MadAss Underbone 125cc

A not so girly scooter.

This is the MadAss 125. It is an underbone motorized scooter, or a light motorcycle depending how you measure it. The engine is outside the frame, which is standard for an underbone. Underbones have a manual transmission. This means you have to use the clutch to change gears. The upshot is you can engine brake down a hill. The hills are steep here so that's important.

I would be using it for commuting around town, to my job mostly. Parking there is limited, but there's a nice wide back porch I could park this during the day, 300 days a year. It only weighs 210 pounds, which isn't much at all. This machine drop ships from their dealer in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to here for $2500 flat. No hidden $400 "delivery" fees. You pay, it shows up. Takes about half an hour to screw in the mirrors and lights and tighten the handlebars, oil and fuel it. Take the reg number to DMV, pay the fee, and you get a license plate. Considering the local DMV is about a 10 minute wait in line, if any, that's not bad at all.

I will have to save the money for this, obviously, but at least I'm working now so its actually possible. Must do DMV motorcycle safety class first. That will probably be in April.

A nice feature of this bike is lots of tuning parts to increase power and reliability. If I decide to ride it longer distances, I can get an oil cooler. I can also change the sprocket for higher speed, and upgrade the exhaust and engine for better power output. As is, its CARB legal, which is important for registering it here in the PRK. I can also get a progressive shock absorber, which is good for bad roads. I doubt I need it just yet so I think I'll save the $375 cost for later upgrades. I might want better tires, for example. No need to worry about that, just yet. I think this machine would make a trip up to Sierra Buttes pretty interesting and just long and slow enough to be fun. I can make many stops on the way for photos. I might upgrade the exhaust to allow panniers for lunch and my camera bag, but I'm not in a rush, like I said. I don't have the money for this yet, but its a better and more practical deal than the Italian or Japanese scooters are. They're ALL made in China anyway, except for the ones made in Thailand.

And this gets to an important point. The engine is held on with a few bolts. When we stop having gasoline, you unbolt the engine and bolt on one for diesel or alcohol fuel, in whatever configuration and away you go. You can put on knobby tires when the roads get worse. Its not a proper offroad bike, but its a lot better than a scooter. Considering we'll have icy rain and snow tomorrow, neither choice would be good and I'm glad to have a car, but still, the sun will be out in a couple days either way. The snow will melt. The hot hot summer heat will come before I even realize it and having a scooter like this will be great.