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Whole new project

Started by mr72, July 06, 2021, 03:05:49 PM

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mr72

Yesterday I hauled home a FREE 2009 Yamaha Vino 125 scooter. It's a basket case, and getting it working might be the least of its problems. I'm going to make it work then cross my fingers and file for a bonded title.

It's in pieces. But it looks like all of the pieces are there.

Someone back in some time in history tried to drill the main jet, and now the PO tells me the carb (a Mikuni BS24 IIRC) refuses to "accept" a new jet. Looks like the same jet as our beloved GS500s use. In fact, the hot setup is reportedly a 122.5 or 125 main jet to go along with the pod filter that I have for it. And I happen to have those jets. The pilot jet will not unscrew (just turns, doesn't come out), so who knows. A whole new carb is only like $55. This is not worth putting a lot of effort into.

But. It's also got not one, but TWO brand new GY6-type "Chinese" carburetors, one of which is currently installed. PO said it ran some months ago, but now won't run unless you block the intake. The throttle cable seems to be too long (or the housing too short) for these carbs, might tinker with it and see if it will work before punting and buying a new Mikuni carb. Mechanically, I also will likely remove most of the emission stuff since it is not compatible with those GY6 carbs anyway, and the throttle issue might necessitate a throttle tube. It has a new battery, but the headlight doesn't come on and the starter doesn't fire with the start button. Like I say, it's a basket case.

It was at one point laid down, so the bodywork is scuffed and gouged in spots and it'll need turn signals and some other work, most of which parts I actually have on hand. It will need some filler on the plastic bodywork, and paint. Going to need a handful of other stuff to get it working right. Maybe some more appropriate looking mirrors and if I am actually to ride it, new tires. Given that I am about 9/8 scale of the intended rider for this thing, I might put some different handlebars on it. And I think it probably has the original belt, and with 11K miles, it probably needs a new one. And if those are the original tires, they are going to have to go. Fortunately, scooter tires are really, really cheap.

So why did I take this pile of junk home?

Well, maybe Mrs72 will try to ride it around the block and discover she loves riding and join me sometimes. Or, she might use it for in-the-neighborhood trips like our near daily grocery store trip for two items or to zip over to our daughter's house to visit her grandson. And maybe I'll ride it for these reasons as well. Also, I have always wanted something I could carry on a hitch carrier down to South Padre or Port Aransas when we go, usually at least once a year. Plus, I am told scooters like this are super fun. My only experience on a scooter was a terrifying 5 minutes on a 49cc piece of junk without functional brakes that I rented at Isla Mujeres in Mexico. It didn't make it a block away before I turned right around to return it. I mean, we needed something with actual brakes. If I don't end up using it, I can sell it or trade for something else. But I can really see the utility of a cheap neighborhood two wheeler that I don't mind leaving out in the rain and is light enough that I can pick it up and move it around myself. I often use my Jeep for occasional little short errands just because it's too much of a pain to get one of the bikes down from my garage. I might stick a scooter parked on the side of the house and no matter what it will always be ready to go.

Anyway, I'll put up some pictures on my blog as I put this thing together if you guys care. Mrs72 is going out of town for or a week in about a week and I can put some time into it then.

mr72

with about 2 hours total, I got it together and running. Not sure if its running right because I don't know how it's supposed to run. But it'll do 45 mph easily enough.

Now to get a bonded title. Then paint and some better looking mirrors and turn signals. Meantime I'll probably complete the emissions removal and change oil. It needs a new v belt and air filter too. But this is going be just the ticket  for quick neighborhood trips.

cbrfxr67

Sweeet.  Love me some scooter thread!  I went and picked up this turd over the weekend.  So far, coil was arcing to the frame.  PO thought wiring was burning and decided he didn't want to farg it up anymore than it was already.  Has 900 miles, unmolested, just sitting.  Isolated the coil and it ran on starter fluid.  Fun with cheap bikes,..plus scooters are stupid easy to ride!

Hope you post more of your 125!
"Its something you take apart in 2-3 days and takes 10 years to go back together."
-buddha

mr72

That's exactly how I hope to carry this scooter, on a hitch rack on the back of my Jeep. Good times. Glad to see it can work. I have a 4dr Wrangler so it should be even easier. And my scooter may be lighter than that one.

