Today I was really watching the gas gauge and while enroute to the gas station...I ran out of gas going downhill...which means I got to push Big Red up the hill and across the overpass to get gas. Not bad to get 187 miles out of 3 gallons and average about 63mpg.
If I had been in a car, there's no way I could have pushed up up the hill and over.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Starbucks/Babe's Chicken Dinner House Ride
I've been waiting for this ride as I looked forward to meeting some of the folks that have been chatting with in DFW Scooterist forum. I got up early and washed Big Red and made sure I had all the ride essentials. It would be the first ride with the music/gps combo I added recently.
I made it to Starbucks on time and got to meet Earl B. Along with the other scooterists and bikers. Looks like it's going to be a great ride through Grapevine as it is GrapeFest. One small hitch....Big Red won't start out in the Starbucks parking lot. A first! The 'Just Brakes' was right across the walkway. The ScootGroup was being very helpful with suggestions and I didn't want to delay the kickoff, so I sent them off and walked to Just Brakes and they hadn't seen a Chinese Scoot..and were more than happy to offer a jumper. They even recommended I go to CVS and pick up a spare 9Volt battery for backup. Lol!
So off I go to find the Babes CDH and the gps comes in handy. I unplugged the DC Sockets cuz I figured that's what drained the battery, so a 10 mile ride would charge her up. Beautiful scenery along 114. Enjoyed the light breeze and the partly cloudy skies.
I get to the restaurant and lo, Big Red refuses to start again. So I go on and enjoy a really good lunch. Earl mentions checking the fuses, so I excuse myself to go check. I'm checking over the fuses and one of the ladies(Jamie) from the group is out taking a smoke and inquires about the battery. I've concluded the battery or altenator is the issue. Jamie happens to have the number to the local cycle shop and offers to call them and see if they have a replacement. How awesome is that? She has friends that work at the "Biker's Garage" and they have one. Whew! Relief..
The lunch goes well and I meet some very interesting fellow riders, with the common love for two-wheel transportation. Enjoyed picking Earl's brains about scooters. A good time was had by all.
The whole group waited for me afterwards to walk to the motorcycle shop and back and were glad I had a battery. Earl gave me a cycle jump so I could get Big Red back to the shop to return the borrowed jumper cables and get one last jump for the road. They tested the old battery and it was bad for sure but the alternator as showing to be charging just fine. I learned that motorcycle batteries have to be prepped. Big Red is humming and I'm headed back to Kendallwood. Alternator holds up for the 40 mile trip....wow!
I get to Kendallwood and shut off Big Red and she won't restart so it's definitely for sure the battery.
What a great morning. Met some new acquaintences, learned about cycle batteries, and even learned a little more about not being quick to form opinions without merit.
I made it to Starbucks on time and got to meet Earl B. Along with the other scooterists and bikers. Looks like it's going to be a great ride through Grapevine as it is GrapeFest. One small hitch....Big Red won't start out in the Starbucks parking lot. A first! The 'Just Brakes' was right across the walkway. The ScootGroup was being very helpful with suggestions and I didn't want to delay the kickoff, so I sent them off and walked to Just Brakes and they hadn't seen a Chinese Scoot..and were more than happy to offer a jumper. They even recommended I go to CVS and pick up a spare 9Volt battery for backup. Lol!
So off I go to find the Babes CDH and the gps comes in handy. I unplugged the DC Sockets cuz I figured that's what drained the battery, so a 10 mile ride would charge her up. Beautiful scenery along 114. Enjoyed the light breeze and the partly cloudy skies.
I get to the restaurant and lo, Big Red refuses to start again. So I go on and enjoy a really good lunch. Earl mentions checking the fuses, so I excuse myself to go check. I'm checking over the fuses and one of the ladies(Jamie) from the group is out taking a smoke and inquires about the battery. I've concluded the battery or altenator is the issue. Jamie happens to have the number to the local cycle shop and offers to call them and see if they have a replacement. How awesome is that? She has friends that work at the "Biker's Garage" and they have one. Whew! Relief..
The lunch goes well and I meet some very interesting fellow riders, with the common love for two-wheel transportation. Enjoyed picking Earl's brains about scooters. A good time was had by all.
