KEEPING WARM
No.101 February/March 2015
WINTER RIDING GUIDE
MICK LUMB’S SERIES 1
RACE
MOTOLAMBRETTA THE V-TWIN RACER
WIN
A ROCK OIL PACKAGE WORTH
£ 75
REPLICA ZEN
& THE ART OF TYRE PRESSURES
THE TV175 IN DETAIL
VESPA
DECOKE MADE SIMPLE
BUYING USED THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR
MOD AT THE MOVIES
AN EVENING WITH QUADROPHENIA DIRECTOR FRANC RODDAM
SCOOTERAMA! – A FELICITOUS FANFARE OF FACTS, FEEDBACK & FACES
52 Issue 101 February/March 2015 Editor: Mau Spencer 01507 529408 mauspencer@classicscooterist.com Group production editor: Tim Hartley Publisher: Steve Rose Contributors: Rich Addison; Henry Byer; Dave Dry; Siobhan Ellis; Ashley Lenton; Carli A Smith; Phillip Tooth; John Turner; Laurie Vaughan. Apologies to anyone we’ve forgotten. Some of the articles within these pages express the opinions of the contributors and are not necessarily those of Classic Scooterist. Design: Charlotte Turnbull Reprographics: Simon Duncan Divisional advertising manager: Richard Sinclair rsinclair@mortons.co.uk Advertising: Etta Hargrave 01507 524464 ehargrave@mortons.co.uk Subscription manager: Paul Deacon Circulation manager: Steve O’Hara Marketing manager: Charlotte Park Production manager: Craig Lamb Publishing director: Dan Savage Commercial director: Nigel Hole Associate director: Malc Wheeler Editorial address: CLASSIC SCOOTERIST MAGAZINE PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ www.scooteristscene.com General queries and back issues: 01507 529529 (24hr answerphone) Archivist: Jane Skayman 01507 529423 jskayman@mortons.co.uk Next issue (102) published: March 18, 2015 Editorial deadline: February 16, 2015 CLASSIC SCOOTERIST (ISSN:1756-9494) is published bi-monthly by Mortons Media Group Ltd, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 6LZ UK. USA subscriptions are $36 per year from Motorsport Publications LLC, 7164 Cty Rd N #441, Bancroft WI 54921. Periodical Postage is paid at Wisconsin Rapids, WI. Postmaster: Send address changes to CLASSIC SCOOTERIST, Motorsport Publications LLC, 7164 Cty Rd N #441, Bancroft WI 54921. 715-572-4595 Email: chris@classicbikebooks.com www.classicbikebooks.com Distribution: COMAG Tavistock Road, West Drayton, Middlesex UB7 7QE Subscription: Full subscription rates (but see page 24 for offer): (12 months 6 issues, inc post and packing) – UK £21.60. Export rates are also available – see page 66 for more details. UK subscriptions are zero-rated for the purposes of Value Added Tax. Printed by: William Gibbons & Sons, Wolverhampton © Mortons Media Group. All rights reserved. No part of this publication maybe reproduced without prior written permission.
CONTENTS 4
Back when we had hair
42 Chasing a dream
70 Keeping warm
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Scooterama
46 Back in the day
76 Lambretta silencer havoc
Nostalgic memories from times gone by A felicitous fanfare of facts, feedback and faces
16 Mod at the movies
Franc Roddam talks about the making of Quadrophenia
18 Access all areas
1960s scootering in Portsmouth and Southampton
22 “You’ve got mail”
Readers express their views, ask questions and show us their pictures
26 What’s going on? Next year’s events in brief
28 Rallies and events
Reports and pictures from rallies around the country
32 Antipodean antics Independent publisher since 1885
Having trouble finding a copy of this magazine? Why not Just Ask your local newsagent to reserve you a copy each month?
Siobhan Ellis travels Australia’s Great Ocean Road.
36 Breaking the rules Mick Lumb’s Series 1 race replica Lambretta
Guptaspeed – a very different Indian Lambretta Blessing scooters in Rome
48 Chroming up
Where do you get your chroming done?
50 A real Bobby Dazzler
Laurie Vaughan reaches journeys’ end in his prolonged hunt for a used Vespa
52 MotoLambretta
78 Zen and the art of tyre pressures
We never said things were simple…
80 Novice maintenance Vespa decoke made simple
82 Scooter clubs
86 Scooterist classifieds For all your wants and needs
56 A pint of Tinners
John Turner celebrates scooter trials in style
58 The Lambretta TV 175 Series 1 The Rolls-Royce of scooters
64 Stonehenge or bust A scooter tale to remember
Flooding is not a modern phenomenon
The TV200’s Achilles heel
Meet and greet your local club
Lambretta’s famed V-twin motorcycle racer
68 Back in the day
Riding in winter doesn’t have to mean the frost nips at your toes
90 Oddballs
Strange and quirky – you’ll find it here
ARE YOU A SUBSCRIBER? Fill in the coupon on page 24 and take advantage of our money-saving offers
A hole in the budget
T
he Government has recently announced its plans to spend 15 billion pounds on developing the UK road network. This is all well and good, but what I’d like to know is, just how much will it be spending on the maintenance of our existing road system? For instance, there can’t be many counties scattered around the UK that don’t have some sort of ongoing issue with potholes and the problems they cause. Certainly around the area where I live, they are a constant cause for concern. I can see individual potholes getting
bigger and bigger, day by day. If you’re not alert and constantly ‘on the ball’ so to speak, they can quite easily catch you out and if you’re not careful, they could easily fetch you off your bike. The suspension set-up of modern scooters like the Vespa Granturismo can cope with many of the smaller cavities – but jump on a classic scooter and that could be a whole different world of experience. I would like to think that some of the government’s latest proposed financial road budget will be going some way in helping to solve the problem.
