Classic Scooterist - April/May 2019 - Preview

VESPA 400 LA BELLE PETITE AUTOMOBILE

MOTO RUMI ‘ANGRY ANT’

THE LOWEST MILEAG E SERVETA IN THE UK?

‘TRIBUTE’

AF Rayspeed

S Type

‘ ’

QUAD IMAGES REDISCOVERED

VESPA

FENDER FIX

1062 MILES IN 24 HOURS

‘E’ IS FOR ELECTRIC

BACK WHEN WE & OTERS HAD HAIRTHE NYPD Nostalgic memories

REPAIRING A DAMAGED SHOCK ABSORBER MOUNT

SCOOTERAMA! – A FELICITOUS FANFARE OF FACTS, FEEDBACK & FACES

ISSUE 126 APRIL/MAY 2019

UNTOUCHED ‘ZWEIT SERIE’

Issue 126 April/May 2019

Founding Editor: Mau Spencer 01507 529408 mauspencer@classicscooterist.com Publishing director: Dan Savage Publisher: Tim Hartley Contributors: Rich Addison; Gill Beecham; Jon Betts; Terry Brown; Pete Davies, Jock Dewars; Dave Dry; Stuart Goodwin; Frank Osgerby; Chris Wainwright; Andy Westlake; Roy Workman.

Apologies to anyone we’ve forgotten.

Some articles express contributors’s opinions and are not necessarily those of Classic Scooterist.

Design: Fran Lovely Production editor: Mike Cowton Picture desk: Paul Fincham, Jonathan Schofield Group advertising manager: Sue Keily Divisional advertising manager: Zoe Thurling zthurling@mortons.co.uk (01507 529412) Advertising: Emma Buxton-Rockley ebuxton-rockley@mortons.co.uk (01507 529410) Subscription manager: Paul Deacon Circulation manager: Steve O’Hara Marketing manager: Charlotte Park Commercial director: Nigel Hole Editorial address: Classic Scooterist magazine.

PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ General queries and back issues: 01507 529529 (24hr answerphone) Archivist: Jane Skayman 01507 529423 jskayman@mortons.co.uk Next issue (127) published: May 15, 2019 Editorial deadline: April 8, 2019 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: Marketforce UK Ltd 5 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London E14 5HU Subscription: Full subscription rates (but see page 48 for offer): (12 months 6 issues, inc post and packing) – UK £22.80. Export rates are also available – see page 48 for more details.

UK subscriptions are zero-rated for the purposes of Value Added Tax. Customer services number: 01507 529529 Telephone lines are open: Monday-Friday 8.30am-7pm, Saturday 8.30am-12.30pm Printed by: William Gibbons & Sons, Wolverhampton © Mortons Media Group. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication maybe reproduced without prior written permission.

In the event of a dispute developing between two or more individual clubs, businesses, or organisations - and in the abscence of any legal ruling to the contrary - Mortons Media will strive to maintain a neutral position in not disadvantaging either party.

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Member

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CONTENTS 4

8

Back when we had hair

36 1,062 miles in 24hrs

66 The Angry Ant

Mailbox

38 Keeping it custom

70 Déjà vu

Nostalgic memories from times gone by Readers have their say

10 Scooterama

A felicitous fanfare of facts, feedback and faces

18 Event roundup

A quick glance at recent events

22 What’s going on?

There’s lots going on at this end of the season. Here’s a quick look at what’s on the calendar

26 Scooter World 2019

Fantastic weather and an eclectic variety of scooters made this a show not to be missed

32 ‘E’ is for electric

Is there a future for classic two-stroke scooters?

34 Only 4km from new!

Possibly the lowest mileage Serveta Se eta in the t e UK U

Another great scooter feat from back in the day

A potted history of the Armando’s Dealer Specials

42 Tribute

Kevin Seaward’s homage to his original AF ‘S’ Type

46 Back in the day

The 1952 Earls Court Show

50 Bitten by the bug

An unexpected gift leads Barry Saunders back on to scooters again

54 A labour of love

Alan Smith’s refurbished SX150 Special

58 Zweite Serie

Markus Fröschen’s original German spec TV175 Series 2

62 Vespa front fender fix Unavailability of NOS parts can be a problem

64 Underrated gem (pt3) The e Slimstyle S sty e Li125 5

Off to a flying start

I

t only seems like yesterday that I was rushing around Newark Showground preparing for the January show, and here we are now, well into March and almost a quarter of the way through 2019 already. The year is shooting by and UK scooter events are well under way, aided and abetted by the extraordinarily good seasonal weather.

