Topic: Think this guy belongs in the 'more money than brains' club?...

[Damfino]

From the auction description:

1946 Moto Guzzi Airone 250

(or at least this is what I think this bike is)

Why, you ask?

Since you didn't clarify, I'll assume you may wonder either why it is that I don't know for certain or why I think may know

Early on in my sickness, my wise, older brother advised that I request a few reasonable questions before popping for a bike:

1) Detailed make/model/year info

2) Provenance

3) Accident/incident history

4) Condition--original, unmolested, molested in the 3rd degree, etc.

And I did so in the beginning....

But simply abandoned this protocol as events accelerated

And quickly ascended the greater fool collector ladder

Only to establish a perch with a real italian restorer/trader

Hey, who doesn't want to get directly to the source?

Thus, I proved Pavlovian theory in that this fellow needed only to shoot me a pic with which to initiate frothing

Then I, of course, skillfully requested a price

But never any of of the above reasonable questions that my brother had advised

So we now get to the point--

My Italian connection never offered up the model/year of manufacture for this Moto Guzzi

He and his wife even visited me a while back and upon posing these inquiries, he could only offer up that it was a 'Parallelogramma'

After importing this bike, I sent it to my mechanic

During his research, he found a bike very much like this on Italian ebay--the VIN were very, very close--so he deduced that this bike was a 1946 Airone 250 just as that ebay offering

So now you have benefited from both of your incisive, though non-verbalized questions having been answered

And then on to what I know/don't know:

1) provenance unknown

2) accident history unknown

3) no title

4) color: RED

5) excellent cosmetics

6) *recently started really well

*when I received this bike back from my mechanic, it was a first/second kick bike--he advised not moving any of the three handlebar levers--one clearly a choke, another clearly an ignition advance and the third is a bonus--one simply moved the oil-line lever to 'Lubricate', moved the petcock to "On", tickled the carb a bit and then was rewarded by it starting after only kicking it once or twice--i have since let a few friends ride this bike and have my suspicions that once out of sight, one of those more incorrigible fellows may have moved a lever or two--because this bike now refuses to start--and in the interest of transparency, i must confess that it now won't bump-start as well

so it is entirely possible that this vintage guzzi airone with the too-cool exposed valve springs may have chosen to wait until it successfully emigrated from Italy in order to commit ritual seppuku

will be sold 'as is-where is

Here's a link to the auction....
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140323573382&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&viewitem=

Great looking bike BTW.

[HavocTurbo]

Downright gorgeous bike.

But really? You cannot figure it out? Or maybe just too lazy?

Def more $$ than brains. If it were my purchase I'd be all over that bastard trying to figure out what keeps it from running. Not just first thing I do is sell it. sheesh.

[Damfino]

That's what I thought too, Havoc.  I never buy anything unless I've researched it before hand and gotten a good idea of what I'm getting into, and what it should be costing me. 

[HavocTurbo]

That's what I thought too, Havoc.  I never buy anything unless I've researched it before hand and gotten a good idea of what I'm getting into, and what it should be costing me. 

Even if I had been that love sick over a bike (96 Duc 900SS CR) I would still try to fix it before I resorted to anything else.

I mean if he thinks everyone else moved the levers why not check them all to see if they have moved or broken. Why just sell asap?

I dunno seems wierd to me but hey.... it takes all kinds I guess.

[tramp]

big mistake was to let other people ride it