New Member and My Customized Buddy STRIPE INSTALLED!

[AtlBuddy]

Hello all. I have been reading on this site for a few weeks now and decided that I should go ahead and introduce myself and show off some pics of my new Buddy. My partner and I just got them 3 days ago and as soon as I got home I couldn't wait to take it apart. Thanks to toddrw2251 for the advice and inspiration. Here are some pics of what I have done so far. The mods include:

1. removal of dot blinkers, activation of deadlights
2. customized rear fender
3. Customized mud flap
4. blacked out trim (chrome parts)
5. painted mirrors (black,not installed yet)

I will put my mirrors back on in the morning and perhaps tackle the chrome ring around the speedo. Any advise? Also I plan to add a black strip on the front cover and upgrade to the stage 1 kit. What do u guys think?

[jasondavis48108]

It looks like you painted over the turn signals front and back (or are those tinted lens) It looks really good, but I wouldn't put the stock mirrors back on. With the look you've got going on its screamin for bar end mirrors.

[gearhead]

your buddy looks NASTY SICK! i like the way that turned out where the chrome pieces were painted black. Nice...

[MYSCTR]

Yep - the black on red looks good!

That's what we're talking about!

Really like the blacked out chrome rings!

[AtlBuddy]

It looks like you painted over the turn signals front and back (or are those tinted lens) It looks really good, but I wouldn't put the stock mirrors back on. With the look you've got going on its screamin for bar end mirrors.

The lenses have been "smoked" not painted. They look dark until the blinkers are turned on. it's a spray paint application that can be put on in multiple applications til the darkness you desire is achieved. It's funny you mention the bar end mirrors. That is sort of what I was thinking. I was also thinking of painting the front brake caliper red to match.

[jasondavis48108]

can you pick up that paint at an automotive store? I'd be interested in that stuff. My Italia is now green and black (replaced the creme panels). Havn't thought much about blacking out the chrome until seeing yuor scoot, something I'll have to give some serious consideration.

[bigbropgo]

Looks sweet. Bar end mirrors would look cool to. Blacked out wheels? Might as well finish her off. Nice work.

Welcome to MB. Ride safe.

[BootScootin'FireFighter]

looking good! I was about to suggest bar-end mirrors, they'd look sick. I'm probably ordering them this week for my stallion. Oh yea, and welcome to MB! Keep us posted on future mods and any long adventures you take it on.

[AtlBuddy]

can you pick up that paint at an automotive store? I'd be interested in that stuff. My Italia is now green and black (replaced the creme panels). Havn't thought much about blacking out the chrome until seeing yuor scoot, something I'll have to give some serious consideration.

Yeah you can get it at Autozone, Advance Auto, or Pep Boys. the stuff i got is called Night Shades by VHT. It is not the cheapest at 12.99 and I didn't even use a 1/4 of a can. It's pretty neat stuff. You have to be careful cause it is super thin and will run easily. I wet sanded the lenses after drying and then polished with a plastic polish. If you want them even shinier, you can clear coat them.

[AtlBuddy]

Looks sweet. Bar end mirrors would look cool to. Blacked out wheels? Might as well finish her off. Nice work.

Welcome to MB. Ride safe.

Where are you guys getting these bar end mirrors? off eBay? Is the visibility decent with those and do they vibrate so much you can't see?

[BootScootin'FireFighter]

topic15365.html

That's the thread relating to them. They're relatively popular and are adaptable to the buddy handlebars. Many of your questions have already been addressed about them. I'm sold.

[AtlBuddy]

This is the stripe I was thinking about ordering. I think the stripe kinda grounds that "vintage-racing" look.

[cheez37]

This looks fantastic. Thanks for the info on the lens smoke. I'm trying to do the exact same thing to my black buddy. Did you just use Krylon Plastic spray paint on the rear turn signal and headlight bezels? (and how tough is it to remove the rear quarter panels to get the bezels out?)

Another thing I have been pondering is to powder coat my wheels and CVT cover. Just an idea for you.

[gearhead]

the night shades paint is like a tint right? so you could possibly have one light darker than the other if things mess up?

[AtlBuddy]

Yes you could mess up since each coat makes the lens a little darker. What I did was put the lens side by side and made sweeping passes over them both at the same time rather than trying to paint them separately.

The rear blinker surrounds were the hardest part to remove. I had to take off both narrow side trim pieces, the tail light assembly and mud flap, the seat and storage unit. I did not separate the two trim pieces that go around the seat. they have very small and delicate tabs that join them just before where the center bolt is for the rack. Once I removed this part I was able to slowly and carefully push the blinker housing out of the plastic.This was the worst part of the mod.

