That involves not just draining and replacing oil, but dealing with what I consider the one piece of terrible engineering on the bike: The "oil filter" is a little metal screen that you have to remove the engine/clutch cover to get to so you can clean it.
The first time I did that, I broke a bolt off when replacing the cover because I incorrectly assumed that when you have two pieces of metal with a gasket between them, the bolts should be torqued down tight. No biggie; I replaced the low-quality regular bolts with high-quality hex-head bolts at a cost of less than $10.
This time, there were two problems.
One was that the paper-thin gasket was already breaking up. Again, no biggie: I used TVP as an interim gasket and I'll order a real gasket for next time.
The other, presumably from the over-torquing last time, is that two of the bolt holes are stripped.
Not an emergency (I ran and rode the bike with no leaks), but worrisome.
Instead of going amateur hour again and trying to drill and/or helicoil those holes myself, I'm going to pay my mechanic friend to do it (and that's when I'll clean the TVP off and put in the new gasket).
The good news is that there was almost nothing caught in that screen. I see no reason to remove the cover and clean the screen every time I change the oil. In fact, when I asked around among the online rider group for the KP Mini, several people with 10,000 or more miles on their bikes claimed that they had never done that. Since I want the longest engine life I can get, I'll probably do it every 5,000 miles or so just to be safe (I'll be changing the oil every 1,000-1500 miles), but not every time.
So far, the "cheap bolts, cheap engine case material" thing is the only issue that's made me ask myself whether I should have maybe just spent the same amount of money on a 20-year-old Honda.
I was planning to also put on the "performance" air filter and try to get a perfect tune on the stock carb last night, but the oil change went from a 15-minute thing to a 1-hour thing, so that will wait.
I also have a "performance" carb to install, and a 16-tooth front sprocket that supposedly fits this bike, but I decided to wait a little while longer. The other day, I managed to get 66 miles per hour out of the bike; my goal is 70+, and I may get that just from the performance air and well-tuned carb (using my mechanic friend's O2 sensor plug-in that lets you dial in the perfect fuel/air ratio).
So far, the only bites I've had on my listing of the Italica Bulldog 150 have been 1) a guy who made two appointments to look at it and showed up for neither, and 2) a lady from 50 miles away who doesn't have a motorcycle license or a even a driver's license because she has to get "medical clearance" of some kind, and also "can't get a plate" because reasons, but wants something to get to and from work on, and a 35mph, 50cc scooter isn't fast enough, and would I take coins and jewelry or do I accept credit cards?
The guy not showing up is obvious. As for the lady, I really don't give a shit whether someone has a card from the gummint giving them permission to use the roads, or a metal rectangle certifying that they've paid a tax ... but the vibe I got was that she would absolutely be dangerous to herself, and probably to others, on the road. I don't want serious injury or death on my karma tab. So I just said "sorry, we can't do business."
New plan: I'll probably go ahead and just get a plate for the Bulldog again (I transferred its old one to the Mini). Then I'll have a "no shifting town bike" for trips deep into Gainesville where there's lots of stop-and-go and 20mph streets, and a "country bike" for (usually lightly traveled) 60mph highways out here in the sticks.
I'd rather just make some money back on the Bulldog, so I may just see if my favorite scooter shop will take it on consignment, but I'd forgotten what a pain in the ass it is to sell a vehicle (and the vehicle having two wheels seems to be a multiplier of said pain).
Update, Saturday 1pm-ish: New issue that I think I know the answer to. Sometimes (not always) the bike isn't wanting to downshift from 3rd to 2nd or 2nd to neutral and/or 1st. Since the clutch cable attaches to the case cover that I had off last night, I suspect that I re-attached it just a tiny bit off from its previous position and isn't engaging sometimes at those gears. I'll figure it out and get it adjusted. Got that gasket ordered. Rode the bike to the new house for inspection this morning, and back, no oil leaks that I can tell.
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