Modern Vespa

A package of goodness from Burbank friends.

Lots of laughs (including a ham ornament not pictured), a Spanish plate for the Spanish and a beautiful piece of 44.

Pure class creating big smiles.

Gratzi G- man and Dr the Mrs…

Gratzi

.

Awesome.
The same are responsible for one of the best Xmas cards I've ever received.

They have claaaaaasss

it was all Dr. The Mrs. idea! I just put the plan into action.

the ham ornament was just the cherry on top, I had to grab it when I saw it! glad the tree is still up to hang it!

apologies on the gift wrapping (I suck at it) and greasy prints, I was using the lift as my work table!

Bought a car on the 27th, since our Laguna II started to be needy, after serving us for 400k Kms...

Found this gem in a nearby county. It's an import from Holland, one owner car. Checked up everything and gave a deposit. Total Kms corresponded to all records in Renault's European system up to November when it was last serviced and then imported to Greece, so it wasn't tampered in any way (unfortunately pretty common in Greece with used cars / imports). Furthermore, I asked around and the specific dealer is one of the best and totally honest on what he sells. It's a diesel with a DC A/M gearbox. BOSE edition with lots of extras (it even has a massage function on the driver's seat). Photos are from the dealer's ad, I'll be getting it next week after the paperwork's done...

Can't wait...

Slick!

I wonder if Renault will ever dabble in the US market again. they make really nice cars.

True, they do! French (and Italian) cars are a bit misjudged cause of the electrical gremlins they had in the past. Times have changed. And the ride, it's like you're on a magic carpet. Our Laguna II (2005) has been bulletproof all these years with the typical maintenance but ultimately it's tired. I'll be gifting it to a friend who's in desperate need for a car at the moment and can't afford one...

New one is a 2017 Megane IV with the bulletproof and ageless 1.5dCi (Euro 6) used by many makers, even Mercedes...

Great find.
Love the heads up display and sound system.
The French are great at those kind of details - and that's a killer little motor.
Nice New Years present!

French cars are under-appreciated.

Will a scooter fit in the back of it?

Probably, but I'm not going to do it. At least for a while...

Very nice! I love wagons/hatchbacks…

famous last words.

also, pics if you do. otherwise you'll have to draw us a picture!

Definitely kidding. I'm not doing such a crime except if it's a freshly painted frame…

Until comes the day when that "deal" presents itself, and you happen to be in your new ride ...

"I put down a couple of garbage bags and rolled down the windows, it'll be fine"

Got me some really nice gear changers for a future project I have in mind. Made by Domino for a 3 speed Garelli but they can be easily adapted for 4 gears (I've seen them on an Italian Vespa project). Found them on the Italian Amazon...

Love the Domino leversets. Used several on Vespa mopeds.

I bet their cable gearchange is a lot crisper than the setup used on the Puch 3-speed old-timer engines.

It seems that I am a dumbass. Got all pumped to work on my old smallie engine and immediately hit a snag: aside from the flyside bearing and caged roller for the axle, yes, I have no ball bearings today.

So I ask the brain trust, SKF or NTN? I know to avoid SKF if it's not European in origin. NTN is always good stuff, but I press those into the Japanese/Taiwanese stuff...seems a bit like sacrilege.

In the interim, I was just gonna sulk and go change the Malossi belt/rollers/sliders on the Majesty, but it started pouring outside again.

Guess I'll try baking this iMac video card and Dell laptop main board. If I can salvage them, great. More money for scooter parts.

Today in the "why can't I have nice things" department, I took the GL out for obvious reasons and the clutch nut decided to come loose. So I got to fix that.

But then I also got to put some miles on the GL, which was nice, but also made me realize the carb needs some attention at 1/4 throttle, plus I think I need to consider a new exhaust, because it's loud AF and comes in too late in fourth gear.

I also mixed up a tiny batch of orange paint and fixed some spots on the VBB that needed touchups. That's something that's been on the to-do list for way too long, but I'm really happy it's done.

So lots of goodness across lots of scooters, even if none of them were the Smallstate.

Today my wife and I took a drive up to Yachats for fish tacos. It's her birthday and she wanted to see the ocean. Of course we took the Magestic Minnow, the 1997, 30' Winnebago.

It's pretty stormy out today but the drive up to Yachats was clear, and the tacos were delicious.

We decided to split right after eating because it was getting a bit windy. Well, about half way home we needed to stop for a bathroom break. Bob Creek wayside had too many cars to park there so I stopped at Brays Point - spectacular views up and down the coast.

As soon as I stopped I knew this wasn't good. The wind was blowing the crap out of us. And it started raining hard. Like really hard. So we decide to get off the cliff and find a better place.

I turn the key and .. nothing. No click of the starter relay. Lights on the dash but no relay clicking. So I try the MOM switch. It's a switch that lets you use the house batteries to start the engine. like a jumpstart. Nothing....

