Modern Vespa

Damn, I'm sorry I couldn't be there for that!

All I did this weekend was run some errands on the GL and sort've get the Riverside running (That'll get its own post at some point).

Setting up the Vape on a Lammy is super-easy because you can access the stator plate bolts with the flywheel on.

I met up with some scooter peeps (Club One) for the 5th annual Buellton run.
We rode out to Jalama beach for some burgers and then up to Lompoc, Los Alamos, Loas Olivos and finally back to Buellton. 104 fun twisty miles.

I was on the only Vesps. The other seven rider were all on Lambrettas.
Boy are they fast.

Lost my 11 year old yellow lab Charlie last Wednesday. Melancholy house.

Sorry to hear that, condolences....

I know the feeling...condolences from here, also.

Today I......

Added some colour coded rivets and fit the brake pedal

Three colours only on this machine
Orange, black and "shiny"

1/2 way there with the passenger foot pegs on the supper club.

1 out of 5 stars for existential dread.

Don't recommend the job.
But came out well.

I feel for ya. So sorry to hear it.

Heart felt condolences.

Michael,

My condolences for your loss. Focus on the good memories and when your hearts are ready, welcome a new pup into your family.

My neighbor's white Labrador, Blizzard, used to be toted around the neighborhood by their daughters in a clear tupperware (no lid) on a skateboard. Fifteen years on, the girls are through college and have started their careers. Bliz is an old fella, hard of vision and hearing, but he still likes his walks around the neighborhood. He's had a good run and I think the whole neighborhood will miss him when he gets called home.

We just need to celebrate the time we have with them and remember, there are plenty of pups out there who need a home too.

I took Mr. Biggs to the vet on Saturday for his annual checkup. Fortunately, he's in great health, and was a pretty good sport about it, if he would have preferred that his dog-venture not be a trip to the vet.

Dogs are the best thing we've ever done for ourselves.

Thanks for the condolences, guys. Much appreciated. He was the proverbial 'good dog', mild mannered unless a stranger came up on our porch. He treated our grandchildren with endless patience. We will miss him. Someone once said we should strive to be the person our dogs think we already are. At my age, I've had a lot of dogs, never a bad one. Thanks again.

I'm so sorry to hear that MichaelRyerson, I'll be a lost soul when that goes down with my 5 y/o Yellow Lab Henry.

FNG, you may want to get that front end looked at!
Either fork is bent or column is way too vertical

Or BOTH!

Spare fuel tank was delivered yesterday. Part of my plan to bring 2t Vespas back to the Paris-Dakar…and I think it looks cool. I have floor board luggage hooks on the 200 and ordered a set for the Stella. I will have to remove the helmet hook on the Stella to make it fit.

Thanks. I'll check it out.

NSR: Upgraded from the iPhone 13 Pro to the new iPhone 17 Pro. Stock is in short supply so I was happy to find one…

I love the burgers there! Worth the wait in line. The only Vespa in the bunch, digging that.

I grew up in Lompoc! I lived in Vandenberg Village. I used to Surf Jalama! In High School we tried to get to Jalama for burgers over lunch and make it back. We were tardy! My friend drove a 68 Camaro and he scared the piss out of us racing there and back. Only tried that once! Good times!

Hec

On Saturday I joined the Phillip Island Community Run & rode to Phillip Island for the MotoGP...
I definitely was the only vespa, amongst what was mostly Jappas & Harleys etc.
They even gave a cheer when i arrived on smoky, noisy Speedy!

When he ride finished on the main road of Cowes, I parked up amongst all the other amazing bikes.
Many came to ask the standard questions "is it a Lambretta or a Vespa?", "ohh I had one of them when I was young", "how fast/slow is it", "what year is it", "Dude, you came screaming past me on the ride!", "you rode 2000+km last week? Really?", "does that horn work?", "does it use much fuel?", "wow, it even has a spare tyre", , "how come there is a huge fuel tank in the back?" etc...

It appears that I made an impression, as a photographer seemed to have an imbalance of Speedy Photos in his write-up.

Here it is...

I'm not sure if FB links will work, but hope so.
https://www.facebook.com/100066785171499/posts/pfbid024AgnCtqCsXudZqiqx1kMRsRWDeiRe9ybk16yxopVZXSTg7DUX8rM56NYg9Pewfe9l/

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid024AgnCtqCsXudZqiqx1kMRsRWDeiRe9ybk16yxopVZXSTg7DUX8rM56NYg9Pewfe9l&id=100066785171499

Sadly, the horn wires are still melted somewhere inside the fork!

Discovered that my clutch breather cap was MIA. Got a new one, chopped the cap off, drilled a hole thru the top, and attached a tube running down the back of the motor.

No more gear oil spewing out the top of
my nice clean engine.

Where did it go?

Probably rattled loose somewhere between Laguna Hills and Newport Beach when we were doing speed runs.

Bummer. Somebody probably found it and picked it up and will never know what it is.

An archeologist will probably find it in 2000 years and pronounce it was a fertility icon...

Or used in a religious ceremony of some kind...

Which is dumb, because everybody knows you can't make more scooters by just spraying your oil all over them.

I don't know.....
A few drops of 2 stroke oil from one scooter turned into this

I suspect there was also some alcohol and a bunch of cash thrown around, too. Or is that just me?

Speaking of cash thrown around, what're your thoughts on the Crimaz front disc on your GL? Someone (Ginch, maybe) said it's super-dive-y, so I wanted to get a second opinion.

Lovely herd that!

Not a whole lot of cash involved (except the gl), and no alcohol (a matter of being able to afford one or the other).
I really like the crimaz setup, both my rally and small fame will eventually get it .
Its not as good as a lambretta disc, but i think a stiffer spring, and uprated damper gets it close. Within the limitations of the original design.

Wow, awesome line up!

Yeah that was me. However in the light of new evidence I'm willing to overturn my earlier advice.... Since fitting the Crimaz, Craig had been complaining of the on/off nature of the setup. He said it just made it dive quicker. After the Mille I got to ride it and, while it does the dive, it's nowhere near as bad as he said. You just need a light touch. Our mate Marc actually rode it the 1000k's of the Mille (first time he'd ridden it - after the wideframe failed to proceed) and said it was fine.

I think if you pay attention to anti-dive measures then you won't be disappointed.

Getting close finishing a friend's PX frame to send it for prep / paint. We replaced the whole legshield, reinforced some areas (especially the stand area) and now I'm dealing with the rails...

And made dinner...

Now I'm hungry!

Nice job on the legshield. That's a job I don't have the guts to attempt. Hopefully never will.

Good old, trusty shitbox… coming in off the bench for the Liberty Hill rally.

Seconded.

Wired by Ray Charles, it seems.

Tracing everything so I can compare it to a stock wiring diagram.

Might need the stator rewound for more capacity. The Baja Designs "Squadron" headlight draws more power than the lighting coil is rated for.

Scooters may be dumb, but this crap is a lot dumber.

Wow - that's a real cluster f**k!