Modern Buddy

Here she is in all her glory. Insurance check came through and I'm back on 2 wheels after a very long six weeks.

I'd hate to say I "replaced" the totaled Stella 4T. She was unique and distinct and in our all-too-brief time together we had some great rides and little adventures. In a short period of time, Fury became the Grand Dame of Stella 4Ts, racking up more miles than any other.

Out of the box, with 11.5 miles on it, the new Stella performs really well (thanks to air/fuel mix being taken up a notch). Off the line, as fast as my broken in Stella 4T. The shifting is crisp. I am happy.

A couple things I'll do differently:
First: More frequent washing and waxing. I'm also going to put UV protectant on all the rubber. These Stellas have a lot more exterior rubber than my modern scoots and it will dry out and crack. Someone (on MV?) was ranting about the Stella rubber wearing faster than other types, but that's poppycock. The rubber on my Vespa OEM chrome kit started showing wear first. Like anything else, it needs to be maintained. The waxing is also to protect the paint. Little dings can lead to little pockmarks that can rust.

Second: No crashing.

Dang Eric, you've had two beautiful Stella's and I can even get them to bring my one Stella to US shores.

Beautiful Stella, best of luck with her. What's her name?

Mulliganal wrote:Beautiful Stella, best of luck with her. What's her name?

Don't know yet. I hadn't named a scooter until the previous Stella. It'll come to me in a dream, maybe.

Cool.

You unplugged the EVAP hose yet?

desmolicious wrote:Cool.

You unplugged the EVAP hose yet?

Not yet. Mike at NoHo says they haven't seen any problems with them from the ones they've sold. I'll probably get around to it. Going to need another ball bearing.

ericalm wrote:

desmolicious wrote:Cool.

You unplugged the EVAP hose yet?

Not yet. Mike at NoHo says they haven't seen any problems with them from the ones they've sold. I'll probably get around to it. Going to need another ball bearing.

I guess Mike got a different batch of bikes than what others got.

ericalm wrote:Here she is in all her glory....

Nice Station Wagon! I Mean - Nice Red Stella!
I like the color choice!

desmolicious wrote:

ericalm wrote:

desmolicious wrote:Cool.

You unplugged the EVAP hose yet?

Not yet. Mike at NoHo says they haven't seen any problems with them from the ones they've sold. I'll probably get around to it. Going to need another ball bearing.

I guess Mike got a different batch of bikes than what others got.

Nah, I think it's more likely that they haven't had anyone fill it up and then do anything that will slosh gas up in there.

I tried to get the bearing out of my old on, but it was in there really tight.

What did you do with your gas cap?

ericalm wrote:

desmolicious wrote:

ericalm wrote: Not yet. Mike at NoHo says they haven't seen any problems with them from the ones they've sold. I'll probably get around to it. Going to need another ball bearing.

I guess Mike got a different batch of bikes than what others got.

Nah, I think it's more likely that they haven't had anyone fill it up and then do anything that will slosh gas up in there.

I tried to get the bearing out of my old on, but it was in there really tight.

What did you do with your gas cap?

Greasy drilled it a couple o times for me, but there must be a membrane in there that self seals, because it didn't flow air.
So I just unhooked the hose, turned it back on itself and taped it to the cap. In another thread a poster (sorry unless I look I can't remember his name) had a photo of it. This way the end of the hose is higher than the outlet so it minimizes spillage.
That guy (sorry!) also has a 2T Stella gas cap on order. Those already come vented. He's going to post his findings . As long as it fits then it should work and we can just plug the hose coming from the tank. No more vacuum lock or spillage.

Nice! Red this time? Better visibility for those pesky minivans?

As for the rubber parts, I suspect the ozone coating on the scoots isn't the best. Rubber parts break down and crack really quickly if they're not properly treated when made. Unfortunately, I'm not aware of a fix for this. The rubber parts on my 2005 Stella are falling apart, and it's always been stored inside.

Bcon wrote:Nice! Red this time? Better visibility for those pesky minivans?

Partially that, partially I didn't want to repeat myself, partially to appease my wife whose favorite color is red and who really dislikes taking me to the emergency room when drivers try to kill me.

Bcon wrote:As for the rubber parts, I suspect the ozone coating on the scoots isn't the best. Rubber parts break down and crack really quickly if they're not properly treated when made. Unfortunately, I'm not aware of a fix for this. The rubber parts on my 2005 Stella are falling apart, and it's always been stored inside.

I'm post-treating mine this weekend. Sunshine is part of the problem, but I think the dry desert air here exacerbates it. The good thing is that rubber parts are cheap and easy to replace.

Eric, were you able to salvage your chrome parts?