Anyway, that’s my personal rant over with. Although this edition is tagged as being the Feb/March issue, because of the festive holiday period, all the work on it was completed prior to Christmas – even though it wasn’t going to be on sale until after the New Year break, so I hope any editorial timelines mentioned make chronological sense. MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM
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n e h w k Bac we had hair
DO YOU HAVE A NOSTALGIC STORY TO TELL, OR AN OLD PICTURE Classic Scooterist, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ
TO SHARE?
mauspencer@classicscooterist.com
01507 529408
Vinnie – 30 years later
A young Vinnie in 1984
VINNIE KING
Here’s a picture of me on my GP, taken in 1984; I’m on the right, aged 17. Also enclosed is a recent picture of me on my 1965 Li which was taken 30 years later.
BIZZ BURNS
Bizz Burns from Scunthorpe pictured with Lynn (now his wife) sat on a Lambretta borrowed from Lance Cowling, as Bizz’s Jet 200 had been stolen before the 1979 Scarborough rally.
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MARC RICHARDSON
Taken in 1978 in Portland Street, Gillygate, York, Marc is sat on board his ‘Far Spar’ competition Lambretta, which was fitted with an Ancillotti big exhaust, a Mk.1 Amal carb – it went well when he could get it started!
SCOOTERAMA!
Mod at the movies
The Cinema Museum,London
Oct 30,2014
Franc Roddam
An evening at the Cinema Museum featuring Franc Roddam, director of the film Quadrophenia
F
ifty years on from the Mods v rockers beach riots in southern England, this event offered an exploration of cinematic depictions of the Mod movement; from Soho to Brighton, with pride of place given to an extensive interview with Franc Roddam, the ‘Ace Face’ director of the ultimate Mod movie, Quadrophenia (1979). On the stage at the museum was Stephen Glyn, discussing Mod influence in film with Franc Roddam. Stephen opened the evening on the subject of Quadrophenia, where it fits with the Mod movement, and why it generates such devotion. Stephen gave a list of 11 films that he feels were influenced in some way by the Mod movement – a list beginning with the 1965 film Dateline Diamonds featuring the Small Faces singing, I Got Mine and ending with the 2002 version of Brighton Rock set in 1964 that had a beach fight as a back drop.
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FRANC RODDAM – A HISTORY
Franc Roddam (introduced, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, as the ‘Quad Master’) was asked about his career history, which started when he left school in Stockton on Tees to work in a shipyard as a 15-year-old apprentice. This was a terrible experience for Franc; Tyne shipyards were freezing in winter with a 7.30am start and a class-ridden hierarchy. Franc had a nine mile cycle ride to work; if he was even one minute late, the yards’ gate was slammed on the dot, locking the latecomers out, only reopening later to allow docking of wages as a punishment (some of these working experiences later featured in Franc’s Auf Wiedersehen Pet TV hit series). This early experience left Franc with strong left wing views and a commitment to equal rights. The twice weekly night school sessions were part of Franc’s apprenticeship. His gift for English made his tutors suggest he returned to full time education (Franc hadn’t been allowed to go to Grammar School by his father because the local school was
Protestant faith and Franc’s parents were Catholics). Franc achieved education success with A-levels in art and English. Following this he left Tyneside to go on a proto hippy trail to Afghanistan and Iran, armed with a German bayonet as protection! While wandering, word reached him that a film was being made in Greece and English-speaking extras were needed. This ‘on set’ experience sparked Franc’s film interest and opened his mind to the production processes. He travelled to London and applied to the London Film School, where he was given a grant to study. Among Franc’s student efforts was a nomination for the Best Short Film for which he won an award. After college he worked as a copywriter in a posh London advertising agency based in a grand building, with uniformed flunkies on the door and a nasty ex-guards’ officer of a director. The entire episode was later to be immortalised by Jimmy Cooper in Quadrophenia. A funny anecdote from then, involved this same tall ex-guards’ officer entering the agencies’ film projection room to find three
youthful figures sat around doing nothing. Two lads jumped up and stood to attention, but the third carried on lolling in his seat. “How much money do you earn a week?” barked the director at the seated boy. “About 25 quid,” came the reply. Reacting to this response and lack of respect, the director took out his wallet and handed the lad £50, and said: “Now leave the building and don’t come back again!” The joke was that the young man was delivering photos and wasn’t actually an employee, but left the building £50 better off. The ad agency had the effect of knocking Franc’s rough working class edges off and prepared the way for a job at the BBC where he made a film documentary about heavyweight boxers Joe Frazier and Joe Bugner. This led to Franc directing the very first ‘fly on the wall’ documentary series, The Family (1974) with producer Paul Watson (the first time a TV film documentary had featured a working class family, showing life as it really was). Franc went on to direct Mini, and Dummy (a 1977 film about a deaf, dumb prostitute and murderer).
Classic Scooterist, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ mauspencer@classicscooterist.com 01507 529408
The programme was watched by 14 million viewers. Dummy brought Franc to the attention of Who Productions and resulted in an offer to direct Quadrophenia. After Quadrophenia, Franc was invited to Hollywood to direct Lords of Discipline (1983) and then a three year project about the destruction of the Amazon rain forest, but this very personal film to Franc was never made. His other films were, The Bride (1985), Aria (1987) starring Brigitte Fonda, and War Party a modern day take on the US relationship with American native indians. Probably Franc’s best known Hollywood film was K2 – badly cut by the grandees of Hollywood after costing four million dollars to make. This pushed him into accepting life’s status quo, as he put it, and returning to UK television drama. Then followed Moby Dick, Cleopatra, Auf Wiedersehen Pet (1983-2004), Making Out, Harry (26 episodes) and finally as executive director of the series Master Chef (2005-). The latter has become one of the most successful BBC series with 5000 people working on this project alone worldwide. Further ventures on the horizon include: Waltzing Matilda (predictably an Australian project) and revisiting Franc’s rain forest theme and the wars in Africa.
