Fly Scooters, il Bello 150 retro!

["Big Guy"]

The Fly Has Landed! The The il Bello is here!

I have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the new il Bello, and it finally came today! Leon from Fly Scooters has graciously sent me one of these for a review on my website, but I also wanted to share the experience with my friends here.

While this is a Chinese made scooter, there is a major difference. Fly has these made to their specifications and QC standards. There are immediate and obvious differences from the Baron Retro 150, its sister scoot.

The seat, the chrome, the suspension, and the overall quality control on the scoot is superb. A quick look under the seat in the engine compartment tells all.

There was not one single wire loose or one bolt that wasn't tight on the body panels, and if not for the steering column being loose, it would have been a perfect delivery.

Note that this was NOT dealer prepped. I specifically wanted a scoot right off the boat for the review!

As we all know, forklifts and scooters have a rivalry dating back hundreds of years, so this shipment was no exception! The il Bello and the forklift apparently got into into it on the truck, but it appears the il Bello won! The forks wet through the step through and only damaged the metal framing...



My helper and I had it out of the crate and off the metal framing in about 10 minutes or so. It was very well secured to the frame.



As we started to assemble it, we got to the battery and it wouldn't fit through the hole, but fortunately, just 4 bolts hold in the seat bucket. It came out with ease and gives near total access to the engine compartment... nice!



The total uncrate to ride time was about 30 minutes. I had to attach the handlebars, gages, mirrors, battery, front wheel and axle and seat rest.

The only problem I ran across was the steering column was loose, it rocked back and forth. This was a small set back, and required removing the front plastics to get to the bolt. The good thing is, every plastic is not tied into another, so removal was quite quick and easy. One turn of the ratchet was all it took to tighten the shaft.

So the total assembly time was 45 minutes including the setback.

We went over the scoot with a fine tooth comb, checked every screw and torqued every bolt, and finally, it was time to gas her up!

Put in a gallon of gas, checked all the fluids, turned the throttle 2 or 3 times and hit the key. After a few cranks, she fired right up and ran smooth and quiet.

The mirrors on this scoot are superb! They are simple to adjust and give you a very wide angle of view. Also, running around the parking lot a bit, the suspension seems to be real smooth and the turning radius is very tight!

The ride on this scooter is absolutely amazing! It feels and handles like a scooter costing four times as much. The suspension is worlds above my Roketa 250, and in fact, even better than my neighbors Honda.

Watch this post for some more details as I get her on the road and get a few miles under her belt! At this point, she get an A+ for fit, finish and ease of assembly!

["Big Guy"]

I left this pic out. Just look at how nice the chrome looks on the right side:



You can't see it because my big head is in the reflection, but the Fly Scooters name and logo are etched in the muffler.

[gy6rocket]

Nice looking scoot, I like color scheme, silver w/ camel seat. May have to do that scheme on mine

Let us know how it goes, what is the cost of the il bello? I assume a little more since it has more finishing?

[Aaron]

Nice looking scoot! I'll sticky the post for ease of following your review.

Aaron

["Big Guy"]

Thanks for the sticky Aaron.

The cost on this puppy (MSRP) is $1999.00 and it comes with a 1-year/5000 mile warranty, parts and labor and has an additional 2-year extended warranty available, however, this is not a tinker toy like my other scoots - tinkering voids the warranty. When you have a problem, you must have it serviced by a dealer. I'm guessing I'm exempt from this since there are no dealers in the area and this is a review scooter.

Some additional specs:

Gy6 Engine
149.6cc
Deni carb (joint venture with Keihin)
8.4 HP @ 7000 RPMs
61 MPH advertised top speed - yet to be GPSed
1.3 Gallon fuel tank - floor mounted - electric fuel pump
74 MPG (estimated)
5-Spoke aluminum alloy rims, 3.5-10"
Front disc brake, rear drum, no phony ABS
Adjustable rear shock
Locking rear parking brake (on the handlebar)

["Big Guy"]

I had a few minutes this morning, so I took a few more pictures of the scoot to post.

