Up in flames...

A couple weeks ago, I had Joan order me a set of flames for the Vespa.  Flames?  On a classic scooter like your Vespa?

Yes.

Well, this would be more like "Intro to Flames, 101."  These are magnetic, so it isn't a life-long commitment.  If I don't like 'em, I can take them off.  I just thought that plain black Vespa needed some jazzing up.

There was a thread on the Vespa forum (Modern Vespa) where people were showing photos of their Vespas with decals (stickers) on them.  I have never been one for decals, so I asked if anyone had painted flames on their Vespa.  (crickets chirping)  I took that as a big ol' nope.  I looked online, but didn't see anything I found appealing.

That led to a search for "stick-on" flames.  One company had some that were magnetic and available in different sizes.  I measured the space I have on the rounded back end of the Vespa... that had a size that looked promising.  Like most insignificant purchases, I ruminated on it for a while.

When I made the buying decision, it was on Amazon, with this company fulfilling the order.  They have good reviews.  Alas, it is not Prime... so not only did I have to pay for the shipping, but it took over a week to get here.  It has been raining off and on (more on) since Monday evening.  But, this morning we awoke to partly cloudy after a rain-filled overnight.

I pulled the Vespa out of the cargo trailer and proceeded to peel apart the flames.  Well, "peel apart" may not be best description, but they are almost cut out from the background.  It appears to be a screen printed vinyl on top of a magnetic base.  These are made with a car or truck in mind; the Vespa is different from other scooters, in that it has a metal monocoque body construction.  (Piaggio, the parent company of Vespa used to make airplanes.  They applied that design to scooters after WW2.)  Unlike most scoots that are a metal frame with plastic panels that snap in place.  In other words, the Vespa has a metal body, so something magnetic will stick to it.

It took me quite a while to get the first side punched out and put in place.  I heard a rumble of thunder while doing the second side.  Working even faster, I got the second side positioned just as the first big raindrops started to fall.  Not wanting to get that black scoot all water spotted, I quickly got it back in the trailer.  Before I could get a photo to show it off.

Quarters are pretty tight in the trailer, but here is a preview of the flames...

Almost perfectly fits the curve of that area.  If/when this rain goes away (not today), I'll get a better photo.

Vespa purists may scoff at the flames.  I'm OK with that.  In fact, now seeing how it looks, I would consider a more permanent flame decor.  ;-)

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Got a break from the rain, so a couple quick photos...