Stig gets tech help from fellow owner

[Stig / Major Tom]

A fellow owner of a Piaggio Liberty150i just completed a rear wheel removal, and removed his the belt cover for the first time.
I mentioned that I'll soon be doing these same procedures on my Liberty. (belt is due in @ 500 miles, tire replacement is close)
He very kindly texted me several photos of his work with a few work-arounds of trouble spots which he encountered ("stuck" belt cover, of course).

Pretty cool to have a real life look at things, as the Piaggio manual download is very casual about anything other than a complete engine teardown!



First time into a new scooter is always a bit of an adventure. (for me anyway)

Stig

Sadly, not all in the scooter brotherhood are so friendly - one vendor/member of the Vespa forum said - well, his kindest words regarding the Kymco forum were: "the blind leading the blind...."

Trolls are best ignored...….(still, I won't be buying from his online parts store)

[scooterfan]

Very interesting. The cooling fins on my Agility’s Variator pulley are curved the opposite way. The air inlet opening at the variator Housing is located at the front of the housing more or less in line with the cooling fins at the pulley. The outer curves of the cooling fins are pointing at the air inlet opening at the housing - which means air will be sucked into th housing by means of the cooling fins, forced towards the center part of the fins, and the outwards away from the pulley when the engine is running.
Which makes me wonder - if the cooling fins are curved the opposite way like on this Piaggio, surely the air inlet opening at the variator Housing must be located at a different position ?

A photo of the fins on my Agility's variator can be seen below.

[CROSSBOLT]

Interesting the differences! Wonder at the raging arguements in the engineering loft about which way the fins should curve....
It is good you have a contact with a like-minded spirit who shares. Good to know there are more people out there like on here!

[Stig / Major Tom]

I believe the fins pick up the air just about at the 7 O'clock (maybe 6:40; quarter till 19:00; 6:50ish --- depends on dinner time in Naples)

I am not looking forward to removing that belt cover --- but know that the longer it's on there , the tougher it's going to be.

If it ever warms up again - I might start the belt, rollers and tire change.
(then again...if it's too warm, and after lunch - odds are I'll doze off again on my scooter-wrenching matt - which adds hours to the project!)

If I was a wealthy man - I'd phone Cincinnati and have them come fetch it, and return it all serviced, and with two new Angels.
Butteyeain't.
Stig
 

[Viper254]

I have to be honest, the service intervals seem insane. I wouldn't even dream of touching the best cover until 10-15K miles, but if you gots to keep warranty, you gots to do it, I guess.

[Stig / Major Tom]

I have to be honest, the service intervals seem insane. I wouldn't even dream of touching the best cover until 10-15K miles, but if you gots to keep warranty, you gots to do it, I guess.

Yeah, warranty ended after 2 yrs,  last summer.
I'll replace belt and rollers with OEM parts (@$50 total ), lube and clean at 6200 per manual. Who knows how I'll be feeling later.....😊
Stig

[Viper254]

Good luck! At least the parts are nice and cheap

[dan v.]

Got your tools ready?

-variator/clutch holding tool (ebay or amazon for about $14-)
-impact gun for removing the variator/ clutch/axle nut
-torque wrench for tightening the nuts to spec (HF for $10- on sale)
-rubber mallet or dead blow for tapping the stubborn cover

[wbdvt]

Boy for the Kymco DT200, the OEM belt is $100.  Your parts must be cheaper.

[Stig / Major Tom]

Got your tools ready?

-variator/clutch holding tool (ebay or amazon for about $14-)
-impact gun for removing the variator/ clutch/axle nut
-torque wrench for tightening the nuts to spec (HF for $10- on sale)
-rubber mallet or dead blow for tapping the stubborn cover

My Piaggio requires two special holding tools. One for the front pulley, and one for the rear clutch.
I'm OK with that...I always worry about snapping off a blade on the front pulley. You don't touch the blades on this Piaggio with their tool..
Sorry - not a big fan of H.B. *- and especially would not trust a torque wrench from them....and never a $10 one.
A couple of decades working on air-cooled VW's has given me a 'touch' for small engine work - and in alloys.

Stig
* had one of their 12V impact guns. It worked once on a scooter nut - now works great every time as a canoe anchor for my brother-in-law!

[Stig / Major Tom]

Boy for the Kymco DT200, the OEM belt is $100.  Your parts must be cheaper.

Like other manufacturers - prices on some OEM things are stupid - plastic gas cap is $29 (Lovely red "VESPA" billet cap from China $12); many others are not >  drum brake shoes $12, oil filter $7, belt $34, new engine $1169.
For my Xmas present, my family treated me to a very rare custom paint-matched OEM top case for $299.00 (*Scooterworks in SanDiego ordered cases they thought were matches for the gloss red Liberty S models. They turned out to be brown. So they sent a few out to their paint shop - to be resprayed the proper red. I snagged the last one they had - thanks to AF1-Racing (in Texas) parts guy who clued me in, and sent me to SW. The case has a beautiful paint job on it, with the Piaggio emblem refitted.)
* I saw the red case that S.W. had, and searched everywhere else for it. Including Italy! No dice. Then I learned the back-story from AF1-Racing. They were a custom paint job.


Stig