(no subject)
I thought I'd take the scooter out for a bit of a joyride, seeing as I haven't used it in over a month. Sure, it'd be cold, but if you bundle up it's really not that bad.
First, I had to unchain it. My chain is covered in a plastic shell which hardens when it's cold out. Tonight it was virtually inflexible. Since I've already cracked the shell once, and wouldn't need it until I came back anyway, I just left it in its snake-like position around the lamppost.
I pushed the bike up the hill a bit, and noticed that it had more resistance than normal. I expected that, though; all the gear oil and belts would be cold and stiff. A minute of driving would work that out.
Then I hard to start the bike. It has trouble starting if it's been cold or if it's gone unused for a week or two. It's now undergone both to an extreme, so I knew it would take some doing. I mashed the kickstarter repeatedly for two minutes before it finally caught, and promptly died. A couple more kicks and it finally held on.
I thought that would be the end of the problems, but oh, no! Once I thought the engine would be heated enough to take a bit of gas, I twisted the throttle to see... and nothing happened! The cable was jammed. The brakes at least had a little play, but the throttle simply wouldn't budge. The lubricant in the cables is absolutely frozen. (Current temperature outside, 23°F.)
The high tomorrow is supposed to be 48°. I'll have to try it again and see if I can bring the scooter back to life.
First, I had to unchain it. My chain is covered in a plastic shell which hardens when it's cold out. Tonight it was virtually inflexible. Since I've already cracked the shell once, and wouldn't need it until I came back anyway, I just left it in its snake-like position around the lamppost.
I pushed the bike up the hill a bit, and noticed that it had more resistance than normal. I expected that, though; all the gear oil and belts would be cold and stiff. A minute of driving would work that out.
Then I hard to start the bike. It has trouble starting if it's been cold or if it's gone unused for a week or two. It's now undergone both to an extreme, so I knew it would take some doing. I mashed the kickstarter repeatedly for two minutes before it finally caught, and promptly died. A couple more kicks and it finally held on.
I thought that would be the end of the problems, but oh, no! Once I thought the engine would be heated enough to take a bit of gas, I twisted the throttle to see... and nothing happened! The cable was jammed. The brakes at least had a little play, but the throttle simply wouldn't budge. The lubricant in the cables is absolutely frozen. (Current temperature outside, 23°F.)
The high tomorrow is supposed to be 48°. I'll have to try it again and see if I can bring the scooter back to life.