Modern Vespa

My wife and I returned from a road trip to find that our Impala Lily had bloomed.
This plant was a gift from our son when he emigrated to Melbourne last year.

So if your scooter is turning over slowly (or not at all) and you have a good battery sending 12V to the starter motor it probably means one of the commutator brushes is sticking. Hitting the starter motor with an appropriately sized hammer can give it enough of a nudge to get it snuggling up against the commutator again, until next time. Carrying said hammer in the pet carrier can help out for a while, but who wants to do that forever? Well Thor does of course but not us mortals.

Air box loosened, intake removed, some connectors disconnected, positive terminal and two bolts securing the motor and its out. Two more bolts hold it together. Pulling apart reveals the reluctant brush. It took quite a lot of jiggling and contact cleaner to get it loose. Reassembly needs an extra set of hands to hold the brushes apart but I was able to poke some wire in holes adjacent to the springs.

Happy scooter again.

After more than 2 months without my GTS I am finally going to pick her up from the dealers this afternoon after her Fuel Pump failure on the way to Weymouth Scooter Rally in July.

I realize this is way off topic for this forum but… our beloved baseball Guardians are on the verge of clinching their division and a playoff spot. Lord, I love October baseball.

Chris from CLE


We have a "real" outfield now…

I may have been riding PTWs for 13 years, but... I've never had to adjust the tension on a chain drive bike.
Until now.


I didn't break my bike!
...I think I actually got it adjusted, too.
...And neither wheel nor chain came off during the test ride!
...And I think the wheel is actually on straight!

I'm NOT comfortable learning a new skill like this without having someone to check and/or correct my work. That was terrifying until it was over and then it was exhilarating.

I hope you left some slack in that chain! Don't want it to be under "tension".

I'm still a little worried that we might have left too much slack, but I used woodworker's logic. "You can always take more off, but you can't add some back on."

I also lucked out on an impromptu tool scavenger hunt. My travel torque adapter from my GTS kit covers 8 to 80Nm and the rear wheel nut needs 110Nm. Harbor Freight just happened to have a digital torque adapter rated for 40-200Nm on clearance and one of the stores near me still had a few left.

So...now I have "fine-" and "course-adjustment" torque adapters that fit in my luggage!

There were two events this past weekend that I was interested in.

1. DFW Fiber Fest (a consumer show for knitters, crocheters, and the spinning craft community).
2. Dallas Pen Show (a consumer show for people interested in pens (mainly fountain pens, but also rollerball & ballpoint).

My wife is into pens more than I am, and she really wanted to go. There weren't any classes at DFW Fiber Fest that I just HAD to take, so I skipped it. I didn't even tell her it was going on until we were at the Pen Show.

Shortly after arriving, I saw two of my Grail Pens - the Rotring 600 Fountain Pen and Rollerball pen. The guy who was selling them wasn't there, but his tablemate said he'd be back soon. So I checked some other tables in the room, and kept an eye on his table. I did find another table that had a very used Rotring Newton fountain pen that they were asking $175 for. But the ones at the first table looked like they had just come from the factory.

I saw the guy had returned, so I headed back over there. He was asking $195 for the Rotring 600 rollerball, and $225 for the Rotring Newton Fountain Pen. I asked if he'd work a discount for both together. He said he'd take $20 off. Then he mentioned that he had the black Rotring 600 Fountain pen, for $420. It wasn't in as good of shape as the other two, so I passed, and just got the two I initially saw.

In the main room, we checked out a lot of nice pens. We each ended up getting an additional Retro 51 Rollerball. She got the Bee pen, and I got the Roosevelt.

As we wandered around, I found a table that was selling custom made pens, and other custom made implements (seam rippers, bracelet clasp helper, etc.). I was about to walk by, but then saw they had crochet hooks. There's a crochet hook kit that comes with 6 hooks, and a handle body. Wood turners buy it and make custom handles for it and sell them at craft fairs, etc. I bought one a few years ago at DFW Fiber Fest. But the wood handle I got isn't as comfortable to use as I'd like. It was the most comfortable one they had at the time I got it. The guy at the pen show has ones that fit my hand better, and he was willing to sell me just the handle for $19. So I got one.

So I was able to satisfy both of my hobbies after all.


Rotring 600 Rollerball and Rotring Newton Fountain Pen

Retro 51 Roosevelt rollerball

Crochet Hooks. Original wood handle on top, new acrylic/resin handle on bottom.

Riding weather has finally arrived in Phoenix!

I need to read slower today…and maybe follow a few more interests than craftspeople, moto-travelers, and homesteaders on social media.
I saw fiber followed by pens, my brain connected the two immediately, and it was very confusing for a moment.

"Wait…what? Ohhh, not sheep pens, the pens you write with!"

(If we can't laugh with ourselves, who else will?)

Had a stress echocardiogram today and I'm apparently not about to die.