The whole group waited for me afterwards to walk to the motorcycle shop and back and were glad I had a battery. Earl gave me a cycle jump so I could get Big Red back to the shop to return the borrowed jumper cables and get one last jump for the road. They tested the old battery and it was bad for sure but the alternator as showing to be charging just fine. I learned that motorcycle batteries have to be prepped. Big Red is humming and I'm headed back to Kendallwood. Alternator holds up for the 40 mile trip....wow!
I get to Kendallwood and shut off Big Red and she won't restart so it's definitely for sure the battery.
What a great morning. Met some new acquaintences, learned about cycle batteries, and even learned a little more about not being quick to form opinions without merit.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
I did an upgrade today-Power to my iPhone
With it being rainy today, I thought it would be a good time to figure out how to keep my iPhone charged on my Mishi Ranger 250 (Jonway YY250T/MC-54-250). Good for when I want to head out for the day and don't want a dead phone at some point.
Purchased:
DC Socket with battery clamp-ons
Box of end-wire eye
Single to dual DC Socket Adapter(In case I need two at some point)
DC Plug with 2-USB adapter slots
3.5mm Stereo Female to Male plug
iPhone TomTom app
Task 1:
I cut the battery clamps off the end of the DC Socket. Replaced the clamps with the end-wire eye. Placed them on the nut to screw on to the battery...so the adapter power is always on!
I cut a 1.5" square off the side of the battery cover so the wires can come out and the battery stays covered.
Plugged the DC Plug with 2-USB adapter slots into the Socket. Plugged my iPhone cord into the adapter. This cord was a longer one I ordered from Amazon...the stock iPhone cords aren't long enough.
As of now, the iPhone power charge cord comes out from the front of the seat and goes up to the bottom of my iPhone holder to plug in to. Will have to figure out how to secure the cord down. I won't use it all the time, so I can simple store it under the seat until I need to charge my phone.
Part One Done.
Task #2
Since my scoot has a Radio(ha ha ha ha, if you want to call it that)with an 3.5mm MP3 input cord, I needed to add the 3.5mm Stereo Female to Male plug cord to extend the length. A hole was drilled near the top right of the glove box interior. This allowed me to run the cord behind the glove box and up through the handlebar cover. Wrapped the cord up through the handlebar cover and left enough length to plug it into my iPhone or iPod without alot of excess hanging cord.
As a reward, I bought the iPhone TomTom app...and it works really well. Will have to see how it works in the daylight. Nice to have a mounted iPhone with sound to the speakers along with a GPS for the road.
A nice day for a project I've been wanting to do for a while.
Next on the checklist.....upgrading to 45W Headlights and a louder horn.
Purchased:
DC Socket with battery clamp-ons
Box of end-wire eye
Single to dual DC Socket Adapter(In case I need two at some point)
DC Plug with 2-USB adapter slots
3.5mm Stereo Female to Male plug
iPhone TomTom app
Task 1:
I cut the battery clamps off the end of the DC Socket. Replaced the clamps with the end-wire eye. Placed them on the nut to screw on to the battery...so the adapter power is always on!
I cut a 1.5" square off the side of the battery cover so the wires can come out and the battery stays covered.
Plugged the DC Plug with 2-USB adapter slots into the Socket. Plugged my iPhone cord into the adapter. This cord was a longer one I ordered from Amazon...the stock iPhone cords aren't long enough.
As of now, the iPhone power charge cord comes out from the front of the seat and goes up to the bottom of my iPhone holder to plug in to. Will have to figure out how to secure the cord down. I won't use it all the time, so I can simple store it under the seat until I need to charge my phone.
Part One Done.
Task #2
Since my scoot has a Radio(ha ha ha ha, if you want to call it that)with an 3.5mm MP3 input cord, I needed to add the 3.5mm Stereo Female to Male plug cord to extend the length. A hole was drilled near the top right of the glove box interior. This allowed me to run the cord behind the glove box and up through the handlebar cover. Wrapped the cord up through the handlebar cover and left enough length to plug it into my iPhone or iPod without alot of excess hanging cord.
As a reward, I bought the iPhone TomTom app...and it works really well. Will have to see how it works in the daylight. Nice to have a mounted iPhone with sound to the speakers along with a GPS for the road.
A nice day for a project I've been wanting to do for a while.