Mulliganal wrote:Eric, were you able to salvage your chrome parts?

Nope. I'll be getting a separate insurance check for those (hopefully).

Enjoy it Eric

Did you get compensated for having the lowest Stella VIN in the US? We're talking collector's item!

Very nice! Did you get that earlier today, just prior to posting?

Actually there IS something about the rubber being manufactured now that is inferior to what Piaggio used to make. I've had old rubber bellows last for years on old scoots, but the new replacement parts, no matter who you get them from start cracking within the first year.

Brooktown Geezer wrote:Actually there IS something about the rubber being manufactured now that is inferior to what Piaggio used to make. I've had old rubber bellows last for years on old scoots, but the new replacement parts, no matter who you get them from start cracking within the first year.

They are using less petroleum in it these days...an ingredient which partially contributes to rubber's inherent "oilyness" and ability to resist the elements.

Most of these parts are really synthetic rubber.....not rubber made from sap and natural latex.

Syd wrote:Did you get compensated for having the lowest Stella VIN in the US? We're talking collector's item!

It wasn't the lowest VIN; 1-3 are still around. One (#2, I think) got crashed but isn't totaled, one is in Colorado, the fourth probably in Chicago.

I don't know if I got extra compensation for it. I did get a LOT more than what my insurance company was offering. Between that and the salvage on the totaled scoot, I was able to get a new one without going out of pocket.

michelle_7728 wrote:Very nice! Did you get that earlier today, just prior to posting?

I got it Thursday. Of course, I'd promised a coworker I'd take her to the airport after work so I couldn't ride today. I just thought about riding all day.

mattgordon wrote:

Brooktown Geezer wrote:Actually there IS something about the rubber being manufactured now that is inferior to what Piaggio used to make. I've had old rubber bellows last for years on old scoots, but the new replacement parts, no matter who you get them from start cracking within the first year.

They are using less petroleum in it these days...an ingredient which partially contributes to rubber's inherent "oilyness" and ability to resist the elements.

Most of these parts are really synthetic rubber.....not rubber made from sap and natural latex.

So all modern rubber is worse than vintage rubber?

ericalm wrote:

mattgordon wrote:

Brooktown Geezer wrote:Actually there IS something about the rubber being manufactured now that is inferior to what Piaggio used to make. I've had old rubber bellows last for years on old scoots, but the new replacement parts, no matter who you get them from start cracking within the first year.

They are using less petroleum in it these days...an ingredient which partially contributes to rubber's inherent "oilyness" and ability to resist the elements.

Most of these parts are really synthetic rubber.....not rubber made from sap and natural latex.

So all modern rubber is worse than vintage rubber?

I would venture to guess that most modern rubber bits are mostly synthetic, and that product likely isn't the same as "vintage" rubber. I dont consider it worse than vintage ("real" rubber) but it is different and requires fairly routine maintenance procedures and different products.

Nobody pampers their rubber bits more than I....I use a small paintbrush and apply Surfaceguard to it all! That being said, I have no problem with my rubber items as I literally slather them with an industrial surface protectant...and they remain flexible, shiny and pliable.

mattgordon wrote: Nobody pampers their rubber bits more than I....I use a small paintbrush and apply Surfaceguard to it all! That being said, I have no problem with my rubber items as I literally slather them with an industrial surface protectant...and they remain flexible, shiny and pliable.

Which industrial surface protectant do you use? I check the web for Surfaceguard but couldn't find anything with that exact name.

Also, what wax do you guys use on your Stella?

Mulliganal wrote:

mattgordon wrote: Nobody pampers their rubber bits more than I....I use a small paintbrush and apply Surfaceguard to it all! That being said, I have no problem with my rubber items as I literally slather them with an industrial surface protectant...and they remain flexible, shiny and pliable.

Which industrial surface protectant do you use? I check the web for Surfaceguard but couldn't find anything with that exact name.

Also, what wax do you guys use on your Stella?

I use Surfaceguard made by Mt. Hood Chemical Corp (Portland, Ore) but there are numerous others available.

I do NOT use ArmorAll.....

mattgordon wrote:

Mulliganal wrote:

mattgordon wrote: Nobody pampers their rubber bits more than I....I use a small paintbrush and apply Surfaceguard to it all! That being said, I have no problem with my rubber items as I literally slather them with an industrial surface protectant...and they remain flexible, shiny and pliable.

Which industrial surface protectant do you use? I check the web for Surfaceguard but couldn't find anything with that exact name.

Also, what wax do you guys use on your Stella?

I use Surfaceguard made by Mt. Hood Chemical Corp (Portland, Ore) but there are numerous others available.

I do NOT use ArmorAll.....

