Modern Vespa

short story: taking the daughter for her evening ride on the gts300. it got dark, and i didn't see a big ol' chunk of displaced asphalt until the last second. managed to turn the wheel to hit the edge of it perpendicular and we made it over, but the impact was so hard it jolted the left mirror face off. (it's lost!)

riding home, the scoot felt off, so i took it for a spin without the kid to make sure it wasn't a psych thing. the rear wheel seems loose -- is this normal? meaning: it seems straight (horizontally), but it can rock up/down a little bit, and now, if i give it light gas while on the centerstand, it can move the bike backwards with a vengeance (with the stand down) -- something really seems to be vertically offcenter. the ride went from glassy smooth to sort of bumpy, although the tire seems to have retained air pressure. any idea what the damage might be? is the rear wheel supposed to have slight vertical play?

Put a shoe box beside the wheel ,put a pen on box.Now spin wheel to see if rim is bent.If pen and rim makes contact or a large gap between rim and pin your rim is bent.

Check that then we'll go from there.

not sure i understand. this is to determine if there's any wobble or off-vertical behavior due to a bent rim, so i set the shoe box alongside the wheel (touching?) and then, uhhh, how do i place the pen on it?

http://s27.postimg.org/5n1vjz777/image.jpg

Any stationary object will work.When you spin wheel you will see if it true or bent.Example ,drill on floor. Almost touching rim give wheel a slow spin.

My rear wheel will wiggle a bit vertical.Thats normal.

okay, that helped. it seems fine? there's a faint metallic scraping from time to time when i rotate it, but nothing seems dire as i go through it.

thanks!

Your probably hearing the break.
Another thing to check is if it tracks right.Front and rear wheel are in a straight line while riding.
Your probably just spooked having the mirror fall off.On the other hand its good to look your scoot over.

I wouldn't be surprised if something got bent. Sometimes you can just give it a good look and see if anything is tweaked. Spin your wheels and look for a wobble. Also, the front fork/steering-stem has one arm so massive hits can bend it.

All motorcycles/scooters that I give gas to on the center stand start to walk from gyroscopic forces and vibration.