Task 1 & 2 down

I wanted to swap out the front brake outer as well as replace the broken inner cable, easy job. I just disconnected the cable at the bottom and pulled it through from the top, the top of the cable was all frayed and flared from where it had broken so it was better to pull it up. I then grabbed the new outer and threaded a nice long gear cable from a tandem bicycle through it and then the old one from top to bottom and just pulled it through. greased up the new inner and threaded it through and connected it up. good to go.
While I had the speedo and headlight out I decided to give the throttle side a good clean. disconnected the pin at the cable end and worked out the handle bar, cleaned it up, the grease on it was old, gritty and caked into all available crevice, some even had paint over it??
In between the cable connection and the headset hole there were three "spacer/washers" they were paper thin and one was flat, one curved and the last was squashed and bent, you can see what I mean in pic. 5.
In pic 6 you can see the hole that the end of the bar slides into, its not flat, not sure it should be like this but I need to replace these "spacers" as I now have around 5mm horizontal play in the handle bar.
Pic 2, 3, 4 are the tidied up headset, I whacked plenty of grease in there and put it all back together, it feels much smoother.
That done, I installed the new rewired headlight unit back on and it looks a treat, I'm going to miss the rattle from the old one with the loose glass, well not really.
I kicked her over this morning and the lights work great, its a new halogen bulb and is a ton brighter, a bonus is now the high AND low beam work from the switch on the handle bar, that wasn't the case before. cool.
Next on the list. Horn.

New Headlight and more

First on the list is the new headlight. I have had a good look in here before so no surprises really, I just basically took the first pic to show where the colours go and took off the crappy connections, put new individual ones on, two of the old ones were doubled up, pic two, one connected the other shoved through with a little hope thrown in.
Pic three, the old and the new, and the new bulb holder all hooked up the same as the old one but a lot tidier, electrics aren't a strong point of mine so if it doesn't work or blows the globes, then I will consult more knowledgeable folks than I.
The last pic is to show the difference in the profile of the chrome bezel. New one on the right.
Number two on the list is replacing the front brake cable outer and inner. I think I've got the theory but just need to read up before I go ahead and tackle it. Below is what came out of the lever end anchor, not sure what to make of it.

day one of phase two.

I had to bump start the scoot again yesterday, It was a little cold but two days in a row...
This morning I checked the plug, it was still looking ok, a nice brown, I gave it a cursory clean and replaced it and proceeded to kick it over to no avail., tried to bump it and nothing, great.
I wheeled her back into the garage and then realised I had forgotten to put the lead back on, idiot, I kicked it over and then did the quick daily check, in which I snapped the front brake cable and realised the entire lighting system, except the brake light, had given up.
Just in the nick of time my box of parts arrived yesterday so I will now go about replacing the entire headlight, and fit the new horn, I'm going to get a new tail light fitting and light switch for the handle bar that should eliminate the dodgy fittings as the cause of the short in the wiring. that will do until the weather improves in a few months. I plan to ride over winter if the sun is out, no matter how cold it is.

six months on

Tomorrow marks the six month anniversary of the arrival of the SPV. It's been an interesting trip so far and I have learnt a lot of things, found some weird and baffling, dodgy and just plain lazy things and I haven't really delved any further than I've needed to, why? well the bike is running pretty well, just about everything works, lights excluded, so I'd rather be riding around on her than spending my evenings trying to figure out what's wrong, why and bluffing my way through trying to fix it.
I have enjoyed it, even when I've been swearing at it, grazed knuckles, ill fitting and odd nuts and bolts and having to go back and forth to the hardware store for a socket thats 2mm bigger tha I have.
Some facts.
Well what I've spent on spares and relacement parts, no idea, I vowed not to keep track of it for my sanity's sake, but I do have a lot of bits "just in case" and they are parts that are known to wear over time. I have changed things for peace of mind, like the rims, tubes and tyres, brake shoes. A few bits that have been old and rooted, things that just needed to be replaced, nuts, bolts etc.
As the photo shows, kms on the clock just over 2500, plus another 180 odd off it when the speedo was awaiting repairs, which were due to my own fault and not knowing what I was doing when I took it out in the first place.
Blogger, well People from all over the globe have been checking in for a look, some have commented, offered invaluable advice and experience, some to say that they enjoyed the story, Thanks and I hope everyone continues to have a look now and then.
How did I celebrate? well it was a beautiful sunny autumn day and I rolled out into the driveway and proceeded to flood the engine that wouldn't kick over. So I pushed her up the top of the court and bump started her, then rode into town, giving it heaps in the cooler weather, nudging 100kmph. that should get the bugs out. As a pressie she's getting a new piaggio horn and a new headlight, these should come in the post tomorrow. watch this space.

