Shipping a motorcycle across the Pacific Ocean from Japan is not simple. This delectable and exotic 1977 MV Agusta Magni 861 sold on eBay was worth the effort.
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Precious Few
An estimated 2,000 motorcycles bear the name of Arturo Magni, the legendary former MV Agusta race team manager - opens in new window or tab.. Only a precious few are 861s. The one sold on eBay is from the first year of manufacture.
The Magni 861s were essentially works racers for the street. No two are exactly alike. This 861 is laden with exotic parts and modifications:
- Magni dry (external) clutch
- Ceriani - opens in new window or tab. rear spring/damper units
- Lockheed front and rear disc brakes
- 12,000-rpm chronometric Smiths tachometer - opens in new window or tab.
- Primo Felotti fuel tank
Signore Felotti was MV’s works fuel tank maker. Like Magni, he is considered an elite master craftsman.
Arturo Magni
Magni spent 25 years at MV Agusta, where he amassed 270 Grand Prix victories and 75 World Championships as team manager. When he stepped back from racing, he and his two sons set up a bespoke motorcycle firm later known simply as Magni.
The most famous bike they made was the 861. Typically, an MV Agusta customer would send a stock 750S, which they would completely rebuild as a Magni 861. Magni replaced the stock frame with a cromoly, race-derived steel tube item. They also upgraded the suspension and brakes, though apparently, few 861s had a period disc conversion like this one. Magni fitted gorgeous Conti exhaust pipes - opens in new window or tab., as well as a new tank and fairing.
Magni heavily reworked the 750-cc engine block to displace 861 cc. High-compression pistons and redesigned camshafts complemented the extra displacement. Customers could expect just shy of 100 horsepower.
Once in a Lifetime?
It appears this bike was delivered to Germany in 1978 and then to a dealer in Tokyo in 1985. It found a new owner a short distance away in Nagoya that same year. The seller, in Chiba-Ken, Japan, had owned it since 2013.
The MV Agusta 861 Magni occupies the inner circle of revered motorcycles, along with the likes of the Vincent Black Shadow - opens in new window or tab.. Except there are far fewer 861 Magnis. Not all of them received the full suite of parts and modifications as this one. This Magni presented a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a serious collector.
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