QUADROPHENIA
Franc’s audition for Quadrophenia was, in the first instance, with Bill Curbishley*, manager of The Who. Bill is a formidable man from London’s East End whose force of character was needed on more than one occasion to prise concert money from reluctant promoters. Franc was then introduced to the four band members starting with Pete Townshend, creative leader behind The Who. Pete had an idea for an orchestral film score that Franc felt obliged to talk him out of, on the grounds that The Who’s own music was evocative for the era to be portrayed. Franc was passed on to Roger Daltrey who was fixated on strict period fashion views; then on to John Entwistle, an easy-going character; finally, a meeting with Keith Moon, an individual with a scary persona twinned with an equally scary bodyguard-cumchauffeur, who laughed menacingly every time Franc opened his mouth! Keith was prone to adopting a Robert Newton accent (shades of Newton’s guttural Blackbeard the pirate West Country burr); this accent was used as Keith sidled
close to Franc and offered to be the film’s co-director alongside Franc. Not to be put off by Keith’s kind offer, Franc replied that he might agree if Keith would let him drum on the next Who album. That, needless to say, shut Keith up and the subject was dropped.
THE INITIAL FILM SCRIPT
Written by a Northern Mod, the script was far too long, so another was requested from Dave Humphries. Casting then started before the script was completed (quite unorthodox). The script’s final draft was actually written by Martin Stelman.
CASTING IN THE FILM INDUSTRY
The casting is influenced by the money men behind the project, but as 18-year-olds were needed, the usual £10,000 per week requested by seasoned, known actors wasn’t an issue, so Franc and his team were able to choose from 1000 aspiring actors. If selected, they’d be paid a fixed sum for the entire production period. So plenty of time was available to allow them to learn to ride scooters, as well as time to learn the imaginary backgrounds created to help them be more credible on set and to give authenticity to their relationships within their group. Sting (probably the best known young actor chosen) wasn’t first choice for the part but unfortunately the preferred ‘Ace Face’ was unavailable, so the end product was fated to featuring Sting’s dubious dancing skills. Franc filmed using a wide angle lens, which gives depth of field, keeping the whole vista in focus – the natural effect that’s seen, naturally with the human eye. This follows the example of legendary directors like John Ford, Orson Welles and Akira Kurosawa.
and a simple pulley with a Range Rover providing the motive power for the launch. Careful calculations were made for the scooter’s trajectory as it was catapulted off the cliff edge. These were necessary to allow Franc to film from a helicopter hovering close by the cliff edge to catch the flight of the scooter through the air on camera. As it transpired, the catapult mechanism worked somewhat better than planned and the scooter narrowly missed Franc and the helicopter!
STUDIO SCENES
These included the Kitchener Road party which was filmed in a documentary style with lines chalked on the floor to position the actors.
ERRORS IN THE FILM
The most infamous was Heaven Can Wait, a late Seventies film starring Warren Beatty, being advertised on the cinema during the riot scene. This was consciously left in, as there were three warring ‘tribes’: Mods, rockers and the police in a scene of mayhem, and unscripted, a uniformed Boys’ Brigade band came around the corner and into the melee. This was the opposite to the heated emotions of the film set and gave a peaceful counter point to the fighting.
DOES THE FILM HAVE A MESSAGE?
Quadrophenia is an uncompromising film about suicide and failure. The end was left ambiguous on purpose and there’s a message to young people that they don’t have to fall into a
pattern – it’s their life regardless of success or relative failure. After 35 years, the film is still loved and demonstrates an authenticity of emotions and underlines that 90% of life is about failure. Jimmy fails. Young people see this as a true reflection of themselves. The film is a celebration of the energy of life. All this linked with sensational music and acting from Phil Daniels. The ending – was it copied? Perhaps, but situations are sometimes plural. After the film was shown in America, Time Magazine gave the ultimate accolade at that time, saying that it was the best English film for 20 years – The Ace Face of Mod movies. Dave Dry FRANC RODDAM has enjoyed success in various fields of film and television directing, and also in television production and publishing. He founded (and chairs) the Ziji Publishing company, and is a sponsor of the London Film School, where he was a student. STEPHEN GLYNN is Associate Research Fellow at De Montfort University, UK. His writings on rock movies range from the particular, A Hard Day’s Night (2004), to the general, The British Pop Music Film (2013) and include a recent book titled Quadrophenia) *Being ‘hard men’ would seem to run in the Curbishley family, as the fight scene in the beach front cafe where a window is smashed by someone throwing a table ably demonstrates. The table was thrown by none other than one of Bill’s younger brothers!
LOCATIONS
Brighton nearly refused permission for filming; despite this, 26 locations were chosen there. The production team were found wanting in securing these locations and only found four before Franc laid down the law in no uncertain terms, by waving a wine bottle in the air and threatening them with the film folding due to their lack of input. This threat soon resulted in 24 locations being found. Franc is often asked about the scene featuring the scooter going over the cliff and how it was engineered? The answer was that a long ramp was set up with a rope
Paul Kelly and friend Julie, provided background material for Franc Roddam’s talk; these include Paul’s Quadrophenia scooters and an inside display of Paul’s film posters and other memorabilia MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM
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MORE PICTURES FROM THIS EVENT can be found on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ScooteristScene
The Great Eastern November 14-17, 2014
The Great Eastern Rally is the last major scooter rally of 2014 and in its five years has become increasingly popular. The Haven holiday park in Mablethorpe was overtaken by scooterists for a weekend of music, stalls and other entertainment.
