Modern Vespa

>you've got the UFPs, so you'll only need one screw for the back of the footplate

FWIW, if you have UFPs then I believe you should only need to order at most the rear screw (which is just an M6x25 button head, anyone ordering UFPs from me while planning on also switching from rubber to aluminum just tell me and I'll throw in an extra pair of screws) and the rear spacer (although some have opined that the rear spacer is unnecessary - note that I do not share that opinion but you could always use a stack of flat washers instead). The only reason for ordering any of the "forward" hardware (again in my opinion) would be if you plan on later removing the UFPs but keeping the aluminum floorboard.

Thats right Gonzo,
but I need to check if the
oil filter and spark plug are the same for the 400 as the 500.
I had a quick check of the site & they don't seem to sell ordinary Piaggio parts but when I have more time I will have another look
Cheers

John,

Look at the bar across the top of the page, it lists all the makes they service. It will take you to piaggiospares.co.uk , and you should be able to use the same shopping cart.

If you're having trouble getting the button head socket screws in Orange, e-mail me and I'll try here.

Gonzo.

Thanks, I placed an order from the UK.
But postage from UK to Australia is b...y awful - worse than from USA and I did'nt think that was possible!
Ah - the price we pay for living in paradise.

First I should say - believe it or not - I find the MP3 seat to be quite comfortable, and have ridden the MP3 far greater distances than I would ever consider riding my Vespa GT and maybe a few motorcycles I've owned. That said, the UFPs/pegs definitely make for a very comfortable riding position, once they're adjusted to your leg length. I'm about 6 feet (and shrinking every day) with a 30 inch inseam, and I found the lowest mounting point tended to pull my torso forward; I moved them up one spot, and find that provides me a better seating position.
That said, I read some comments in another thread that guys who had a background of riding sport bikes tended to prefer having their feet on the floor boards, as it imparted more of that "knees out" riding style when going through the twisties, and I think I agree with that - somehow you feel more tucked into the bike when you're cornering. So having both options is a good thing.
I purchased that JC Whitney pegs, as Jeff uses, and am impressed with their quality - man, are they heavy - but then his enthusiasm for the black pegs Sateep uses got to me, so now I have those in advance of powder-coating the UFP and floor pieces. I'll post the pegs in the for sale section, but I'll be selling them at a deep discount if anyone is interested.

It would be nice to have something rounded on the end there. You could use a thin hex nut to compress the bumper bolt, cut the bolt, and add the acorn nut. You can even get locking acorn nuts or thin nylon locking nuts, which might be even better.

I presume you are referring to the double-bumper method of mounting the peg in the top hole. So, use a special thin nut to do the initial tightening, saw off most but not all of the exposed remaining screw, and then screw an acorn nut over to protect the end. Yes, that sure seems like it would work, good thinking.

Completely worth it.... 30 minute install time. Mainly because I was finicky about which level to have the pegs, but at the end of the day, the farthest won out. Definitely my second best mod so far. Many thanks Jeff.

Shifty

I recently installed the foot peg mod and had the pegs in the middle position. After testing the pegs on the first day of the southeast mp3 gathering, I decided to move mine to the top position. Next day on the dragon and I confirmed that the top position was best for me.

No doubt this ranks as one of the best mods.

Thanks both guys, but

SHIFTY YOUR PEGS ARE INSTALLED DANGEROUSLY! As alluded to in FAQ #4 and described in detail at Peg scraping!, the pegs must be set to fold up parallel to the peg ears or the results could be tragic if a peg touches ground at speed! There is a reason those pegs have an allen screw in their ends - read the referenced thread and all will be clear.

Also I see space at the back of the bracket slots - you need to loosen the screws, shove the bracket HARD forward, and retighten. The brackets are much stronger when they are under tension.

Jeff is spot on on the folding with the same angle as the bracket, not straight up.

Dirt have you gotten to use your /XTs yet?

I took the wife down to the Bakery bout 120 mile RT. She likes her new UFP peg postion but would like them to have less spongyness.
I just got my adaptors for her pegs and fitted them on my XT's for my trip to New Orleans as they are a little wider and have some better vibration damping than mine. Maybe I'll get out this week for some testing. Been doing alot of honey dues this week. (paying for staying a extra day during our gathering).

