Modern Vespa

Practice makes perf… err better. For spray technique practice and spray gun familiarization I decided to use my old truck canopy. While on our way to Home Depot and purchase a quart of Rustoleum gloss black enamel my wife wanted to stop at a garage sale. I reluctantly pulled over and… score! Two dollars later, I hauled off someones hazmat, 1 quart of said Rustoleum and a gallon of mineral spirits. BTW that's probably more than the value of my old truck canopy. Home Depot, you'll get my money another day.

The canopy was scuffed down with a scouring pad and paint thinner. The windows were taped off and the practice began. I played around with the various fluid and air pressure adjustments until a recipe was found that worked. That experience was worth the extra effort, it increased my confidence and reduced the anxiety for the upcoming Vespa spray. I highly recommend this process of practicing on something you have before going live and spraying your scooter.

We are having a nice stretch of weather starting in a few days. I decided to spray the Vespa outdoors instead of Mickey Mousing a garage spray booth. It'll be easier for me to do a shade tree paint shop outdoors. I had nice results outdoors with the primer coat.

That's it for now, in a few days the spraying will commence.

While waiting for the warmer temperatures. I remembered that the headlight lens had some scratch marks that needed attention. Bear with me, I'm having fun with this project to see how many parts can be reasonably revived.

The sanding process began with 220 grit sandpaper and a spray bottle of water to frequently rinse the paper and lens. I used alternating cross patterns and circular motions to work out the deep scratches.

Next the step up to 400 grit, then 600, 1000. I stopped at 1500 grit because that's what I had laying around. Toothpaste was used as a polishing compound for the final pass.

When the scooter gets clear coated, I'll spray a coat over the lens for added UV protection. This would normally be a two beer project, but I was being a good boy and abstained.

Shade tree paint shop. Having picked the minds of countless world wide shade tree engineers… I scrounged up some rope and scrap lumber and Mickey Moused a parts hanger, proudly named the Konkraption. It only has to work good once, no points for style! I decided to paint outdoors, partially to keep with the "use what ya got theme". The temperatures reached the 70* F paint activator window and it was time to go for it.

I'll go into Captain Obvious mode; wear your PPE Personal Protective Equipment as require for the task. Don't run with scissors nor drink the battery acid, 'nuff said.

The scooter and parts were wiped down with paint thinner and then a tack rag. Regardless, I was a bit anxious even after the practice paint spray session with the canopy and the numerous "How To"' videos. You put a lot of effort into body work and sanding, nothing like screwing it up on short final… The saying that 90% of the paint job is in the preparation, that is true.

It went surprisingly well but I did end up with one or maybe four runs in the clear coat… I got sloppy and over confident. Well, that'll make for another post of what I do to fix that. My cell phone camera doesn't take the best photos but you will get the idea. I'll try to get some better ones during the reassembly so you can see the flaws. It does look good from 10 feet away!

Looking good!

Thanks berto! I can definitely see my body work and spray flaws but overall, I'm happy with the results. I gave this my best shot in the prep work so the flaws are now called "character".

WOW covering lame body work with the luggage rack. You just devalued all the work you have been doing up to this point. Thats the point when you stop and ask for help or advise

Devalued? Unfortunately, it is already devalued. It's a salvage auction bike that was ultimately destined for the parts bin. I got it from a couple that was in over their head. No one wanted to touch it with a ten foot pole for fear of a bent frame. There is no substitute for the experience with the hands on portion of body work. The only way to get really good at it is do it over and over again. I'm not there yet. This is a fun project that will be ridden this summer.

The fun part for me has been sharing this experience with my wins and fails. There are a handful of people from all over the world watching this and giving encouragement. How cool is that?!

Basking in the sun. I'm really liking this Pacific Blue color, so glad I went with that. It's a "beachy-happy color". My Yamaha FJ09 is a matt gray and black, I'm sick of washing it after riding in the rain. Everyone has their favorites; it would be a boring world if we all liked the same thing.

Two coats of clear were shot and sadly the last coat is when the runs occurred. I most likely didn't wait long enough between coats at 5-10 minutes. I cringed when that happened, oh well, let it dry. There are about 4 spots that need to be worked with. More Youtube How To video's to watch.

Question, while this scooter is still disassembled:

Does anyone have a wire routing recommendation for installing a SAE battery charging harness? I'd be interested in how you routed yours. I use them for battery desulfation/charging and plugging in a heated jacket.