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pproaching winter, camping isn’t always the preferred option, so it was nice to spend the weekend in the warmth and comfort of a static caravan. As we had a caravan packed full of teenagers the prices were reasonable too. After having countless scooter problems, we finally caught up with the rest of the New Generation crew on site before having a few and heading to the main do. In the venue there were three rooms: a Jamaicaninfluenced music room, if you wanted to get your skank on; a Northern Soul room; and the Live Lounge. The Soul room, in particular, was really good as the dance floor was filled most of the night and there was plenty of room for all your back-drop kicks and spins (a little something for
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everyone). The theme for the evening was 1970s fancy dress and although I didn’t get onboard, many did and it was a laugh seeing everyone dressed up. Afterwards, we took the party back to the caravan, getting in some pizza and chicken wings. On the Saturday, as well as a custom show there was a parts fair too, selling items from Lambretta exhausts to sharp-looking suits. After doing our shopping, we walked up the beach into town for some grub and a few more drinks. We ended up spending a few hours (and our spare change) in the arcades. Meanwhile back on site, Elvis Presley had been brought back from the dead to entertain the scooterists. In the evening, The Dualers, a ska/reggae band well known in the
scooter scene, were headlining. Again the Northern Soul and the Jamaican music rooms were alternatives if the band wasn’t your cup of tea. The Young Guns SC also attended the rally in good numbers and it was great to catch up with some of them. After plenty of souling, skanking and a skinful, we retired back to our warm caravan for a good night’s sleep, ready to pack and leave in the morning. For those who didn’t want to leave on Sunday, tunes played until late in the evening. Well done to VFM for arranging another event that was thoroughly enjoyed by those who attended. I hope no one got too wet on the way home.
Words: Henry Byer Images: Jason Webb, Kara Websdale
YOUR GENERATION
Are you a young scooterist? Why not visit www.facebook.com/ TalkMyGeneration and like our ‘My Generation’ Facebook page. Alternatively, click the QR code shown here to link via your mobile or tablet.
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Remembrance Day ride Sunday, November 9, 2014
We were praying for good weather for our ride into Regent’s Park in London’s Inner Circle to meet with other scooterists for The Ride of Remembrance, organised by The Wasps SC.
M
eeting at 9.45am, we commenced our journey to Regent’s Park, meeting-up with other riders on the way; then, once in the park, we met-up with other members of The Foresters SC. More scooters started arriving and by 11am there were hundreds about – even Del Boy Trotter’s van made an appearance, which started a lot of conversations... A two minute silence was observed by all, to remember the fallen in two World Wars; then everyone got ready to make the journey to Wellington Arch, at Hyde Park Corner. Myself and mate John
Card left early and made our way to The Dorchester Hotel in Park Lane to get ready to photograph the masses when they passed by. John spoke with the doorman at the hotel and we were given a priority parking bay to park our scoots. To get some good pictures, John ventured on to the grass reservation in the middle of Park Lane, while I decided to stand in between the four traffic lanes. We heard and saw the scooters coming from the direction of Marble Arch and got ready to do some snapping. Wasps SC members led the rideout, and as
they approached, blue fumes started to fill the air. The riders were mainly all together with some traffic in between and I was getting a little concerned that I might not be seen and would get mown down! Around 25 minutes later, all had passed us by and we then rode to Wellington Arch, where the police had shunted all riders into a side road. Then came the task of crossing the busy traffic to get to the arch to lay our wreaths. I missed the reading by Rob Class (the late Tony Class’s brother, RIP) as I was trying to park. I then lost John, but was able to lay the
wreath on behalf of the Foresters SC while my dear friend, Claudia Agius, took over the camera duties. I then rode into Camden, to the Modfather Clothing Shop which had a live band playing. Mario, the owner, did a short speech to thank everyone and said that the riders totalled some 1020. I visited The Tower of London on my way home, to see the poppies again, and all-in-all, had a fantastic day, paying my respects and meeting-up with many friends. Well done to The Wasps SC for great organisation.
Martin Heath Foresters SC
MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM
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AN ENTHUSIAST’S VIEW
JOURNEY’S END...
...TO FINDTHE REAL BOBBY DAZZLER!
If you’re one of those poor unfortunate souls who buys a scooter from time-to-time, this rendition may be familiar. Buying scooters is like an addiction, and once ownership comes to fruition, we can all stand guilty as charged of creeping out to the garage for a sneaky peek at the new addition.
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o let’s check into rehab and look at how these journeys start and end; climb aboard – it’s been a long, but worthwhile journey! Over the last 27 years, I’ve learned just how easy it is to go armed with a wallet full of beer vouchers looking for the next project. Sadly, I’ve spent too many cold nights trying to put right where people (including myself) have gone wrong. We have to accept that the laws of average occasionally tip the scales in favour of the other side, which is enough to topple any scooterist over the edge. This article shares findings on scooters I’ve considered buying. Some advertised as “fine examples”, or “immaculate and untouched”, against not-so-daring adverts like “scooter for sale” or “wanted... kind home”. I’ve narrowed it down to five scooters in the form of two LML Stars and three Vespa PXs taken at face value from adverts. You’ll be amazed what treasures can be uncovered – or not!
THE SEARCH BEGINS...
