My name is Drew, I'm from Seattle and I now own a 2016 V7 II Stone. Very happy with the bike. I am a life-long Honda enthusiast that fell in love with the retro styling of the new V7 II line. I would drive by Moto International on my way home everyday and they had a 2016 Russo Esserte Special in the window. That was the hook that brought me in the door.
I had been away from motorcycles for several years while raising my family. In 2014 I started to imagine myself back in the saddle, I started looking at the Honda CB 1100 (2014) and other standards, but completely missed the new Moto Guzzi offerings, as my route to work took my safely in the other direction from Moto International (MI). As I worked through the resistance to me cycling again with the wife, I changed offices (I work for WSDOT) and that's when I started to see this big red gas tank flash by me as I headed home.
One day, It was gone from the picture window. Oh no! Did I miss my chance? I stopped in, Dave was out of the country and would be back the next week. No the bike wasn't sold, but they did have plans for it. The next week, I connected with Dave. The plan for the Special was to convert it into a northwest version of the Stronello. Would they hold on over the weekend so I could talk to my wife about pulling the trigger on the purchase? Sure. Sweeeeet.
Wife says no.
Oh, well, I really didn't like the spoked wheels, too much chrome, the price was more than I wanted to pay yada yada there's other opportunities out there. Sob.
I start to track the MI website like a creepy ex. I see a bike come in for consignment. It's a 2016 Stone. Mono silver. P/O farkled with Hepco Becker C-Bow mounts, a battery tender, Throttlemeister , all stuff I had been looking at as possible mods when I finally worked out my supervisors reluctance and brought my first MG. It had about 1.5k on the clock.
Weeks passed. I stopped by MI several times, the Stronello sold, but this Stone was still there. It really didn't speak to me the way the Russo Esserte colors on the Special had. Meh, I'll wait.
Summer screams by. I watch MI. Research the V7 II models.
Break through with the wife. Bike purchase is a go.
I huddle with Dave. I ask him to get the owner to work on my on the price a bit, and if the P/O will throw in the HB saddle bags, I'll buy it. I guess the bags were a high $$$ item, but the P/O agrees. The last thing: That mono silver tank has to go. I ask Dave to order the Nero Esserte tank from the 2013-15 Special line, and then I will be happy. Why ride it if you don't care for how it looks?
So here is the before:
and the after:
Wet like a NW bike should be.
I plan to modify it with a project or two a year as budget allows. The headlamp, the instrument cluster, blacking out the exhaust (not a chrome fan) maybe some rear fender mods, the front fender ect.
If this was TL;DR, then here's the Cliff notes:
New bike. Very happy.
GuzziDrew
I had been away from motorcycles for several years while raising my family. In 2014 I started to imagine myself back in the saddle, I started looking at the Honda CB 1100 (2014) and other standards, but completely missed the new Moto Guzzi offerings, as my route to work took my safely in the other direction from Moto International (MI). As I worked through the resistance to me cycling again with the wife, I changed offices (I work for WSDOT) and that's when I started to see this big red gas tank flash by me as I headed home.
One day, It was gone from the picture window. Oh no! Did I miss my chance? I stopped in, Dave was out of the country and would be back the next week. No the bike wasn't sold, but they did have plans for it. The next week, I connected with Dave. The plan for the Special was to convert it into a northwest version of the Stronello. Would they hold on over the weekend so I could talk to my wife about pulling the trigger on the purchase? Sure. Sweeeeet.
Wife says no.
Oh, well, I really didn't like the spoked wheels, too much chrome, the price was more than I wanted to pay yada yada there's other opportunities out there. Sob.
I start to track the MI website like a creepy ex. I see a bike come in for consignment. It's a 2016 Stone. Mono silver. P/O farkled with Hepco Becker C-Bow mounts, a battery tender, Throttlemeister , all stuff I had been looking at as possible mods when I finally worked out my supervisors reluctance and brought my first MG. It had about 1.5k on the clock.
Weeks passed. I stopped by MI several times, the Stronello sold, but this Stone was still there. It really didn't speak to me the way the Russo Esserte colors on the Special had. Meh, I'll wait.
Summer screams by. I watch MI. Research the V7 II models.
Break through with the wife. Bike purchase is a go.
I huddle with Dave. I ask him to get the owner to work on my on the price a bit, and if the P/O will throw in the HB saddle bags, I'll buy it. I guess the bags were a high $$$ item, but the P/O agrees. The last thing: That mono silver tank has to go. I ask Dave to order the Nero Esserte tank from the 2013-15 Special line, and then I will be happy. Why ride it if you don't care for how it looks?
So here is the before:
and the after:
Wet like a NW bike should be.
I plan to modify it with a project or two a year as budget allows. The headlamp, the instrument cluster, blacking out the exhaust (not a chrome fan) maybe some rear fender mods, the front fender ect.
If this was TL;DR, then here's the Cliff notes:
New bike. Very happy.
GuzziDrew