[laxer]

Do you put the lens smoke on the inside or outside of the lens (or does it even matter)?

[BuddyLicious]

I wonder if painting the tranny cover black would be to much or enhance even further? What say you all? Looks GREAT!

[dustyembury]

This is the stripe I was thinking about ordering. I think the stripe kinda grounds that "vintage-racing" look.

I love this! Where do you order racing stripes like this?

D

[AtlBuddy]

Do you put the lens smoke on the inside or outside of the lens (or does it even matter)?

They always say paint the outside and I think it is for two reasons. One, because most light assemblies are sealed so it would be hard to get to the inside. Second, I am of the belief that if you painted the inside the light from the bulb would have less reflective potential since it is bouncing off of dark surface (the tint). I could just be full of it as well.

[AtlBuddy]

This is the stripe I was thinking about ordering. I think the stripe kinda grounds that "vintage-racing" look.

I love this! Where do you order racing stripes like this?

D

I ordered mine yesterday at Motorsport Scooters. It was $22. Here is the link:
http://www.scooterwest.com/items/?_page ... K/2458[url][/url]

They have them in White as well. Just look under misc. accessories for the buddy.

[AtlBuddy]

Here is my speedo ring and mirrors. It was the last thing I painted. i am still thinking about the bar end mirrors and have read the previous post about them but am still a bit skeptical. I think to that it widens the look of the bike which I am not sure I want to do. Painting the tranny cover might be fun though! I am also thinking about removing my buddy decals and painting them black as well but want to wait til i get my racing stripe positioned.

[maribell]

Now do the rims and then engine case and you'll be set.

[AtlBuddy]

Here is my speedo ring and mirrors. It was the last thing I painted. i am still thinking about the bar end mirrors and have read the previous post about them but am still a bit skeptical. I think to that it widens the look of the bike which I am not sure I want to do. Painting the tranny cover might be fun though! I am also thinking about removing my buddy decals and painting them black as well but want to wait til i get my racing stripe positioned.

[Dr. Rock]

That looks effin awesome! thanks for the smoke info... gonna look into that.

[laxer]

That looks effin awesome! thanks for the smoke info... gonna look into that.

[cheez37]

What paints did you use for the plastic and metal parts. Just want to see if I have options.

[AtlBuddy]

What paints did you use for the plastic and metal parts. Just want to see if I have options.

I used rustoleum(spelling?) matt paint for all the chrome items and then used a satin paint on the mirrors since the controls they were screwed into were the same satin finish. make sure you rough up the chrome pieces so that you have a good surface for the paint to bond to. The best thing you can do is let the paint set for a few hours before reinstalling. I have learned to be a little more patient when painting parts to let them set up rather than mess up a perfectly painted part because of your haste to see a finished product.

my newest project will be to remove the buddy decals and paint them flat black. I am a little worried about the paint flaking but we will see. I'll post some pics when I get my stripe in and paint the decals. I also am thinking it would be neat to paint the cvt cover flat back as well. I don't think it is subjected to enough heat to require special paint or powder coating. Any advise?

[jasondavis48108]

with the CVT its not the heat I'd be worried about its all the little pebbles and other crap on the road thats kicked up and hits the cover. You can always try painting it and if it doesn't hold up then have it powder coated. I've thought about popping all the chrome and the CVT cover off the bike and having it all powder coated but I live in Michigan and the salted roads here will kill metal quick if its not protected. After 2 years my exhuast pipe is just about shot and my kick starter is pretty rusty as well. Hope this trend doesn't extend to the frame

[AtlBuddy]

here's a pic of my newly painted buddy rear quarter logos.

[glamourgirrrl]

How did you get the logo's to re stick?

[ScooterTrash]

How did you get the logo's to re stick?

They do that on their own, peel right off and go right back on. Mine is on my tool box

[TVB]

How did you get the logo's to re stick?

They do that on their own, peel right off and go right back on. Mine is on my tool box

Yup, I have the only front-wheel-drive "Buddy 50" hatchback in the county. It only gets about 30-35mpg, though.

[LisaLisa]

I have a Buddy 125 laptop

[ericalm]

Ha, and I thought there was a source for smoke lenses someplace!

I've seen some really badass applications of that. I can only imagine how great those would look on a BlackJack! Someone do this!

[glamourgirrrl]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your scooter!!! I'm so stealing a few of your mods for my seafoam green Buddy. I'm having a wicked hard time with the deadlight tinting though. I sprayed both a the same time, got them even and when I wet sand them one comes out lighter. I'm going to respray today, Any tips?

