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Post by xyshannen on Oct 26, 2014 13:44:18 GMT -5
I just got back from a joy ride, and along the way I got the idea to see what was the most enjoyable speed for me to go to get the most out of my ride. For me, I found that 35 mph was perfect. Wind noise is at a tolerable level, I don't get knocked around by cross winds, and I really get to relax and enjoy the scenery.
Wile I do like going fast, it's not my ultimate goal in life. The mods I've done to my engine are not so I can see how fast and how hard I can push my bike. I did them so when I encounter an idiot driver I have the power to get out of the way.
So the question goes, what speed do you get the most enjoyment out of your ride and why?
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Post by scooter on Oct 26, 2014 14:21:40 GMT -5
On this GY6, I like going 50.
55 is nice, and is probably the speed I go most often, but the engine is starting to rev high enough that I'm afraid I'm reducing its longevity, even if just a little. (About 7500 rpm)
At 60, I'm revving a bit too high and frankly I'm thinking the bike just isn't safe at that speed.
I like speed. On a bigger bike, I might enjoy gong 80, or 100 or more if getting a ticket were of no concern, but on the 150cc, 50mph is as fast as I can go without feeling concerned about safety or guilty about what I'm doing to the bike.
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Post by wheelbender6 on Oct 26, 2014 17:56:07 GMT -5
My 125cc is really smooth at 50 mph. It cruises well at 55, but there is a lot more vibration from the small wheels and wind. 60 mph is only for passing on my scoot.
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Post by surfpick on Oct 26, 2014 18:35:42 GMT -5
On any size bike I like putting along at about 35 or 40 and then leaning over and powering through turns with a WOT.
I also like staying as far away from other cars as possible, whether I'm on a 50cc or in my tank of a diesel.
Most drivers have a dangerous "pack mentality". Cars are the enemy.
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Post by oldchopperguy on Oct 26, 2014 20:35:39 GMT -5
Xyshannen,
With my old 150, I too found 35-40 was "ideal". Easy riding, plenty of control, good mileage, etc. With my 250, for the same reasons, I find 40-50 about ideal, especially with its incredibly efficient windshield. I never experience wind noise or buffeting below 55 or even 60mph (when little side-wind is present). Side, or crosswinds are a BIG factor on "ideal" cruising.
Thanks to some extra torque, horsepower and weight, it seems like with every extra 50cc or so, the ideal cruising speed gets about 5 mph higher, until around 60-65 mph, when wind-buffeting begins to take the enjoyment out of the ride.
On a "dead-calm" day with no wind at all, my old 250 will "groove" at a very enjoyable 65. She'll DO 75+, but even at 70 the wind, side-blasts from oncoming traffic and such make it much less enjoyable. To my mind, that's true no matter HOW large a bike may be. Or, how fast it will go. Just my opinion.
On a calm day, during "off-hours" when traffic is sparce, I love to run the freeways at 55-60, strictly due to that marvelous windshield. I can cover a lot of ground fast, and enjoy the ride. But... When traffic builds, and everybody starts running bumper-to-bumper at  + mph, it gets too much like a WWII dogfight... Anyway, old "Minnie Mouse" tops out at just about 80 mph, so she's no longer competitive once the rush starts. That REALLY turns a relaxed ride into a "white-knuckle" adventure... LOL!
Heck, 35 is actually pretty nice on ANY bike, and you don't even NEED a windshield! LOL!... 
Ride safe, y'all...
Leo in Texas |
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Post by Jarlaxle on Oct 26, 2014 21:46:43 GMT -5
Highway, usually 72-75 or so. Secondary roads, 45-50.
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Post by xyshannen on Oct 26, 2014 22:39:04 GMT -5
oldchopperguy Dangit Leo...costing me $ Adding a windshield to my must buy list. LOL Actually I've been looking at getting one for some time, and now that (remember it gets quit a bit more nippy up here in N FL) it's starting to cool down, I'm really thinking hard on this.
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Post by oldchopperguy on Oct 27, 2014 0:50:44 GMT -5
oldchopperguy Dangit Leo...costing me $ Adding a windshield to my must buy list. LOL Actually I've been looking at getting one for some time, and now that (remember it gets quit a bit more nippy up here in N FL) it's starting to cool down, I'm really thinking hard on this. Xyshannen,
Well, a WINDSHIELD does look right in place on a scoot like yours! But try to check out the STYLE before you buy... I've had numerous bikes with windshields (usually Harleys) but also Hondas with the classic Vetter fairing, but... NONE even came close to the factory GIVI shield on my "new" old Kymco. I mean, THAT screen puts me in a "bubble" of comfort like nothing I've ever experienced, and I've been riding for over a half-century... EEEWWW!
Try to find one that is really aerodynamic, flaring out to protect your hands. Seriously, this GIVI is light-years ahead of ANY windshield or even a faring that I've had in the past. It makes riding season much longer, and into much colder weather than ever before!
Now on YOUR scooter, a nice old-school Harley (or vintage VESPA) style pair of driving lights on a chrome "bow" mount would just compliment the windshield too... You can find them on eBay all the time... I think the Italians used them on police Vespas! Very retro-cool!
Dang! It's ALWAYS the doggone money... LOL!
I never was much of a fan of windshields, UNTIL NOW... Now, I would be most unhappy without one. But it would have to be as good as the one I now have! Yup!
Ride safe,
Leo
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Post by xyshannen on Oct 27, 2014 1:24:50 GMT -5
At this point, really any windshield will be better than no windshield. With my bike I'm going to have to use a universal mount windshield, and with how far my handlebars stick out I'm afraid I'm just going to have to wear a good pair of gloves this winter.