Oh, and when I started it in the warehouse, it kicked right over and did not idle up. I'll have to look and see if it has the enricher when I get some time. It started on the first try, idled smooth and was ready to go. No hesitation at all.

Here are the pictures:









The guys in the next shop over were drooling over it when I pulled it out! One of them sat on it and said this was the nicest ITALIAN scooter he ever saw... hehe.

He also said the handlebars are awesome, and I have to agree. They have a nice WIDE MC type feel, and the grips are top notch! They feel like a fine MC...



Hey guys and gals, check this out! It has a cool built in handbrake lock!

["Big Guy"]

If you look at the second to last picture, you'll see some numskull at the factory tried to see how strong he was with a twist tie and ruined the seat back. I'll have to bring it to my friend and have him fix it.

I am also going to recommend to Leon that they use shrink-wrap for this instead of a big twist tie...

["Big Guy"]

Hi Everyone,

I got a chance to put a few miles on the il Bello today and made a few observations.

First, she started and ran with no warm up whatsoever, made me suspect if she had an enricher, so that's on my list to check later. I went out for a run around town, get a haircut and go to the bank. The wind was howling today! 20 to 40mph gusts, but she handled pretty good.

First test is over the RR tracks that cross the road at a 45 degree angle... she did fine, smooth as silk crossing the tracks! I hate to repeat myself, but this thing rides beautifully!

Next test, over the bridge with the steel grating! Not so good! Of course this is because of the 10" wheels and tires. Probably the same as any other scoot with 10s.

Acceleration is wonderful, comparable to my wife's SunL 150. So, after a couple of stops, I did notice that she was a bit hard to start and would always kill the first time. Checked it out when I got back to work.

I simply love the fact that I can just pop out the seat bucket and get access to the engine! Well, there is a slight gas smell in the shop from idle, so I though she might be running a bit rich.

I did the classic carb adjustment - close off the fuel mixture and open it slowly to fast idle. Then I adjusted the idle to about 1500 RPMs or so. It's had to tell without a tach. Ran around the block to test drive her, and viola! Problem solved! She has a bit more take off power now and no more problems starting at all.

Here's a small video of how she starts now:
(Click on the picture below to see the video)



Take a look at how accessible the carb is:



And yes, there she blows! It does have an enricher, but I guess it's not cold enough to engage.

Next, I noticed that the brake lock doesn't work well, so I checked and adjusted the rear brake, and then adjusted the handbrake cable. That's all it took. Again, no trouble whatsoever adjusting the rear brake:



These little adjustments ARE part of the dealer prep, so had I gotten this from a dealer, they wouldn't have been at issue to start with.

I ordered the trunk from Leon today so I can use her as a commuter, and I think my friend is going to loan me a Vespa windshield. There's just no way I will drive without a shield. I have had too many objects stopped by them in the last 40 years, and I don't want to damage my pretty face!

More to come...


-Rich

[RetroAJ]

Nice looking scoot! What factory makes it? Everything looks exactly the same as my Vintage, right down to the vacuum fuel pump in the engine bay. Except the tan seat and chrome muffler. Keep us posted. They ride nice, don't they.

It looks like in the carb pic that the feed line from the pump to the carb is wet to just past the clamp. That may be your fuel smell.

*A J*

[nj2ca]

Keep it coming. I'm loving this review!!!

["Big Guy"]

Hi AJ,

I checked out what you said about the carb and it's dry as a bone. I'm not sure what that is... It looks like the lines have some sort of Armoral or something on them. The gas smell I was talking about was from the tailpipe, it smelled a bit rich, but after the adjustment, that went away some.

So today I had to go to the bank in the city, and I thought, what better way to test her out than a ride to the city? I want to get 20 miles on her to check out the oil dump.

I started out through the industrial area and then out onto a nice 45mph road with stop lights. A few curves following the Mississippi river and I have to say, this model is well balanced. She leans beautifully and sticks to the road with no wobbles, even in the wind.

As I got into old Algiers point, this was a great place for a test of the suspension! Probably some of the worst roads in America! She took it like a pro, no knocks, no bangs, and she just glided over the bumps. That's more than I can say for my Roketa! The Roketa really feels these bumps, and you would swear you might loose some plastics along the way!

