Transformation of a Chinese scooter

[rollingbender]

Very pleased with how this worked out.


It’s hard to see it in the photos but there are actually two bends in the added frame… the 90 degree bend between horizontal and vertical and a lesser bend of unmeasured degrees which causes the bottom/horizontal section to flare out a bit. Preliminary estimates place the passenger pegs just below the flare bend.


Now I can cut a couple pieces of plastic an inch or so larger than the rhombus shaped area of this new frame component. I’m thinking I’ll pop a rivnut in that unused tab on the frame that hangs down into this space and use that for an attachment screw. The oversized edges of the plastic will get thermoformed around the frame components so one attachment screw should suffice.

[rollingbender]

I’m really not liking this. 😡😡😡


The proposed “trunk” under the fuel tank will be greatly compromised if the standard motorcycle petcock system remains in place. I think a nice close 90 degree elbow at the bottom of the tank, leading to a standard scooter type vacuum operated petcock would be a less intrusive way to do this.

But…then I loose the standard motorcycle “reserve” fuel option. Can’t imagine my wife would be too pleased with me if she ran out of fuel somewhere. My gauge cluster has a fuel level option. Problem is how to you send fuel level data to the gauge. I found an option but it is rather expensive ($100+). But, because it is for the wife, it better be done right.

She had better appreciate this when it’s all finished.

[br4inl3ss]

vacuum operated petcock ( the separate one... the one screwed under the tank is fine it seems and i dunno why ) are junk. unless you pick one for a yamaha MAYBE ? even vespa/piaggio/aprilia petcock are junk. harley are even worse just like the rest of the bike.

if it was me i would go for the most reliable one, also the nicest one to me, the good ole hose on the side of the tank.
like that, but properly made ( unless its a rat bike but is not the case )

ive seen some here that was really well made. it was a transparent hose like the pic, but inside a chrome ( thinned with solder ) copper tube with many hols to see the level but its theft/bastard proof. no one can empty the tank by unplugging the hose.

on a side note, seeing your skills, cant you just make a relocation ? not even sure it could work...
maybe a hard line relocation would work, so you keep the good valve ( the one with res ) but its not in the way ?

[rollingbender]

One side panel cut, formed and sanded!



Oh, it’s hard to notice but trying out some saddlebags!

[hellish100]

First off, really amazing fab and machining skills! There are some really lucky people to have you building a nice ride for them.

Can we take another look at the triple tree and stem? I am a little concerned on the bearings. For triple trees, I've never seen a roller bearing used. I've only seen tapered roller bearings. The tapered roller bearings are designed to deal with thrust loads as well as axial loads. Maybe you changed them out since I first noticed.

[br4inl3ss]

Apr 12, 2023 16:43:38 GMT -5 hellish100 said:

First off, really amazing fab and machining skills! There are some really lucky people to have you building a nice ride for them.

Can we take another look at the triple tree and stem? I am a little concerned on the bearings. For triple trees, I've never seen a roller bearing used. I've only seen tapered roller bearings. The tapered roller bearings are designed to deal with thrust loads as well as axial loads. Maybe you changed them out since I first noticed.

thats a very good point there....  on the other hand i dont think it would make much of a difference on that thing. what reduce bearing life in the stem is wheely. big hard shock when the tire hit the ground back. and this thing is never gonna wheely, not even with a scooter wheely MONSTER like the guy in MOPBOYZ videos.

[rollingbender]

I wanted to use tapered roller bearings but, in this size, they were going to run $70-80 each😳😳😳. The bearings I used are a huge major step up from the bearings that are stock on all these scooters. I used a bearing made for a drill press so it is designed to take some of that type of load. And… if I notice them giving up the ghost, the expensive tapered roller bearings can pop right in.

[aeroxbud]

The bearings should be fine. Most new small motorcycles and nearly any motorcycle up to the late 80's used roller bearings.
Every scooter I have owned has used roller bearings.

[rollingbender]

Trying out my skills at blacksmithing!!


I’ve got my anvil (a chunk of railroad track), a BFH, a MAPP gas torch, and a bunch of 1/4” steel rod.

Heat up the end of the rod and pound ‘er flat!




Clean up on the belt grinder and then a few strategically placed bends later and we have this…


In order to expedite things a bit, I found these clamps on Amazon and made a plate that screws to the clamp on the inside of the fork. The plan for now for attaching the fender mounting rods to the fork clamp arrangement is to weld them on.


Haven’t decided for sure how I will be attaching the rods to the fenders. Options are:
*Small bolt through both parts (would allow for alignment adjustments).
*Rivnut in the fender and a small screw to attach (would still allow for some alignment tweaking)
*Plug weld from behind (no adjustment, painting and installation become more difficult)
*TIG weld on top (similar issues to plug welding)

[rollingbender]

Here’s a blacksmithing tip I learned a long time ago from an old gunsmith that I just remembered. Polish the surface of your anvil and the striking surface of your hammer. This will leave you with a much better forged finish. You can tell the difference from the first rod I flattened (pictured in previous post) and the finish I got after polishing my BFH.


And here’s after a ride on the belt grinder to make them all the same as possible.


My mind was first telling me that I was going to need 4 uniquely bent rods but after some more head scratching, I realized I need two different (mirror image) pairs. The plate attached to the clamp is centered on the clamp and the ends of the bracket where the rods get welded on are 45 degrees from the fork. So, the front left rod needs the exact same bends as the right rear rod. And… because the centerline of the wheel-to-fender angle of the dangle is parallel but offset to the centerline of the forks, the opposite corners of the mounting system use the same bends, only the back two are shorter than the front.

I didn’t plan it that way. I’m am nowhere near that smart. Just a Bob Ross “happy accident” moment. We all need those from time to time.

[br4inl3ss]

you should apply for a job in your skills area : custom chopper builder.

[90GTVert]

Apr 15, 2023 18:28:51 GMT -5 rollingbender said:

Polish the surface of your anvil and the striking surface of your hammer. This will leave you with a much better forged finish.

I'm gonna try using one mirror as an anvil and one mirror as a hammer and see if my parts come out chrome. 😁

[rollingbender]

Maybe this could be a retirement side hustle. I can see it now…”Short Chick Scooter Company”!!!

Here’s the mock-up, complete with masking tape and wire holding things in place.




And there’s another “happy accident”… where the mounts meet the fender just happen to cut it in thirds!

I was supposed to be working on “honey do” list stuff today but by doing just a little here and there between doing stuff on her list, I was able to sneak it past her. Tomorrow, I’ll have about 3 or 4 hours unsupervised so I’ll be ble to weld the front mounts together and rig up a rear fender mount that somehow matches the front.

[aeroxbud]

That's looking a very cool way to mount the fenders.

[rollingbender]

Front mounts all fitted and tacked together!!!