Put the exhaust back on the scooter last night. Had to use an automobile style clamp until the Piaggio replacement clamp arrives at Kissell Motorsports. A ten minute idle in the driveway started the curing process for the high temperature paint. A while later I took to the road, the first time since early May.
Surprised me how good it felt to ride again. It’s easy to go back to sleep and forget. I feel sad for all the people locked in their cages. And by choice. Didn’t ride far, just far enough to remember.
All’s not perfect though. The temporary clamp doesn’t completely seal the muffler to the header pipe — I can feel a bit of exhaust gas leaking along with an engine sound that isn’t the normal, quiet sound I like. This weekend I’ll see if I can fix that. Don’t want to fall victim to an unfortunate burn through of essential components — the gas gets pretty hot and there are more than a few stories circulating in the Vespa world about bearing failures and damage.
Still, I may sneak some short, slow rides. And stay off the higher speed tracks of the freeway…
Steve:
don’t forget that an exhaust leak where the exhaust gasket is would fry your brake system. I think this is a common problem with the GTS as brake components are too close to the exhaust
bob
Riding the Wet Coast
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Good to see you on the road again 🙂 How do you like your windscreen? I guess you nee some motorway driving to really feel the difference 🙂
bobskoot: I’m definitely aware of the exhaust hazard. I knew the louder sound meant there wadn’t a good seal. I’ll see if I can rectify the problem in the morning.
bobskoot: I’m definitely aware of the exhaust hazard. I knew the louder sound meant there wadn’t a good seal. I’ll see if I can rectify the problem in the morning.
Sergei Belski: So far the windscreen seems to be a plus though as you suspect I’ve not put a lot miles in. Can definitely feel a decrease in airflow on my torso and it does not hamper visibility. Win-win!
It looks like a nice paint job on the exhaust. Doesn’t it feel good to know that you did it yourself? And you should’ve hit up the dealer for a nice loaner as you’re overdue for a review…
So it’s leaking where the muffler mates to the pipe coming out of the engine? Not familiar with Vespas…..
Dom
RichardM: It does feel good to do some mechanical work — we’ll see how long that lasts.
No plans for any reviews at the moment. Maybe down the road when I get some other stuff in order.
Dom: That’s the place. Common problem with the GTS. I think my problem is the wrong clamp though. Different design and coverage area.
…fried brake systems? Not sure I’d be riding after hearing something like that.
Tim Carr: A big leak in the exhaust gasket can cause a catastrophic failure if the superhot gas burns through the brake line.
The good thing is the failure has a distinct, loud, hard to miss sound — a loud POP POP POP.
My leak is very small, I can just feel some exhaust gas wisping from the joint. And I am not using the normal graphite gasket but instead have an Amore brass one that lasts much longer and isn’t as fragile as the graphite part.
But on inspection I see the Amore part has degraded. I plan to sand it smooth, reshape the muffler section, and try again with the temporary clamp. I believe the problem is the design of the temporary clamp– the surface area of compression is very thin as compared to the factory clamp which compresses and area about an inch wide.
I feel as if I am getting a little engineering lesson.
Dear Mr. Williams:
The flat black paint on the muffler looks great. I think the job looks very professional and should increase the perceived speed of the bike by a good ten miles per hour. I love black mufflers on bikes and will replace the chrome muffler on the very next BMW I own with one blackened by Jet Hot.
That’s too bad about the exhaust clamp. I had a similar problem with the clamp on the end of the header pipe on the K75, but I was able to use a hose clamp from NAPA ($2) as opposed to the ($49) BMW part.
Still, it’s best to have the factory part.
Fondest regards,
Jack/reep
Twisted Roads
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Mr. Riepe: Had I known how long it would take to get the clamp I would take to get the clamp I would have sprung for the Jet Hot coating. Next time maybe.
Conchscooter: Good to see you comment temporarily.
I too have the Moto Amore muffler bearing — bombproof — but you need that damn Piaggio clamp to make a good seal.
Hope life is treating you well in Key West!