A local dealer selling an 8396 mile 2001 Vespa PX125. Immediately I spot a high-visibility starshaped flash card (conveniently stuck over a cracked headlight) which claims one lady owner and minor cosmetic marks. A closer look reveals the left-hand panel scuffed, which matches a dent on the mudguard’s left side. On the handlebars, the clutch lever is bent and scratched; all signs of a left-sided drop. The paperwork shows three owners. Price £1595. However, the cost to put it right is probably half as much again. The dealer’s price tag is too high for a scooter in this shape. I later contact a dealer I’ve used many times to ask if he has anything worth looking at. A
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nice 2012 LML Star 125 (2T) in black with 14,630 miles; one careful owner, full service history; price £1495. On arrival, it’s parked outside and I’m surprised how nice it is. The paperwork confirms everything and this would make a nice first scooter for someone, but the price tag is a bit rich considering a new one costs as little as £1999. A couple of hundred pounds off could make it more attractive, even at such high mileage for the year. It’s another month before anything else takes my eye; online I find a 2006 PX125 (featuring ‘go faster’ decals!), 1997 miles, advertised as “a lovely scooter in excellent condition”, cost £2399! Before I even catch my breath over the price, I have to consider logistics, so delivery
adds another £150. I request pictures – lo and and behold, the mudguard is badly corroded along its seam; the paint has flaked on both sides at the rear of the footwell and the amount of decals would give a Formula 1 boiler suit a run for its money. Even with low mileage, this scooter is not worth looking at. Paint repairs could cost up to £500 on the strength that the decals aren’t hiding anything sinister. A new PX125 can be bought for £2999, or you could save another £1000 and opt for a brandspanking-new LML Star 125. Next up, a gentleman who is selling his scooter privately. A 2010 workhorse LML Star, 7456 miles, some service history, a few ‘dinks’ and the speedo isn’t working. On first
impressions, the scooter seems tidy enough. The owner offers me the key and it starts first kick. He is throwing in waterproofs, a disc lock and a brand-new helmet. Looking around the engine, the rubber parts are all perished (a normal LML trait) and the casings are covered in the usual oil residue. However, this is an honest commuter scooter, so what you see is what you get. Price hasn’t even been mentioned at this point and he allows a test ride; a nice little runner and not bad at £1100 plus a cup of tea and cake. I retreat to do figure work and play the whole ‘yes/no’ game. In the meantime, another buyer says ‘yes’ half-an-hour later. Lesson 1: Leave a deposit you can afford to lose. Finally, a scooter that changes my opinion about private sales. The advert says “Scooter For Sale”. Vespa PX200, 2003, green, 2016 miles, two owners, good condition, £2300. The scooter is not far from where I live, so I contact the seller who chats at length, emails reassuring pictures and is happy to take £100 deposit over the phone. He then offers to pick me up at the station. The next day arrives and I can hardly contain myself with excitement. Already I’m thinking about what I’m going to do first once I get my grubby little hands on it. An hour-or-so later I meet the seller. The scooter has been garaged and is almost concours condition. The bodywork is covered in protection spray and there’s not a single mark on it. The original dealer’s pouch contains service notes and tax history, all in time order (the MoT shows the second owner only added 285 miles to the clock). The scooter is also Datatag’d and comes with the original spare key and a genuine colour coded touch-in stick. With the deal done, off I ride and the everfaithful PX200 power train carries me back to Surrey without so much as a blip. After 27 long years, I think I’ve finally found my real Bobby Dazzler!
FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS – CONCLUSION
I hope this highlights some things that surface when searching for a scooter. Each unit looked at was different, with varied history and mileage. No buyer really knows everything about a scooter’s life, but don’t let this put you off; there are real bargains to be had and it’s a buyers’ market. Given time and a methodical approach, some risks can be minimised. While dealers generally charge more, I think the price reflects the usual three month warranty which seems to be their second-hand vehicle norm. Something to be aware of and use as a bargaining tool; minor nasties such as no spare wheel or missing/worn bits can be negotiated, but get everything agreed on the sale sheet before handing over cash. Private sales can be ‘hit and miss’; size-up the seller and the scooter, because peace of mind is everything. Gut instincts are normally right, so go with them, or learn from them. It’s good practice to view at the seller’s address. Car parks, train stations, filling stations are a ‘no-no’; this carries considerable risk for you and the scooter. For any layman, a good starting point is to consider mileage against the amount of owners by division (a five-owner scooter with 10,000 miles gives roughly 2000 mileage per owner). It’s not failsafe, but it sort of ‘humanises’ the scooter, giving a more honest view on what workload the scooter’s experienced. Purchasers generally avoid ‘buy and ride’. There’ll always be something needing doing or
Paperwork is all-important – check it carefully
replacing. I budget for new wheel rims and inner tubes and only reuse tyres if they leave a clear print in wet mud. The plug, HT cap/lead, gear oil, inner cables (outers if needed) get the same treatment. Brake pads and shoes don’t escape either. That’s an extra £150-plus already and, knowing me, there will be more to come. A dealer should offer a basic service and ensure the scooter’s safe. For peace of mind, you can opt for an independent inspection or take an experienced scooterist with you. Buying second-hand has pros and cons; spend time looking at a few scooters; look around to get a real feel for what’s out there; avoid buying on a whim; and don’t get pressurised into parting with your hard-earned money. YOU are the customer and if you’re treated to “there’s other people interested” – let them be; other scooters will inevitably surface; it’s a mathematical certainty – but what isn’t, is your safety when you tell the missus! Laurie A Vaughan
WHO IS LAURIE VAUGHAN? SCOOTER CLUB(S): Cheam Cheetahs, LML Owners’ Club of Great Britain (technical support team). FAVOURITE SCOOTERS: Vespa GS, Vespa Rally, Early P-range, Lambretta TV175. FUNNIEST MEMORY: My mate bought a scooter with no seat. Watching him ride home was a total blast! BEST RALLY: Brighton Mod Weekender. It’s different from the usual tug-o-war and mud bath! FAVOURITE DEALER: Allstyles, Portsmouth; it provides a world class mail order service and nothing seems too much trouble. THE FUTURE: A trip to the Pontedera Vespa museum; to own a factory standard Vespa GS160; to nurture my two little ’uns into the scooter scene to keep up the family two-stroke tradition; finally, if Quadrophenia 2 happens – I want to be in it! SCOOTER PICTURED: Florence (after one of the most beautiful places in Italy). MODEL: 2003 Vespa PX200 in baccarat green. ACCESSORIES: Simple chrome headlight peak, no mirrors (less is more).
