Considering Roughhouse - 1st scooter for a tall rider

weeb · Post by **weeb** » Tue Jul 15, 2014 1:53 pm

Came across this forum while researching info for potentially buying a first scooter for myself. I'm trying to stick with 50cc for some the usual reasons.

I'm tall, 6'3" with a 33" inseam & size 13 feet. I went to my local dealer and sat on a roughhouse. It seemed like I'd probably need to sit on the mid/rear of the seat if I ended up with one. Probably no/minimal 2-up riding due to space but no big deal with that as it would not be the intended purpose of the purchase.

The dealer suggested I also sit on a piaggio typhoon which indeed had more leg room. It looks like being a 4 stroke it is going to be a decent amount slower though.

I'm planning to use this as a daily commuter in central KY. Probably 10-20 miles/day, perhaps a little more sometimes. I have to spend 1-2 miles on a 40 mph road which is why i'd like something with a little more speed.

There is also a KYMCO dealer about 40 minutes away and I was considering checking out a super 8 as well. The genuine dealer is only 5 minutes from where I live though so it would be convenient if something worked out with them.

I guess I need a test drive to really feel it out but wanted to ask opinions on here as well.

Are there any tall riders around my height who are finding their roughouse to be a decent fit? Any mods that have/can be done to increase comfort for a tall rider?

Thanks for any advice on this!

OldGuy · Post by **OldGuy** » Sat Jul 19, 2014 4:47 am

My son has an Aprillia SR50 4 stroke which I believe is the twin of the Typhoon. My Rouhhouse is a little faster stock in many situations, and a lot faster with the stage 1 performance mod (exhaust, roller, and contra-spring). Where the Roughhouse really shines is climbing hills. I can either be kind and hang back with my son or cruise up the hill and wait for him. Generally I do the latter.

The Aprillia/Typhoon is pretty good though, and very good on gas.

weeb · Post by **weeb** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 2:19 pm

Thanks for the info oldguy!

I haven't had a chance to go back and check out the roughhouse & typhoon again yet but did get to sit on kymco agility this weekend. I think it is going to be a little small. The passenger seat restricts me from sliding back very far and my knees are all up in the handle bars (check out the pic). Due to my lack of moped experience i can only guess that this will be an issue? What do you guys think?

I plan to go look at the roughouse and typhoon again this coming weekend.

Any tall guys out there comfortably ride either of these? Are there any cons to riding the roughhouse all the way on the back of the passenger seat?

agrogod · Post by **agrogod** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 2:39 am

Ok you have hit on one of my pet peeve's. If it doesn't have pedals and its not a step over design its a scooter! Despite what your State legislatures try and tell you they are wrong.
Now about that rear seat riding. I'm only 5'11", and have scooched back to the rear of the seat just to stretch out sometimes. With your frame it should be doable, if only just to keep your knees out of the handlebar area. As long as your hand grip is comfortable and doesn't feel uncomfortable after a few miles of riding.
As OldGuy stated, with the right mods you can get decent speed out of the RH50. Its a tough little machine and has minimal maintenance as compared to a 4T.
I take mine out regularly on 45 MPH roads and have not had any major issues to date.

Stinkdyr · Post by **Stinkdyr** » Sun Aug 17, 2014 3:27 pm

I am 6'3" and weigh 220. I ride my 2009 RH50 around Boston, mostly flat city. I could fit a kid or chick on back with me if I need to, but never do.
Don't expect to climb hills much if you have a passenger with you. Otherwise, derestrict the puppy, and you will be very happy. As long as you don't have LOTS of salt on your roads in the winter.
Boston HEAVILY salts our roads, and I ride all winter.....this is a tough combo for the RH50. My scoot has 10k miles on her, stator had to be replaced, I think salt gets in there and corrodes the electode on the pickup coil of the stator. Salt also gets into the bushings/axle parts of the center kickstand....it is now so corroded that it barely can budge. Dealer said don't bother trying to fix it, costs 2 hours of labor for him to drill it out. Just use the sidestand going forward. So, road salt is tough on these bikes.
Otherwise, love it!

weeb · Post by **weeb** » Mon Aug 18, 2014 12:20 pm

Thanks for the replies and good info everyone, I really appreciate the help!

Well I've still been thinking about the purchase of my first scoot and I'm kind of headed in a whole different direction now.

Basically I'm thinking about getting something with a bigger engine. I was kind of sold on the idea of the 2014 fly 150 but my local dealer has a new-old stock Vespa S 150 ie (2012) for $400 more than the fly OTD. The fly fits better than the RH, but the S 150 fits better than both regarding leg room.

What do you guys think on those two models (fly/S) considering the price difference? I know the fly has the 3v but seems like the S would still be pretty solid.

Picked up my motorcycle permit and plan to do the MSF course at some point in the next couple months!