RESTORE MY VESPA!!!!

Once I return to Edmonton in the spring, this is going to be project priority number one! I went all last season without my Vespa, but I did work on and ride a lot of bicycles over that summer to compensate. The body panels are ready for paint, and I know what parts need to be ordered, so it’s just a matter of making sure I get it done!

The bike is now completely dismantled. Bins of bolts. Piles of parts. The frame and fender are both stripped to the steel. There’s a lot of body work to be done, some of which is probably not possible to repair. I’d buy new replica parts to replace them to make things easier, but I’m trying to keep the bike on a small budget.

My solution for now is to fix up the body work the best I can. Accept the fact that it’s not going to look perfect, and enjoy it as is. It’s not a valuable enough bike to dump a ton of money into, so I’ll just have fun riding it rather than worrying about how perfect the paint looks.

I really wanted to have the bike finished already, but focusing my efforts on the house has left the bike on hold for a while. I’ve seen a few bikes out this spring already and I’ve been getting jealous, but the roads still aren’t in the best shape so it’s safer to wait until they sweep up all the gravel. Not to mention there has been a ridiculous amount of snow this last week. Makes me feel better about the bike situation in a way!

I still have to order parts, including possibly some new wheels since I stripped off a few wheel bolts removing the tires. My goal is to get that done this week so I can start putting the bike back together the second it comes off the paint line! As for now, I have to get some dents pounded out!

Since parking the bike for the winter I’ve managed to strip it down nearly full enough to repair the body work and have it painted. I still need to remove the engine, front fork, gas tank and floor strips. After that the frame will be ready to send for acid dipping.

I had planned to smooth out all the body work and apply fresh paint to make this bike look better than brand new, but with other responsibilities taking up too much time the plans have changed. I’m now planning to do the best job I can of smoothing out the body panels myself, and will probably apply powder coating instead of regular paint, since the company I work for has a powder coating shop. I’m going to take the style in a different direction, with maybe flat black powder coating and my amateur body work it will have more of a traditional hot rod style than a sparkling new Vespa look. Although not what I had planned from the start, I still think I will love the new look. I’ve become short on time if I want to have it on the road asap (as soon as the snow melts), and it will certainly be better than the rattle-can green it was rocking for the summer of ‘07.

Progress Photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinseas/sets/72157603446827724/

Steps remaining to completion:

1. Remove engine, front fork, gas tank and floor strips.

2. Strip frame and fender, finish stripping headset and cowls.

3. Powder coat frame, fender cowls and headset.

4. Re-assemble with some new parts.