Let’s hope it continues at least until the

Scarborough national rally, which will only be a few weeks away by the time you read this.

Talking of reading this, if you’re an LCGB member and receive Jetset magazine, you might have clocked an event report on the Newark Show by Nudger (don’t know his real name). Some of the individual scooter displays he briefly mentions are produced as separate, more in-depth articles inside this issue. Of

Archie Pearce’s Moto Rumi Formichino Re-purchasing your first scooter after 30 years doesn’t happen very often

72 La belle petite automobile

Eric Christofferson’s Vespa 400 Wasp automobile

76 Smoothing out the bumps

How to repair a damaged shock absorber mount

80 ‘I was there in ’96’

Quadrophenia promo images re-discovered

82 Scooter clubs

Meet and greet your local club

86 Scooterist classifieds

For all your wants and needs

90 Blast from the past The Supertune Rallye Lambretta SX200

SUBSCRIBE TODAY SEE PAGE 48

course, this issue is not all about the show, and there’s many other features to read, which cater for everyone’s individual tastes – not always easy to do with such a diverse readership base. Remember, we’re always on the lookout for new material, especially nostalgic stuff, so if you have something to share (especially old photos), my conttact details are at the top of this page.

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

TO SHARE?

6LZ ✉ mauspencer@classicscooterist.com ☎ 01507 529408 ✎ Classic Scooterist, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs LN9

Medway M d Aces A

Some pictures of the Medway Aces taken in late 1979/1980 Paul Negus

Is this your scooter sir?

The lead picture shows ‘Cockney’ and Glyn (from Tamworth) having a vehicle check on the side of the motorway. It was common in the 1980s to get pulled over if you were riding a scooter. I think we were returning to the Midlands from Margate at the time. Other pics are also from the late 1980s. I’ve still got my P200E. It went into storage back in 1989 when I joined the Staffordshire Regiment Paul Langham

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Looking the part

Me and mate Ron back in the day on our D reg and E reg TV200 scooters Len Selfe

SHARE YOUR NOSTALGIC PICTURES WITH OUR READERS

Easy Rider! d More comfortable than it looks

Steven Ashley

If you have any pictures from the past, why not share them with our readers. Call Mau on 01507 529408 or email him at mauspencer@classicscooterist.com

Bacckk to 1998!

Wild Turkeys SC, Fife At Whitley Bay in 1991. All bar one still scootering Stan Smith Above and below: My yellow P2 cutdown, Graham Denton’s yellow GP, Joe Tocci’s (RIP) red GP, Roger Lucas’s claret GP (still owned now; the scooter he took to Milan in 1997) and Fraser’s pink cutdown.

All Lammies were TS1s (were a fair few TS1s in our crowd)). I stuck with P200s for a few more years

A young Luna-tic!

G Graham Denton, Roger Lucas, Stuart Turner, Adam Heggie and ddear old Joe Tocci (RIP) Dave Sawicki

This picture was taken behind Alan Leach’s old house in about 1996 I miss that scoot Daniel Guest

Arrows SC A

A604 Arrows scooter club pictures from about 1983/84 Stuart Day

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Having a good time!

Oban – first proper rally

My hybrid Series 2/3 Found this photo of me taken on the day I brought my Lambretta Li 150 in 1969 (I was 17 then). The scooter was a hybrid of two models. Originally built in 1962, the rear end 1 was a Series 2 and w tthe front end was a Series 3 Slimline.