Howzat?

mucho better

Much better! In case you didn't catch it, you can optionally loosen the allen screw in the end of those pegs and rotate them so the rubber surface is back where you want it. Note that while those black Rivcos have that ability (as do the JCW ellipticals and PianoMan's Rivco "wide" pegs), not all pegs can do that trick!

I am going to be travelling over the next several weeks on business, home just on weekends. So if you have UFPs on order there could be a delay of anywhere from one to six days depending on when in the week your check arrives.

I am hoping that you will please understand that I am an EXTREME NOVICE at riding. What I know or understand about it would fill a thimble, so I hope that I won't get lambasted too badly by posing what is more than likely a completely NO BRAINER question for most of you, but can you tell me what the advantage of the foot pegs are? What are they used for? This is where I'm coming from. Being an over fifty and relatively weak (especially upper body), I've dropped my gorgeous baby (MP3 500) three times; two from a park and once in a very slow speed turn trying to park. It's caused me to become "leery" - even while riding. I've got two problems. First of all my legs are too short to touch the ground (can tip - toe) while seated - further adding to my problems with laying it down; and secondly, when my feet are in the normal position on the footbeds, I feel like I'm sitting on top of the bike rather on ON or at one with it. I thought that perhaps the change in leg position that would be accomplished with the foot pegs would make me feel further down onto the bike. Also (and I'm going to try to find a more appropriate forum thread for this), but can anyone give me their feedback about "lowering links" with the MP3 500? I've got a guy working on modifying my seat (as in the "Corbin-like" method for 250 - 400's), but has anyone had success with lowering links on a MP3 500? The obvious response would be "didn't you know/think about all these things before purchasing, and the honest answer is I fell in love before I realized what was happening! Thanks - sorry so long-winded!!!!

You're looking at two issues, and one of them should probably be a new thread. Talking about pegs belongs here. Talking about falling over probably should be a new thread. However:

The MP3 is top heavy at slow speeds. You need to learn how to ride this thing at slow speeds. Best is a motorcycle safety course in your area. And/or get the DVD's of Ride Like a Pro. Here are two simple things to learn and remember.

1. At slow speed and in a slow speed turn, DO NOT use the front brake.
2. You can make a slow speed turn by balancing the throttle and the REAR brake - WITH PRACTICE.

If you can get to a motorcycle safety class, they will tell/show you these things and you get to practice on THEIR BIKES.

Other people have more information about how to ride if you are not tall.

Thank you for the advice and tips. Sorry about mixing my threads!

Some people have stated that they feel more confident in taking turns using footpegs. I can personally attest to that, but at least for me that could simply be that footpegs make riding an MP3 very cruiser-like and that's what my past experience was with. Having your feet on pegs lowers the center of gravity (theoretically improving turning capability), but by such a tiny amount as to be negligible. Any improvement in handling imparted by pegs is more likely to be due to psychology than physics.

The main advantage of pegs is straightforward: comfort in sitting position. Specifically, pegs give you two separate advantages.

The first is knee angle. If you are short enough that you have trouble touching the ground, then your knees are probably not at a very acute angle, and pegs will provide relatively little relief since frankly you are not jacked up the way someone 6'4 would be. So this advantage begins to diminish with height; the taller the rider, the bigger the advantage of having pegs, and vise-versa.

The second is to counteract the terrible MP3 seat. Specifically, having your feet out in front of you reduces or eliminates the tendency for you to slide forward while stopping or driving on flat terrain (or pretty much anything than accelerating hard uphill), which results in you constantly and perhaps unconsciously pushing back and getting a sore butt and lower back. This is because of the deadly combination of both a forward-sloping seat and having your knees bent, when the best solution (short of a different seat) is having your legs straight so the force of gravity is transmitted directly to your feet - and since every action has an equal and opposite reaction, your butt stays put without any effort on your part. This second advantage of pegs is true no matter what your height is.

