Modern Vespa

You have a lathe at home!

Those look really nice.

That's my dream.

Are the Lobo ones really correct? It's hard to know.

Mine are smooth on top, but signs of rear crash bars being mounted, so may have been swapped out. The washer is a holdover from the crash bars

I have a whole set of blue switches!

I didn't realize I had them all.

The plastic used in the 1970s is a trip. It turned green over time, but cleans up, and polishes to a mirror finish.

The two for the turn signal connectors are missing the metal posts that connect to the cowls, but I think the post is identical to the plastic one in the brake switch. So I can just fabricate new ones out of a brass rod. Just rounded at the top, and a groove for a circlip.

Christmas.

I'm amazed at Pascoli. They have all these parts I thought I would never find.

I prefer to buy from local shops, but got almost all the ones I need now.

One more part.

*Snickers at resto painting pic*

What did you use to stick that foam on the glovebox door?

Wow ! That is really looking great, hjo. All the little imperfections just sort of vanish under the overall appearance and I know you will be very proud to ride this Rally. With a big grin.

Just rubber cement and a q tip.

I watched a video on how to do it. You apply to both sides, then let them dry. Then they're pretty workable, and bond really well when you press them together.

"I guess I'll take this apart to clean the inside. Hoping the rivets aren't impossible to replace."
Maybe floor rail rivets ?

I don't see the exact ones for sale. Like SIP and Scooter Center have ones for other models, and a repro horn complete.

I think a hardware store would have them. Something like this.

It wouldn't be possible to get both sides perfect, but could use rounded heads and peen the back.

if the horn is in working order, it seems the chrome is in good shape... I would NOT take it apart.

metal polish and some swabs should be enough.
the existing rivet heads should polish up with a felt drum in the dremel.

I think you're right.

I cleaned it a bit more with the dremel and felt. Not sure if you can tell. I can finish the exterior, and always go back to it. It's an easy project once the bike is together.

Was going to say the exact same thing. You can do wonders with a handful of qtips and some metal polish. A good way to avoid rending of garments and gnashing of teeth.

That's a lot of surfaces to clean!!

I love spending a million hours on things that I could replace for $10.

But these things are so rare. The 1970s blue switches, that were never reproduced.

Restoring them. Almost there.

It's not my style of project, but your otaku level of attention to detail here continues to amaze me and I'm definitely learning some tricks along the way.

I'd never in a million years have thought to use peroxide and sunlight to bleach out the yellowing of plastic, for example.

It's a curse. I started out just wanting it to run. Then get more and more OCD.

This one especially, bc it was like 100% original, but completely destroyed by the elements. So it's like this heroic project to save its originality.

The other Rally, I think I might be a bit less obsessive. It's mostly there, and all the parts are available in good quality, but not original. Which is different, if that makes sense.

I ran miles of that sleeving when I rewired my bus. It's good stuff and holds up well.

Oh good! It's from McMaster Carr. They seem to be high quality stuff. I hope it holds up.

That's where I got it. Love that place. Shipping is really fast too.

Not much progress.

Oh no…I'm current on this thread now! But I want moooooore!

I'm shopping for my first vintage scoot right now and I've spent the last two nights reading the entirety of this thread and I'm amazed and inspired by what you've done, hgo. Thank you for documenting your restoration and taking such high quality photos and explaining your thought process. From a guy who's always wanted to rebuild a bike like this from the ground up (the welding part was never in my dream scenario though!) it's really motivating and been a blast to follow. Can't wait to see the final assembly and hear her fire up for the first time! Keep up the awesome work!

Did you ever install the wear plates that go between the centerstand and the paint? I can't see them in the photo of the spring.

^
This and brackets seem a bit short to me. Where is the stand resting when it's on its feet?? Should be "hitting" the brackets and not the floor…

Thank you for the compliments!

and chandlerman and SaFiS for the catch.

That bracket is wrong. And looks like it could dent the frame.

The stand does hit the bracket, but close to the edge, and the longer bracket distributes weight so the floorboard doesn't bend.

I need to replace.

Lol. This is why the project is taking 18 months.

But I guess I can do the wiring, which I should do next.

Why not use your old ones?? On my T5 I cleaned them, used a rust stabilizer and painted them the same color (original) as the fork and hubs (Alluminio Ruote 983)…

Is this a good battery?

It's very expensive, but looks like the right size, and it's the new type that doesn't leak acid or have water levels.

Do these last longer? Vespa batteries don't generally last very long.

I'll try that!

They're fine. Just crusty and the plating is worn away. I could just paint them silver.

I've never seen two springs like that!

They cleaned up ok. They were mostly just really dirty

If they are original and fit better, I would use them. One of the first things I did on my Stella was to grease the stand, then greased it a couple more times as I used it. It wouldn't retract all the way. It's gonna look like crap anyway if you ride it.

I'd rock those as is, they don't look awful. they're under the bike and nobody will see them. they're better quality and correct fit from the jump.

dual springs started in the mid-ish 80's. my T5 has the same set up.

do you have the metal cover, rubber insert and metal strap with wingnut for holding the battery in place?

I like the way the black plastic case looks but suspect the other will last longer. both are vented I run a sealed battery inside an empty black battery box, but those boxes are not available any more.

http://guzzino.com/baboxb4it.html

I don't have those, but was just ordering them.

I realized that the Scooterwest one is out of stock, and I'd have to order that one from Italy.

The batteries they have for rallys are 10ah or 12ah. Some go higher. Does this matter?

on the '74 Rally everything runs off the battery (except the ignition). largest load is the turn signals, followed by the headlight.

I tend to run with the headlight off unless it's dark or I want the added visibility. LED tail/brake light can help. LED turn signals helps a lot but you need a flasher that will work with them.

10Ah I think was the norm and with normal bulbs could run the lights for like 30min or an hour (whatever DOT required in "74). If you can lower the draw, you can get away with a smaller battery. Lower limit would be to bridge the time spent idling at a traffic light.

Use the OG ones. I cleaned up and re-used them on both my VBB and GL. They looked bad, but some wire wheel work, some ospho, and some paint and they were good-to-go.

I had a 1974 Super, and it had the same electrical system. Super problematic. Everything running off the battery. And the battery would die on mine if it ran with the lights on.

It struggled to power the turn signals. It makes sense those are the biggest draw.

I am going to try LED lights. Hopefully that helps. They use such little power.

I got this thing. Not sure how to mount it. It has a slot, and I guess I can just make a U-shaped bracket for it.

Little pieces.

Starting to make the wiring. It's not as hard as I thought. With the old harness and diagram.

It's funny. The turn signals were such an add-on that Piaggio used blue wires for three different things that have different functions.
- the CDI
- the turn signals
- brake light

On the diagram, one is more aqua blue. So I'll add that.

My connectors haven't arrived yet, but all the other parts have.

It's fun, and really not that complicated. Everything connects to something else. and the old harness makes measuring easy.

I'm adding an inch or two to all the wires. Can't hurt. Can always trim.

Careful with the thickness of the wiring harness as it needs to make it through some narrow passages in the front end.

I hope it works. If not, I'll have to get different wire. It was hard to find a place that had all the wire colors, and most sell in 20 foot spools. This one sold by the foot.

It's worth trying. I use minder wire to pull it through and lubricate cable sheaths with warm water and dish soap. I think most wiring harnesses have connectors already crimped on. Pulling wiring without them and crimping them on after makes it a lot easier.