S Mau, don’t know M if you remember, bbut I used to cut yyour hair at Roy's Hairdressers in H Dover (I’ve still D ggot all my hair, aalthough it's all ggrey Graham Thorp I remember Graham, although there’s nothing left on my head to work with nowadays

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Ed Parry

The mid-80s

Here’s a few pics from the mid-80s Rober t Bentham On my Vespa P125, circa ’83

Custtom Show att Hallf Moon Bay, ciirca ’83/84

Lammie Skelly, circa ’84

My 1980s memories

Good times!

Graeme Cunningham

MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM

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castle, Lincs LN9

PO Box 99, Horn assic Scooterist,

✎ Cl

6LZ

✉

oterist.com

ssicsco mauspencer@cla

☎

01507 529408

EARLY BLACKPOOL SCOOTER CLUB

Hi Mau, I have been trying to locate any photos of the original Blackpool Scooter Club from the Fifties and Sixties. It was run by a guy called Paddy in those days, and met upstairs at the Highfield hotel in Blackpool.

Any help with information would be appreciated, thanks.

Allan Simms

Our records show that we featured Blackpool Scooter club over two issues of Classic Scooterist, back in 2004. They were issues 40 (Summer) and 41 (Autumn), and should be available via the following link: www. classicmagazines.co.uk/issue/SS/year/2004.

Whether these particular features contain any pictures relevant to the people you are referring to I can't tell you, I'm afraid. Mau

Can you ride on ‘L’ plates on the Isle of Man?

TICKFORD LAMBRETTA Hi Mau, I was a Bristol Mod in the ’60s and had a Lambretta Li150 for many years (alas no photos from that period of my life, much to my regret).

I’m now living on Waiheke Island, which is close to Auckland in New Zealand, and I recently saw your magazine in a local newsagents, so bought it to reminisce a great period of my life.

I was in a hotel in Da Lat, Vietnam, recently and in the foyer I saw this Lambretta X150 Special with ‘T’ badges on, and written within the ‘T’ was the word ‘Tickford’. This aroused my interest and upon returning to NZ, I tried to Google this scooter and identify its origin, but to no avail.

Tickford is a UK tuning company, but their website does not indicate any collaboration

over tuning Lambretta scooters in the past. It is confusing, because the badges do not look like an aftermarket stick-on, plus the scooter has a number of Saint George Lambretta badges. None of this would have been normal for a local Vietnam-sourced scooter.

Can you please shed any light on the above, as I am thinking of making an offer for the scooter, but would like to know more about it?

Phillip Hughes

I’m afraid my Lambretta scooter gurus have not come up with any information about a Dealer Special Tickford Lambretta, Phillip.

Maybe someone out there in the scooterist world will be able to shed more light on this question. Get in touch if you can. Mau

DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION?

I think the question is: ‘Is it true that you cannot ride your scooter on the island if you haven’t passed your test and you don’t have a Manx provisional licence?’

If you have 'L' plates on your scooter and you’re arriving from the UK or Ireland, then you can’t ride legally on the Isle of Man. The same rule applies for someone from the Isle of Man riding in the UK. Obviously, you cannot ride on 'L' plates in either the UK or the Irish Republic unless a provisional licence from that country is held. It’s one of those strange quirks of us all living in the British Isles, but it not all being the United Kingdom.

Dave D

Whilst most countries have reciprocal arrangements, which allow you to ride a bike in their country on your full licence for up to a year, the same regulations do not apply to learner riders, as a provisional licence is only valid for use in the country of origin. For more information on the IoM specifically, visit www.gov.im/exchange-licence

Can Classic Scooterist help you find the answer? It can be about any scooter-related subject, and not necessarily a technical question. If we don’t know the answer ourselves, then we’ll throw your question over to our readers to see if they can help. Email scooterguru@scooteristscene.com with your questions, but don’t expect an instant answer, because sometimes these things take time.

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A M A R E T O SCO

CK & FACES A FELICITOUS FANFARE OF FACTS, FEEDBA ooterist.com ☎ 01507 529408 sicsc

le, Lincs LN9 6LZ ✉ mauspencer@clas

✎ Classic Scooterist, PO Box 99, Horncast

Did you work k thi this one out? t?

