New owner

[Tibbsy]

Hey I finally got my Roughhouse 50 - Matte Green. I LOVE this thing. I'm at about 600 miles, clocking in around 90mpg on average. I bought the GMax 54S modular helmet with the LED light built in. Very nice for late night rides if I have to go back in to lab. I put a black egg crate on the rear rack and I've used some old bike bungee cords to hold stuff. I just wish is had a cup holder for my coffee in the morning

I have a few questions and thoughts, though.

Can I paint the body with krylon fusion or something? I dig the matte green, but I kind of wanted a matte tan/brown color.

What kind of cover do most people get? My neighbor has one that cost him ~50 bucks, but I was wondering if something like this would work? http://www.amazon.com/Docooler-Motorcyc ... oter+cover

I really dislike the side kickstand. It was raining really hard one morning and I had to run inside for a second, so I used that one instead of the rear stand that I normally do and I heard a crash about 3 seconds after I stepped away. My left brake handle is bent a bit, the left rear blinker housing broke, and I think my alignment is a bit off - I used to be able to take my hands off the handles and the scooter would ride straight. Now it starts to wobble left and right. I have since fixed the blinker with some superglue and epoxy, but I'm thinking of swapping out to LED blinkers.

I was thinking of doing all kinds of stuff with the engine, like the Slaughterhouse build, but I really like it as is. I am going to swap out the headlight bulbs though - they are horrible. Any recommendations?

They told me that my oil reserve would be used up ~200 miles, but that would get me to my first check up. I have topped off 2 times, and I have only had to use the oil they gave me when I bought it, but I'm at almost 600... Is that normal?

Thanks!

[agrogod]

Welcome to the Roughhouse crowd! If you bought your bike brand new you should be able to get the repairs done under warranty If not then...
Brake handle scroll down to bottom.

As for your sidestand its ok to use it just as long as you have eyes on your bike and its within a few steps away.

The cover you linked to should do the trick, but it may be somewhat flappy in the wind. That's not bad as you have added a cargo carrier to the rear. As for holding that down you may want to add some heavy duty zip ties to help secure it.

As for painting Krylon has been used, but if you want a seamless look a good quality auto paint job is recommended. But you know your budget better than I.

The headlight upgrade is here
Headlight . Noticeable improvement over stock.
DO NOT TOUCH the bulb with your bare skin. This will cause the bulb to fail and for the cost you want to get at least life expectancy. Use cotton gloves when working with the bulb.

Also if you are looking for better acceleration without voiding a warranty, go with a 6 - 6.5 gram roller or slider swap.

Happy scooting.

[Tibbsy]

Thanks for the reply! I have heavy duty zip ties holding the crate down. I've put 40 lbs worth of charcoal back there and it didn't budge.

The scooter is new, but I'm not sure warranty covers that as it was a fall. I only use the side stand when I'm gassing up now. I was only a few feet when it fell. Lame.

I think either the seat padding is breaking in, the rear shock is breaking in, or my rear tire is low on air. I noticed that it felt "soft" today - like the rear was kind of sinking when I was on it. Odd.

I'll probably hold off on the paint - I want it to look good, but paying someone $$$ to paint a few pieces of plastic seems silly. Maybe one day

Why can't you touch the bulb with your bare hands?

[agrogod]

The soft feeling your getting is a good indication that your air pressure is low.
That's something you should check at least once a week.
Oils from your skin will adhere to the bulb and shorten the life of the bulb. The bulbs get hot and you kind of create a 'frying pan' effect. No hi intensity bulb should come into contact with bare skin, that includes the ones on a car or truck.

Just try to get your dealer to do warranty work, you can press the issue that its a fault with the sidestand.

[Tibbsy]

The soft feeling your getting is a good indication that your air pressure is low.
That's something you should check at least once a week.
Oils from your skin will adhere to the bulb and shorten the life of the bulb. The bulbs get hot and you kind of create a 'frying pan' effect. No hi intensity bulb should come into contact with bare skin, that includes the ones on a car or truck.

Just try to get your dealer to do warranty work, you can press the issue that its a fault with the sidestand.

Thanks!

The roughhouse is making an odd noise now? It used to make that "put put" sound when I idled or let off the gas. If I throttled forward, it just became one big audible "brrrrrrrrrrrrrr". Now it still does that but underneath the loud "brrrrrrrrrrrrrr" when I accelerate, there is what sounds like a lawn mower turning on, a "put... put.. put. putput. putputputputputputput" kind of sound. It's hard to describe other than I can feel it, too. It is just like a lawn mower where is sort of slowly "puts" a couple of times, then speeds up and starts putting without breaks in between. Then when I get up to speed, if I keep the throttle in 1 place and stay ~35, after the put-putting fades, there is a high pitched whine.

It started just after I topped 900 miles. I've been using the 2-stroke oil and maintaining that, using the special ethanol-remover stuff every time I fill up on gas. Is this normal? Is it a spark plug thing?

[agrogod]

Mine does sort of does the same thing. Its your engine getting broken in. Nothing to be worried about.

[OldGuy]

Regarding the sidestand, mine was terrible too. I modified it as shown in the attached, and now it works great always. Still, use the sidestand when parked, but not wen starting or when the engine I running.

[OldGuy]

Hmm... attachment didn't attach. I removed the side stand and ground the weld at the front so the stand would pivot further forward. When it is more forward it is more stable and will not want to collapse. I used a bench grinder to do this.

[RiderK]

Hmm... attachment didn't attach. I removed the side stand and ground the weld at the front so the stand would pivot further forward. When it is more forward it is more stable and will not want to collapse. I used a bench grinder to do this.

I've used the side stand on quite a few occasions without any issues, sometimes for hours. Is this one of those "yet" type of things if I keep doing so?

[OldGuy]

I think the sidestand design is good as long as the welding is good. If the weld bead is built up on the front then it interferes with the stand opening as far as it should; then the stand is unstable and will collapse easily.