Next on the checklist.....upgrading to 45W Headlights and a louder horn.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Smoothest ride EVER
Ok, as a follow-up to the 1,800 maintenance, Mishi replaced the clutch and belt. I have to say the ride has been extremely smooth and all the clackety sounds that were prominent after warm-up are GONE. I've ridden short and long to test it fully and it's extremely quiet..no more sounds of a rattling toolbox and the take-off is quite smooth now. :)
Love it when things get done and done right!
Love it when things get done and done right!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Picked up Big Red Today...
Here's a follow-up...
Mishi had a guy from Jonway come out and check out the clutch. This is the second time I've taken it in, so they called in the big guys to come take a look. Ended up needing a clutch replacement and they showed me the old one. Looked like it needed to be replaced.
Sure appreciated the extra mile on this one.
They adjusted the brakes and the brake levers feel more fluid when applied. No more squealing either.
The RPM was a little low...died once on the way home, so I bumped it up after I got home.
So, here's to the next 3,200 miles!
Mishi had a guy from Jonway come out and check out the clutch. This is the second time I've taken it in, so they called in the big guys to come take a look. Ended up needing a clutch replacement and they showed me the old one. Looked like it needed to be replaced.
Sure appreciated the extra mile on this one.
They adjusted the brakes and the brake levers feel more fluid when applied. No more squealing either.
The RPM was a little low...died once on the way home, so I bumped it up after I got home.
So, here's to the next 3,200 miles!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
1,800 Mile Maintenance and Punch List
Today Big Red goes in for her 1,800 mile maintenance. A few things to get checked on while she's there that I've noted since the last maintenance with one ongoing concern:
1,800 Mile Maintenance
* Backfires on occasion when letting off the throttle. Hasn't done that prior to the last carb adjust at 1,000 mile maintenance. I use 93 octane gas only.
* Idle RPM's range varies between 2,000 and 2,500 rpms...I manually lowered it because it was requiring alot of brake to keep the scooter still at stops.
* I was averaging about 65 mpg until the last maintenance. Now it gets 50-52 mpg.
* A few times, I hear a grinding sound coming from the back (bearings?) when starting from a stop. Goes for a a few seconds and stops
* The clackety CVT is still happening and will shake the whole bike-getting worse and needs to be looked at. When warmed up, it's consistent and sometimes I need to give it more throttle in order to get it to go. Feels like something is slipping (belt?) or not making good contact. (Clutch?). I rode a passenger last weekend and was within weight limit of the bike and it would barely take off after ALOT of clackety and slipping. I thought something was going to fall off. Not good.
* Check the hoses(fuel/Coolant). I had a coolant hose come off a couple of weeks ago before a ride and was able to get it back on there, but if you would check them, it would be great.
* Back brakes are starting to squeal. Please check and replace if necessary.
* Backfires on occasion when letting off the throttle. Hasn't done that prior to the last carb adjust at 1,000 mile maintenance. I use 93 octane gas only.
* Idle RPM's range varies between 2,000 and 2,500 rpms...I manually lowered it because it was requiring alot of brake to keep the scooter still at stops.
* I was averaging about 65 mpg until the last maintenance. Now it gets 50-52 mpg.
* A few times, I hear a grinding sound coming from the back (bearings?) when starting from a stop. Goes for a a few seconds and stops
* The clackety CVT is still happening and will shake the whole bike-getting worse and needs to be looked at. When warmed up, it's consistent and sometimes I need to give it more throttle in order to get it to go. Feels like something is slipping (belt?) or not making good contact. (Clutch?). I rode a passenger last weekend and was within weight limit of the bike and it would barely take off after ALOT of clackety and slipping. I thought something was going to fall off. Not good.
* Check the hoses(fuel/Coolant). I had a coolant hose come off a couple of weeks ago before a ride and was able to get it back on there, but if you would check them, it would be great.
* Back brakes are starting to squeal. Please check and replace if necessary.
Since it will be up on the stand, I'm going to see if Mishi PowerSports will do the following as well....
* Upgrade to 45Watt headlights. If possible, would you see about installing some?
* Power DC Socket-Install a power socket in the glove box and one under the seat.
* Upgrade to 45Watt headlights. If possible, would you see about installing some?
* Power DC Socket-Install a power socket in the glove box and one under the seat.
I'll pick her up next week and report back....
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