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Hey everyone, as you probably haven't noticed, it has been a while since I've posted in here. But I have a good excuse: my Falco was stolen! Yes, the bike that thieves shouldn't be interested in (and I mean Falco's in general, nonetheless mine which looks like crap on the outside) was taken in the night. Woke up and left the apartment for work, looked out on the street and got that terrible feeling. And in case anyone was wondering, I was quite stupid and only had the steering lock on, with no other devices.

So once I got over it, I picked up another bike (it is my only means of transport). It is one of those zingy Japanese jobs, but I wont mention the name.

Anywho, a few months pass and I'm adjusting to the new, non-Falco... when I get a call at 23:30 (as my Falco clock would indicate it). It was the cops, they had found my bike and wanted me to come pick it up, "now."

I'll spare you every last detail (unless you really want them), but the bike was basically abandoned by the thieves. Judging by the comments of the people living on the street where it was found, they probably only used the bike once or twice before leaving it. It was almost out of fuel when they stole it, so maybe not having the key to fill it up easily put them off. It had fallen over once (since someone living there told me he picked it up), but other than that and a broken lock on the passenger seat pad, it was in good shape.

The funny thing was that the thief left a huge lock and chain on it. Funny because the Italian cops told me, "the bike is yours again, but you have to break the chain off"... thanks a lot! So after breaking a cheap Chinese bolt cutter trying to free the Falco, a friendly neighbor came by with an angle grinder and had the chain off in 30 seconds!

Best part? The battery was weak, but she still started up on her own after having sat there for months!

So that's my story... and I'll probably be back now to post my pointless thoughts once again.

Sad... then Happy Story .... with a touch of funny too?

Glad you got it back.

good news.

Hi all,

Glad you got your bike back, one would assume you are fitting your own chain at home maybe And an alarm Glad you got it back though....

Glad you're back and glad you've got the bike back and the damage wasn't too bad.

I like stories with happy endings.

Great news mate, and you're always welcome here.

Hey guys, thanks for the warm welcome back. It feels great to have the Falco again. My first ride on it, after having spend months on the Jap zinger, was fantastic. I knew I was missing it, but didn't realize how much until I was back on. My Falco has standard exhaust cans, and the sound it makes still puts the Jap inline 4 to shame (and that's got an aftermarket can). Really, those 4's can't touch the V60 sound and feel.


A small hiccup though, as it has been hard to start. I know the issue is common, but prior to being stolen she always started well once I put in a Yuasa. So I had been trying to track down the issue, and sure enough it was the relay.

I read a lot about the replacement Yamaha part that can be used, but the local dealer wanted 70 Euro (when they are something like US $31 on the web). So while deciding what to do, I came up with a temp fix. There is an abandoned Yamaha Majesty 250 scooter that has been sat on my street for more than a year. It is missing a wheel, and has had most of its parts cannibalized.

But sure enough, the starter relay was still there. So, I did the wrong thing and took it (not that anyone could possibly care). Now, this isn't the same part as the Yamaha relay that fits right in, but it is rated at 100amps. The problem is that it has 3 wires leading into it, instead of the two for the Falco unit (and other Yam unit). So messed around with the wires, in various combinations, and I got it to work in the configuration below. Mind you, this is only temporary until I get the correct part.

So my question to you all is if you see anything wrong with the wiring? Notably, the red wire is now simply cut... should this be a problem?