Finally to the ferry, and the dreaded grating ramp to the boat! This grating is about 100 yards long and it's made from 5" x 5" squares of vertical steel with an X in the middle, and of course, every 15' span doesn't line up correctly! Let me tell you, this was no fun whatsoever with the 10" wheels! I got yanked in both directions at the same time at only 5pmh...

Anyway, another grating at the other side and off I go, whizzing through the downtown traffic. It really handles well at low speed!

I pulled up to a cop on a scooter at a red light. Interesting, because I thought they had dismantled the fleet of scooters. New Orleans cops used to ride scooters in the French quarter until the program ran out of funds, but here he was, a cop on a scooter. We shot the breeze for a minute and wound up pulling over to the side of Canal street.

He sat on it, looked it over and really liked it a lot, but declined to take it for a test ride.

So finally I got to the bank and did my business. I had a good chance and doing a flying jump off the sidewalk onto the road so I went for it! It handled perfectly, smooth landing and no shock!

Back over the ferry, down the crappy streets and finally, 19 miles later, back at the warehouse. It was a nice ride on a beautiful day!

Tomorrow I'll make a short run and dump the oil.

Oh, and the stalling problem didn't show up today, I guess the fuel adjustment solved the problem... getting ready for the Big Easy Weekender this weekend! I'll have some other opinions coming soon!

More to come...

[termite]

Rich,

I plan on being in La Place and New Orleans May 5 and 6th; I have to get a Coast Guard certificate renewed. I'd love to take a look at "little beautiful", and have a beer or coffee with you.

Jon

PS.
Do they come in Ferrari red? Then they could be called "il bello testarossa", meaning of course, "beautiful little red head".

[scooterollie]

Rich,
Great looking scoot. That model retro is my favorite!

["Big Guy"]

Hey Termite,

Mondays and Tuesdays are usually good for me. I'll be sure not to make any appointments for the 4th and 5th. We can go out for a spin together and get some coffee... you're going to love riding her!

Write down my cell number: 504-452-4209


-Rich

[shark]

Rich,
I just wish we could get some dealers in ol' Tejas over here. I've chatted via email in the past, with Leon, and for some reason it's been hard to get Texas dealers on board.(I think many were burned by other distributors or they have china fobia/scooter racism)

There arent any good Chinese scooter dealers in the Austin/Central TX market. If I wasnt so complacent, in a comfort zone, I'd open a shop. I have strong sales skills and equal mechanical.

[warad]

i bought my girlfreind a ricardo(pink) vintage that loks exactly like this one,the performance sounds the same only i paid$1000 YEA!!!!

[ireland2004]

warad---The price difference is in the overall quality. I'm refering both to the machine, and the support system. Unless you dont care about dealer support (I personally dont care that much, because even the big names dont support to well anymore) but, for many riders, they wouldn't buy without knowing they've got backup so to speak.

["Big Guy"]

I actually got a chance to ride with a Ricardo today (See my post in the "It's all about the ride" section called, "Big Easy Weekender - Saturday".)

It wasn't nearly as nice, though it looked similar. No chrome, no diamond plate floor boards, and really, a lot of differences, not to mention the warranty factor... I have done PDIs on many Chinese scoots, but none that have needed as little attention as this one.


-Rich

[kens97sto171]

250mc54 said:

If you look at the second to last picture, you'll see some numskull at the factory tried to see how strong he was with a twist tie and ruined the seat back. I'll have to bring it to my friend and have him fix it.

I am also going to recommend to Leon that they use shrink-wrap for this instead of a big twist tie...

You might try putting some heat and moisture to the material, it may soften up a bit and go back into shape... worth a try at least

This is a beautiful scoot.. my Girlfriend really likes the retro look. She has bee talkin about a Genuine Scooter Buddy 125.

Is there any under seat storage on this scoot?

Thanks.
Ken

[RetroAJ]

These scoots have some storage, not alot. The seat bucket is long and not very deep. Better than none though.

