Buddy 50 needs to do better on hills

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march10k
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Joined: Thu Nov 22, 2018 2:11 am
Location: Hawaii

Buddy 50 needs to do better on hills

Post by march10k »

Stepping right past the 'get a 125' response, I'm looking for some advice on low-impact changes I can make to my buddy 50 to bog down less on hills. MY commute is 6 miles in 25 and 35 MPH zones, but it's hilly, and with a worn in spring, I bog down to 20 on one of them...right at the start of a 35MPH zone. It's not the end of the world, the road is three lanes wide at that point, but 30 (which is what I get with a brand new spring) would be nice. The worst part is the light at the bottom of the hill...I never catch it green!

So what are the options? I've heard that changing roller weights can trade off some top end for better acceleration? I already went with a heavier spring, and it didn't really do much in the long run. I also hear that a 'performance' variator (Malossi?) makes a difference, and that doesn't seem like a trade-off, just an expsense? I'm fine with a few bucks, but I don't want to sacrifice reliability.
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babblefish
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Location: San Francisco

Post by babblefish »

You need more torque. Nothing you do to your transmission will give you more torque to climb hills at a higher speed. Playing around with the transmission will change where the little 50cc engine will deliver it's available power, but that's about it. You can change to lighter roller weights so the engine spins at a higher RPM to climb steep hills but you'll be going up that hill really slow. If you change to heavier weights then your scooter will go faster but as soon as it sees a hill it'll slow to a crawl because it just doesn't have the torque to go any faster. Like it or not, that's just the physics of it. The old saying of "no replacement for displacement" holds true here, unless you're willing to turbo or super charge your engine. Even today's cars with their tiny 4-cylinder engines need turbo charging in order to get back the power lost due to the radical reduction in displacement.
If for some reason you really want to keep your scooter then I would suggest getting a 70cc big bore kit (BBK), expansion chamber exhaust system, and rejet the carb. While it won't give you the power of a 125cc or bigger engine it'll be a lot better than what you've got now.
Don't mean to sound harsh but that's my $0.02 on the matter.
Some people can break a crowbar in a sandbox.
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DeeDee
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Location: Denver

Post by DeeDee »

I tune 50cc water cooled Yamahas. Hills I used to take at 18mph I can now maintain 35mph. I use a better quality variator with Dr. Pulley sliders. I replace the clutch springs as well. Too stiff of big clutch spring won't do much but make your engine rev a lot more. Stock Zuma spring is 750 rpm. 1,000 is too much. Stage six makes a soft spring that is somewhere in between 750 and 1,000. I use this one. I use 1,000 rpm pillow springs. Stock rollers are 6 gram. I replace these with 4 gram Dr. Pulley sliders. I've never tuned a Buddy 50 this way, but it gives you an idea of what a 50cc scooter can do. I'd look at the gold NCY variator w/ Dr. Pulley sliders to start. Go 20 to 30% lighter than the stock rollers. Search this forum. What you are looking to do has been done before.
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