ENGINE: Standard, carb upjetted. EXHAUST: SIP Road 2 with appropriate jetting (phenomenal exhaust; just what any standard PX needs; allows engine to run through and gives superb response). FAVOURITES/ESSENTIALS: Michelin AirStop tubes, Rock Synthesis injector 2T oil, NGK plugs (all outstanding quality items). OVERALL COST: £2200(ish!) THANKS: Thanks to Mau and Team Scooterist for support with this article; it’s always nice for scooterists to have their time and the fact that Classic Scooterist supports this is a testimony to the magazine’s ethos and dedication to the scene. Thanks to the masses (the hundreds of scooterists over the years who’ve shaped what we have today) may we continue to ‘keep the faith’ for generations to come. Finally, thanks to my wife Sarah; she puts up with my mates turning up on scooters all hours of the day; I still bore her senseless about 2T oil, and she suffers day-in day-out with my scooter madness! What is it we say though? “How can millions of Vespas be wrong!”
MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM
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SCOOTER TALES
Stonehenge W
e both coughed violently, waving our hands under our noses and trying not to breathe too deeply. Smasher, the English bull terrier, was in the backyard, whining to come in from the rain. “Gawd, your dog stinks. What’re you feedin’ ’im?” choked out John between shallow gasps of air. We’d just wrestled the 50lb of raw muscle that was Smasher out from his now-disturbed sleep in his box in the kitchen corner and chucked him unceremoniously into the yard. The air indoors still had a strong stench of a nonetoo-clever sewage works in mid-summer, thanks to the dog’s distinctly flawed digestive system. “He had sprouts with the leftovers from dinner last night – he’ll eat anything. You already know that? Phoar, I’d open the back door to let some fresh air in, but he’d be straight in again. Yeech!” More coughing and retching from both sides of the table as we slowly gained control of our breathing.
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“That’s a bit better. What were you saying, before the dog let off?” “My gran lives in Salisbury; I was goin’ down to see her on Monday.” “Sorry, working,” I replied, as if stating the blindingly obvious. But a little devil appeared on John’s shoulder… “Naah, bunk-off like me. Fed up of ’anging fugging doors, me!” In truth, John was a chippy apprentice working on a huge London overspill new town at Bracknell. For a year now, since starting his ‘time’, he quite literally hung doors – nothing else. He’d got so good, (or was it bored?) that he could now knock all of the relevant screws in with a Brumingen screwdriver – that’s to say, with a hammer. Apparently it didn’t matter, as the places were so poorly built that the brickies thought they would fall down by themselves soon after they’d left the site, or so John reported. “Go on. You can come down with me on the back of my SX. If you want?”
Now I too was having a boring old time changing ‘ints’. For the uninitiated, the technical bits surrounding the operation of a modern telephone exchange; ints are important, or so the old boys in the exchange maintained. They’d craftily palmedoff the monotonous part of their routine duties on to a not-so-obliging trainee technician, alias me! Ints were important, as when you lift the telephone receiver you connect to your own uniselector that passes you on to the automatic Strowger switching equipment. Without ints (actually interrupter springs) the uniselector won’t function and your phone won’t work. Ints slowly burn out with use and to prevent this they were routinely replaced. Boring! (and not relevant if you didn’t have a home phone). Who cares if they worked or not? The little devil on Johnny’s shoulder was working overtime now. “Yeah, all right. I’ll come with you…”
MONDAY, BLOODY MONDAY
I’d better remind you about John’s SX. After coming off it and hitting the mayor of Acton’s flash red Sunbeam Alpine sports car, you’d hardly describe John’s scooter as ‘showroom’! It’s a bit of a wreck – and that’s putting it politely. The white and black sidepanels were badly skagged and going rusty along the edges of the deep gouges; they were well buggered. Both were somehow damaged in the accident. The offside rear passenger footboard stuck up a crazy angle from the horizontal and the legshield (despite our ministration with some wood and a hammer) was a bit of an odd shape. But the really cool thing about this particular SX 200 was the engine. It was a good day at the Innocenti factory when it knocked that one out! It accelerates like a rocket taking-off from Woomera and top speed was easily 70mph; far faster than my own GT Lambretta with its home-made tune-up modifications. Even I had to admit that. The other side of the coin was the whole Mod look. John was usually dressed okay, if not to the letter. He was never going to be a ‘Face’, but the SX’s reputation preceded it. John’s scooter was a bit of magnet to the ‘sorts’ locally. They didn’t seem to bother about the damaged Lambretta, but knew its effect on the other scooter owning kids who were in on the fashion front. Fast was, self-evidently, good! John turned up Monday morning a bit early. Looking out of the bedroom window to see who’d rolled-up in the alleyway to disturb his peace; Jim, my brother, was getting ready for work and asked if it was one of my queer mates outside (all Mods were ‘queer’ to Jim)! Obviously he was suffering from an over-use of Brylcreem on that indecent quiff of his. John had ridden-up in Levis, crew neck pullover, a cream Harrington, and the usual parka to keep off any road dirt. Just as well I’d had a quick gander, as I wasn’t sure what was expected. Out came the turquoise merino wool polo, Levis to match John, and a singlebreasted brown tweed jacket to wear under the parka. Had to wear something warm; it was overcast, but didn’t look like rain. Smasher was sat by the garden gate defying John to lift the latch and try his luck in walking, unmolested, the 10-or-so yards to the back door. Mum was trying to pry the dog away from the gate, but I didn’t really think that Smasher would punish John for throwing him out into the rain on Saturday. Downstairs in the kitchen, mum had made sandwiches, all carefully wrapped in the reused waxed paper of a Neville’s bakery bread wrapper. My mum was ace! John had now squeezed into the garden and was furtively patting Smasher on the head with lots of ‘good boys’ and ‘nice doggy’. Terms of endearment that suited Smasher not at all! “Leave my dog alone,” I shouted out of the back door. Knowing full well that that was precisely what most visitors truly wanted to do. Smasher, becoming bored, had now left John and was busily engaged in the more important task of sitting down on his haunches and cleaning his private parts with his long pink tongue (and people let dogs lick their faces?). Dressed in parkas, John and I looked similar;
we both had blue Levis and desert boots, but mine were dyed blue and John’s were original sand colour. Pushing Smasher out of the way to exit the yard, I pecked mum on the cheek, John kick-started the Lambretta, I slung my leg over the dual seat and off we popped towards the end of the alley. Doubts suddenly started to surface. It was a bit of a novelty to ride pillion for a change, but John had ‘previous’. Could I be riding on the back of a scooter whose sole charge was the ‘Face’ who’d missed the bend in Acton Lane, going too fast into a right-hander and only just avoiding a head-on collision with a number 88 bus? The unpalatable answer was… yes!
