When I removed the old rectifier I could see it was melted a little. No wonder it was dead. The rectifier sits behind the battery on the opposite side of the battery compartment -- closest to the frame.
Sunday, 9 December 2007
Dead battery?
Own a 2002 Chetak? Battery keep dying super duper fast? My wife owns a 2002 Butter Yellow Bajaj Chetak and I went camping with a buddy and used her scoot as I loaned mine to my friend. From riding just one full day the battery was dead. This bothered me, because I was scooter camping for the weekend and had to run the bike without the batt/front light on dark forest rodes. Not the safest way to ride. I went out and bought another. And it happened again on our second scooter camping weekend. It killed my brand new battery too. They don't recover well from a full discharge like a car batt does. I eventually found the fix, replace the $110 rectifier. Luckily it was under warranty as a "recall."
Scooter Camping 2006
This is a ton of fun! Two rules: (1) no cars, absolutely no cars and (2) stay at least two nights. This idea came from a watch of Easy Rider and reading about ol'school dirt bike campers, who packed their bikes up with every drop of gas and camping item they could carry and rode deep into the canyons. Dirt biked all day and beer, fire, and camp at night. Nice way to spend a week!
This slide show has two camping trips on it and a friend drove up for an evening. The car was NOT a chase car. I have a scooter camping list you are welcome to request. It's thorough. It's a MS Word. Email me at jeremy at bassmonkey dot com.
*Note: It is much safer to pack your weight on a front rack. Riding the way we have is not as safe. In fact, just hitting a small bump in the rode will result in doing a wheelie, which as you can imagine is dangerous around corners. I aim to buy one in the future.
When scooter camping . . . you can see the view like this guy did on the Red Rocks run. Now doesn't this make you want to go out and ride/camp right now?!
This slide show has two camping trips on it and a friend drove up for an evening. The car was NOT a chase car. I have a scooter camping list you are welcome to request. It's thorough. It's a MS Word. Email me at jeremy at bassmonkey dot com.
*Note: It is much safer to pack your weight on a front rack. Riding the way we have is not as safe. In fact, just hitting a small bump in the rode will result in doing a wheelie, which as you can imagine is dangerous around corners. I aim to buy one in the future.
When scooter camping . . . you can see the view like this guy did on the Red Rocks run. Now doesn't this make you want to go out and ride/camp right now?!
Christmas Wish List 2007
It's a sad state at my house for scooters. The piggy bank remains dry and we have attempted to resolve that issue by putting all other desires on hold. Below is my wife's and my Christmas wish list, which was sent to my family.
Note: items in bold are the ones we need first. Please ship to my work at:
Susquehanna Township High School
Scooter Works – 1.888.96.VESPA
$19.00 -- Item #73538 -- Spring, Rear Shock
$10.20 -- #60536 – Rear suspension dampener block & hardware
$.75 – S.3109 – Spring Washer
$29.00 – CCS6 – Complete cable set
$49.00 – 92563 – Wire harness for non-battery
$4.8 – 77023 – Ball cage bearing for front fork
$3.6 – 77024 – Ball cage bearing for front fork
$15 – (QTY: 3) 3.5x10 inner tubes
$18 -- 13521 – (QTY: 2) Cowl packing strip (rubber trim) in Grey
$49 – FRKVNB – Floor rail kit (order Rally version)
$14 – 70577 – Twist grips in GREY
$12 – 85072 -- Center mat in BLACK
$16 – 85073 and 85074 -- Center mat retainers
$35 -- LTC6-C – Legshield chrome
MotorSport Scooters – 1.619.280.1718
$8.70 -- 060536 – Upper shock mount and hardware (also listed under Scooter Works)
$18.95 -- Part #: 097366 – GS/SS air bellow
$1.00 – Hose band clips
Scooter Richmond – 1.877.SCOOT.25
$9.99 – 90525 --Speedo Cable
$6.99 – 98655 -- Speedo Pinion
Our goal is to get the front end in cables run, and engine/rear tire, and kick stand installed within the next couple months and have the bike on its own two feet ASAP.
Christmas Wish List 2007
Note: items in bold are the ones we need first. Please ship to my work at:
Susquehanna Township High School
Scooter Works – 1.888.96.VESPA
$19.00 -- Item #73538 -- Spring, Rear Shock
$10.20 -- #60536 – Rear suspension dampener block & hardware
$.75 – S.3109 – Spring Washer
$29.00 – CCS6 – Complete cable set
$49.00 – 92563 – Wire harness for non-battery
$4.8 – 77023 – Ball cage bearing for front fork
$3.6 – 77024 – Ball cage bearing for front fork
$15 – (QTY: 3) 3.5x10 inner tubes
$18 -- 13521 – (QTY: 2) Cowl packing strip (rubber trim) in Grey
$49 – FRKVNB – Floor rail kit (order Rally version)
$14 – 70577 – Twist grips in GREY
$12 – 85072 -- Center mat in BLACK
$16 – 85073 and 85074 -- Center mat retainers
$35 -- LTC6-C – Legshield chrome
MotorSport Scooters – 1.619.280.1718
$8.70 -- 060536 – Upper shock mount and hardware (also listed under Scooter Works)
$18.95 -- Part #: 097366 – GS/SS air bellow
$1.00 – Hose band clips
Scooter Richmond – 1.877.SCOOT.25
$9.99 – 90525 --Speedo Cable
$6.99 – 98655 -- Speedo Pinion
Our goal is to get the front end in cables run, and engine/rear tire, and kick stand installed within the next couple months and have the bike on its own two feet ASAP.
Final Quote Comparison
I typically request quotes from multiple shops to ensure that I can find all of the parts I need. Often I can find most of what I need and I always pursue NOS (new old stock) first. Below is my final quote comparison, which will show you how detailed I have become with my parts lists as well as give you an idea of how closely different shops charge for parts.
If you're interested I have this quote in an MS Excel file if you need it to create your parts list. I have already give away my Lambretta TV175 list to another restorer and I was happy to do so, because I know it saved the guy a few hours of work, which he can now use towards restoring his scoot now.
If you're interested I have this quote in an MS Excel file if you need it to create your parts list. I have already give away my Lambretta TV175 list to another restorer and I was happy to do so, because I know it saved the guy a few hours of work, which he can now use towards restoring his scoot now.
Steamy Holidays
The Make! blog has enlisted Steampunk maker extraordinaire Jake Von Slatt to create a gift guide for that Steampunk on your list. As you might expect from a tinkerer of Herr Von Slatt's ingenuinity and refined taste, there are some real beauties on this list:Tool box - Journeyman Tool Chest Price: $987.00 Buy: Gerstner - Link. There is something about beautifully crafted hand tools that
The Sea is Our Shake-Up Flashlight
OSU is working on a new system for harnessing Poseidon's limitless energy. Their website is short on details, but the basic concept is ... well pretty basic, and you'll the get the gist from the above graphic. Pretty heady stuff.The New York Times has an article about the technology and concerns it raises with fishermen and environmentalists. I have heard previous concepts for wave energy which
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)