SIP indicator kits £ various SIP have introduced LED turn signal kits with integrated LED position lights and E-approval, with tinted or clear indicator lenses. The turn signal kits can be mounted ‘plug & play‘ without further modifications. An LED flasher relay is already included in the kit. This must be replaced with the standard relay (connection in the fuse box/luggage compartment). If the turn signals are ordered separately (front/rear), an LED flashing relay (item 85032300) must be ordered.

Depending on the model, the turn signals are vehicle-specific in order to facilitate installation. Check the exact vehicle model or year of manufacture before ordering, as the connections of the models differ.

Kits are available for: Vespa GTS/GTS Super/ GTV/GT60/GT/GT 125300cc (03-13).

Vespa GTS/GTS Super/ GTV 125-300cc (14-) Info: www.sip-scootershop. com

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SIP LED LIGHT UPGRADES

In the last issue, we asked you if you could work out what scooter this badge came off. A couple of you managed to work it out, but for the rest of you, here’s the answer: it was fitted to the late production Lambretta LD 150 produced at the Troyes factory in France.

To illustrate that, here are a couple pictures for you. One shows the badge on an actual scooter, and the other is taken from the sales brochure.

Thanks to Brano’s Lambretta Museum for supplying a copy.

£ various For two-wheelers, the choice of retrofit LED headlights is not large. With the headlights, SIP Performance LED for Vespa 125 GTR/ TS/150 Sprint V/180200 Rally/PX80-200/PE/ EFL/`98/MY/`11/LML Star 125-200, one achieves good visibility at night and better visibility during the day. The SIP Performance LED can be installed plug & play without further modifications. The SIP headlamp has a subtle LED strip in the middle, so the headlamp looks very discreet and fits nicely into the overall picture of the vintage Vespa, without acting like a foreign body.

Info: www.sip-scootershop.com

Rukka Apollo Leather Gloves

RRP: £199.99 Reviewer: Mikko Nieminen These are my favourite bike gloves of all time! Really, they’re that good. I’ve worn them on all sorts of bikes and in all kinds of weather for years – they haven’t let me down yet.

The full leather Apollo gloves have plenty of endearing attributes: they have palm and knuckle armour to keep you safe; reflective bits to help with being seen; Velcro straps to get the fit just right; and Gore-Tex lining to keep your mitts dry. They’re not very thick so you can feel the bars nicely and operate the switches without sounding the horn every time you meant to indicate. With heated grips they have been just about warm enough for winter use (only with heated grips, mind), and in summer they’re cool in every sense of the word. Wet

hands aren’t a problem either, as the Gore-Tex lining keeps all but the biggest downpours at bay.

The glove wrists are fairly short, but long enough to tuck under your jacket sleeves, so that rain water runs off the garments rather than filling your gloves from the inside. There is one thing that I don’t like, though.

It’s not a biggie, but I find it annoying. There’s a rubbery visor wipe strip in the left thumb, which is a great idea, but it doesn’t really work. Basically, the rubber of the wiper is too hard, and it’s more useful as a mosquito scraper than a rain wiper. Apart from that, I can’t fault the gloves.

These gloves offer exactly the blend of comfort, feel, protection and weather resistance I want, regardless of the bike, weather or destination. So far I haven’t found

PRODUCT REVIEW

this combination in any other glove. If you have, please let me know! I know they’re pricey, but they last a long time, and come with a two-year warranty.

I’ve just replaced the pair I’ve had for four years, which works out at £50 per year. I know I’d rather have these than buy a new pair of £50 gloves every year.

Info: www.tranam.co.uk

Finnish youth culture

The title ‘Upolaiset ja Paskasakki: Modit ja rockerit Turussa 1960-luvulla translates as Upolaiset and Paskasakki: The Mods and Rockers in Turku in the 1960s.

Author: Antero Laiho Published by: Foribeat Kustannus (2018) ISBN: 978-952-94-0798-9 Reviewer: Dave Dry To describe a book as unique is quite a claim, but Antero Laiho’s Finnish language volume on a subject which most would feel is a very British phenomenon is one such classic example. The book is beautifully produced and is full of evocative pictures that will ring bells with the UK market. As the text is of necessity in the Finnish language, we’ll let Antero give his rundown.