Hey Guys! I was the subject regarding Coming Up Short. Just to give you all some info, I stand 5'3" and have an inseam of 28". From the pictures Jeff posted of my pegs you can see he thought I would be using the top hole. When I received them I thought the top hole for the pegs would be the same as having my feet on the floorboards. I put them on and found I was correct. All it did was move my feet out wider, but did not allow me to stretch my leg. I moved my pegs to the middle hole and they work great! Now I can stretch my legs out which makes it more comfortable on a long ride. Thanks Jeff! If you're standing short like me, go for it!

So, I finally got around to putting on my brackets, and purchasing the same pegs that Shifty bought - the black ones. All I can say is, FANTASTIC! So much more comfortable, and the breeze hitting my pant legs even helps to keep me cool in these 90+ temps we've been having.

Note that I scraped the pavement with mine yesterday, and no adverse effects other than the sound and the vibrations up through my feet. Looking forward to many miles ahead. 8)

Thanks

Welsha - glad to hear it. Make sure your pegs are set to fold parallel to the ears as described above.

Java - thanks for sharing, and even though I happen to have known you for a while, seeing as how this is your first actual post I'd like to be the first to formally welcome you to Modern Vespa!

Recent purchasers - as of right now there are three UFPs in-transit with USPS tracking numbers, none of which return anything meaningful when I do a search on them. Two of them were picked up at my house on Saturday, and one was picked up at my job today. I suppose the two on Saturday could have been stolen by someone other than the mailman but that is unlikely in the extreme - I suspect this is a glitch with the post office's computer. Nonetheless, if you don't get your shipments by this Friday then PM me and I will start an investigation. Fear not, you will get your brackets one way or another.

UPDATE: well this is damned bizarre. Scorecard's tracking number never appeared in USPS's system, and suddenly it shows as "received." Hlong's tracking number now appears as in-progress, while NormanF11's box (sent at the same time as Scorecard's) continues to not exist. I'm betting both will wind up being delivered by Friday.

UPDATE UPDATE: Everybody got their shipments, but hlong's post office entry says it is waiting for him to pick it up even though he already has the UFPs. Your tax dollars at work!

Got the brackets yesterday, thanks rjeffb. Just ordered the Rivcos and can't wait to install!!!

Indeed I have set them to fold back along the centerline axis of the ear, as recommended. Even then, however, I have dragged several times already ( 8)) and they have shown no tendency to fold or even a need to fold. Of course, once I hit the twisty mountain Gap roads leading to the BRP, perhaps I will find it necessary to keep my pegs up and feet in...

How are the UFP'S working for the pillion? Saw some input a while back! I am interested!!

and that is being discussed in another thread.

Thanks OAD I will look it up!

for you Phillip
Passenger peg brainstorming

Would just like to say this is the best thing anyone could do to make their ride more pleasant. I would like to thank all those who worked on coming up with a workable design. My 400 is so much more comfortable. Next change will be some sort of seat change.

Glad to hear it, Norman.

We appear to have had a check go missing. This is from one of the MV regulars so I believe the member in question is being truthful. This is only the second time this has happened, and the first time two years ago it was because the check was in a business envelope which I tossed as junk mail (which is why I admonish buyers to send checks in a plain envelope). If this turns out to be for a different reason I'll update the FAQ as appropriate.

...is as useless as tits on a bull. Most of the time the only update is when the package is delivered, in which case the recipient can just tell you it has arrived. No comparison to UPS tracking, which actually tells you where the package is at any given time.

</rant>

Yes, I have a purchaser who confirmed that his UFPs were delivered and installed; and usps's tracking still shows them as awaiting pickup at the post office two weeks later.

Heading off on a two-week combination business trip and vacation tomorrow (without my MP3 ). I don't think there are any checks in-transit but in case there are, I won't be back until August 13 and so the soonest any brackets will ship will be Monday, August 15. Think of it as the "UXP Corporation's summer shutdown." I will of course be monitoring Modern Vespa!

your just like the Italians.

Quick question: would this work?

http://www.rivcoproducts.com/products/product.php?productid=707&js=y

Technically they should fit but any drawback seen?

gave me some thought for passenger though. thanks

I guess I am concerned about their weight and the pressure on the side of the MP3 500
Should I be concerned?

where are you thinking about mounting them and how. pics of the location on the scoot would help also