Old reliable.

I check the weather forecast for the day before I decide which scoot I'm going to ride to work. Today looked glum, possible storms all day. So I opted for the GT200. She has always been my backup for rainy days and days I just can't afford a breakdown, not that I've had a real breakdown yet anyway, it's a good theory.
I rode Gloria every day but one last week and when I went to start the GT...nothing, flat battery. I looked at the ominous sky and thought " I don't have much choice" So Gloria it was. It got me thinking as to why the modern scooters don't have a kick start as a back up? some 50cc models do but not the bigger models, to the best of my knowledge, so a flat battery means your stuck and you will always find out when it's too late, such as today. I didn't really think I would ever have to use the Veloce as a back up.
As it panned out the storms found their way out to sea and missed town altogether. win win.
The GT will go on the charge as soon as I get home.
My box of bits should arrive this week, cant wait, I will be fitting a new headlight and my new horn, there are also a few odd bits that I will be replacing, but I might wait until they break first. and my new focus will be revisiting the wiring, I went two months without blowing any globes and in a week all I have left are the pilot light up front and the brake light, I'm almost certain that the headlight glass revolving and shaking madly is almost certainly the culprit for starting the chain reaction. we'll see.

Cracking the century

I left a bit earlier this morning, it was a misty, still 5 degrees C morning and there is a nice long flat section of road before I get into town, little traffic around I thought bugger it lets see what you can do. Knees in, bend down a little full throttle 80-90kmph no problem 95 bit of a smile, 100 I'm grinning from ear to ear. 102 before I ran out of road and I dont know what was louder, the engine screaming or me laughing. When I got off in the carpark at work I was still smiling like a mad man, the two people that saw me thought just that by the look on thier faces and the uncomfortable hellos.
With a grain of salt I must say that Vespa speedos are famous for being wrong, I would have most likely been doing 90-95 but I wont let the truth get in the way of a good story.
2450kms on the clock. My parts are in Brisbane and will be sent next week after a bit of hardware I cant get here in the sticks is purchased on my behalf. I will definitely have something more interesting to write next week.

A good deed I think. (note-off topic)

Sometimes little things happen and you wonder if you should speak up for the greater good.
I did such a thing and now i'm wondering if it was such a good idea.
Coopers Sparkling Ale. My brew of choice and the brewery keeps on churning it out and someone has to drink it right? Well a few weeks ago I noticed I was getting maybe 4-6 stubbies ( for the non Aussies thats a bottle 375mls) a Box (24) that had lids that were just on, no schhhh sound when you opened them, some were spoit. I thought I'd shoot off a quick email to the brewery in South Australia saying basicly
" Dudes you have a loose cap thing happening, I love the beer, don't want a lot of people changing to some other beer thats crap, like VB, because of it, just thought you should know blah blah"
About three days later I reveived a response " Thanks, we will look into it, appreciate the heads up, we'll shout you a six pack for your trouble" gave them the details from the bottles like dates etc.
I was happy with that, I wasn't after any freebees but wasn't going to knock it back, had a call from the sales rep for my region and she organised it, I went and picked up a nice cold six pack....job done. I had a warm fuzzy feeling from being such a great bloke.
Fast forward a few weeks and I cant budge the bloody caps, they must have replaced the limp wristed guys putting the lids on for gorillas. "hey love, can you pass the bottle opener please, my fingers hurt?"

The scoot is running great too btw. She had a bit of a burp fart yesterday but I was WOT up the hill on my way home. No harm done.