Here are some ideas to keep it simple. I have some left over SAE connector cables. By slightly enlarging one of the slots on the valve cover access panel, the wires could be fed through the slot and then an inline fuse installed. It's pretty basic and the pig tail plug in will just be dangling out of the panel. That set up with a properly zip tied routing should give the most clearance from the valve cover underneath. See pic #1 & 2. I'm leaning more towards this idea.

The other idea is to use a bulkhead type SAE fitting, preferably with a threaded - jam nut and bore a hole in the access panel. Then route that with an inline fuse to the battery. The problem is I don't think it will allow for much valve cover clearance on the underside of the panel. Picture #3 is just for reference only; I don't care for the mounting screw setup. But you get the idea of the thought process.

Earlier I mentioned to take pictures of the scooter details before & during disassembly. That came in handy today.

I dropped the front fork assembly out for the fender install. I had the brake line and speed sensor cable routed incorrectly. Removing one and loosening the second upper shock mount bolts, the lines were correctly routed between the shock and fork assembly casting. The front fender would not line up because of the interference with the incorrect line routing. See picture for correct routing.

Today was scraping and blending the clear coat runs. No fun! I should have kept it simple and just stopped with the single stage paint! Most of this rework came from the extra credit clear coat layer that was sprayed on. I had six runs to deal with...

I watched some interesting videos on how to fix runs using razor blades as scrapers. Tape the outboard edges of the blade to avoid them digging into the paint. Lightly pull the blade towards you along the paint run (don't use it to dig in with, drag it backwards - back blade the run). It slowly shaves the excess paint off.

Redeux time. With the clear coat runs shaved down and blended, the scooter was scuffed down again for the another try. I found two thin spots in the blue color coat that also needed a respray. The weather conditions were good and I had enough material left to spray a coat of blue and then two coats of clear.

Having reflected back on my first spray attempt as: too much trigger pull (finesse it more), too close, and too soon between recoats for the conditions. I dialed in about 35 psi at the spray gun and focused more on my technique this second go around. It worked better this time with focused spray gun etiquette and by doubling the wait time between coats.

When using the single stage acrylic urethane system, the clear coat is optional. I used clear for the deeper finish and added material that can be buffed out.

Brute force and ignorance machine shop...minus the machine part! The scooter will be left alone for a few days to bake the paint in the sun.

It was time for another tweener task. The front luggage rack had a slight bend in it that left the folding platform lopsided. I tried using some wood blocks as soft clamps when mounting it in the vise. All that did was dent the wood. Lol. Instead, a few pieces of scrap metal were used to prevent vice mark marring on the rack. I gave it a couple of good pulls and it straightened out. Goal met!

The next step is more video watching on wet sanding and buffing clear coat finishes.

Rub a dub dub. Having watched various wet sanding and polishing videos, it was time to give it a go. Depending on the quality of finish you are aiming for it can get in depth. The materials and the actual process can be confusing. There is show quality mirror glass perfection at one end of the spectrum, factory standard finish, and all the way to the bottom with leave it alone. The take away for novice me was keep it consistent and try not to over polish any one area so that it sticks out.

The materials I used was 1000 and 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper, a chunk of scouring pad to wrap the sand paper around, squirt water bottle, bucket of water to frequently rinse the sandpaper in, fine cut polish compound, microfiber cloth, and a buffer (optional). I opted to stop at 1500 grit but you can keep going up the ladder with 2000, 3000 and various polish compounds. Let the sand paper do the work, light sanding with alternate patterns and frequently rinse with the spray bottle. Stay off of the edges to avoid burn through. I used wet sandpaper only and extra caution in those areas.

For now I'll just post the one picture of the leg shield. That avoids 50,000 pictures that are hard to differentiate the finish stage improvements. The (viewers) left side of the shield was at 1500 grit. The right side was after two passes with the fine cut polishing compound. Note; the clear coat will dull as you sand so don't let that scare you, it gets back to normal once you start the polishing process. I used slow to medium speeds on the buffer and constant movement.

It's a scooter, so you don't need a lot of sand paper. I used one sheet each of 1000 and 1500 grit. The water bucket rinsing makes the paper last a long time. Ace Hardware sells individual sheets and in the long run it's still cheaper doing it that way.

Already did that so I am speaking from experience as I put connectors on both my scooters.

