Montjuic

Montjuics have a very polarising effect on Laverda enthusiasts, who seem to either love ‘em or hate ‘em. Most people who have owned them become very attached to them , a fact borne out by the unusually high number of one owner machines still in existence, especially MK Is.

The Montjuic, or the Mk1 Montjuic as it later became known, was a concept similar in many ways to the Jota. In common with the Jota it was a Slater inspired model and, in the same way the Jota overshadowed the 3C , the ‘Montjuic’ overshadowed its Alpino sibling .

The Montjuic was not, as many claim, a road going Formula 500, but it’s easy to see how the misunderstanding might arise. The engine spec was very similar but it differed in certain details. There has been some debate over the years about whether or not Montjuics have the Formula’s close ratio gearbox. To put an end to the conjecture I decided to ask Piero Laverda whether he could clarify the correct specification of a Montjuic, he was quite specific in his response;

“ the F500 close ratio gearbox was standard specification on the MK1 and MK2 Montjuic, however  customers had the option of specifying normal wide ratios if that was their preference, but the standard gearbox specification was definitely the same as the F500”

Some early Montjuics also had the needle roller bearing in the outer cam caps, but this was not specific to the model, it was simply the current specification of the Alpino at the time.

Mechanically, a Montjuic is basically an Alpino S with S1 cams, high compression pistons and a Sito sports exhaust. Yet despite these relatively unsophisticated underpinnings, the simple mechanical alterations create a character change out of all proportion to the scale of the work carried out . Forget the Yamaha RDs or the Suzuki GTs or even the Kawasaki triples; the Montjuic MK1 defines the hooligan cafe racer of the late 70s, although it’s highly unlikely that hooligan types could actually afford one.

In addition to the simple mechanical alterations, the Montjuic’s cafe racer credentials were complimented with attractive seat and fairings manufactured out of GRP, a set of ‘Jota’ bars and some elegant cast aluminium rearsets. The bodywork was manufactured in the UK by ‘Screen and Plastics’ . Bikes were shipped from Italy sans seat unit and fairing and these items were retro-fitted by Slaters. Unusually, the fairings and seats were finished in self colour gel coat rather than painted, something I found quite surprising when I acquired my un-restored l MK II. Such is the quality of the Screen and Plastics bodywork that I always assumed all Montjuics had a painted finish.

The MK I was undeniably prettier than the MKII which followed. The plexiglass headlamp cover and the hand extensions on the fairing had a very purposeful, racy look to them. The race-track refugee appearance was finished off by the SFC style seat with its integral number boards moulded into the side. The downside to the MK1 Monty is rooted in the pretty bikini fairing. This was a handlebar mounted item and could, according to some road testers, promote a weave at high speed. I`ve canvassed a number of MK1 owners for their opinions on this and none of them have actually experienced the weave. Perhaps this was a situation that afflicted a press bike and the tale passed into motorcycling folklore as so many of these sorts of rumours do. Many owners at the time simply discarded them anyway and ran the bike unfaired.

I think a more likely cause of the weave can be traced to the yokes. A number of racers found the high speed handling on the 500s slightly suspect and fitted reduced offset yokes, which increased trail and improved the handling, Chott yokes were found to be ideally suited to the purpose.

The Monty Mk1, like the early Jotas, represents the purest of the breed, but not necessarily the best. Neither machine will disappoint the enthusiastic rider .

 

Montjuic MK2

The Montjuic MKII is undeniably an improved machine over the MK1 but to some the MKII aesthetics lack the purity of the original machine. A larger, frame- mounted fairing [modelled on the Motoplast unit fitted to the 1977 Barcelona entry ] located on a substantial tubular steel subframe cured the alleged handling issues which affected the MK1 . Longer outer cylinder head studs facilitated the use of more robust cam caps, alleviating the problems of crushed cam bushes experienced on some machines. Prior to the launch of the MK2 the Montjuic had somewhat unfairly gained a reputation for being fast but fragile. This was probably more as a result of ham-fisted maintenance rather than a design problem. Due to the willing engine it’s also very easy to over rev a 500 and prolonged running at high revs can also contribute to an early demise if the crank or camshaft . Montjuics would invariably lead a hard life and an unsympathetic owner could wreak havoc with the engine if it wasn’t warmed up correctly. If the cam bearing caps were over-tightened during routine maintenance then seizures could result, but this of course isn’t a fault of the machine. As the saying goes, there’s no such thing as a bad dog...

The 500s outstanding performance in the Barcelona 24 hour race and subsequently at the IOM TT confirms that there was nothing inherently wrong with the design of the twin, far from it in fact.

Summary

The official Montjuic production figures ran to less than 250 units, thus making them a very rare machine, rarer even than an SFC. Due to the Montjuic’s scarcity, prospective purchasers are unlikely to have a wide choice of bikes available to them and therefore I would advise picking the best from whatever is on the market, MK1 or MKII. The MKII is undoubtedly the better bike and probably more civilised over long distances due to its larger fairing.

I like my MK II, even if it isn’t quite as raw boned as the MK1. MK2s look much nicer in the flesh than they do in photographs and have that typical Laverda hewn –from-solid feel. Montjuics are a true sporting 500 in the classic Italian style and will bring plenty of riding satisfaction to their owners. Prospective owners should be aware that the Montjuic is a noisy bike , although it is possible to bring the cacophony down to a bearable level if careful attention is paid to re-packing the exhaust. They also lack indicators and mirrors which make them a bit impractical in heavy traffic, however the typical Montjuic rider is unlikely to be concerned about such trivialities!

A note about the bikes pictured in this section;

The MK1 and the MK2 featured here have been chosen because they are original, unrestored , low mileage bikes and might provide some useful reference for restorers, with this in mind I`ve added some detail shots in the gallery . The MK1 belongs to my pal Ray Peacock who has owned it from new and has covered just over 4,000 miles on it. The MK2 is my own machine which has only had two owners from new, having spent most of its life on Jersey. This is also a very low mileage example having covered only 4,700miles from new. As far as I can tell the only deviation from standard spec is a set of Montydon’s inlet stubs which were fitted to replace the original rubber items which had perished.

These machines are probably two of the most original surviving Montjuics in the UK.