OVERVIEW

This book focused on Turku because at the time it was the second largest city in Finland. The Mods and Rockers youth culture existed elsewhere in Finland, but in Turku it was most visible, creating more instances of moral panic and more references to folk devils than in other parts of Finland. For one reason, the city of Turku is much closer to Stockholm in Sweden than Helsinki, the capital of Finland.

Also, trips by car ferries or passenger ships across the Baltic Sea from Turku to Stockholm were frequent and cheap, so it was easy for youngsters from Turku to visit Stockholm regularly to get familiarised with the more advanced youth culture found in Sweden. Fashion, music, tiny music clubs with live music (not present at the time in Finland),

together with Swedish Mods and Rockers, were among the ideas brought back and established in Turku. Also, it’s worth mentioning that the landscape around the Turku region is somewhat similar to that of London or Brighton, even though the scale might not really be comparable.

A close neighbour to Turku is Naantali. This small seaside resort is situated 15 miles away and there, Finnish Mods and Rockers clashed a few times, although again the scale or impact of the clashes cannot be compared to what happened in the coastal towns in England.

The first part of the book gives the background of Finnish Mods and Rockers, describing the evolution from the British and Swedish Mods and Rockers culture. The second part tells the story of Finnish Rockers.

They had a clear and strong connection to the native scene of the British Rockers. Dressing exactly the same way as the original British Rockers, they also preferred classic British bikes, which at the time were very expensive and quite hard to get in Finland.

The word ‘Paskasakki’ can be freely translated as ‘the shit (or shitty) gang’. The name originated with the ‘Upolaiset’ (the Mods in Turku) as a derogatory term, but quite soon the ‘Paskasakki’ adopted this name as an honorary term or token. The majority of Turku Rockers belonged to the working classes and they turned

Picture circa 1967

BOOK REVIEW

the expression around, realising it’s actually a telling description of what working people do (‘We're working all day long with our hands in the dirt/shit’).

The Mods (Upolaiset) section describes the birth and growth of the Mods in Turku. The influences probably had their origin more in their Swedish counterparts than the original British Mods (Finnish Mods dressed quite differently to that of British Mods. In their time, British Mods favoured stylish and neat clothing, whereas the Turku Mods preferred blue jeans, large woollies or sweaters and green jackets of the US Army type.

Also, their taste in music was strongly focused on bands like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and other pop-rock groups, being far removed from what the original British Mods were prone to listen to, such as Jazz, Ska and Black music.

A strong connection with the British Mods was the iconic vehicle – the scooter. In Finland, Vespa reigned supreme and maybe 95% of Finnish scooterists rode a Vespa, whereas in Britain the Lambretta was more popular.

In Turku, the Mods appeared in the streets for the first time in early Spring 1964, two or three years after the birth of the Mods in Britain.

The name ‘Upolaiset’ was derived from a brand new café where the Mods gathered every day. Brand new café translates into Finnish something like Upouusi Kahvila. So the prefix UPO(uusi) came to be affixed to the description of the regular customers of that particular café, denoting people that belonged in the group which regularly visited the said café.

‘Upolaiset’ (Mods) mostly belonged to the middle or uppermiddle class and attended high school, while the Rockers came from a working-class background,

Author, Antero Laiho (picture courtesy of the Turun Sanomat newspaper and Riita Salmi)

which really meant they were already either working or attending a vocational school.

The final part of the book deals with the collision between ‘Upolaiset’ and ‘Paskasakki’.

The fighting (real enough) was for the most part not really violent, but even so, the clashes created sensational headlines in the newspapers and caused moral panic and a quite real fear of these Folk Devils.

Even today, the tradition lives on in Finland. Rockers old and new have their own meetings weekly, as do the Mods.

In the 1960s, there were three or four Mod clubs. Their activities gradually died down during the 1970s, only to be revived again in the early ’80s, if only for a few years. In 2015, a club called Vespa Kilta (literally, Vespa Guild) was established in Naantali by Niko Akesson with a couple of friends. Vespa Kilta holds regular meetings in Turku, and today the club is quite successful in keeping both the Vespa and Mod tradition alive and well in these parts.

MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM

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SCOOTERAMA!