[AtlBuddy]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your scooter!!! I'm so stealing a few of your mods for my seafoam green Buddy. I'm having a wicked hard time with the deadlight tinting though. I sprayed both a the same time, got them even and when I wet sand them one comes out lighter. I'm going to respray today, Any tips?

well as with any painting, the larger the area the harder it is to get a consistant finish. My advice would be to make super light coats in a sweeping overlapping pattern. I am not sure what grit paper you are using but I am using a 1200. You don't need much pressure to do the wet sand. On a sea foam green I think I would definatly clear the lenses for a shinier look. Clearing them will make them a little darker. If you mess up the spray tint you can use a paint thinner to take it off. Just be careful not to melt your plastics with too much.

[glamourgirrrl]

Cool Thanks!

[Weemcginnes]

How did you get the piece around the headlight and speedo off to paint? Planning on that myself. Thanks

[AtlBuddy]

How did you get the piece around the headlight and speedo off to paint? Planning on that myself. Thanks

the headlight ring has a screw on top then two push tabs on the bottom. The speedo ringo can be accessed by removing the 4 screws holding the red and black plastics together then gently seperating the plasticvtabs near the brake levers. After that you can lift the painted cover up and push the speedo cable up so you can unscrew it. After you do that, then there are 3 screws that hold the speedo in place. After you remove those the chrome ring will be attached to the painted trim piece. Gently push up from the inside to disengage the tabs holding the ring in. When you reassemble, make sure the bottom of the ring where the fuel gage is properly lined up on the trim since there is a little play in it. Hope this helps.

[glamourgirrrl]

Ok here is my copycat effort. Also couldn't get the tailight casings out no matter how hard I tried. Finally just taped them off and painted them while still attached. It came out really good and I only needed to touch up a few minor spots. Thanks for the great idea for these mods!!! I love that all that fake chrome is gone. I have a black rear rack coming that I won on Ebay for $20. So much for leaving this scooter alone!

[AtlBuddy]

Ok here is my copycat effort. Also couldn't get the tailight casings out no matter how hard I tried. Finally just taped them off and painted them while still attached. It came out really good and I only needed to touch up a few minor spots. Thanks for the great idea for these mods!!! I love that all that fake chrome is gone. I have a black rear rack coming that I won on Ebay for $20. So much for leaving this scooter alone!

Glad you are modding your scooter. The Buddy is cool looking in stock form but modding kicks it up a few notches. This is my first scooter. I have had several motorcycles but this is a whole different ball game. Everything is so inexpensive that if you mess something up, it can be replaced for very little money.

[polianarchy]

Ni-i-i-ice! I mean, I <3 chrome, but the allover blackout is pretty sweet. I was actually considering blacking out the triangle-ish logo thingy (technical term) on the front of the Buddy. Hmm, maybe I will!

And, welcome aboard! Excellent intro post.

[bpatrick5]

Ok here is my copycat effort. Also couldn't get the tailight casings out no matter how hard I tried. Finally just taped them off and painted them while still attached. It came out really good and I only needed to touch up a few minor spots. Thanks for the great idea for these mods!!! I love that all that fake chrome is gone. I have a black rear rack coming that I won on Ebay for $20. So much for leaving this scooter alone!

Looks great on the seafoam green.

[AtlBuddy]

I recieved my stripe today(a day early)! I was in the process of removing my front caliper to repaint it when the UPS truck pulled up. I had to stop and take a look at the stripe and decided to pop her on. It was a b#$%h to put on and it did not come out as perfect as I would have liked. Here are a few pics of the finished installation.

[gearhead]

sweet, i didn't know that the buddy 50 had front disc brakes lol! Does anyone know if it is the same front end set-up as the buddy 125 & 150?

[AtlBuddy]

sweet, i didn't know that the buddy 50 had front disc brakes lol! Does anyone know if it is the same front end set-up as the buddy 125 & 150?

I think the 125 and 150 are slightly different to accommodate the heavier enines. not sure if the disc brake is the same or not.

[kivrot]

Yup, front disk, rear drum.

[glamourgirrrl]

The stripe looks great!!

[bpatrick5]

You're scooter looks fantastic. You put it all together so quickly. Good job!

[bpatrick5]

sweet, i didn't know that the buddy 50 had front disc brakes lol! Does anyone know if it is the same front end set-up as the buddy 125 & 150?

I seem to recall another thread where someone had either wrecked their 50 or bought a wrecked 50 and was planning to covert it to a 125 or 150. One of the last things in the thread was a response about the 50 having a different fork and break set up than the 125 & 150. When I compare my 150 to my GF's 50, the 150 is a lot bigger and the wheel is more forward than the 50. I tried to find the thread. No luck.