We here in Europe don't have SAE as standardised as in the US so I am using for the same purpose a Swedish-made charger called CTEK. They use their proprietary connectors but it's similar to SAE. I know you can find them in the US too. They got a large assortment of all sorts of extension wires and connectors.

On my LX it's much easier as the battery slot is in the saddle compartment, next to the fuel cap, I replaced the original screw with a thumb screw to open the battery cap easier and I got a hanging connector dangling next to the battery like the one in pic 1. (I am using the same setup on my cars, as I got two chargers, one for the cars, one for the scooters, I could have used the same, only I wanted a charger for AGM/start-stop batteries for the cars and one that could charge Lithium batteries for the scooters, as I got both batteries on my scooters on Li).

One of my friends has a Harley and he is using a SAE connector made by Harley that is about the same (I put a picture of it from HD's website). I know you can find cheaper on Aliexpress than at HD, but the HD one is high quality, and the charging LED that tells you when the battery needs charging is a bonus.

Or you can use a fixed SAE plug like the one in your pic (CTEK has a similar one with a charge indicator as a bonus, not to mention it doesn't use screws to fix).

Now, on my small Honda, I used a different setup, as I wanted it to be fixed and unseen so I installed a Magcode plug somewhere hidden in the front area on the plastic body. From what I understand they are very safe and they have Magcode to SAE or CTEK adapters available. (I purchased mine from Ebay, just the plugs, and built it myself with a CTEK extension cord I had hanging around).

Regardless of what charger, SAE or CTEK, I am thinking maybe reroute the charging wires from the battery to the back area (you can go along the main wiring harness - red route on photo) and install it around the fuel cap area with a fixed or loose connector so you just pop the saddle open and got access to it, or go to the front (green route) and install it fixed in the glove box?

Thanks katana, that gives me some more ideas to research! The Magcode system makes for a nice clean install. The heated jacket plug in location is the main priority. Ideally, it needs to be near the center of the scooter, hence that access panel. The fused SAE pigtail arrived in the mail yesterday.

I'll digress a little and go down a rabbit hole. I use the Battery Minder brand charger/desulfator with lead acid and AGM batteries. Those things keep a battery going for years. I've even had good luck reviving old, sulfated batteries. If it doesn't bring one back, you know the battery is finished! There's a lot of discussion about folks pulling scooters out of winter storage and then having to buy a new battery. Once they drop below 11 volt or so the sulfation process starts to take over.

Gettin' there. The front blakes were bred, err... brakes bled. The ABS block helicoil repair from an earlier mess up is holding, no leaks, relief! The Vespa data plate was pop riveted back on the glove box cowling and the tail light and signals were reinstalled.

The paint manufacturer recommends waiting one month before applying wax. I'll wait until that time to install the front and rear BBQ racks.

Still undeciding on how I want to route the SAE battery charger wiring. When I do the floorboard will go back down. So far so good.

Great thread. I've often looked at those auctions and would probably pull the trigger and do something similar with a crashed Vespa if they were closer to me. Would learn a ton and have a bunch of fun.

Hmm, did I ever mention I had so much fun reading what "totaled" means for you guys?

I'll post some pictures of my current ride so you get what totaled means in my dictionary.

This is what my LX looked like when my wife thought it would be a good idea to buy it (actually she was drawn into this by one of my friends that told her he'd get someone to fix it perfectly) and the sixth pic is what she looked like when I got her. It was october 2020, full blown pandemic, so I had lots of fun and time off fixing her.

And the very last pic is what it looked like at the end of stage one of the mods, I drove her two years like that, till I finally managed at the end of last fall to start phase two of the project.
Fun fact, she drove pretty much perfect. Someday I'll make time to post the entire story of her here.

Thanks bjmscooter, It is fun and you do learn a lot. If you do buy something from auction, use due diligence. The chance of a bent frame is there, look at it as a parts bike and what it's worth to you. Anything after is a bonus. Make sure it comes with a brown master key or at the very least a blue key that can be cloned.

katana, that looked like a fun project. Post up some more pictures when you find the time! These projects grow on a person, plus the satisfaction of working out the "issues". It makes you bond with your "new" machine.

KISS, Keep It Simple Stupid. I decided to keep things simple with the battery charger plug in and power outlet. Using a small file, the valve cover access port was slightly enlarged. The SAE lead was cut in half, routed through the panel, soldered and heat shrink wrapped. Small zip ties were used to secure the wire routing and also keep it off of the valve cover. It can be easily reversed with a pair of diagonal cutters! The plug in will dangle from the portal but it gets the job done. Goal met.

