hercules

A 175 Benelli next to a V-50 Guzzi

After a good schmooze, I decided it was time to get this show on the road and took off with Mike Peavey in my draft on his newly imported Moto Guzzi Airone.  The seller thought it was a sport, but Mike figured out it was a Turismo that had been 'Sportized'.  The CZ, while not real fast, handled well, had good brakes and was comfortable, and we jammed hard to the lunch spot in Coventry, Ct.

 My brother's '65 175 CZ and Mike Peavey's '56? Moto Guzzi Turismo/Sport

 Just after we pulled up, and elderly gentleman walked up and said when he heard the CZ, he had to come over to check it out.  He was from Czechoslovakia and had owned a 150 Jawa in the old country.  He regaled us with stories of the good ol' days (and not so good ol' days; he had swum across a river to his freedom in 1971).  After chatting a bit, he continued his 7 mile walk from his house to his daughters.  After lunch and a good schmooze, Mike and I left last on the afternoon section and managed to pass everyone on the way back to Steve's house.  After another good schmooze, I headed back to Doug & Amy's house to pull the motor out of my Airone.  I ended up having some of the greatest minds in M/C mechanics helping me yank the motor out.  Food and drink followed.  Memorial day, I stripped the motor and found the drive side main bearing was shot and the timing side was loose.

  But, more troubling was the conrod  and crankshaft was heavily worn on the timing side indicating something was forcing the rod to that side.  This was the same condition I found in my Dondolino after it blew up, and it seems something is out of square.