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#136 |
![]() Join Date: May 2017
Location: Norfolk, VA
Posts: 593
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My helmet story. When I was 14 I had a moped. A pedal start 49cc. A bunch of us moped owners used to meet up and do death races thru neighborhoods at night, with check points and pre-mapped routes. These mopeds only hit around 35mph max but that was plenty fast. Best part? Helmets on mopeds were not required. No plates/tags either. So my helmet story:
Five of us are blasting thru this 'hood at night and go screaming into a blind turn. One friend hit a patch of pine needles and went down. I see sparks as his moped slides down the road while the rest of us are trying to avoid it. I turn back to find Stinky (his street name) and he's out cold with blood on his head. This was well before cell phones but we banged on a random door and the homeowner called the paramedics. Stinky was in the hospital for a month with brain swelling! I bought a used glitter blue open face at a yard sale the next day on the way home from school. That was our wake-up call for helmet use. And yes, Stinky made a full recovery. |
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#137 |
![]() Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Hyde Park, NY
Posts: 1,123
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I have always worn a helmet when I ride. My Dad always did and he impressed it on us. I raced dirt bikes in my youth and was glad several times I had one on. I get the personal choice mantra but I won't ride anywhere without one.
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2008 Eagle Milano 150- 9,679 miles 2009 Honda Rebel 250- 10,434 miles 2009 CF Moto Fashion- 16,023 miles 2009 MC-114 50cc Cub Clone- 4,317 miles twowheeler.yolasite.com/ That's 30,049 China Scootin miles and Counting. |
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#138 |
![]() Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Hyde Park, NY
Posts: 1,123
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__________________
2008 Eagle Milano 150- 9,679 miles 2009 Honda Rebel 250- 10,434 miles 2009 CF Moto Fashion- 16,023 miles 2009 MC-114 50cc Cub Clone- 4,317 miles twowheeler.yolasite.com/ That's 30,049 China Scootin miles and Counting. |
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#139 |
![]() Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Hyde Park, NY
Posts: 1,123
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Interesting article but there are other considerations. What you want to do with it for one.
https://www.motorcycle.com/features/...pros-cons.html Consider this. "I do 95% of my riding WOT. My commute is over a mountain highway (okay downhill throttle is only open enough to keep oil flowing) and other than that it's mostly big chunks of I5. I love getting to places and having people go "wait you drove that from WHERE?" but it's also hard on the poor thing. I wear through the 'consumables' fast. Not helped by being a heavier rider. Spending so much time on the interstate I am starting to look at 600-800cc rides longingly." https://modernvespa.com/forum/topic190428 Years ago I commuted heavily on a 1000cc motorcycle on a parkway on Long Island. The motorcycle went though "consumables" regularly but wasn't straining doing it. It was used more like a car than a motorcycle in that way. I had big saddlebags and big diameter tires but things wore through that surprised me. It lasted 125,000 miles for me with oil changes and some maintenance but I wasn't overly zealous about it. Compare that to my 250cc scooter. I used that for a while pretty heavily but mostly on State Highways. Rear tires almost annually and, since it only holds a quart of oil, changes every 1,000 miles. Not to mention belt changes every 9k miles. Side by side with my late Wife's Honda Rebel the scooter was a maintenance headache. If I had the need or the option which to use as a heavy commuter the Rebel would have been the winner. Around town or for less serious use the scooter was a Champ.
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2008 Eagle Milano 150- 9,679 miles 2009 Honda Rebel 250- 10,434 miles 2009 CF Moto Fashion- 16,023 miles 2009 MC-114 50cc Cub Clone- 4,317 miles twowheeler.yolasite.com/ That's 30,049 China Scootin miles and Counting. |
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#140 |
![]() Join Date: May 2017
Location: Norfolk, VA
Posts: 593
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I feel vehicle blessed to have a scooter that fits my needs so well. Yeah, it has a few faults like a crappy rear rack and a tight floorboard, but everything else is perfect for what I use it for. Added bonus is I can fully service it myself. Sometimes I think about picking up a motorcycle again but I know in my heart that I wont use it enough to validate the purchase. This includes new and vintage era motorcycles as if I like it I'll buy it, price isn't a issue to me.
I also have another reason for not owning more than one powered 2 wheeler. Garage space is a issue. My garage is on the smaller side and it always seems to be bursting at the seams. 2 analog bicycles, 2 ebikes, yard equipment and 2 big tool boxes. Oh, and around 3000 CD's on racks, as in compact disc. I can squeeze a car in if needed and be able to shut the door but movement in the garage gets extra tight! |
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#141 |
![]() Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Hyde Park, NY
Posts: 1,123
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I did use the CF Moto for about a half dozen round trips of 300 miles and it survived. On the Interstate it was a little overworked and acceleration above 55 mph was not impressive. Four months later I had to ride my collection to my new home on the same Interstate and the motorcycles, even the Rebels, were much more comfortable accelerating at speed.
My point is that the original intent for a scooter was to replace an automobile on the bombed out roads of Europe after WWII. Materials were scarce so a scooter was perfect. The 400cc plus scooters can handle all around work like a motorcycle and I hear the Yamaha XMax can too. As the OP in the thread above has found out his 300cc Vespa is working pretty hard doing the job a motorcycle, even a new 300cc Rebel, can do handily. Between us kids I watch Steve Williams "Scooter in the Sticks" videos on YouTube. He had his 2006 Vespa 250 reconditioned recently at 45,000 miles. One of his shocks was totally collapsed and one of his steering head bearings came completely apart at removal. Yes, 45k is up there for a scooter but none of my motorcycles was that used up at those miles. The mechanic even replaced the head gasket as a precaution.
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2008 Eagle Milano 150- 9,679 miles 2009 Honda Rebel 250- 10,434 miles 2009 CF Moto Fashion- 16,023 miles 2009 MC-114 50cc Cub Clone- 4,317 miles twowheeler.yolasite.com/ That's 30,049 China Scootin miles and Counting. Last edited by kz1000st; Today at 02:16 PM. |
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