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Gates Powerlink belts are available in both Standard and Premium product lines and I would be inclined to go with the Gates Premium. Gates does not make a Kevlar belt thankfully since Kevlar belts can be more prone to cutting grooves in your drive faces causing damaging vibrations that can rattle off exhaust parts and rear body panels. The do make Aramid belts in their G Force lineup and Carbon Fiber in the G Force C12. The Aramid do not seem to be as destructive as the Kevlar but still can wear out the drive faces faster while the C12 Carbon belts I have not seen in action. Generally the tougher the belt the sooner your drive faces will wear out.

Walmart is an enigma since they play games and many times only buy the license to use a name but have the products made in their own Chinese Knock-Off factories so buyer beware at Walmart. For example GE was a respected brand however you can find a number of GE branded products on the shelves at Walmart that once you get them out of the box in the fine print you will find that they are not really GE products manufactured by GE but GE Branded products made by Walmart in their own factories. They even give some products Patriotic Sounding Names such as "Faded Glory" which use to have an American Flag stylized label but are really made in Bangladesh. A "Name Brand" from Walmart to me is more likely, due to their clout in bullying manufacturers and ability to drive them out of business, to be a Knock-Off and not the genuine article.

You need to verify what rattled the exhaust nut and stud loose in the first place. Too many go through all sort of remedies for this without addressing the root cause which many times is CVT Vibration from bad belts, grooved drive faces, worn out input shaft bearings on the gear case, out of balance clutch assemblies, mismatched roller weights or all of or a combination of the above.

Bottom line a user measures a 13 1/2" opening but calls it around 14", ordered a part listed as 14", knew what he ordered was only close to the size he measured yet not exactly that size and didn't double check his measurements then finds the 14" part is indeed 14" as indicated and won't fit his about 14" opening. That why many of the listings state fits "various models" or at times "most models" but not all and includes the critical dimensions.

The part is listed as for Sport Scooters and the user has a Classic Scooter which further clues you that the wrong part was ordered.

The 14" Sport Scooter engine hanger then does not fit the 13 1/2" opening on the Classic Scooter and the vendor is unethical or a crook for not eating all the shipping charges and such.

I have to side with Matt on this one. He sells a 14" mount for Sport Scooters and the user only ballpark checked his measurements then finding the Sport Scooter part did not fit into his Classic Scooter. If the part Matt sold was over 14" long and the users scooter required a 14" part that would be different.

You might get away with ballpark measurements in wooden house framing or while building concrete forms however ballpark measurements usually do not work well for metal parts.

By comparison the 2009/2010 Piaggio 250c engines put out over 25% more hp and have the potential for better fuel economy. When you buy a lightly used BV250, Sport City 250 or Scarabeo 250 you get 25% to 30% more usable HP on bikes that weigh about 75lbs less than the Grandpas and have almost 150 lbs greater carrying capacity. Then there are the brakes to consider too which the Sport City 250 has the rest beat on since it has the same twin disc front brakes that are used on up to 750 cc bikes weighing much more. If you get them to go faster then you need to make them stop better too.

That is where we start getting into the balance between economy and value.

Snopes really only counters that the information was old and inaccurate when the email was being distributed however also shows that some of the charities are actually far worse now than before. Some of the Non-Profit organizations countered with "They don't work here any more" or "That was the global chairman not...."

Bottom line you have to be careful which Non-Profits you donate too since too many are so top heavy with paid administrators that only a minor fraction of whats donated actually goes toward helping people, abused animals, etc.

Ed Platt who was a popular character actor (Chief of Control in "Get Smart") was one who would shadow charities to ensure that relief materials actually got to those that they were intended for instead of being sold for profit too many times by the charities themselves or sat rotting because corrupt politicians would block distribution unless they were paid a sufficient bribe first.

I work with some organizations where they pay no one and all are volunteers even the top administrators. Those who work full time may get their meals provided and a place to sleep with a minor clothing or gas (if the use their personal car a lot) allowance however it is the same $100 or so allowance for everyone regardless of the duty they perform be it admin or janitor. Everyone is painfully aware that much of what is donated is the "Widows Mite" given from people who really can't afford to donate and are only able to do so by depriving themselves of something be it skipping a meal a day for a while or their medication for the month. A Non-Profit run by a Paid Board of Directors and Corporate Officers making more than the average salary for that position in a regular business is just wrong on so many levels.

The deer whistles need to be installed correctly in order to work. There is a left and a right and they have a specific height and a limit of how close together they can be and still work. The also need to be kept clean and free of dust, spiders, etc.

I went down at 40/45 mph this past spring and had the bike slide over me rolling me underneath however the long Sedici Gloves where cinched tight so my wrists were not harmed and the carbon fiber prevented the knuckles from wearing through and the palms stayed intact. The CE3 armored jacket did not tear at all and protected my upper body 100%, boots took having the center stand and engine case go over without cutting through but I did get my knees banged up. I see that I was very fortunate to just walk away and with just a few minor scrapes on the knees though the bruising was a bit intense. Its almost December now and the left knee is almost back to normal but still slightly marked up. Counting my blessings as I read these posts about what could have also happened to me.

Get well soon and take a moment to reflect on whether better gloves or other riding gear may be required.

When you get to the $4,000 price point that those were selling for in 2012 you would expect a better grade engine and base casting to be used. Not what you get from the $500 loss leader special. Great though that they can make a quality 150 that can make it over the long haul. New ones have a $3,800 list price.

www.theautomoto.com/

60,000 miles was on August 29, 2014 and as of three months ago he still occasionally is taking it out since he appears to be alternating between several bikes.