AFTERTHOUGHTS
We all do silly things. Crashing while doing a wheelie on a 150 GS while learning to ride (first time) in front of 200-odd workers from CAV’s factory enjoying a lunchtime sandwich; not to mention the Salvation Army band looking for converts was one of my own very embarrassing moments. Then there was knocking down the hairdresser near the town hall… I’d just pulled away from the zebra crossing by the chip shop… The superb high gearing of the GT lends itself to a fabulous, mind-blowing take-off. Slip into first; open the throttle wide as you feather the clutch and it’s anything up to 40mph in first! Great Ace, but what happens if the unexpected occurs… In this case, a young ‘sort’ in a short kilt runs out of the hairdresser on one side of the road to the hairdressers on the other side, ignores the crossing and runs right out into the path of the accelerating GT. Bang, thump! The GT stops dead, the hairdresser bird is on her arse and the blond wig perched on the polystyrene head she was holding shoots up into the stratosphere and slowly descends like a sycamore seed in autumn. “Stupid fugger!” chimes the young hairdresser, displaying a large proportion of next week’s washing in the process. In a flash she jumps up with empty polystyrene head in one hand and sprints to the other side of the road, causing the approaching cars to skid to a halt to avoid completing the job that the GT had started. Nothing was left but to kick-start the stalled Lambretta, picking-up the discarded wig in the
process and chucking it on to the wide pavement on the opposite side of the road in the hope that the owner may collect it. Truth really is stranger than fiction! All this is well and good, but that was me in charge. As a pillion you’re at the mercy of the pilot – and this particular pilot has a poor track record (ask the mayor of Acton).
BLAST OFF….
Straight out of the alley, then left up the road away from the factory gates. Nice touch would have been to look out for other traffic, but Johnny was in a hurry. After touching 60mph on a side road, we stopped at the Chiswick High Road junction. We’d only stopped because two coppers on horseback wearing large capes that protected rider and horse were sauntering along the main road across our path. They looked carefully at us and we made a point of screwing them out – coppers being far from our favourite people – always stopping us for no reason and pulling our scooters about. “Look at that poor deformed horse,” shouted John, as the plump rump of the nearside horse moved across our line of vision. “It’s got a fanny halfway up its back!” Too late for the now obviously furious boys in blue to intervene, John screamed off behind their tail ends and into second down the High Street. The SX’s low-rise backrest was now earning its worth by preventing the total loss of my perfectly dressed form. Chiswick roundabout – Great West Road – London Airport. That was it; I was now lost! Johnny knew the way, picking-up the road to the west, the A30, near the Staines reservoirs. The SX purred away through the overcast day under the arch of trees sheltering the huge houses of the stockbroker belt. Purrrrrr… brup… deerrr; the engine cut-out. Johnny bent forward, flicked the petrol lever on to reserve. Brrrr… pop… purrrrr and the engine picked up again. Only about 10 miles on reserve, but as luck had it, a small petrol station could be seen on the left. We pulled in and out came the pump attendant. “You got two-stroke?” enquired John. The elderly attendant scowled, turned back to his kiosk and returned dragging a filthy oil sodden two-stroke oil dispenser, which lacked one of its MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM
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NOVICE MAINTENANCE
TheVespa decoke made simple... PSROOLBVLEERM All Vespa two-stroke scooters are simple and the decoke instructions laid out here are the same (with minor variations) for all Vespa scooters. This article is aimed at the novice owner, who might like to try simple jobs to keep their scooter on the road, without having to pay a garage for the pleasure.
T
he scooterboy favourite, the PX, featured here, needs minimal maintenance and is virtually bulletproof into the bargain. The PX is a two-stroke and will need a decoke from time-to-time however. When it comes to how often the engine should be decoked, the owner must use the advice in the service manual (every 4000km). This sounds a little pessimistic, as with the use of semi synthetic oil and a reasonably fast riding style this decoke period could easily be doubled in most people’s books. The PX pictured here showed 20,000km on the clock and had only been decoked once before. The owner was unsure when the last decoke occurred but the carbonising was found to be minimal as the pictures indicate.
