Vespa Project Help???

[thefamousgcp]

Hello, i've been considering /wanting to have a go at buying an old Vespa and restoring it to its former glories...the problem is, i'm no mechanic whatsoever and have never attempted anything of this nature ever in my lifetime! Firstly, do you think im wasting my time and money. All i'd have to accompany me on such a project would be a book with pictures, diagrams and specification notes i guess (mind you, i havent even got that yet, as im not sure what scooter to restore lol)

That said, im thinking of a Vespa Rally 180/200?

Can anyone give me an idea of the scale of such a project? Time isnt an issue but i'd like to give it as much attention as possible so i'd be wanting to push on as best i can.

Would love to hear anyones views- many thanks, Greg (Brighton)

[bryno]

Hello and welcome!

Vespas are really simple machines to work on so nothing to worry about really as long as you buy the most complete scooter you can in as sound condition as you can to start with, personally I'd never buy something which needs a new floor having been through this trauma once and if the scoct is incomplete to start with, the costs soon rack up.

Restoring one properly will (generally speaking) cost you more than it will ever be worth completed unless you happen to have all the kit to paint etc yourself, so needs to be considered as a project just for the fun of it!

You can buy pretty well every part new now, but my preference is always to restore the original parts, that is where the value is in a scooter and so many aftermarket parts are just ill fitting rubbish.

Your choice of a Rally is challenging as they have a bit of a reputation for poor quality steel, so look out for rusty floors, around the rear strut top etc and you will pay a fair bit for a Rally, any Rally, they range from say £1,500 as a project to £3,000 plus for a decent restoration.. I looked for a R200 to restore a few years ago, dismissed 6 scooters as not viable projects and gave up! (though I now have a R180 to restore).

Good luck, you'll find plenty of good advice on here and on the VCB forum!

[bryno]

Oh yeh, to give you an idea of the scale of a basket case project, here is the first one I did.. would not take one on this bad again!

vespa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=543

[thefamousgcp]

Bryno, i dont what to say or where to start! You my friend are a genius! You are worthy of your Ace Face tag, seriously mate. I dont mean to blow your own trumpet but that scooter is superb, i couldnt think of anything else which could give such self satisfaction. Its perfect.

The only problem for me now is im not sure i want to go ahead lol! Not sure i've got the ability to succeed with a project like this. It looks way over my head. Looks like you need a lot more time than i realised, going by your photos. (I'd have to bin the Chelsea season ticket for starters!) Plus, i have two children below the age of five, so any dads out there will know where im coming from, that said i have no deadlines to complete to - its for fun but mainly for conquering something that im no good at!

Its funny, your photos have inspired me to crack on but at the same time im worried that it will leave me completely skint and with a scooter that ends up looking worse lol!

Obviously, as you mentioned earlier, i'd need to get my hands on a scooter in better shape to start with and take it from there. Hopefully, once started i can come to this site for help along the way. I need to think long and hard about this one. May i ask the cost of purchasing the original scooter on your project, or was it yours in the first place?

Many thanks Bryno.

Greg.

[bryno]

The time and money very much depends on how good it is to start with, that VBA was given to me, so no cost, but I still spent more on it than it was ever worth even with my 'free' labour, so i'd certainly suggest you buy something in reasonable shape to start with, and as complete as possible..

I've done 2 lambrella restorations since that Vespa, part restored a second Vespa and have just started my Rally 180 project. It can be all consuming, but you can just put the time in when you want, set your own deadlines, take you time, its supposed to be fun ;D each of my projects have been 9 months plus, but thats because I probably do go a bit over the top on getting things as right as I can, the VBA is the only one of my scooters which was not worth doing financially, but then as said, if you are going into a restoration to make money you'd be very lucky to manage that..

Go for it mate!

[thefamousgcp]

Thanks so much Bryno, im gonna go for it. First thing is to find the right scooter - hopefully be able to update you as i go but dont hold your breath lol.

Cheers again fella, you've been a great help.

[jaz]

Dec 29, 2010 20:18:53 GMT thefamousgcp said:

...the problem is, i'm no mechanic whatsoever and have never attempted anything of this nature ever in my lifetime!

Hi Greg, I'm not wanting to pour cold water on your plan, but if you've no mechanical experience yet I'd suggest you steer clear of basket cases and buy the best example of the scooter you want that you can afford.

If you've got something rideable that you can treat as a rolling restoration the learning curve won't be so steep and you can enjoy the scooter when you're not working on it. That way you can start off with routine servicing and build up to the tricker jobs at your own pace. Buying tools will eat into your budget, and by restoring something not too far gone you can spread this cost also.

It can be a bit dispiriting working on something that was dismantled by someone else a couple of decades ago, finding things that are missing or broken at every turn and the temptation to give up is great... don't ask me how I know this ;D For every one as nice as Bryn's VBA there's twenty like my 152L2, still not finished after nearly a decade.

Anyway, I didn't mean to put you off. Whatever you buy you will become a better mechanic and you'll have a great time riding it. Good luck with whatever you decide ;D