RON PYM, RIP RO

Shark’s D-Skwal Helmet £169.99 upwards Shark’s D-Skwal family of full face bike helmets was first released in 2017, building on the successes of the Skwal – with the same design and silhouette, but minus the fancy LED lights. Essentially, it’s a stripped back, more budget-friendly choice, although it’s still well equipped, with multipoint ventilation, an Autoseal Pinlock ready visor system (with a quick release), an integrated sun visor, removable and washable interior, breath guard, chin curtain, and a micrometric fastening system. Plus, it’s also compatible with Shark’s own ‘Shark tooth’ communications system.

Shark will be releasing four versions of the all-new KANHJI design, although the fluorescent yellow and black version will be available slightly ahead of the other models.

Info: www.nevis.uk.com

It’s with deep sadness that this memorial to Ron Pym, former owner of Sterling Scooters, is written.

He was born in Wallsend-on-Tyne on January 14, 1947, and later worked in the Tyne shipyards until he decided on a change of location and career, moving to London.

Aged 21, Ron joined the local Vespa club and for a time he owned a Vespa SS180. It was as a member of this club that Ron met Rose, who was later to become his wife. She was then the proud owner of a Vespa 90 and they realised they both shared similar tastes, enjoying rallying and all the fun that went with it. So interested in scooters was Ron that, in 1975, he took on ownership of Sterling Scooters in Station Road, West Drayton, Middlesex. Sterling Scooters had a history of once being a Lambretta agency as well as a Vespa agent in 1975.

Helen, one of Rose and Ron’s two daughters, has vivid childhood memories of her dad working in his shed and in his workshop. The Pym family lived above the shop, which allowed Helen to look down on her dad at work from the rear stairway.

Helen also has fond recollections of travelling to scooter rallies in her dad’s van and then being ferried around inside a sidecar; she adds that these were her best fun times ever.

STERLING SCOOTERS AND THE QUAD VESPAS

Helen also vividly remembers the Sting scooters being prepared for filming Quadrophenia in 1978.

Andrew Saunders, a representative of Who Films Ltd, arrived at her dad’s shop and asked for five specially-built Vespas to be customised to resemble the classic 1960s Mod steed – the Vespa GS160.

The snag was that Andrew Saunders wanted them completed in two days!

This was not possible, of course, but they were duly assembled, complete with matching accessories, in time for filming. Ron called on the able assistance of another SS180 fan, aircraft engineer and Vespa enthusiast, William Woodhouse,

Pinasco P200 competition crank RRP: £ ask Pinasco have developed a new competition crankshaft for the Vespa P200. The new crank has a longer 62mm stroke length, with increased inlet timing to boost performance and is suitable for rotary induction.

The fitted con rod has an ‘H’ shaped cross section for reduced weight and increased strength. A silver-plated big end bearing supports the polished con rod. The crankshaft has been specifically developed to produce more torque and power across the full rev range.

Info: www.ve-uk.com

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Rose and Ron’s daughter, Helen, with four of the Stings scooters, as used in Quadrophenia

One of the five Stings scooters outside Sterling Scooters to speed-up the work. The five scooters were duly delivered to two different locations, the first pair being dropped off at Lee Studios in Wembley, with the second batch delivered to Brighton. This was on September 20, 1978, and this is where, it could be said, that Ron entered the scootering hall of fame in the minds of many of today’s scooterists.

Some time after the publicity from Quadrophenia died down (and despite Ron and his van being a common feature at many rallies, where he sold parts and accessories), Ron decided to turn a page in the book of life when he closed Sterling Scooters.

He took up working for UPS parcel deliveries until ill-health in the form of an injured back meant that Rose and Ron’s hobby of dinghy sailing came to the fore, opening up an employment opportunity, with Ron ending up working at a sailing club.

Ron, sadly, passed away on January 21, 2019. He is deeply missed by Rose, his wife of 49 years, and his two daughters. It goes without saying that Ron will forever live on in the affectionate memories of many hundreds of scooterists.

Classic Scooterist would like to extend its deepest sympathy to Rose and Helen.