Neat stuff. I haven't been at it much, but I carry a few with me. In my pack now I have a Mont Blanc Starwalker (ballpoint) that's my daily driver. The fountain pens in my bag today are a Waterman Laureat, a couple of Parker Vectors, a Noodler's somethingorother, a Pilot Varsity and a 1940s era Sheaffer that I restored a few years back. Just ordered a Pilot Metropolitan from Goulet this week because I started talking to an engineer here about pens and it got me excited again.

And yet I sit and type on a computer all day.

Good news steelbytes


On a slightly similar theme I had a blood test today checking for Prostrate Cancer, hopefully I don't get a phone call from the Doctor.

Cheered up that my generator fired up on the first pull after sitting for many years in preparation for the hurricane. I can safely recommend small engines made by Honda or Subaru

Best of luck over the next few days!

I tried...
I REALLY tried...
but in the end, the temptation was just too great !

Meet Esti.
She's a Dec 1982 BMW R80 ST.

...and I didn't have to sell a Vespa to buy her.

Had the pleasure of being invited to the New Zealand launch of the Aprilia SR/GT200. A couple of us went up to our nearest motor racing circuit (Hampton Downs at Te Kauwhata if you want to search it on Google Maps) on our GTS300s, and Triumph NZ, the local agent for Piaggio product, had hired the kart track. They had four scooters there and we had a presentation on all the features before we were taken out to have a ride. The media guys went out on the first run and had 15 - 20 minutes of wizzing around the track. It wasn't long before stands were dragging and the limit of grip of the rear tyres under braking (Non ABS) was found. I was in the next group and soon found a level of comfort zipping around on someone else's scooter hoping not to bin it. After everyone had had a go we were served a beautiful lunch, then given a second shot at the scooters. My confidence was better and a scraping sound on the hairpin told me I was as far as I wanted to be, but it was a great chance to play with its abilities. After a nice afternoon tea and talking rubbish with like minded PTW enthusiasts we headed back home down the Expressway at 110kmh. Interesting aside, some people can't handle being passed by a scooter 🤣😂🛵🛵
Some features: 174cc, 17.4bhp, 17Nm torque, water cooled, 14 inch front wheel, 13 inch rear. ABS on front wavy disc only. RISS stop/start technology, adjustable rear suspension, blocky tyres for gentle off road work. Good under seat storage, side and centre stands, two foot positions available (although we didn't try the cruising position).


Aprilia SR/GT200 Sport

Other side. The Sport package is the orange wheels, body colour accents and decals.

Non Sport version in quite a nice blue. Wheels are black on the base model.

A bit of an idea of the lean angle available.

I really like this colour scheme on a Sport.

We made it through hurricane Ian. The Vespas remain dry.

We have the pleasure of riding weather year round in Naples, Florida. But the price is occasional hurricanes. As we live 1 mile from the Gulf of Mexico we were subject to our first mandatory evacuation on Tuesday. We packed up and moved to a friends house about 10 miles inland. The storm surge brought salt water up our street about 500 feet from our door. And then it stopped and receded . Many houses close by had the first floor of their homes covered in sea water. In 35 years, water has never made it to our house. Came close this time.

Our house and garage and Vespas remain dry. I'm very thankful. The power is out but our whole house generator powers everything.

This short video shows our fire station water damage.

Man, being a Sportcity rider, I would ride that all day.

Edit :

Just talked to the local dealer. We will never see them in the US.

That's a real shame, they also do a smaller engine that we won't see. Also have a range of accessories like top box, aluminum case, bash bars, fog lights and later heated grips. Comes standard with the screen shown, a bigger clear one is an option.

It's my Birthday and I was given Beer.

I'm guessing you figured out what to do with it by now.

Happy Birthday!

Ain't that the truth!

How did you go with the results ?

Thanks for asking Sledge.

I haven't been contacted by the Health Officials which is obviously good news but I haven't a clue how soon after the test they would call me if it was bad news.

You should be good Coddy. They're usually on the phone pretty sharpish if they find anything abnormal. No news is good news.

Going to try riding the new bike this morning...

My wife is having some balance issues following a bit of hip surgery and figures she can get back on a bicycle if I help share the balancing task, so this was purchased.

Wish me luck! Should be fun.

Wherever your relationship is going, a tandem is the fastest way to get you both there.

Good luck.

My brain MRI showed no abnormalities. So i have that going for me.

Sorry but I just had to post this one!

Cleaned my fridge and freezer...

So then I cleaned my bicycle.

Not sure what's cheering me up - the clean fridge, or the clean bike. 😂

Last edited by OscarSass on Mon, 05 Dec 2022 15:43:39 +0000; edited 1 time

Found the source of the painfully slow leak in my espresso machine. Think I resolved it. Get to test it by drinking espresso, so it's a win regardless.

Well done

If only finding small leakes on Vespas were as simple....

Did you tamper with it?

Me too!

I suggest getting a refund on that MRI

Could have been worse, was down 2 in first 17'
It's going to be a long season and a test for (American) fans loyalty as we are not born into a team.
Actually kinda funny how we pick our ⚽️ teams here.

🤣

Have a Rotring pencil that's about 30 years old, still boxed.

Vegemite on fresh bread