An actual 1960's UK anti-smoking campaign poster. I'm not quite sure how the bowling ball fits in to that whole picture... otherwise, that dude has it going on!
October 2010 Archives
Wow, this thing is amazing! I can't imagine a better scooter to go do battle with Mechagodzilla. There is certainly more than a passing resemblance to the Honda Joker. This thing would have certainly given the Italians a run for their money in the mid-50's. The only thing close to this would have been the Vespa GS, or maybe the ill-fated Ducati Cruiser scooter.
When last we left off with the shock replacement, I realized that I would have to remove the shock buffer. To do that, I needed to remove the gas tank. I had removed the parcel tray, and now, we're moving on to the next steps...
After removing the parcel tray, I needed to remove the seat. The seat has three bolts. The two on the back are easy to get to with a ratchet, the front requires a wrench.
More shock removal fun after the jump!
Continue reading Garage Time: Vespa VBA Rear Shock, Part 2.
A friend of mine brought me his VBA for some basic maintenence. I quickly realized that his rear shock was totally blown out. So along with working on his carb - replacing the float and needle - I told him we needed to put on a new shock. I didn't take pictures of the carb work, but I did remember to bring my camera when I worked on the shock.
Let's get to it!
Here we have a view up the skirt, as it were... You can see the underside of the frame where the shock attaches to both the motor and the frame. We will be removing the bottom bolt, which is easily accessible, and the nut at the top of the shock, which isn't. Mmmmm gunky!
More shock removal fun below the jump.
Continue reading Garage Time: Vespa VBA Rear Shock, Part 1.
This photo hung in the Lambretta dealership in Victorville, California around 1959.
When we last posted, I had gotten most of the motor disconnected from the frame. Let's continue, and finally get this motor out!
We are going to reuse the gear selector box, so I will pull it off as one unit with the control cables. This has the added bonus of saving me the time to re-install and adjust the cables. Of course, while the selector box is off, it is an excellent time to make sure the cables are perfectly adjusted.
I start by pulling cover off the top of the selector box, then I remove the two nuts off the outside of the selector box. Then, I turn the control on the headset, while at the same time, putting gentle pressure on the selector box outward. Once the box is free from the motor, angle it downward so the selector arm on the box is free of the arm inside the transmission.
More motor replacement fun below the jump!
Continue reading Garage Time: Vespa Allstate Motor Replacement, Part 3.
When last we left off with the motor swap, we had just removed the top of the airbox, and pulled the air filter and choke cable. Now, on to the carb!
First, remove the fuel line. (Make sure the fuel lever is set to "off") It is held on by a single 10mm bolt. While it is slotted for a screwdriver, it is easier to use a ratchet to get it off. When you have the bolt off, pull the fuel line free of the carb, then down and out through the carb box. You may need to remove the "banjo", or fuel line/carb coupler to fit it through the bottom of the airbox.
Continue reading Garage Time: Vespa Allstate Motor Replacement, Part 2.
A friend of mine has a '59 Allstate with a toasted motor, and just so happened to have another good rebuilt motor on the shelf. Lucky him! So I'm doing the motor swap. This one is pretty straight forward, since the two motors are identical. However, it would not be too different if you were going to drop in a brand new Indian crate motor to your ride. So let's let the fun begin...
First, I got the scoot up on the lift, and just inspected everything. If you don't have a lift, you'll want to get something up under the rear of the frame and the centerstand so the motor is up off the ground.
Here's a view of the other side. Since this isn't my scooter, I'm just checking it over to make sure there isn't anything strange going on before I dive in. This scooter is totally stock, so no worries.
This is one of those jobs that is easier with two people, but is certainly doable with just one. I didn't have an assistant, so I'll show you how I did it by myself.
More motor swap fun below the jump...
Continue reading Garage Time: Allstate Motor Replacement, Part 1.
Last weekend, I went to my favorite scooter/motorcycle/car show. It is the Alameda Italian Day show. It is a decidedly low-key affair. Essentially, the show takes over a football field at an Alameda middle school, and people just park their vehicles and walk around. Unlike many concourse events, this show has no awards and no attitude. You park your $500,000 60's Ferrari next to that $1500 Fiat with rusty floors, and both of you share a glass of chianti. The San Francisco Bay Area is full of interesting cars, and a lot of them show up to this.
There are also neat scooters and motorcycles in attendance. I rode over with some of my friends with a large group of scooters. We had one Lambretta break down on the way, so we were only a small group that arrived. The scooter star of the show was the Vespa GS VS1, pictured above. The VS1 is extremely rare, even in Europe. In the US, there must only be a handful of them. This one was driven to the show, and is in good, but not perfect condition. Kudos to Tony G. for bringing it. He's brought some very interesting scooters to this show in past years, and this was no exception. I think I'll get to see his collection, one scooter at a time at this show!
I'm a sucker for the 60's Alfa Spider. The one above was simply stunning in gray. Now, where's that $30,000 I need to buy one?
More photos of scooters and cars below the jump...
Continue reading My Favorite Car Show: Alameda Italian Day 2010.
Here is a nice, clean, unmolested original US market Rally 200 for sale on Ebay. This is the scoot you were looking for. Everything is all there, and all original, for sale by the original owner. Heck, even the huge front mudguard reflectors are still there! The seat also looks like it is the original seat. This scooter is in Michigan, so my guess is that it only got ridden on nice summer days, and was ensconced in a warm cozy garage the rest of the year. This is a sweet scoot. You should buy it.