Many thanks for the help of Dave Wyburn, a longtime family friend of Ron and his family, for providing the information that allowed this obituary to be written. Ron indelibly inspired Dave as a scooter enthusiast.

Rest in peace Ron, one of the brightest stars in the scootering fraternity.

Plaque showing Stirling Scooters as the supplier

Changes to 2019 Category A motorcycle test The rules surrounding the bikes eligible for the Category A full motorcycle test changed on December 31, 2018. The power output of test bikes has now been raised from 40kW to 50kW (67.1bhp) and a minimum kerb weight of 180kg will be introduced.

Certain machines currently being used by training schools are no longer appropriate for tests.

For more information on the changes and a full list of the machines which meet the new standards, visit www.gov.uk

MAUSPENCER@CLASSICSCOOTERIST.COM

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SCOOTERAMA!

The new Mason Place LLeft ft andd above: b Th M Pl premises

New premises for VE on their 30th anniversary VE (UK) have combined their thirtieth year in business with a re-location to new premises in Derby.

With the High Speed 2 rail link construction now looming, industrial space at the Long Eaton location where VE were previously based now comes with a cost premium.

With property landlords expecting to achieve rental price increases, MD Norrie Kerr and the VE staff buckled down to six weeks of hard work to move lock, stock and barrel to new premises in Derby, some eight miles away.

That was at the end of 2018 and in January, after the Christmas holidays, VE were in and serving their dealer network. “The move was a triumph for the staff,” said Norrie.

“They worked really hard to finish the move on time and we can now get back to doing what we do best, and that is supplying scooter parts and accessories.

It’s been a torrid time for VE, but the guys and gals have been brilliant.

“Let’s not forget to say a big thanks also to our removal team, who dismantled the mezzanine, moved it and re-built it in the new Derby unit.”

BUSINESS AS USUAL

In between the move, VE also found the time to attend and support both the Scooter World show at Newark and the BDN Trade Expo at Stoneleigh.

“Few companies could carry out an exercise of this size within the time limit taken, never mind setting out stands at Newark and Stoneleigh,” said Norrie.

“We are now receiving the stock from our suppliers that had been delayed till we had moved into the new premises.”

All other features from the VE organisation stay the same, and business via their internet website at www.ve-uk.com has been uninterrupted.

“Continuity is essential in a move like this, and the VE team would like to thank all our customers

for their support and wish them all the best for the coming season. Here’s to the future,” added Norrie.

A MODERN BUSINESS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

With the move now completed, VE are looking to the future. Changes in the two-wheeled sector over the 30 years have been significant. Online presence on the internet and other social media outlets, coupled with the DVLA driving test changes and rising prices, have all reflected on the industry, and not always for the best. On the plus side, there has been the emergence of new scooter brands, many Chinese, Asian and Taiwanese, with the re-creation of Lambretta, and the similar Scomadi and Royal Alloy brands have created great interest from the public.

The biggest area of interest, however, still remains in the classic scooter market, and genuine Lambretta or Vespa scooters are still priced at affordable money for someone who wants to own a classic.

With that in mind, VE have continued to source classic scooter parts from around the world. However, with manufacturers (especially in Italy) now having parts made in China, the emphasis on Italian-made parts have changed over the 30 years, and VE are adapting to that.

TRADING DIRECT

VE now also offer a mail order service direct to the public via their online website. All the top brands of scooter-related items are available, including Malossi, Pinasco, Polini, Mazzucchelli, Casa, BGM, Dell’Orto, Scorpion, SIP, OMG, Hagon, Leo Vince, VE Actif, Simonini, Sterling and New Fren.

All the best in tyre brands (road or race) are also represented, and as a bonus, shipping to the UK mainland is free on orders over £50.

VE (UK) are now located at 2A Masons Place, Nottingham Road, Derby DE21 6YZ. Their telephone number remains the same (0115 946 2991). They do have a new fax number though: 0872 352 8759

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SCOOTERAMA! Vespa and Lambretta motor scooters

ARMR Moto Taka Boots RRP: £129.99 Sitting towards the lower end of the adventure boot price bracket, these Taka boots are surprisingly well equipped, and pretty stylish.

