Geezers Getting Greasy...Part One
The top photo is Dreamcrusher and J.B. giving the motor a once over after some cleaning. The lower photo is a look at the underside of the greasy, grimy, filthy Piaggio classic motor from 1963. The belly of the vintage beast.
The focus of todays fun was to get this cleaned up to either box and ship to a real Vespa mechanic or for us to attempt to crack into ourselves. I think we'll box her up.
I had ridden Mule over to J.B's digs at around 1:00 this afternoon to take stock of where we were on the project and help in building a battle plan for what to do in the coming days. It had been awhile since I had seen his little scoot and got to take a look at the broken flywheel cover from when the "mechanic" had been there last. It looked as though he had beaten on it for a while with a crowbar to soften it up before using the wrong puller on it. Needless to say, there will be some replacement parts being ordered in the future. Some of the internals had taken a thrashing during the bash fest. This didn't need to happen, but I guess once the dude got a head of steam going, he threw caution to the wind and common sense to the curb. I feel bad for Jeff, because he was trusting this guys word of being an "old time" Vespa mechanic. He'll have to pay for the trust in hard earned cash.
At around three thirty, good old Dreamcrusher came out after work and jumped into his coveralls and got busy. He added a real boost of energy to our dwindling desire to stay out in the unheated shop. He was gulping coffee from what looked like an oversized German beer stein and was buzzing around like a madman. I should mention that it was freezing doggone cold in the shop and the frost was still crunchy white on the ground outside. We had to make a few quick trips into Jeff's house to warm up just to keep the fingers working.
The other main focus today was the frame. We wanted to figure out how the cables were routed through and which cables went where. With this being done, we spent some time with the book Jeff bought to see how to disassemble the front fork and pull the handlebars. All in preparation for the painter.
At this point, we all just looked at each other and pretty much decided to hang it up for the day as it was getting colder and closer to dinner time for each of us. By now I had put on every extra layer of clothing that I had brought in my tourpack for this very reason. And I was still cold.
But it was a good time, and as Geezers, we did something together today, and that's what counted. Grizz called while we were tinkering to say that he was in Oregon and will be here next week to join in, so that should be a productive day. Until then, maybe we can get something accomplished during the work week. I'll fill you in as we go.
Have fun,
Bill
posted by Bill Sommers at 8:15 PM
8 Comments:
There's nothing like a ham-fisted mechanic who doesn't know what he's doing to really ruin some equipment. It is POSSIBLE to remove parts without the specialised tools, but you have to be real careful, and think things out ahead of time. Good project. I look forward to reading more.
John
Despite the cold, it sounded like a great afternoon of friends. Good luck with the restoration.
Betty :)
John,
Yeah, it's a shame to come back and find that someone had actually gone forward with something that they obviously didn't understand, and quit when the damage was done. It blows my mind.
Betty,
It was fun. These guys are great to be around, both at work and play.
Did you notice that I've got you on my blogroll now? I'll stop by your site for a visit.
Have fun,
Bill
Wow, that looks like a real project now. The first photo you posted made it look like a mere clean-and-shine job.
Almost makes me want to fire up the heater in my garage and tackle that XS-650 Yamaha, which doesn't even know what it wants to be yet.
Ride well,
=gc=
Gary,
The first photo shows the flywheel part of the motor that had been broken. Jeff had cleaned it up. The left side and underside were filthy and gunked up something fierce. Some good old fashioned scrubbing is in order.
The XS650 of yours, what year is it, and were you considering a "streetracker" type of project? I sold a 1980 XS650 last year, and miss it now.
Have fun,
Bill
I'll have to write something about that XS. No time like the present, I suppose.
That's an interesting piece of machinery, and it isn't very comfortable in it's current form.
I'm saving the rest for the blog...
Ride well,
=gc=
Hi Bill,
Thank you for the link. It's an honor to be listed amoung your scooter friends. I have you in my links as well.
Have a great week,
Betty :)
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