In brief: the barrel's fucker. As I'd ordered a new front tyre for the Guzzi before it seized, I went down to my local bike place this morning to have it fitted and, while I was at it, order a replacement front for the TL, 'cos that's right on the wear indicators. Having had a closer look at the Guzzi's barrel over the week, the amount of aluminium smeared up it looked pretty bad, and it felt a bit uneven, so I mentioned it while I was at the shop and they quoted a fiver to hone the barrel, which was cheaper than buying a hone plus there was less risk of me doing something ham-fisted, so when I picked up the wheel, I took the barrel with me. I had to move the car after I arrived at the workshop and when I returned, they'd already done the barrel and pointed out where the coating had gone through. Ah, well, I was kind of expecting that. In the end they didn't charge for the honing. As it happened, Corsa Italiana (aka Spares GB) had a barrel/piston set in stock. It'll cost more than a replating & new piston, but at least it'll be a proper matched set. I'll keep the old barrel as a spare.
