buddy too narrow?

robtaylor · Post by **robtaylor** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 10:35 pm

i guess i'm just thinking out loud here but does anyone else feel like the buddy is too narrow, especially in cold weather riding. i just wish someone would come out with an after market side deflectors or splash guards or something.
i've noticed people riding a stella or vespa, their body (at least everything below the handlebars) is covered by the scooter but on the buddy you can see the extreme left and right of people looking at them from the front.

it seems it would even be more aerodynamic because you jeans wouldn't be flapp'n in the wind as much.

maybe it's just me

Corsair · Post by **Corsair** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 10:50 pm

I understand what you're saying but I love the size of the Buddy. A deflector of some kind isn't a bad idea though. Well there's always the lap apron

robtaylor · Post by **robtaylor** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 11:16 pm

it just seems like with a molded piece of plastic that was a few inches wide you could deflect a lot of wind that ends up in your lap.

Christy · Post by **Christy** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 11:54 pm

as a slender person I am glad for a scooter that is narrow.

I've ridden several other scooters and many times I've had a problem with the footboard being too wide and being unable to get my feet down when coming to a stop.

I'm just saying that I like it as is, is all.

toddrw2251 · Post by **toddrw2251** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 12:39 am

I concur. I love the buddy, but wish the front was wider.

jmazza · Post by **jmazza** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:03 am

Agreed. It would look a bit more scooterish that way too.

jfrost2 · Post by **jfrost2** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:30 am

I like the size of the buddy just fine, I agree on cold weather, the top of my thighs get hit my the wind and they get cold after 30+ minutes of riding.

Ohhh genuine, when will you have those automatic stellas? When will frost be able to ride with modern technology but with 70's looks?

robtaylor · Post by **robtaylor** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 2:58 pm

jmazza wrote:Agreed. It would look a bit more scooterish that way too.

exactly,a little more vintage look

i'd bet someone who knew about plastic molds could fab one up pretty easily where you could insert it between the front cover and the back of the glovebox. it could be an add on that genuine could offer.

SteMer · Post by **SteMer** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 4:10 pm

toddrw2251 wrote:I concur. I love the buddy, but wish the front was wider.

+1

jfrost2 · Post by **jfrost2** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 5:41 pm

I know how to make plastic molds, but I dont wanna play with my buddy.

I know how to make fiberglass molds too! But I dont wanna play with "how to attach them"

robtaylor · Post by **robtaylor** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:35 pm

they make them for the ruckus, i guess the term i was looking for was leg shield.

Dibber · Post by **Dibber** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 3:13 pm

Beware, the wider the shield, the more wind resistance, the slower you go and burn more gas in the process.

robtaylor · Post by **robtaylor** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 4:13 pm

Dibber wrote:Beware, the wider the shield, the more wind resistance, the slower you go and burn more gas in the process.

very true, i'm just thinking that it has to be more aerodynamic than my pants and lap. but if they stuck straight out like the ruckus ones then yeah you'd probably lose at little power

louie · Post by **louie** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 5:27 pm

i'm a short woman who fits just right on the buddy. that's why i got it, well that and it's good rep. i've been looking around at mc and it's difficult to find mc or scooters that fit me.

Post by **ericalm** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 10:20 pm

Well... I'm not sure if the Buddy was originally developed for sale in Asia or intended for worldwide export. A lot of the Buddy's features, though, seem like they were designed to suit a much smaller person than the average American—especially the slightly narrow legshield and the short footboard. I think that Asian Buddys also have a shorter seat.

Eddy Merckx · Post by **Eddy Merckx** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 4:04 pm

I too think that a molded plexiglass type of wind deflector (made in buddy matching paint jobs) (or not) that could attach to the front rack mounts without preventing the rack to be mounted as well would be the shizzzzle, and would sell quite well to those that live in the north and the east (Chicago etc.) It would as well keep one much dryer in wet weather.

Someone with some pull with the Genuine Scooter Co. should push this sort of thing, it only makes good sense in the scooter world market.

jfrost2 · Post by **jfrost2** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 5:02 pm

I've seen a bubu before and it looked the same, only differences were the tachometer, seat style (looked like same shape, different material) and the headlight was still a smaller style. Over all it looked the same.

But I do agree, the body of the buddy may have been designed for smaller people, but asian people arent really smaller than american people, there are always short people, and always tall people.

I really like the body of the buddy though, it reminds me of the older 1960 model vespas, the small frame, big style.

robtaylor · Post by **robtaylor** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 6:56 pm

jfrost2 wrote:but asian people arent really smaller than american people, there are always short people, and always tall people.

yes but no other country does wide quite like america.

Dooglas · Post by **Dooglas** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 7:05 pm

jfrost2 wrote: But I do agree, the body of the buddy may have been designed for smaller people, but asian people arent really smaller than american people, there are always short people, and always tall people.

I'll leave it to someone else to comment on average height and weight of Asians vs. Americans but I can personally comment on one issue. A few years ago I was hunting for a pair of rubber boots at a public market in Thailand. I can assure you that most all SE Asians have feet that are smaller than most Americans.

Post by **ericalm** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:15 pm

Yes, there are tall, short, narrow and wide people everywhere, but most mass market products are aimed squarely at the middle. On average, Americans are taller and, yes, heavier and wider than most Asians.

I'm half Asian so managed to be both taller and heavier (:() than the average Filipino, but I gotta say, when I go overseas to visit I feel like Wilt Chamberlain. And finding shoes (size 12) and clothes over there is a challenge. My brother, who lives there, buys most of his in the U.S.