Moto Guzzi GTV
According to the late Gianni Minisini, who brought this 1946 Moto Guzzi 500 GTV to Australia from his home town of Udine in Italy, “In Italy, the people who owned these bikes were mainly wealthy businessmen trading in livestock.”
Given the premium specification for these
500 singles, that statement could very well be factual. This was indeed a luxury motorcycle, and one possessed of a fair turn of speed, hence the V initial which stood for Veloce (Fast).
The V series had its beginnings in late 1933 and was simply called the Model V. For Moto Guzzi, this was a completely new design concept, and a radical departure from its predecessors. The V was available as either a rigid frame or with rear suspension, and enjoyed a healthy life span in various guises and refinements which included the GTV, the GTC, the Astore, Falcone and even had its DNA in racing models such as the Condor, Dondalino and the works racer Gambalunga. Alongside the V series engines, Moto Guzzi also offered the cheaper and less powerful (13.2 hp) S model, with a cylinder head using a side inlet valve and overhead exhaust valve. Available in spring frame form as the GTS, this series outsold the V series by a considerable way.
The original Model V used the traditional 88mm x 82mm over-square dimensions with cast iron cylinder and cylinder head, the latter featuring inclined overhead valves. With a compression ratio of just 5.5:1, power output was 18hp at 4,300 rpm. The short-lived GTC (Competition) version, introduced in 1937, had power beefed up to 22hp at 5,000 rpm, with the carburettor enlarged from 27mm to 28.5 mm, high-level exhausts, and a top speed of 150 km/h. The GTV (Gran Tourismo Veloce Fast Tourer) briefly appeared pre-war in the sprung frame, and with twin exhaust ports. However the Italian war effort saw Moto Guzzi forced to concentrate on the GT20 and later the Alce model.
When peace returned, the 500cc civilian offerings initially comprised just the GTV and the GTW, with single exhaust pipe, leg shields, and the pre-war girder forks, with the rear suspension springs mounted horizontally beneath the engine. The GTV remained in this style until 1947, when the girders
gave way to the Guzzi telescopic fork (an ‘Upside down’ design that endured for two decades) with exposed hydraulic dampers on the rear to replace the previous friction dampers. With the addition of heavier, valanced mudguards, and leg shields, weight ballooned from 160kg to 180kg, and performance dropped accordingly. In 1948 the same basic specification remained with the exception of the brakes, which went from the pre-war 170mm to 200mm.
With the arrival of the Astore model in 1949, the GTV came to the end of its run. A total of 6,555 GTV models were built.
How to get a head
Gianni Minisini’s GTV is a 1946 model, and varies from the catalogue specification in having no leg shields. The engine is unusual in having the ‘Testa Velox’ cylinder head. This is a proprietary item that fully encloses the valve gear, which on a horizontal single such as a Moto Guzzi, receives mud and road grime from the front wheel – not a healthy diet for the standard exposed valves. It also allows controlled lubrication for the valve gear, and being aluminium alloy, is lighter than the standard cast iron item.
This head, and others like it for Benelli (including double overhead camshaft conversions), was produced by Luigi Parena’s Gruppo Velox company in Turin, which also made kits to transform British side valve engines like the BSA M20, Norton 16H and Triumph 3HW into overhead valve. The basic design was common across the range and used hairpin springs mounted on a single shaft to control the two valves. In post-war Italy, metal, especially aluminium, was extremely scarce, and Parena achieved much of his work by purchasing scrap from wrecked aircraft and recovering the usable materials. Perena also made single gear levers to replace the traditional Italian rocking pedal, handlebar levers and other small items. Parena’s father Guiseppe manufactured 125cc and 175cc side-valve engines from 1927 to 1931; these were generally fitted to modified bicycles.
As on all Gianni’s restorations, the workmanship is superb, and attention to detail fastidious. The immediate post-war GTV retains the clean, trim pre-war lines, in contrast to the ‘fifties and ‘sixties models which added weight and became more homogenous as time went on. Just the sort of motorcycle a wealthy Italian livestock trader would choose to ride!