Loving your work bud and that color? On my list!

Thanks R.A.G. That is Pacific Blue from Summit Racings' house brand generic colors. It is a single stage acrylic urethane system. The primer is high build - sand-able. Clear coat is optional with this system. Everything you see in the picture was $205 after tax, closer to $150 if you don't use the clear coat system. They had fast shipping too.

Finish line. Well, The Ratto project is for all intents completed. In a few weeks it will get waxed and then the front and rear luggage racks reinstalled. The factory oil with all of 50 miles on it was drained and serviced with (insert your favorite oil here). The Rat went out for a few spins around the pattern and then released for fli...riding. Mrs. bearcat approves.

In my next post I'll write up my thoughts on this project. Hopefully it encourages some folks sitting on the fence with their situations be it a scuff, dent, or going all in on one of these risky rebuild ventures.

The Ratto Conclusion:

If you made it this far...Hopefully this thread inspires anyone that has a scooter with some dents or scratches. I tried to keep it real with my wins and fails. Others might glean from that experience and encourage a project that they have sitting, waiting for some love.

I wouldn't recommend signing up for an online salvage auction expecting a road worthy Vespa. That is a bag of worms for potential problems. There is a good chance it is uneconomically repairable, at the end of the day it's wiser to just purchase a new or newer Vespa in excellent condition. Set a budget and stick to it, if it doesn't look feasible then take a pass on that machine. You can get upside down money-wise. The parts and consumables add up fast.

For dent repair, spot painting, or just reviving an older scooter, it's not a bad way to go if you are not too picky and overly critical with your repair abilities. You will save all of those labor costs $$$ if you have the time, space, willingness and some basic tools to march through the process. The preparation work will vary concerning the extent of the damage.

Most hurdles can be overcome with some "thinking outside of the box". You don't have to purchase specialty tools every step of the way. There's usually a reasonable substitute to get you over that hurdle. Let's face it, if you're a perfectionist your best bet is to take it to a body shop or purchase a new scooter. A good plan executed today is better than an excellent plan started maybe next year…

The single stage acrylic urethane paint system was definitely worth it for my situation. Looking back on it, as a novice spray painter, I'd just stop at that stage and forego the optional clear coat stage. I caused myself more work by having to redo that portion. In the end the results looked about the same. Although, having now experienced that, I'll be better at it should another project arise.

There is no substitute for experience, and you only get that by doing it. Unless you are a natural, all of the good, intended advice and video watching will only take you so far. One still has to actually do the task. I can see why some folks just pound out the dents, spray on some rattle can flat color and slap on a few stickers!

You learn just enough to be dangerous! For the record, my lifelong friend and a 35-year autobody work veteran did give me some long-distance advice. His biggest encouragement was "Good on you for diving in, it's not as easy as it looks". There certainly is a feeling of accomplishment knowing that you gave it your best. We plan to keep this scooter for a long time and ride the wheels off of it. The branded title with low resale value was a nonissue. This was essentially a "new-wrecked" scooter that now lives to ride another day.

Good luck with your project!

Well done, it came out great and I love the color and the whole look of the project!
I will second your thoughts on buying via online auction. I recently opened an account with a large well known auction group in order to place a bid on a salvage scooter as I was going to use it for parts for my current project. The killer with these auctions is the fees. One of their "fees" was an unspecified charge of $495 for "processing", no matter the final hammer price. Add in a couple of other $200 fees, a state sale tax and storage fees if you couldn't pick it up within 3 days and my final amount would have been well over 2K on an older salvage title scooter. I ended up withdrawing from the process, there are better ways to get a bargain.
Also with parts, the best way I have found to save is to search for alternatives like for example a bearing. I don't go looking for a Triumph/Vespa or whatever bearing, name branded parts attract premium fees. Instead, measure the part ie: it's a 15x35x11mm bearing you need, then search that out online. The differences in pricing might surprise many. These cost saving make a huge difference at the end of your project.
Anyways, enjoy the heck outta your scoot, I can't wait to see where you get to take it! Cheers.

Thanks R.A.G, and excellent point on parts sourcing. I've been watching your project, pretty cool bringing that one back from swimming lessons! You are well on the way, fun & challenging project for sure. I'm looking forward to watching the progress and getting it operational.

Great thread! Thanks for sharing these details and your experiences!

Happy riding

Thanks for tagging along berto! It was a fun project.