This one has over 11K miles on it, so it's no spring chicken.

Today I removed the air injection pipe and plugged the port on the head. And I discovered that the auto-choke doesn't seem to work right because it doesn't start and idle when cold without holding the throttle open some.

My wife is leaving today for a week long trip to Colorado and I have a ton of time to tinker with it this week, I'll get it 100% dialed in for sure. I have some jets on order that should show up by the weekend, probably going to jet up at least one or two steps on the main jet. Tomorrow I'm going to head over to the middle of nowhere about an hour away where the nearest DMV office is to start the bonded title process. I won't spend any meaningful money on it (v-belt, CVT weights, air filter, etc.) until I have the title on the way.

I would say this scooter is "stupid easy to ride" except that it's also just too small for me. But at least this thing has good brakes! My daughter is already chomping at the bit to ride it. It's just a whole different experience than either of my other motorcycles. And it's something to know I can pick the whole thing up and move it around. I've already been doing a lot of moving it by pulling the front wheel off the ground and rotating it like a bicycle. Try that with a GS500. I'm sure I'll use it for quick errands and neighborhood trips. It just seems silly to pull out my 900cc Triumph every time I need to ride a mile and a half to the grocery store for two things, especially considering the 200 point turn it takes to move it out of the garage.

cbrfxr67

I did the Vermont title route on my chinese grom.  If bonded title is too annoying or cost too much, you might want to consider the Vermont way.  It was pretty easy.  I'll point you to some links if you come back dumbfounded from the dmv,...
"Its something you take apart in 2-3 days and takes 10 years to go back together."
-buddha

mr72

I am pretty sure that for a motor vehicle of any kind, if you live in Texas you are required to register it in TX. If not you can be fined if you are stopped. In my case, the scooter has a TX license plate on it and was obviously titled in TX, so it's going to have to go the bonded title route just so the DMV can do a search and ensure there is no lien etc.

I mean, I could get a VT registration and try to transfer it to TX, but they'd instantly find an old TX title and make me go the bonded title route anyway to transfer it. In fact, the VT registration process might wind up finding the TX title with a VIN check.

It's only a hassle to do the bonded title because you have to do it in person. With the bond and all fees, it'll still cost under $200 to register it, which sounds insane for a $1000 vehicle but is not so bad considering I got it for free. Once I fix the paint and bodywork sorted, I bet the thing will be worth north of $1200.

mr72

Got the bond ordered for the bonded title, should be here next week and I can get it inspected and registered.

I sorted out more of the previous (or pre-previous) owner's bad mechanicking on the replacement carburetor, the wrong auto choke was put on and it was stuck on. Fixed that. The scoot is totally usable now, mechanically sound, anyway. It is an extraordinary mail-getting appliance. By next week it might even be road legal.

Ordering the CVT parts today (belt, new sliders), have new jet kit in the mail, and I am finalizing my paint color choices.

Oh, here's a pic.


cbrfxr67

Looking good!  Love it! :woohoo:
I got mine running yesterday after going through the carb.  Rode it up and down the street a few times in victory hahaa.
Yea when I did the VT title, I ran the plate for a year and then went to dmv.  They actually called VT dmv to confirm it.  They were difficult aholes but there was no reason for them not to give me my TX tags and they finally did.  That's not bad at all, less than 200 for everything!  Bravo!
"Its something you take apart in 2-3 days and takes 10 years to go back together."
-buddha

mr72

I should get the title sorted by tomorrow, get the scoot registered and street legal.

I rode it a bunch over the past few days, used it for my main transportation running around the neighborhood. Burned 3/4 of a tank of gas in it! Like 50+ miles? No trip odo, but it has a fuel gauge.

The new jet kit came in, but I'm waiting for the CVT parts before I jump in and do the rest of the mechanical work. I got the carb 100% dialed now, got it up to indicated 53mph and quit trying to go faster considering I was in a 45mph zone on a scooter with 2 years expired tags, and it was pretty terror-inducing at that speed anyway. But I bet it'll go at least 60mph by the speedo. I have 12g sliders coming and a new CVT belt.

Then paint, cosmetic fixes (mostly replace the turn signals with smaller chrome ones), then I guess I'll just ride it.

