Post by scooterollie on Jun 17, 2006 22:21:33 GMT -5
If you have followed the thread about the Yamati 250, this is the continuation of that story. When I placed the order with NDPowersports I was told the scoot would have the "Yamati" name on the body, 12" wheels and tires at both ends, have a vertical engine (Honda clone), and be silver, as I requested. By chance, last Tuesday, I called NDPowersports to ask a few more questions. Dan said "The shipment arrived early and your scoot shipped the previous Friday and you should have it in a few days". It wasn't even expected in until 6/25. Was I surprised!
The scoot arrived at my local UPS Freight terminal early Friday A.M. When I called to verify, I was told I could schedule home delivery (included in the deal-free) for one day next week. Being the patient person that I am, I promptly went to pick it up myself. When I checked it, it was matte black, a Roketa (OK with me) and had a 10" rear tire & wheel - as Stan and Lee said it probably would if it had the Honda clone engine. The engine was vertical - even slanted to the rear some. I had to make a decision as to whether or not I would accept the scooter. I did make a big deal in previous posts about wanting the rear tire/wheel to be 10" instead of 12" based comments elsewhere about main prop stand problems and possibly poorer handling with the 10" size. After some thought, anguish and discussion with my son, I accepted the scoot and loaded it for home.
Assembly, first impressions, etc.:
I was surprised to find that the front tire was installed at the factory. After un-crating, only needed to install mirrors, battery, windshield, rear rack and trunk. The scoot did come with a very basic assembly manual - a little help, as well as the owner's manual and MCO. The MCO was not filled out by the dealer and was supposed to be sent separately by registered mail. Go figure. A small plate on the scoot lists "Roketa" as the manufacturer along with manufacturer date, compliance info., tire/wheel sizes and inflation pressures. The FMVSS plate is located in the storage area under the seat and it lists "Chongqing Astronautical Bashan Motorcycle Manufacturing Co., LTD." as the manufacturer. Ever hear of that one? My Roketa 150 Phantom clone was mane by Taizhou Chuanl. Neither the assembly instructions nor the owner's manual indicated anything about the scoot being liquid cooled, how to check/service coolant, etc. I found the radiator cap and coolant recovery tank. There was coolant. Oil appeared to be OK. Filled the 3.1 gal. gas tank, cranked it through 4 short duration cycles as described in the assembly manual and it fired up. So far, so good. Let it run for a good while to see how the temp. gauge responded. As the needle approached the mid-point, the electric fan on the radiator cycled as it should. Adjusted the idle a little higher than the factory setting. Sounded good as I revved it a little.
Front & real brakes are both disc, both double-piston calipers. Front has an "ABS" unit on it. Rear brake feels nice and firm. Front has a slightly spongy feel to it. May need to be bled. All important nuts and bolts were tight as they should be and were all marked with a paint swipe to indicate they had been torqued. All major bolts seem to have been coated with a dab of grease at their ends after nuts were installed. Clip nuts for body panels, etc. are the standard Chinese poor quality variety. Have already started replacing those - need to get more. Found the clamp on the water pump hose not properly installed (thought I had checked that before hand), allowing the hose to pop off and coolant to be expelled. Wanted to drain the factory coolant anyway and replace it with better quality "HOAT" type. Found one trim screw missing and one threaded stud to be stripped and the nut missing. It is not a major panel and the panel is held tight with the other fasteners. Will deal with that later. All in all, I believe the quality of body panels and fit and finish to be acceptable but slightly lower than found on my 150 Roketa by Chuanl. Not poor quality, but perhaps average. The engine, frame, chassis, electrical components and wiring seem to be of good quality and assembly. There, the 250cc bike seems better executed than the 150cc scoot. My local dealer just got a new shipment of 50cc retro Roketas this past week and told me Thurs. that he felt they were of better quality components and assembly under the skin. The tries are Chinese brand, as is the battery. The plug is an NGK resistor type and a different size than found on the 150cc scoots. The carb is Keihin and the other ignition components are also supposed to be Japanese - have not yet checked this out. All engine parts have the look of quality in their castings, fittings and assembly. The speedometer is calibrated in KMPH in large numbers, with the MPH designation in lesser size numbers - not as easy to read. The odometer is in KMs. My 150cc Roketa has the odometer in miles and the primary speedometer markings in MPH. I checked both on the 150cc bike and they seem spot on. Have not yet done so on the 250cc scoot but am suspicious of their accuracy.
As of this evening, I have put about 70 KMs on the scoot and had it up to 50 mph. I must say I am impressed so far. The ride is more compliant because of the softer shocks/springs. The rear shocks are also adjustable. I find myself bracing for a jolt that does't come as I drive over rough sections of the road. There is a firmness but not a harshness to the ride. It starts faster and idles at a more consistent RPM, cold and hot, than my 150cc bike. Power is impressive. The clutch engages at a lower RPM and the torque seems to come on sooner (lower RPMs) than the 150 GY6. I have not found any problems with the 10' rear tire/wheel. The main stand is high when folded up and could not possibly drag, no matter how far you leaned the bike. I still feel that ride and handling would benefit from a 12" rear tire but think I can be satisfied with this setup for the money. I will change engine oil and gear oil to Castrol Syn-blend at around 100-150 KMs just so I know what is in there. Engine oil smelled OK. I have smelled some Chinese lubricants that had a real fowl smell to them. Will post more over the next few days and answer any questions you might have.
