New member just dropping by to say hi

[sc00tcrazy]

Hello Everyone,

New member here, down in Sydney, Australia. Thanks for all the great info on the forum.

I recently became the proud new owner of a used 2011 DT in white. Was used by a gentleman wanted to get back to motorcycle riding after a 20+ year break who decided to get a scoot first to re-familiarise himself with life on two wheels without the added stress of a clutch/gears. Good for me because the scoot was a little over a year old and only had about 2500kms/1500 miles on the odo.

I have ridden push bikes my whole life - mountain biking, road, commuting. Got my first scoot, a PGO X-Hot 150cc (fantastic scooter), in August last year. Have been commuting 5 days a week (rain or sun for us down here, no snow) approx 30km round trip. Upgraded to the DT to get better storage, better weather protection and a little more grunt to push around my 95kg.

Loving it so far, especially how surprisingly nimble the handling is given its size (not as flickable as the X-Hot, but different types of scoots). Only one minor negative at the moment that I feel the need to adress - the screen produces a fair amount of buffeting over 50km/h (I'm 5'9"), so will need to sort that out with a sports screen or some sort of spoiler perhaps. I am still getting used to the added weight when pushing the DT in the garage/driveway, but that is already passing after 2 weeks of ownership. Later down the track I am considering:

* upgrading lights
* upgrading front suspension internals
* upgrading rear shocks - have only managed to research/find one brand (bitubo) that makes DT-specific shocks. If anyone knows of any other decent manufacturers I would love to hear about it
* upgrading to 14g or 15g sliders - thanks for the great thread about this. DT has significantly better performance than the X-Hot (and the X-Hot wasn't a slouch for a 150cc) and I ride solo, so not rushing to make this upgrade.

Ride safe.

[zombie]

"* upgrading rear shocks - have only managed to research/find one brand (bitubo) that makes DT-specific shocks. If anyone knows of any other decent manufacturers I would love to hear about it"
 Measure your shocks from center to center on the mount holes. Then you can google that length shock to find one that you like. Just an example 235mm scoot shock...http://www.google.com/search?client=opera&rls=en&q=235mm+scoot+shock&sourceid=opera&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&channel=suggest
 

[TANWare]

Welcome to the forum and ownership of the fine scooter. Not tooo sure the road conditions there but for the flat roads in the US the stock shocks seem to be fine. Id it that your are stiff or do not provide enough travel etc?

as far as weight, the sliders will help out with performance. If you so alot of lower speed riding the 14gr may let the engine rev a bit much for you and decrease MPG. The 15gr may be the better choice in that case and provide even slightly lower RPM's at high speed cruise.

Lights are what you are willing to do and live with.

1.) Stock replacements get the PIAA replacements.
2.) HIDs for lows (will require some wiring to keep low on with highs) and PIAA's for highs
3.) Hids for high and low (rewire lows on all the time but then highs have to warm up)
4.) actually just PIAA's low and high but rewire lows all the time.

I am satisfied with just the PIAA's but thee is a noticable difference between just riding with the highs or on lows using the flash switch as this lights up low and high beams.......................

[sc00tcrazy]

"* upgrading rear shocks - have only managed to research/find one brand (bitubo) that makes DT-specific shocks. If anyone knows of any other decent manufacturers I would love to hear about it"
 Measure your shocks from center to center on the mount holes. Then you can google that length shock to find one that you like. Just an example 235mm scoot shock...http://www.google.com/search?client=opera&rls=en&q=235mm+scoot+shock&sourceid=opera&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&channel=suggest
 

Hi zombie,

Thanks for the tip. Much appreciated.

One follow up question - is using a set of aftermarket shocks designed for a motorcycle (of the right length), assuming I come across some, a possibility? Or are they substantially different in how they perform and not suitable?

Ride safe.

[sc00tcrazy]

Welcome to the forum and ownership of the fine scooter. Not tooo sure the road conditions there but for the flat roads in the US the stock shocks seem to be fine. Id it that your are stiff or do not provide enough travel etc?

as far as weight, the sliders will help out with performance. If you so alot of lower speed riding the 14gr may let the engine rev a bit much for you and decrease MPG. The 15gr may be the better choice in that case and provide even slightly lower RPM's at high speed cruise.

Lights are what you are willing to do and live with.

1.) Stock replacements get the PIAA replacements.
2.) HIDs for lows (will require some wiring to keep low on with highs) and PIAA's for highs
3.) Hids for high and low (rewire lows on all the time but then highs have to warm up)
4.) actually just PIAA's low and high but rewire lows all the time.

I am satisfied with just the PIAA's but thee is a noticable difference between just riding with the highs or on lows using the flash switch as this lights up low and high beams.......................

Hi TANWare,

I lived in California for a couple of years so I know the general excellent quality of roads in that neck of the woods. Regrettably, in comparison, much of the Sydney road network leaves a lot to be desired. In particular, I love riding in the twisties the most, but the majority of such roads close to where I live have surfaces that show up the limitations of the DT stock shocks. Now for my commuting purposes, which accounts for most of my riding kms, the stock shocks are more than fine 95% of the time - just need to watch out for the odd pothole and remember certain corners that have a less than ideal surface. But, given that I believe this scoot is going to be a keeper for a number of years - love it - I am still tossing around spending some money eventually on replacement shocks for both the added safety and added enjoyment. Having said that, aftermarket shocks aren't cheap so it could very well remain a pipe dream!

Thanks for laying out the options for the lights. I don't currently have a regular need to ride in the dark, but anything that keeps me safer on the road is always welcome. I will investigate further.

Ride safe.

[zombie]

The main difference is the diameter. Moto x shocks tend to be much larger around. If you have the room then go for it. Adjustable shocks are always better. Either Nitrogen, or spring compression adjust ability will make you a happy camper. Application only matters when you get into very heavy machines. You wouldn't want a shock for a Goldwing lets say, because a pair of 2x4's would feel about the same. Stay away from cadmium plated springs too. They are NOT true spring steel but CHEAP copies meant to look cool. Cadmium is that gold tone you often see on nuts/bolts/mounting brackets ect. Gold anodized is different, and usually on a better spring.