*A J*

["Big Guy"]

AJ is absolutely correct, only a half helmet will fit under the seat. I actually had to order a trunk from Leon just to use it as a commuter so I could put my work stuff in it:

["Big Guy"]

Okay guys and gals,

The Big Easy Weekender took up all my time lately, so I haven't had time to update this thread... here goes:

20 Mile Checkpoint:

I dumped the oil at 20 miles to check for metals, found none, but the oil was extremely black! (Castrol HD30)



As you can see below, the screen was clean as could be:



The only complaint I have about the serviceability of the oil change is the limited amount of space to work with. The exhaust pipe hangs very low and comes a little to close to the skin for comfort:



Here you can see where I sprayed the parts down with carb cleaner looking for small bits in the Styrofoam catch; there were none... hmm... strange, I always find something.



Okay, so she's now ready for a few more miles! I did this just before the Big Easy Weekender event.


-Rich

["Big Guy"]

Okay, so I've got a few more things to report on the scoot today. First, the biggest complaint people had at the Big Easy Weekender was the turn signals, and I agree. It sounds like a truck's backup alarm, and it's way too loud! I personally like the clickers better than the alarm.

So in addition to the turn signal alarm, I have never been able to get the key out of the ignition when I lock the steering. I emailed Leon and he said it was probably the rod that was misaligned in the triple-tree, so I guess I can kill two birds with one stone here.

I removed the front bonnet to get access to the ignition. Again, as I said before, the plastics on this scoot come off really easy!



I took off the ignition and didn't notice anything wrong, so I put it back on and tested the key, still wouldn't come out. I noticed as I loosened the rear bolt, it slid right out, so I took out the rear bolt and put a metal washer (spacer) behind the bolt. Tightened it up and viola! It works smooth as silk!

Now, here's the booger that was annoying the hell out of everyone this weekend:



I took it off and opened it up and to my surprise, no variable resistor to adjust the sound... oh well, I don't want to unplug it because it does do some good, so I just covered it with electrical tape. It's now just about right... the driver can hear it, but it's not too loud... perfect!

One thing I noticed while under the hood is the really nice frame mounted wire tie downs! Plus, all of the electrical wiring is well protected:



I have to tell you folks, the streets in New Orleans are absolutely horrible! You can't go more than 10' without hitting a pothole, bump or rough road, and this weekend, I put over 80 very rough miles on the scooter and she took it in style!

I decided to check all the nuts and bolts and wiring routes today to make sure nothing came loose, and to my surprise, everything was fine, despite all the banging around!

So far, so good... more to come.


-Rich

[RetroAJ]

Oil changes are a pain. I could fill the case without a funnel if the oil neck was just one inch longer. That oil is really dark though. I don't think my Mobil oil looked that bad at 500 miles. I would change to something else.

*A J*

["Big Guy"]

I have always used the Castrol HD30 for pre-break in (0 to 20mi) and never had a problem before. I plan on doing another change at 200 miles, so we'll see what happens then.

Oh, and now, from 20-200mi, it has Castrol straight 30...


-Rich

["Big Guy"]

Next complaint: The gauges are nearly impossible to read in the daylight! They are without a doubt too small, and too low. At night, only half of it lights up, so you can't read it then either. I may have to take it apart and see if the bulb is in the right position inside. Sometimes on these gages they have bulbs that are half painted and just positioned improperly.

Here you can see the size of the speedo, exactly the size of a new roll of electrical tape:

[nj2ca]

I'm really enjoying this review. Great job. I look forward to more.

Thanks for posting.

["Big Guy"]

Thanks, I plan on giving Leon his money's worth!

[RetroAJ]

Yes, the gauges are small and low, but I haven't had any problems reading them. I may be shorter than you are though, I'm 5'9". My gauges light up well at night, so I would definately check the bulbs.

*A J*

["Big Guy"]

Here is the steel grating commonly used here in South East LA for bridges. It's about 5-6" across each square:



The tires on the il Bello absolutely hate this grate! The scooter gets flung left and right, sometimes the front goes left while the rear goes right. I don't know if it's a tire issue or a weight issue, but I know I have followed other scooters and not seen them do the same thing.

It's a mighty long stretch when you're wobbling this bad!