Mondoape.com

Sorry about my lack of Italian! I just picked up my Ape Calessino which had been sitting in a showroom for 12 months. All sorted now

Many thanks.

Den.

its easy this problem is due to standing for 12 months
the brake cilinders need a bit of work : probably just cleaning up will do.
the same problem would occur with disc brakes.
what happens is that the hydraulic pistons do not return any more because of a ridge that formed from standing.
its a very common problem with oldtimers that are hardly ever used .
an hour of playing around should solve everything .
contact Dr. Ken for your problems with apitis, historical info on the ape for your site and modern brakes .
some info clearly came from erroneous sites.
Dr Ken will surely be happy to cure these problems but apitis has no known cure as far as i know , he can however make your life less miserable when the virus tries to make you do strange things like buying an ape pentaro

Thank you, Apeitis!
the mechanics told me they over adjusted the brakes, so the problem is all sorted, no problem

I had to Google Pentaro! Very cool!



Thanks

Tukxi(Den)

Don't change anything, fix it. Not difficult if you explain to a mechanic that it's been sitting for a long time. These machines are bulletproof but age and sitting can play havoc with brakes. Be there when the mechanic is doing his thing so you understand the process of maintenance. Chances are some moisture has entered the brake fluid and replacement and some cleaning as OV says will be the cure. DON'T MODIFY IT - trust me on this, I always have to delete modifications to go back to the original and it's a pain how people lose their way. As for a Pentaro you will need much schooling in Api's and if a small brake problem panics you, you will surely expire with the effort required to take on a Pentaro. Besides, I'd be miffed if you got one first, so buy a model for now. - Ken

Thanks Ken, I appreciate your comments and concerns, I am a fairly competent mechanic, I restore motorcycles as a hobby, the Calessino went back to the dealer because I had just taken delivery and they felt obliged to sort it out. I also prefer joining forums like this where the knowledge of all the members combined is more useful than anything available.
I hope at some stage I can contribute positively.

Tukxi

Why is it I can't get beyond Kate Middletons message in your Guestbook? - Ken

Try it now, I just made a few changes!