Introduction
to my Morini Web Site  |
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revelation after a number of Japanese bikes; it went round corners,
stopped fairly well, and anything it lost in performance was more than
made up for in the handling. Not all was rosy, the finish could have been
a lot better (though not as bad as a lot of "experts" would have you believe),
the electrics were not bad by British standards, but not as good as Japanese
- due mainly to far too many connectors, an overly complicated fuse box
and a poor output from the alternator when new, which, of course, was not
helped as age set in. And, depending on the model, switch gear that was
poor or dire. They were also advanced in some areas; they had a full electronic
ignition, with amplifiers rather than coils, an electronic fuel tap, toothed
rubber belt drive to the cam and heron heads - where the combustion chamber
is in the piston rather than the head, a system also adopted by Jaguar. 
This bike has been in regular use for most of the 10 years I have owned
it, but more so in the last 2 years since I joined the local Advanced Motorcycle
Group - based in Liverpol and North Wales, called Wirral Advanced Motorcyclists
or WAM for short. I had
always viewed these clubs, of which there are nationwide branches, as being
populated by stodgy BMW riding, Sam Browne belt-wearing, old buffers, but
I have found the exact opposite, all types of bikes, all types of riders
who genuinely have a love of biking. Click on I.A.M. to
find your local group. I have had some great Sunday runs throughout the
year, and great evening rides in the summer, I have passed my Advanced
motor-cycle test, although this is in no-way conditional on membership.
And even after all these years, and thousands of miles I still picked up
some useful tips and ideas. So the Morini was pushed into almost daily
use for work, pleasure, and all those little errands where it is easier
to park a bike than a car. One thing I would recommend to any one owning or thinking about buying a Morini is to join the Morini Riders Club. This club is the main source for information, technical help and advice. Also the clubsmonthly mag, A Tutto Gas, usually has adverts for machines and parts as well as services - rebuilds and servicing. The clubs name aptly reflects its view of the bikes, that they should be ridden not just polished and kept in garages. This is reflected in its main annual event a track day at Cadwell Park combined with a weekend that includes the AGM all held at pub with both B&B and camping facilities. Everyone is made welcome and all levels of riders are encouraged to try the track day, with groups for different abilities all day long.
Despite all the use and abuse the Morini has carried itself well. It has been thrashed remorslessly on club runs, where it is usually the oldest, and, almost invariably, the smallest bike there, but has amazed people at its abilty to hold its own against much faster and more modern superbikes on country roads, only suffering on dual-carrigeways and motorways, which are definitely not its favorite roads. In the last few years it has had a few sets of tyres (Conti TKV 11/22, seem to work best), a couple of sets of chains and sprockets, and regular oil changes - usually every 2500 miles, with rock-oil 20/50. The only other problems were a rebuilt front end following an accident, and, recently, the ignition pick-up died, and had to be rebuilt.
