Thanks for your well wishes guys.
LML ran into financial problems and went out of business, but the importer, Genuine Scooters is still selling scooters, which have largely all gone 4 stroke in the USA, from what I understand. There is some discussion of mechanical issues with the LML 4 strokes on a forum, I think it is the rod bearing that fails, but the incidence of disasters seemed low enough that I'm willing to play. Mine is an early production model so will be a candidate, but came with just 4000 miles and apparently somebody dropped the blue Stella at some point, so there is a modest amount of right side cowl paint damage, and the price was reasonable.
I don't mind 2 strokes while open road motoring, but commuting here, I spend too much time stationary at traffic lights, smelling my own fumes, to want to risk the nausea I've experienced while using chain saws and weed whackers.
The spare tire is a real treasure. A good spare, already aired up, takes a lot of the worry out of traveling. And the split rims make tire changing very easy too. The bike had the original SAVA whitewall tires, made in Slovenia mounted as purchased, already well worn at 4000 and with evidence of one rotation. A poster on the scooter forum disparaged these tires pretty savagely, but left me with a funny quip I've added to my repertoire. You can substitute any names and the joke still works, as follows.
In tire quality, I rank them as: 1) Michelin
2) Pirelli
3) Riding bare rims
4) Sava
Including the spare in the rotation, is recommended, and by doing so one can extract the last bit of service out of a front that has worn peculiarly. I've heard that tires tend to wear more on one side because the weight of the engine on the right side tends to make the rider lean left at the balance point.
The front shield full floor boards and large rear rack, ( scooter guys call it a "barbeque grill") make the bike pretty practical. It's my new go-to for days that threaten rain, and is by far the most practical grocery getter in my small stable.
The innards are quite a mystery and I've a lot to learn. There is a battery and electric starter , but the headlight is pure AC, and oddly, the horn, although DC, seems to have it's own dedicated rectifier, and perhaps relay, not sure why they did that and it's not on the schematic.
I want to add a modest amount of auxiliary lighting, so trying to figure out which way to go. I can't imagine how the Quadrophenia style riders powered the forest of lights fitted to their Mod machines, the generator doesn't have much capacity. The existing turn signals have single contact 7507 bulb sockets, with the 150 degree splayed bayonets (BAU15s socket). One owner said they modified the turn signal system to stay on all the time, then blink when turning. I was looking over our local regulations, and they don't allow for amber rear running lights, and limit indicator power to 25 Candles, so there's that to consider. Clear, smoked and amber lenses are all available, but I haven't found red. I have clear lenses now.
Topic: Got myself an India made Scooter - Stella (Read 1354 times)