HOW TO DO IT…
Removing the sidepanels will reveal the engine on one side and the spare wheel on the other. Remove the spare wheel (this job can be undertaken with the spare in position, but it makes it a little awkward to access all the wheel nuts). Loosen the five 13mm (spanner size) M8 rear wheel nuts. Jack-up the engine in some way, so the wheel can rotate freely (an old car-type scissor jack is excellent here). Remove the wheel (this may sound odd to the novice, but Piaggio liked to hide the main silencer bracket and its retaining bolt behind the suspension pivot arm, and this bolt is cunningly situated inline with the centre of the rear tyre. Remove the silencer. The standard issue is held in place by the aforementioned bolt (17mm spanner size) and the pinch bolt around the top of the exhaust downpipe (usually 13mm). On removing or releasing these fixings, the silencer can often be wriggled free from the engine (if it won’t come free, squirt WD40, or similar, around the top of the exhaust downpipe and leave it to soak in for a few minutes); some ’coaxing’ with a hammer and a wooden drift is sometimes felt necessary. If you decide to use the hammer and drift ploy, please be aware that if you’re hitting something hard with a hammer, you’re probably
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not going about the task in the right way, so be aware of the consequences of your actions and look for reasons why the item is stuck. The reason might not require force? Remove the cylinder cowling (made of a plastic material, but earlier Vespas have steel cowls). On the PX, this is held in place by two cross-headed screws, at the side and a 13mm (spanner size, again) bolt at the front of the cowl. There will be some variation on these fixings on earlier Vespas. The cylinder head can now be removed, complete with spark plug. This is held to the cylinder studs by three standard M8 (13mm spanner sized) hex nuts and a long hex nut that was used to secure the cowling bolt in place. There should be one plain washer and one spring washer under each nut. The head is now free to be slid off the studs. This is it as far as tackling a basic decoke strip-down. Some like to slide the barrel off the studs to clean the exhaust stub of carbon, but this isn’t really necessary and requires more
work plus a cylinder base gasket to complete. The exhaust port can be quite effectively cleaned of carbon deposits with the barrel in situ. Just exercise a little care that loose carbon does not contaminate the bore of the cylinder, that’s all.
DECARBONISING THE HEAD AND PISTON
Best to read this carefully, as this is where the ‘ace mechanic’ can cause more problems than solving! To clean the carbon off the inside of the cylinder head is quite straightforward, if you remember that the head is made of relatively soft aluminium. If you scrape off the carbon with, say, an old screwdriver (made of much harder steel metal) the likelihood is that you’ll remove the carbon deposits and scratch the inside of the head into the bargain. This is not a good outcome – every scratch will become a key to future carbon deposits and could
Removing the cylinder head
This PX is ready for decoke
Head now removed
encourage ‘hot spots’ inside the head and future strange engine running problems. Scrape aluminium with aluminium (if you’ve no aluminium try substituting hard wood or plastic scrapers). The best way forward is possibly to use a brass wire brush (not a steel one)! Small versions of these are easily and cheaply available. If you want a sparkling finish, try wet and dry medium grit, but don’t mark the mating surface of the cylinder head. Remember, the Vespa does not use a cylinder head gasket and the mating surface must have no scratches or blemishes. Some go even further and polish the inside of the combustion chamber with metal polish – this looks nice, if nothing else! Next, the top of the piston (the crown) requires attention. By depressing the kick-start lever, raise the piston to top dead centre. Scrape the carbon off in a similar manner as you did to the head, with the same rules applying as to scratching the soft aluminium crown. Carefully clean off any loose carbon debris from around the mating surfaces of the cylinder head and the piston crown, being very careful that none of this escapes down the machined face of the bore. A difficult act if the piston is at the top of its stroke!
Coked-up head before cleaning
Scrubbing the piston head with a brass wire brush
The head after a clean-up
Use a screwdriver to relocate the washers and nuts
WELL DONE…
Reassembly of the engine is the reverse of the strip-down. Tighten the cylinder head nuts gradually. Tighten the nuts diagonally opposite each other as you go and the head will snug down, nicely. A thin smear of mastic around the exhaust stub and matching section of the silencer downpipe helps to seal the exhaust. Any sort of mastic will do, don’t waste money on exhaust sealing mastic, it’s a con! Finally, as always, double-check the wheel nuts for tightness when the rear wheel is in place. That can be a real lifesaver!
TOP TIP Some folk get in a hell of a state locating the cylinder head washers and nuts on to the studs on reassembly. Firstly, just slide the cylinder head nuts, then the spring washer and, finally, the flat washer on to the shaft of a screwdriver. If the screwdriver blade is now lined up with the end of the stud, the nuts and washers can be slid down the screwdriver shaft and spun into position with the fingers. Easy job!
Vespita MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM
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ODDBALLS
Split screen Scooter rider B H Metcalfe finds that the handling of his Series 2 Lambretta Li 150 is not at all to his liking in the high winds experienced while participating in the ACU rally. But fear not, a solution is easily found – just remove the top half of the flyscreen and give it to the passenger!
What no good Vespa should be without If you like rare and unusual accessories, then how about having aftermarket parts like these fitted to your Vespa? They would certainly help you to keep the elements at bay while you’re riding to a rally.
Scout City slicker It’s summer 1957 and the World Scout Jubilee Jamboree is being held in Sutton Park, Warwickshire. This young reporter from the camp’s own newspaper pauses to watch members of the Australian contingent working on their camp site decorations. The BSA Dandy scooter our young hack is riding has been supplied on loan as official camp transport to enable camp chiefs and newspaper staff to travel around the huge ‘Scout City’.
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