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Post by timber on Mar 9, 2012 22:24:14 GMT -5
Here's mine, with 15 km on the odometer, still smells new I opened the clutch housing up and got the numbers off the belt for reference, dabbed a spot of grease in on the starter shaft ends, changed out the gear oil, put all the hose clamps I got, on, and the piece of trim I left off to get at the fuel line to put the new clamps in. Paperwork still not here, but I snuck down the road 5 or 6 blocks and back going about 25-30, varying the speed, took the throttle totally off to coast to a stop sign, took off easy, took off more firmly at the next stop sign and generally did a variable break-in kind of riding as I went. Yesterday it seems to dislike temperatures below about 40 F when it was below freezing over night, once the choke goes off it doesn't want to idle and stalls, but today it was in the 50s and it started right up and ran, drove nice and smooth. Attachments:
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Post by leepotter on Mar 9, 2012 23:41:04 GMT -5
I like the orange. I got an all black one thinking I might buy another and get it in orange or blue.
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Post by skuttadawg on Mar 10, 2012 0:10:49 GMT -5
Larger jets in the carb help idle and top end issues . Replace the fuel filter too . TaoTaos are known for having a bad filter and sometimes on backwards . Baby it at first so it breaks in easy and lasts a long time . Change the oil in engine and gearbox asap since it may have shipping oil and replace with Castrol
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Post by timber on Mar 10, 2012 2:41:46 GMT -5
You know, even tho I like blue best I originally ordered yellow because I thought that would be the most visible, so the dealer was out of yellow and I selected the orange. I'm actually real happy with the orange, it's a real nice color and set off well with the black trim. "Larger jets in the carb help idle and top end issues . Replace the fuel filter too . TaoTaos are known for having a bad filter and sometimes on backwards . Baby it at first so it breaks in easy and lasts a long time . Change the oil in engine and gearbox asap since it may have shipping oil and replace with Castrol"I've read that here somewhere, along with adjusting the needle's height by moving the clip up, but I haven't adjusted the valves yet so that needs to be done first to see. Should have taken a pic of the filter, it's clear, I didn't change it because the ones NAPA had were no bigger and no better looking for quality. It's on right tho and I replaced the rubber hoses with new, and real hose clamps. I changed out the oil after the first test starting and riding the scooter about a block. It was thick, black looking chinese oil, probably distilled down from recycled salvaged asphalt I bought Castrol 10w30 and had put that in right away, castrol has been around a long time, good for small engines. NAPA didn't have much of a selection for gear oil at all, I bought their brand of 80W-85W-90 and put that in today in fact.
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Post by skuttadawg on Mar 10, 2012 2:50:54 GMT -5
You can use a lawnmower fuel filter .
My TaoTao the headlights were too weak at night for my bad eyes . I sold it . Well my new 50 had the tail light bulb burn out on day 2 , so it was a good excuse to replace the bulb with a 1157 LED instead . The LED uses less power so headlight is brighter , will never burn out like a bulb , easier to see , and install just like a bulb without having to do and mods to the electrical . I had a tail light burn out and I was unaware , one a car almost rear ended me and I could see and smell the tire smoke since the car skidded to avoid hitting me . I was at WOT and just barely missed getting killed . I have randown 2 scooter riders with no tail light to warn them it was out and tell about going with a LED option .
^5 ( high 5 ) on liking blue as all 4 of my latest scooters were blue . Yes yellow can help be seen and may prevent an " I did not see you wreck " but look like a school bus lol .
A reflective safety vest can help you be seen by those on the road
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Post by timber on Mar 10, 2012 12:13:52 GMT -5
You can use a lawnmower fuel filter . My TaoTao the headlights were too weak at night for my bad eyes . I sold it . Well my new 50 had the tail light bulb burn out on day 2 , so it was a good excuse to replace the bulb with a 1157 LED instead . The LED uses less power so headlight is brighter , will never burn out like a bulb , Yeah hadn't thought of a mower filter. I went to look at the LED 1157's but found several negative reviews on them on Amazon, but there seems to be a bunch of different styles and makes of these there. From what I remember reading there were issues with the bulb part being loose in the socket, or not making contact, and at least one defective from the factory. That all seems related to what brand you get, so what exactly DID you get for brand, part number or whatever? had a tail light burn out and I was unaware , Ouch, you were lucky in that near collision! I remember a '73 cadillac coup de ville I had which had small indicators inside that indicated if a lamp was burned out, seems like an interesting idea for at least the tail light on a scooter- a little led wired in series with the taillight I think would do it, when the taillight bulb doesnt work there's no ground for the indicator. ^5 ( high 5 ) on liking blue as all 4 of my latest scooters were blue . Yes yellow can help be seen and may preventThe blue is sweet On the yellow, many firetrucks are now yellow instead of the traditional red due to the yellow being more visible, though I think every driver's mind is conditioned to thinking of red as STOP due to it's decades long connection to stop signss, stop lights and danger indicators, so yellow is more visible but to most people yellow means "light about to turn red, FLOOR IT!" A reflective safety vest can help you be seen by those on the roadYeah that was my thinking, my state requires the red flag on the back which I have, but I bought this to wear- Neiko High Visibility Neon Yellow Zipper Front Safety Vest with Reflective Strips.
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Post by inuyasha on Mar 10, 2012 12:49:01 GMT -5
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Post by viper2191 on Mar 10, 2012 13:19:26 GMT -5
sorry but those vests arew cheesy. I got the racing exhaust because im cool.
