Took the $25 roughhouse on a camping trip. Need help.

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Feral_Sparky
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Posts: 46
Joined: Wed Feb 02, 2011 4:54 pm

Took the $25 roughhouse on a camping trip. Need help.

Post by Feral_Sparky »

Alright guys and gals. This is a 2 part post. Help with a repair now that I am home and then the trip I took.

About 100 miles from home my scooter started to act up... it was WOT and suddenly started to bog down and not accelerate under throttle more than i'd say about 25%. I texted my roommate to let him know and to be ready for an emergency pick up. I didnt pack to many tools but a few so I started by checking the air filter. That was good. Looked inside the intake of the carb, looked alright so I put my hand over the carb while giving it throttle to choke it a bit and it sputtered for a minute then suddenly the power came back and it rode home no problem.

Now Its been giving me issues starting via electric for a few weeks for the few times I was actually able to ride it. I figured the electric choke might be the culprit. Took the choke off and it was broken. Now I looked at an OEM replacement and they want $80 damn dollars for a new one. Are you kidding me.

Are there ANY aftermarket options available that will work with this stock carb? I really dont want to spend that much for something I can get for $10 online.

On a side note after I let the needle sit in the choke hole the scooter fired right up within a second. First time this year.




Now for the best part. Got to do my first camping trip on 2 wheels yesterday and today. Did a 250-260 mile trip in Michigan to a nice cozy camp site north of the thumb. Didnt have any real gear and just grabbed what I had around the house. Tent, a few blankets, pillow, bluetooth speaker, tablet, charging cable and usb car adapter for my phone.

Packed everything into a yellow suitcase with a hard back and internal frame and ratcheted it to the luggage carrier. To say I learned I need to invest in some proper gear is an understatement but I got bitten by the motocamping bug.

On the way up I grabbed some replacement tent spikes, some snacks and a tent light and rode like a banshee to who knows where. I had no destination in mind or even an idea on where I was going to sleep that night. Figured id make it up as I went along.

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Stopped at every yard sale and a couple swap meets along the way mostly to stretch my legs and give my butt a much needed break from the seat. I wish I would have purchased the stock seat and not the low profile one. Maybe in the future i'll replace it.

About 6pm I started looking for a place to sleep. Called a camp site about 20 miles north about a free spot for a solo rider. Had a rustic camp site for $25 for the night. Score.

Got dinner on the way there and signed in. Nice place. small and cozy. Had live music for the weekend and a bunch of people were having a good time.

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Learned a few things about camping... buy the right stuff. Proper sleeping bag and a pad would have gone a long way in comfort. Also a tent designed for someone as tall as me. I had to sleep sideways to fit.

After getting home Ive been looking up new gear like a proper trunk, saddlebags, a new tent and such and cant wait to do this again.
RiderK
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Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2014 4:15 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Post by RiderK »

What a fantastic story my friend. So I assume your carb just needed cleaned and is seemingly doing well now? It's cool to see you rocking out the low expense Roughy. I've been riding motorcycles and scooters for 25 years and I'll admit that I'm always a bit sketched out to tackle super long trips on a little 50cc scoot. I still have my 2014 Roughy and ride it 365 days a year generally. I'm in centeral Indiana so if you're ever planning on scooting through this area then let me know. I may be able to dig up my stock variator and stock clutch if you end up needing them, they only have about 400-500 miles on them.
2014 Roughhouse, S6 Sp Pro Mk2, C16 city, Athena full circle, 19 PHBG, Voca cf reeds, S6 TC clutch red spr, Polini vario, NCY tq drvr, premix, Polini tach temp voltage gauge, LEDs all around
Feral_Sparky
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Joined: Wed Feb 02, 2011 4:54 pm

Post by Feral_Sparky »

RiderK wrote:What a fantastic story my friend. So I assume your carb just needed cleaned and is seemingly doing well now? It's cool to see you rocking out the low expense Roughy. I've been riding motorcycles and scooters for 25 years and I'll admit that I'm always a bit sketched out to tackle super long trips on a little 50cc scoot. I still have my 2014 Roughy and ride it 365 days a year generally. I'm in centeral Indiana so if you're ever planning on scooting through this area then let me know. I may be able to dig up my stock variator and stock clutch if you end up needing them, they only have about 400-500 miles on them.
I havent had time to tear the carb apart fully... forgot my tools at work, I'll be taking it apart this coming sunday and cleaning it out good. Put a new plug in it and make sure everything is nice and clean. Took some panels off to look at the motor and its still pretty clean from last year's riding season.

Still need to get a new choke for it because this one broke. Got some parts coming in the mail. New right hand controls, proper mirrors [found out the right side is reverse thread... oops], Center plastic panel and oil tank cover and a wind screen.

On a side note I was wondering why I was getting shaking in the front end the whole way. I was thinking maybe the tires were choppy. Turns out my forks are leaking pretty bad and loosing oil making the springs bouncy.

So i gotta take the forks apart, get some new seals and refill the oil if I can find the specification for that anywhere. No luck so far.

Id rather not have to shell out $400 for a new set of forks.
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Stanza
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Location: Chicago

Post by Stanza »

Before you go blaming the autochoke (Bystarter), please have a look over this. It's a long read, but worthwhile.
http://www.modernbuddy.com/forum/viewto ... bystarters
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waliwiw
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Joined: Wed Nov 10, 2021 9:22 pm

Re: Took the $25 roughhouse on a camping trip. Need help.

Post by waliwiw »

I had the same problems with the WOT carburetor. I committed about the same machinations as you. It helped me too. But the scooter still had to be handed back to the store. Fortunately, the warranty period has not passed yet, and they returned my money. It was two weeks after the purchase. OEM would be a good choice. It's a pity that you don't want to spend money on a good product. I take a scooter on any trip, whether it's Asia, Africa, or the European hinterlands. On https://www.dbauskunft.com/de/ written tips on which streets you can drive on scooters. It's more profitable to ride your scooter to tourist points than to rent a bike.
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