At any rate a windshield will definitely up my enjoyable cruising speed. However, on this scoot anything over 45 wind becomes a real problem. I get knocked all over the road if I'm not really paying attention. At 6'2" it helps if I tuck, but that's not comfortable for long periods. At 50+ MPH It almost turns into a white knuckle ride, where a little cross wind feels like the bike is going to slip out from under me. That's why I'm not doing my modifications to gain top speed. I'm more interested in my 0-50 speed and having the power @ 45 MPH to hit the gas and GO to get out of the way of insane Jacksonville drivers. I had to do 50 in a 35 just to keep one car offa me arse on a 2 lane road today.
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Post by rockynv on Oct 27, 2014 4:28:15 GMT -5
I find the Puig better than most however a Sport Fairing would look out of place on a Vintage style bike. The Vintage with its relatively flat front does little to divert air around you so it all comes over the handlebars at your chest.
The Vintage has drag style handlebars so most mirror mounted windshields should work if the clamp-on mirrors/brake levers are up to the job however on my Lance Vintage those castings were very weak and therefore not really up to the job. When you break them you have to replace either the master cylinder on the right or the rear brake lever on the left.
In Florida you do not really want 100% protection either as the weather varies enough that you could end up too hot much of the time since even in the dead of winter it can get up into the mid eighties in the afternoon.
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Post by 2wheelfun on Oct 27, 2014 7:23:08 GMT -5
Kymco 150cc, 35/45mph is the sweet spot with some vroom to play with.
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Post by xyshannen on Oct 27, 2014 8:29:54 GMT -5
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Post by oldchopperguy on Oct 27, 2014 9:00:40 GMT -5
At this point, really any windshield will be better than no windshield. With my bike I'm going to have to use a universal mount windshield, and with how far my handlebars stick out I'm afraid I'm just going to have to wear a good pair of gloves this winter. At any rate a windshield will definitely up my enjoyable cruising speed. However, on this scoot anything over 45 wind becomes a real problem. I get knocked all over the road if I'm not really paying attention. At 6'2" it helps if I tuck, but that's not comfortable for long periods. At 50+ MPH It almost turns into a white knuckle ride, where a little cross wind feels like the bike is going to slip out from under me. That's why I'm not doing my modifications to gain top speed. I'm more interested in my 0-50 speed and having the power @ 45 MPH to hit the gas and GO to get out of the way of insane Jacksonville drivers. I had to do 50 in a 35 just to keep one car offa me arse on a 2 lane road today.
Xyshannen,
As far as I can see, the advantages of my factory windshield come from "compound curves" with a sort of "spoiler" effect at the top, and the swells near the brake-levers doing the same around my hands. These shapes must create a "vortex" if that's the right word... of "dead air" surrounding the upper body and hands.
This design is likely made to look THROUGH, rather than look OVER. The old-school "barn-door" windshields for old Harleys and Vespa-type scooters were originally made to look OVER. They directed the air (and even rain) beer-cans, spit, tobacco-juice, etc. oh, yeah... over the rider's head, and left his/her vision unimpaired by the truly DISMAL optics of the crappy, wavy plastic they were made from.
I remember the manual from my new 1970 Harley Electra-Glide instructing to lower the windshield to approximate "nose level" to look over it, for safe visibility.
The new style windshields like mine SEEM to be made to look through, although I sometimes sit straight up and look over it at night momentarily, if oncoming car headlights cause weird reflections on its shopworn and scratched surface. This only happens occasionally when a driver doesn't dim his lights. In all other riding, the wear on the windshield is unnoticeable. When looking over it, it still operates like the old ones, directing air over me. So I guess you could use it either way.
The old-school "barn-door" windshields are definitely the ones that look "right" or period-correct on your scooter... And they are usually a little less expensive too. Adjusted properly, they DO offer a lot of protection to the upper-body and face.
One thing I found was that ANY windshield will sometimes cause some "catching" of crosswinds, and make its own sort of left/right "pulling" just like your body does. But it is much easier to live with, and I got used to it in just one day of riding on my old Kymco. NO solution is "perfect"... LOL!
I doubt if any windshield will adversely affect the speed or gas mileage of your scooter below 60mph. At very high speeds, they do act like an "air-brake" but I don't notice that even at 80mph. If you get a pretty tall one, you may be able to angle it back a bit more than normal, which could noticeably improve its aerodynamics at any speed.
If you shop around, I'm sure you'll find a good one for your ride.
Stay safe!
Leo
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Post by rockynv on Oct 27, 2014 11:56:58 GMT -5
They even show it mounted on a Vintage scooter. No wings to protect the hands but the may not be needed. |
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Post by oldchopperguy on Oct 27, 2014 18:55:03 GMT -5
They even show it mounted on a Vintage scooter. No wings to protect the hands but the may not be needed. Rockynv, Yup!
That's the one I'd recommend too... Similar ones are offered for all sorts of prices, but that is about as affordable as they get. It looks pretty effective, easy to "universal mount" to handlebars and can be angled however you desire. Just MADE to compliment the open-bars, and gauges-in-buckets scoots.
It would STILL look good with a pair of old-school Harley or Vespa police-style driving lights... and maybe a nice crash-bar with highway pegs to match... Now, picture that windshield with a simple press-on chrome strip across it (just above the headlight cutout) and the bottom carefully sprayed transparent red... OOHHH! Be still my beating heart, I haven't seen a windshield like that since I was a kid, "Jonsing" for a hog! I love that vintage look, especially when it includes modern technology... Yup!
Xyshannen is going to end up with one SWEET scoot! All that's missing is Audrey Hepburn perched side-saddle on the back!
Leo in Texas |
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+ mph, it gets too much like a WWII dogfight... Anyway, old "Minnie Mouse" tops out at just about 80 mph, so she's no longer competitive once the rush starts. That REALLY turns a relaxed ride into a "white-knuckle" adventure... LOL!