Matt, where did you purchase the Surfaceguard? I'm in Temecula once a month, if you got it up there...

DirtyRAT wrote:Congrats on the new Stella, Eric! Are you going to get any upgrades, like a Stiebel 136db horn? (I'd venture the wife will say yes) or racks/guards?

What brand of UV protectant will you use? I'm thinking of doing the same rubber care to my Stella

I'd like to add a Stebel Nautilus, just don't know if it'll fit! Racks and crash bars are a definite once I get my reimbursement from insurance.

I got some protectant at Pep Boys, but now I'm thinking I need something mattgordon strength!

I didnt buy the Stebel Nautilus, since it would mean losing my spare tire in order to install it.

I opted for this one http://www.stebel.it/stebel2009/product ... logia=moto

still waaayyy louder than the little 'meep meep' stock Stella horn. It mounts in the rear cowl, behind the spare tire.

Shitty pic here:

DirtyRAT wrote:

mattgordon wrote:

Mulliganal wrote: Which industrial surface protectant do you use? I check the web for Surfaceguard but couldn't find anything with that exact name.

Also, what wax do you guys use on your Stella?

I use Surfaceguard made by Mt. Hood Chemical Corp (Portland, Ore) but there are numerous others available.




I do NOT use ArmorAll.....

Matt, where did you purchase the Surfaceguard? I'm in Temecula once a month, if you got it up there...

It's a long story, I get it from Mt Hood Chemical Co in Portland Oregon....am I a "Protectant Snob" maybe....but there are others available that are just fine.

http://www.mthoodchem.com/index.php

Ugh... it's impossible to find out how much that product costs on their website, let alone stomach the $14 per item shipping costs.

I'll keep looking, unless you want to go halves on your next shipment!

DirtyRAT wrote:Ugh... it's impossible to find out how much that product costs on their website, let alone stomach the $14 per item shipping costs.

I'll keep looking, unless you want to go halves on your next shipment!

There are many others that do just fine....303 Protectant for instance. http://www.autogeek.net/303.html?gclid= ... gwodNRJRBg
Any of the silicone based products will perform well.

mattgordon wrote:

DirtyRAT wrote:Ugh... it's impossible to find out how much that product costs on their website, let alone stomach the $14 per item shipping costs.

I'll keep looking, unless you want to go halves on your next shipment!

There are many others that do just fine....303 Protectant for instance. http://www.autogeek.net/303.html?gclid= ... gwodNRJRBg
Any of the silicone based products will perform well.

I thought silicone based ones (like Armor All) were the ones to avoid.

Glad to see you got another Stella 4T eric Really like the new color too.

Congrats, Eric! Red... the fastest color...

Where did your crashed one end up?

And I was the first person to crash a 4t stella in the US.

...but I didnt total it...

bosco wrote:Where did your crashed one end up?

And I was the first person to crash a 4t stella in the US.

...but I didnt total it...

NoHo now owns the crashed one. They're going to hand it to someone to use for developing pipes & performance parts. I think it'll be fixed up and resurrected in some form.

BTW, the rubber protectant I used: Auto Glym. It's British!

http://www.autoglym.com/enus/product-pr ... I&Range=85

Applied yesterday by wiping on. Very careful to keep excess off painted bits or wipe up any stray swipes. Removed cowls to do the trims. One day later, the rubber looks great.

Also, I sued my usual NanoWax on the Stella. It's weird, but the Stella takes wax differently than my Vespa. It may be that the red color is just darker, so I need to buff it a bit more. But I think I'm going to try a heavier duty wax/polish next time. I really want to protect that paint!

ericalm wrote:It's weird, but the Stella takes wax differently than my Vespa.

Likely because the Stella is not clear-coated.

Silver Streak wrote:

ericalm wrote:It's weird, but the Stella takes wax differently than my Vespa.

Likely because the Stella is not clear-coated.

Hm, maybe I should laminate the whole dang thing.

ericalm wrote:BTW, the rubber protectant I used: Auto Glym. It's British!

http://www.autoglym.com/enus/product-pr ... I&Range=85

Do any retail shops carry that stuff? The link on the site is kaput.

desmolicious wrote:

ericalm wrote:BTW, the rubber protectant I used: Auto Glym. It's British!

http://www.autoglym.com/enus/product-pr ... I&Range=85

Do any retail shops carry that stuff? The link on the site is kaput.

I got it at Pep Boys.

ericalm wrote:BTW, the rubber protectant I used: Auto Glym. It's British!

http://www.autoglym.com/enus/product-pr ... I&Range=85

Applied yesterday by wiping on. Very careful to keep excess off painted bits or wipe up any stray swipes. Removed cowls to do the trims. One day later, the rubber looks great.