The scoot arrived at my local UPS Freight terminal early Friday A.M. When I called to verify, I was told I could schedule home delivery (included in the deal-free) for one day next week. Being the patient person that I am, I promptly went to pick it up myself. When I checked it, it was matte black, a Roketa (OK with me) and had a 10" rear tire & wheel - as Stan and Lee said it probably would if it had the Honda clone engine. The engine was vertical - even slanted to the rear some. I had to make a decision as to whether or not I would accept the scooter. I did make a big deal in previous posts about wanting the rear tire/wheel to be 10" instead of 12" based comments elsewhere about main prop stand problems and possibly poorer handling with the 10" size. After some thought, anguish and discussion with my son, I accepted the scoot and loaded it for home.
Assembly, first impressions, etc.:
I was surprised to find that the front tire was installed at the factory. After un-crating, only needed to install mirrors, battery, windshield, rear rack and trunk. The scoot did come with a very basic assembly manual - a little help, as well as the owner's manual and MCO. The MCO was not filled out by the dealer and was supposed to be sent separately by registered mail. Go figure. A small plate on the scoot lists "Roketa" as the manufacturer along with manufacturer date, compliance info., tire/wheel sizes and inflation pressures. The FMVSS plate is located in the storage area under the seat and it lists "Chongqing Astronautical Bashan Motorcycle Manufacturing Co., LTD." as the manufacturer. Ever hear of that one? My Roketa 150 Phantom clone was mane by Taizhou Chuanl. Neither the assembly instructions nor the owner's manual indicated anything about the scoot being liquid cooled, how to check/service coolant, etc. I found the radiator cap and coolant recovery tank. There was coolant. Oil appeared to be OK. Filled the 3.1 gal. gas tank, cranked it through 4 short duration cycles as described in the assembly manual and it fired up. So far, so good. Let it run for a good while to see how the temp. gauge responded. As the needle approached the mid-point, the electric fan on the radiator cycled as it should. Adjusted the idle a little higher than the factory setting. Sounded good as I revved it a little.
Front & real brakes are both disc, both double-piston calipers. Front has an "ABS" unit on it. Rear brake feels nice and firm. Front has a slightly spongy feel to it. May need to be bled. All important nuts and bolts were tight as they should be and were all marked with a paint swipe to indicate they had been torqued. All major bolts seem to have been coated with a dab of grease at their ends after nuts were installed. Clip nuts for body panels, etc. are the standard Chinese poor quality variety. Have already started replacing those - need to get more. Found the clamp on the water pump hose not properly installed (thought I had checked that before hand), allowing the hose to pop off and coolant to be expelled. Wanted to drain the factory coolant anyway and replace it with better quality "HOAT" type. Found one trim screw missing and one threaded stud to be stripped and the nut missing. It is not a major panel and the panel is held tight with the other fasteners. Will deal with that later. All in all, I believe the quality of body panels and fit and finish to be acceptable but slightly lower than found on my 150 Roketa by Chuanl. Not poor quality, but perhaps average. The engine, frame, chassis, electrical components and wiring seem to be of good quality and assembly. There, the 250cc bike seems better executed than the 150cc scoot. My local dealer just got a new shipment of 50cc retro Roketas this past week and told me Thurs. that he felt they were of better quality components and assembly under the skin. The tries are Chinese brand, as is the battery. The plug is an NGK resistor type and a different size than found on the 150cc scoots. The carb is Keihin and the other ignition components are also supposed to be Japanese - have not yet checked this out. All engine parts have the look of quality in their castings, fittings and assembly. The speedometer is calibrated in KMPH in large numbers, with the MPH designation in lesser size numbers - not as easy to read. The odometer is in KMs. My 150cc Roketa has the odometer in miles and the primary speedometer markings in MPH. I checked both on the 150cc bike and they seem spot on. Have not yet done so on the 250cc scoot but am suspicious of their accuracy.
As of this evening, I have put about 70 KMs on the scoot and had it up to 50 mph. I must say I am impressed so far. The ride is more compliant because of the softer shocks/springs. The rear shocks are also adjustable. I find myself bracing for a jolt that does't come as I drive over rough sections of the road. There is a firmness but not a harshness to the ride. It starts faster and idles at a more consistent RPM, cold and hot, than my 150cc bike. Power is impressive. The clutch engages at a lower RPM and the torque seems to come on sooner (lower RPMs) than the 150 GY6. I have not found any problems with the 10' rear tire/wheel. The main stand is high when folded up and could not possibly drag, no matter how far you leaned the bike. I still feel that ride and handling would benefit from a 12" rear tire but think I can be satisfied with this setup for the money. I will change engine oil and gear oil to Castrol Syn-blend at around 100-150 KMs just so I know what is in there. Engine oil smelled OK. I have smelled some Chinese lubricants that had a real fowl smell to them. Will post more over the next few days and answer any questions you might have.
Stan
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