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Post by inuyasha on Mar 10, 2012 14:01:06 GMT -5
sorry but those vests arew cheesy. I got the racing exhaust because im cool. Hi You may want to rethink your priorities Choosing ones Safety over fashion is not cheesy in the least and trying to be cool is very overrated, quite juvenile and can be potentially life changing and not always in a good way imho Its very dangerous out there for those of us riding on 2 wheels Being seen at all times may be the difference between life or serious injury and or death I choose life Take care and drive safely Yours Hank
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Post by viper2191 on Mar 10, 2012 15:32:08 GMT -5
your wrong. my bike is already brightly colored. thats enough reflection.
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Post by timber on Mar 10, 2012 15:56:08 GMT -5
your wrong. my bike is already brightly colored. thats enough reflection. Heh, you'd be amazed at how people can slam broadside or rear end into a road train (yellow 70 passenger school bus with flashing lights) because they didnt SEE it! I agree with Hank, if you saw the pics and videos out there on the web showing every bloody detail of a motorcycle/car or scooter/car or cycle/tree, cycle/lamp post accidents, you'd think twice about being as visible as humanly possible, and alert at all times. Some of the images are bad, REAL bad, no, make that REAL, REAL extremely bad, and that comes from me, one who can watch detailed hospitcal surgery videos while eating spaghetti and stuff and not bother me in the least but seeing what's left of a cyclist- be it motorcycle, scooters that are common in Taiwan etc or bicycle, one ey over here, parts of the head over yonder, what's left of the guy's face- the rest of it looking like a pizza someone stepped on is enough to convince anyone ya gotta be visible and on guard always. There's a lot of "space cadets" out there texting, yakking to a GF in the back seat, tuning the radio, and they aren't watching.
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Post by inuyasha on Mar 10, 2012 15:56:40 GMT -5
your wrong. my bike is already brightly colored. thats enough reflection.Hi When your safety s concerned you can never have enough And if you think that way im sorry to say but your WRONG My Indian is very large and brightly colored but i still have had some people claim to not see me and due to that they have almost caused an accident indian by inuyasha50, on Flickr Any thing extra that will let others know that your there is a plus and benefit and should be used Dont ever assume that motorists see you as most dont Take care and drive safely Yours Hank
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Post by timber on Mar 10, 2012 16:00:26 GMT -5
Hi Safety vests are a great idea Do you have an armored jacket yet? if not check out a few of these High visibility ones Take care and drive safely dear friend Yours Hank Yeah I thought so, I was trying to think of what would work in Iowa hot/humid summers and the vest similar to those worn by highway and road crews seemed like a great idea. It was inexpensive, about $11, and something one can throw on in a second and zip up. I hadnt looked at armored stuff Hank, I did look at the youtube video of that inflatable airbag jacket, cool product! they seem to run $500, a bit on the pricy side yet. I meant to look at knee guards and gloves and had a web page to look at, forgot to and closed it. Be good
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Post by timber on Mar 10, 2012 16:03:25 GMT -5
Wow nice bike! I especially like the front wheel and fender, dang that's sharp looking! It reminds me of the classic 50's car fender styles right off the bat.
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Post by inuyasha on Mar 10, 2012 16:05:17 GMT -5
Wow nice bike! I especially like the front wheel and fender, dang that's sharp looking! It reminds me of the classic 50's car fender styles right off the bat. Hi Thanks ;D Take care and drive safely dear friend Yours Hank
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Post by viper2191 on Mar 10, 2012 16:21:58 GMT -5
ah whatever
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Post by WarrenS on Mar 10, 2012 16:25:52 GMT -5
I saw an ambulance with its siren blaring and lights flashing and a semi making a left turn pulled into the intersection blocking all traffic. So no matter how loud your horn is or how bright your clothing is you still have to be aware. I just read this one. Watch out for the idiots and don't be one. ;D
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Post by timber on Mar 13, 2012 21:29:54 GMT -5
It was a nice day, I got my almost glow in the dark vest, and decided to take a ride a bit. I put on 11km and it included a pretty steep long hill, and the bike easily maintained about 25 mph without lugging or slowing down and didn't need to add throttle. I know they say the speedometers can vary, but Im pretty familiar with how 25-30 is as I drive that every day to get to work in town, and when the speedometer on the bike says Im going 25 mph it feels pretty darn close. It ran real well, lots of takeoff power, easy cruising, so it looks like where the mixture, valve gap, roller weights and all as set from the factory seems to be spot-on for perfection on this so I'm going to leave it alone I'm not a heavy guy at all, which is good when driving one of these, it had no problem on the steep hill at all, though I couldn't say what the grade is, it's pretty steep, a lot steeper than these pics show, and maybe a 3/4 mile long, so it was a decent test to try out.
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Post by wutzthedeal on Jul 31, 2012 17:45:41 GMT -5
I have the same orange model as timber and I get almost killed at least once daily. It's fun for a guy like me, but wouldn't advise going without the safety vest.
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Post by taotaoatm50 on Aug 16, 2012 23:24:28 GMT -5
i have a chrome skull and cross bones on the back of my taotao just to let people know i am crazy. You ride my a** i will cram my brakes and sue your a** for crunching me... lol
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Post by sascootersteve on Aug 18, 2012 23:27:42 GMT -5
I love my tao tao50 after a few mods it runs like a champ. factory settings were crap though!
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