Funny thing, I went out to ride the ol' GS today. I haven't ridden it since I sorted the fork oil level. It was hard to start cold again, making me think the choke is not working. But worse, I think some fork oil got onto the front brake pads because it has very little working front brake. BTDT with my Triumph. Time for some new pads. So just the time I get the scooter completely ready to go, I'll have a queue of work to do on the GS. It's always something when you have aging, cheap motorcycles.

mr72

Fixed the GS's front brake. Still haven't test-ridden that. The old pads were not only fouled with fork oil, but they were worn smooth out. Into the backing plate on one side. WOW. I didn't realize I had ridden this bike nearly that much. But it's just too hot to ride a motorcycle right now. 102 today.

Anyway, I finally got all of the parts in and dove in on the Vino. Replacing the belt was a real pain. Wound up buying a tool that was junk, bent, didn't get the job done, had to borrow an air impact wrench. Rejetted up one jet size and re-adjusted, along with 12g sliders in place of the stock 14g rollers. This added a little bit of zip, and a lot of confidence in the reliability.

Next is paint!

cbrfxr67

That's good stuff!  I haven't messed with a cvt in awhile so will be having that fun here shortly.  53 to 60 is aces!
My clutch cable broke otw home on gs the other day.  At first I was HORY FARG,..but calmed down and eased my way home.  Maybe it melted since it's been hot as balls!
"aging, cheap motorcycles"
"Its something you take apart in 2-3 days and takes 10 years to go back together."
-buddha

mr72

I have one slightly less aging, not-cheap motorcycle, and it's astoundingly more reliable than the old cheapies. I do think a big part of that is that I spare no expense when fixing the Triumph, and even the tiniest thing gets my full attention. With the others, well, any baling wire or duct tape fix will suffice.

I also un-dialed the carb when I did the work on the scooter the other day. I figured I was rejetting, I should start with a baseline pilot mixture setting. Boy was I wrong. Well, IDK the actual baseline, some chump on the internet said "1.5 turns out" which is very wrong. The thing is, with a scooter this size, as you will soon discover, taking off from a stop is WOT every single time. But there's not enough air flow at those low rpms to lift the slide in the carb. So I wound up having to set the pilot to what I thought was very, very rich. Maybe two whole turns out past where it was max rpm idle. Then set the idle high to compensate. Anything less and it just nearly stalls when you take off. I carry around a little flat screwdriver to adjust this on the fly, eventually I'll get it dialed in. It's real close now but probably needs another 1/4 or 1/2 turn to be perfect. Or maybe it needs a different needle. For that matter, it's entirely possible the stock carb had a different needle than this replacement carb has.

Freaking carbs.

Crazy thing is, when I was a kid, I had a DT80 which according to the internet (again...) had just under 7 hp. Maybe it's the tiny wheelbase, but that thing would wheelie and go like mad. Why is my Vino 125 so slow and boggy?  It should have at least like 9 hp. Maybe it's mostly gearing. The DT had a max speed of like 45mph and the Vino will certainly beat that.

The 12g sliders are a hit. Vino lowest ratio is too tall to let it rev to 9k off the line. When taking off from a start, it gets up to about 5-6k rpm and then accelerates up to 8-9k which is about 30mph if you keep the throttle pinned, then it holds that rpm and keeps accelerating as the CVT does its thing. I'm guessing about 8 seconds 0-30, about 8 more seconds to 45. Definitely quicker with the bigger jet and sliders, even with my bad carb tuning.

mr72

Looks like my scheme to get mrs72 onto a scooter is working. She finally got tempted to go give the Vino a spin yesterday, just 5 mph around the cul de sac for like 20 minutes. But she really seemed to like it and we are going out tomorrow to an empty school parking lot for her to do a lot more practice and really get a feel for it. She's never ridden a motorized two wheel vehicle. Total noob. And the Vino is perfect for that.

Later last night she started asking me about when I was going to paint it, what colors, she wanted input on that, and then talked about how to park it, should she lock it to the bike rack at Target, etc. The hook is set. This is well on its way to becoming mrs72's scooter.

Bluesmudge

#13
Nice getting her onto the scooter!