Constructed primarily from brown leather, the boots feature ARMR’s Dry-Tech Heat Bonded Membrane, which allows them to be both waterproof and breathable at the same time.

For protection, they are equipped with reinforced ankle protectors, and a gear shift overlay, in addition to a high grip heat and oil-resistant rubber sole, to help you find grip in the worst conditions.

Taking them on and off is done using a simple and straightforward ratchet closing system.

Info: www.tri-motive.com

Author: Stuart Owen Publisher: Shire Library (Bloomsbury Publishing Ltd) ISBN: PB987-1-78442-314-8 Price: £7.99 Reviewer: Dave Dry Shire publications are possibly best known for pocket books on UK domestic subjects, some as varied as The English Farm Wagon or The Cornish Language, so it might appear to be a change of direction to branch out into the very Italian, non-British subject of the two most famous marques of scooter.

The author, Stuart Owen, is perhaps best known for being a scooter sprinter and journalist, and is a previously published author on this subject. Stuart, with this slim volume, has provided a focus on the phenomena of both the UK market sales and the machinations of the Italian manufacturers Innocenti and Piaggio. Obviously, with just 63 pages in A5 format, the author is only able to write a primer on this subject matter, but his insight might well whet the appetite of the more curious reader to seek out a few of the many volumes available, which delve into the subject matter in greater detail.

As well as giving a brief technical insight into the Lambretta and Vespa, this little

book is a mine of information on the social history surrounding the heyday of the competing companies, and touches on the relatively hard times economically in the UK that made the scooter a must buy as a cheap form of transport. It is, however, when the spotlight of this book is turned to Italy and the labour unrest involving mass strikes that proved to be, at least in part, the undoing of Innocenti’s scooter manufacture that Stuart makes a good point. This factor might well come as a surprise to even the more informed reader on the subject. In fact, it’s a rare mention of a very important aspect of the events surrounding the tragic demise of the legendary Lambretta scooter, whilst also casting some light on the reasons behind the Vespa’s ongoing success story and development.

The text finally brings scootering relatively up-to-date via the influence of the seminal film Quadrophenia, the film which launched a thousand custom scooters and, at the same time, re-invigorated the demand for old Lambrettas and, in no small way, facilitating the massive following for the scooter generally up to the present day.

Upon reviewing this book, it

BOOK REVIEW

would be far from being complete not to reference the many rare images captured within the pages. From a personal perspective (and to pick out one in particular to savour), there’s one exceptional example, which features Lambretta Concessionaire’s warehouse with row upon row of Lambretta Rallymasters – a true sight for sore eyes, if there ever was one?

Vespa and Lambretta Motor Scooters is an all-too brief, but well crafted history, which must take pole position on the bookshelves of the informed scooterist.

Is the Italjet Dragster finally back?

The hottest, coolest modern scooter to ever (really) appeal to big bike riders and youthful hooligans alike was the Dragster – and it could be coming back, according to Italjet.

Built between 1998 and 2003, the original Dragster was churned out by the Italian factory with a combination of engines. In its most powerful format, it made 22bhp and handled really well, plus, it looked like the caterpillar stage of an arm-wrenching superbike. Did you ever have one of these Dragsters in your garage next to your Vespa PX200 or Lambretta SX200, and made use of it to pootle down to the shops on, instead of dragging your classic scooter out for even just five minutes?

This latest version of the hybrid scooter looks like it’s picked up where the first incarnation left off,

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and will come with either a 125cc or 200cc motor, making 15hp and 12.5Nm in small form or 20bhp and 17Nm as a 200. It gets a CVT transmission and a belt drive.

The single front swing arm carries a 12-inch wheel with a 120 tyre; the rear wheel is a 13-inch unit with a 150 fitted.

Bremspower takes care of the stopping, with a 175mm front disc brake and a 250mm on the back (this scooter has combined braking front and rear and comes with ABS). Weight-wise, there’s not much between them.

The 125 tips the scales at just 108kg, with the 125 weighing in at 112kg.

No prices have yet been released, but reckon on the 200 costing in the region of €5,000 and the 125 being around €4,500, if and when they arrive.

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