Also, I sued my usual NanoWax on the Stella. It's weird, but the Stella takes wax differently than my Vespa. It may be that the red color is just darker, so I need to buff it a bit more. But I think I'm going to try a heavier duty wax/polish next time. I really want to protect that paint!

I'd be curious to see how the rubber treated with Auto Glym holds up after a month, in your opinion. I'm going to phone that Mt Hood place to see what kind of quantities of Surfaceguard they'll sell a non-commercial buyer.

Eric, can you elaborate on your comment on why you recommend wiping stray swipes of Auto Glym? Does it etch or erode the stella paint?

For this NanoWax: did you also buy it at Pep boys? (I found some PepBoys in San Diego) how did you apply it, and then how did you buff it? My first inkling for my application of a rubber protectant would be those little foam tipped paint brush things.

I've seen some people who use buffer attachments on their cordless drills or Dremel tools. That always seemed like a good idea, but I never tried it.

I ask, since I am a total noob at detailing scooters, AND I dont want the Stella to go too long without some paint protectant.

I try to keep all my products on the surface they're intended for.

The rubber protectant was wiped on because anything like that can build up on your paint. It may not damage it, but once dry might not be easy to remove.

The Nano Wax (from Pep Boys, yup) is applied with a microfiber mitt. I spray onto the mitt, wipe on, then buff as needed later. On my clear coated Vespa, it wipes on smoothly and doesn't really need buffing. On the Stella, parts of it looked uneven so I buffed lightly with the opposite side of the mitt.

I also have a plastic polish but haven't used it on the Stella. Last time I washed my Vespa, I had the body apart while working on electrics so polished all the plastic parts separately.

The problem I have with the Dremel is control. It's not variable speed (has 10 distinct settings) and just kind of goes and goes. I've messed up as many things with it as fixed! I tried to use it to polish the brake levers on the Vespa and just wound up removing some kind of coating on them and leaving them streaky. Live and learn!

Thanks for all the info, Eric.

I'm headed to PepBoys for those products today, and to Walmart for some 3M Auto adhesive remover.

ericalm wrote:I try to keep all my products on the surface they're intended for.

The rubber protectant was wiped on because anything like that can build up on your paint. It may not damage it, but once dry might not be easy to remove.

The Nano Wax (from Pep Boys, yup) is applied with a microfiber mitt. I spray onto the mitt, wipe on, then buff as needed later. On my clear coated Vespa, it wipes on smoothly and doesn't really need buffing. On the Stella, parts of it looked uneven so I buffed lightly with the opposite side of the mitt.

Ok, just back from PepBoys, and got a bottle of this:



I washed and rinsed, and cloth dried my Stella.

I then sprayed some onto a microfiber, circular applicator pads like these:



The wax ended up just beading up on the surface, no matter what I did. Is that a similar thing that happened during your nanowax application?

I was not sure if I purchased the same wax, since the shop also had this NanoWax product: http://www.eagleone.com/pages/products/ ... temid=1103

I have been unable to locate AutoGlym anywhere locally, but it seems there is a detail supply depot in san diego that carries Autoglym:

http://www.tcpglobal.com/DetailSupplyDe ... =AUT+06500

The BEST news of the day: I found some 3M Adhesive remover spray at PepBoys. I sprayed it on that one, stubborn sticker remaining on the leg shield above the glove box.

That stuff just melted that sticker away with a few rubs. I had it off in 5 minutes!

My Nanowax didn't bleed, but it did look streaky in places.

I need to find that 3M adhesive stuff!

ericalm wrote:My Nanowax didn't bleed, but it did look streaky in places.

I need to find that 3M adhesive stuff!

http://www.tcpglobal.com/autobodydepot/ ... o=MMM+8987

Not only does the above website have the 3M adhesive remover for all us frustrated Stella owners, they also carry the AutoGlym vinyl and rubber protectant Eric recommends:

http://www.tcpglobal.com/detailsupplyde ... =AUT+06500

I shall be testing the Autoglym today, after having picked up a bottle!

Here's mine.. sold my 08 olive drab




& got this one May Friday 13th..
Loving it so far...
Found that the 'cap' ontop of the carb where the throttle cable goes in...
Well that 'cap' was loose.. I hand-tightned it at least a quarter turn MORE.. then channel-locked it another c-hair..
Check yours.. good luck.
jh

jimmbomb wrote:Here's mine.. sold my 08 olive drab

Man, that is exactly what I'm waiting for, the only difference is I'm going to also get a backrack. Sweet bike, can't wait to get mine.

Question, which cowl protectors did you go with? Is that the Genuine set?

Sweeeeeeet.

(all these great Stella shots give me an oh-so-slight case of Buddy remorse.)