'84 Aero 50 engine advice

[agostini]

Got me a 1984 Aero 50 (or, as my in info says, Areo) scoot, neptune blue, 1,600 miles for $250.

Last owner had it for several years - ran it a few times but not much - could only get it briefly running when I stopped by using some starting fluid squirted into the carb (I know, not a good idea) - engine sure sounded good though.

Anyway, I'm cleaning/tweaking this to get it going as a commuter scooter for me. I'm taking it mostly (but not all) apart, the thing is caked in sticky oil/tar stuff. I couldn't get the oil pump off without taking the cylinder off so I did that. Cylinder and piston look good - ready to put the engine back together and into the frame.

Question: I can't get a lower cylinder gasket for this scoot (between the cylinder and crank case). I tried my Honda dealer, Bike Bandit, Monster Scooters.

Do I:

Make a gasket myself (major time and patience pain)

or

Use the original that is fused to the cylinder, is in good shape, but probably is 26 years old?

Any helpful, well-informed advice is appreciated....

[northnb50]

first off, welcome and nice find!!

Im going to say go with a new gasket, if you cant source one im sure the paper gasket material from any auto-parts store can be cut out to match just make sure thickness is the same as that can mess up the clearance of the ports by the piston. Check ebay also as there are some dealers that may have gaskets.
Even though that scoot has low miles, you may also want to check out the transmission, specifically the rollers and belt for wear so when everything gets assembled your not robbed of any sweet, sweet power...

[agostini]

Thanks for the reply norhtnb50.

Looking closer at the cylinder, I found a scratch. Took it to the machine shop suggested by the local Honda dealer - he didn't think it was a problem but ended up honing the cylinder, checking the piston and giving me advice on how to re-assemble - all for free.

Now have ordered the required new piston ring kit - it'll be here in 1-2 weeks, and the upper cylinder gasket should be here before that. I will make my own base gasket for that cylinder - been ill for a few days so haven't sourced the material but am pretty sure I can find something that'll work.

Took apart the plastic covering the handle bar assembly to lube the brake and accelerator cables - found some broken plastic (no, I didn't do that!) - probably need to do some mending prior to re-assembly. Short of going the whole plastic welding route, any suggestions on a good epoxy? Looking online, Locktite had a plastic epoxy that looked promising. Any opinions?

Thanks

P.S. Thanks for the tip regarding the transmission. Thought I'd look at that after I re-installed the engine in the frame - thought it might be easier to work on.