Maybe next stop is something like a Honda Cub, which actually has enough hp to keep up with traffic and with the semi-automatic gears it would get her used to shifting a bike. Or a PCX150 sized scooter.  I would be worried the Vino is too underpowered and might make her afraid of getting out into traffic.

Btw, how has it been getting parts for the bike? I just picked up a non-running Suzuki GS1000G and have been waiting 2 weeks for a parts order from Partzilla.com. Just normal stuff like gaskets, bolts, and carb parts. Hard to fix a bike without parts. Maybe I'll go back to bikebandit.com next time.

mr72

So far mrs72 is convinced she won't ever want to ride on any road with more than a 40mph speed limit. A big part is that the appeal of riding the scooter around is that you really are not taking that much risk going out with a half helmet in shorts and flip-flops if you and other drivers don't exceed 30 mph. But to go on a 50mph road with lots of quick moving vehicle traffic definitely calls for the full gear.

Parts. Hm. Well the scooter parts I bought were easy, they are universal. Ebay, Amazon. But I waited nearly a year for a gauge gasket and a pair of handlebar riser bolts for my triumph from bikebandit, and some of the triumph parts I needed are still out of stock the world over.

Bluesmudge

#15
Quote from: mr72 on August 17, 2021, 05:51:32 AM
A big part is that the appeal of riding the scooter around is that you really are not taking that much risk going out with a half helmet in shorts and flip-flops if you and other drivers don't exceed 30 mph.

Yeah, I catch myself all the time riding my Super Cub in less gear than I would wear on any other bike. Don't be too complacent though, I've had a few crashes below 30 mph and none of them were fun. You still want to have come to terms with the idea of scrubbing dirt out of road rash. Personally, I would never go out in flip flops, the human foot and ankle is just too fragile. I get the appeal though.

mr72

I had a bicycle wreck on the road at 31mph according to my GPS, I woke up in an ambulance half an hour later with an array of injuries including a really bad head injury and a spinal crush injury that left me with permanent nerve damage. I know full well about how bad a 30mph wreck can be. That was an OTB wreck which is extremely unlikely on a 225 lb scooter due to physics.

But the truth is, it's routine for us to ride a bicycle on the road with minimal gear and a much less protective helmet.

Regarding the feet, yeah I think the thing with the scooter is that being a step through, it's less likely for it to pinch your foot between the bike and the road. Remember I spent 6 months last year on crutches and a knee scooter after having surgery on my foot and then crashing my Triumph and breaking that same foot and ankle in 5 places.

Super cub looks like it has about the same amount of power as my Vino, maybe 1 more hp. I guess the manual transmission is a whole lot more efficient? Under 45 mph, I bet they are similar in performance. PCX is a whole different category though, something like 13 hp for a 150.

Bluesmudge

Sorry, I spaced out and was thinking the vino was a 49cc type scooter. I don't know why, you clearly stated it's a 125ccs.  A 125 is perfect.

My Cub will do ~58 mph on flat ground without me tucking. Can easily do 65 on the flat if I have a car in front to draft off of. I've hit 75 mph on a big long downhill. The 17" rims on the Cub give it stability similar to a full sized motorcycle. I won't recommend trying for 70 on the vino.

cbrfxr67

"Looks like my scheme to get mrs72 onto a scooter is working."  Genius work sir!  Mine is interested but I hacked the exhaust, unable to contain myself from leaving something stock.:icon_confused:  I think I'll be good after I figure that out.
Post somemore pics of yours!  What paint does she want?
"Its something you take apart in 2-3 days and takes 10 years to go back together."
-buddha

mr72

Scroll up for the picture.

Current plan is for sort a sea-foam green for the blue parts, and the floorbard/leg-guard inner part will be a light grey matte finish (the parts that are now oxidized textured black) and the gloss black parts will wind up being painted gloss white. I've got small chrome bullet turn signals on order and a set of round chrome mirrors to replace the stock mirrors. And the taillight lens is cracked, no replacement is available, so I am going to graft my dad's TU250X taillight onto it, this is a round taillight with chrome bezel that should look better than the stock part.

I've had the Vino up to about 53 mph but it may not go a whole lot faster and with 10" wheels it's crazy at >45. But for around the neighborhood this 125 is perfect.

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