I get out and about get my arm ripped off by the wind turning the door into a sail. I grabbed a pair of pliers out of the tool bin and proceeded to play with the battery connections.

I went in and out three of four times, all to no avail. Oh, and there was no cell service where we were at.

So we sat for a moment and I went through the whole process again...and the MOM switch worked! It started right up and we drove straight home, getting blown around so we went nice and easy.

A bit of excitement for her birthday

Riders on the Storm....

And the moral of the story is: don't be a dumbass and stop on the side of a cliff in a huge storm!

Rain broke for a bit, so I tore apart the Majesty's CVT. Looked decent for 15K on Malossi parts. Biggest surprise is that it pulls way better than stock but doesn't variate fully.

Fewer spiders than expected, considering the belt case exhaust ducts were open to the elements and it's been sitting in my driveway for almost 18 months.

I have the new belt, rollers and ramp plate sliders. Ordered some other worn parts; hoping I can button it up before my buddies realize that Vegas is coming in early March and they need their scoots worked on.

A damp day screwing with a CVT is still better than no scooter time at all.

so *technically* it wasn't today, but I put this thing together over the holiday



only now, I have a sense of impending doom....



more things are going to have to move...

the situation is ongoing, and we will report as it unfolds...

You're going to have to rename "Kajit's House of Wares" to "Kajit's House of Where the Fuck Did I Put That?"

I started moving stuff around in preparation for this right about thanksgiving so this has basically been me for the better part of a month...

LOLZ

*giggled like a bratty kid*

Wonky electrical connections cause no end of headaches. During the fall, I rebuilt the alternator for my VW bus. Soon after, the main power would cut out while driving and come back on a few seconds later resulting in a huge backfire. Every time this happened, it was preceded by the signal light relay chirping like a cricket. At one point it died entirely and I got home by running a wire from the battery directly to the coil. Of course, I expected the alternator.

The problem turned out to be a switch on my dash that turns on the main power. The wire was still attached, but the solder joint was cracked causing intermittent contact. My keyed ignition switch is broken and aftermarket replacements are poor quality. It also requires complete disassembly of the steering column.

I feel your pain orwell. Figuring out electrical problems have never been my strong suite. The Stella is giving me grief which I was so convinced the CDI was the problem.

Wow! Great lift!

Mistakes were made.

is this a cry for help? is it intervention time?

fwiw, if it winds up being the pump don't mess with trying to rebuild it, just order a complete new unit if possible. these were remarkably decent bikes, not my cup of tea, but a good product overall.

Nah. I wasn't planning to buy another scooter right now. Wanted to focus on what I have in queue (see Majesty CVT). It was more the for the challenge and to have another loaner ready for rallies and visitors. I probably won't touch it until March at the earliest.

And yes, plastic automatics aren't nearly as soul-stirring as a steel-bodied shifty. My P200 was way more fun to bomb around town on, or even cover the 100-ish miles to Phoenix.

Where the Majesty comes in are the 500+ mile days when I want to go to Vegas or Cali for a rally and don't need the truck. A good screen, a rebuilt seat, upgraded suspension, tapered steering bearings and a Malossi trans made it pleasant for the big-mile stuff.

I made a call. Waiting on the other two to arrive.

Eccellente.

Bought a heap from Kajiit:

Ponch and John ET4 revival - variator tuning

I just like resurrecting them. First time dealing with mechanicals on a modern - the GTS is in good shape and hasn't needed much.

^^^

Congrats hustler!

Speaking of Kajiit....

Was finishing up the Rally180 engine for the Spanish and realized I did not have the two little clips for securing the rear brake shoes. After a a string of curse words and general pouting I remembered that Kajiit had sent a bag of treasures (A zip lock bag crammed with smalls and what me wife said "looked like contents of a watchmakers junk drawer." ....Pffft)

Fetching the bag - now homed in a small coffee container - I light my candles and said the appropriate incantations to the House of Kajiit.... sure as shit I had TWO retaining clips in the Kajiit bag of treasures. I closed the container immediately not wanting to damage the gris gris. Yeah, also as I found the second clip and closed the container, I may have heard a Paco snort from the great beyond.

Don't doubt the powers of Kajiit. IJS.

those damn clips are the worst, never there when you need them.

I too have Kajiit Koffee cans filled with treasures. Mine don't have lids - I hope the magic has not disappeared...

Today I realised that there is no just helping some people!

I saw that also, reading in there somewhere "it's running fine, plug chop looks good, but I think I should be 10 jet sizes smaller"

This one don't have any idea what plug is in it, let alone what a plug chop is!
Complained that when going flat out it keeps slowing down..l
I said, ohh, sounds like a soft seize...
He says , nah, not that, it keeps stopping!