When you feel you’re on to a good thing, where’s the harm in indulging yourself? Dave Whitaker’s weakness is a combination of Sixties scooters adorned with spectacular accessories. Richie Lunt reports…
Before detailing the stunning Series 2 that graces our pages this month, it’s worth spending some time getting to know Dave and his love for accessorised machines. An obsession that’s seen him create and refine that look through several iterations.
His early scooter memories take him back to the very late Seventies, seeing scooters zooming around his home estate. His brother’s friend had one, but it wasn’t until his 16th birthday that Dave secured a machine of his own in the shape of a Vespa 90 complete with accessories which he bought from a mate at work.
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The inevitable happened in 1988 when he saw Quadrophenia; Dave’s route to Brighton, the south coast mecca for scooterists and Mods, was set. On that first pilgrimage Dave took his Series 2, but when compared to some other machines at the August rally, he felt that his didn’t quite hit the mark and resolved to make amends by building an outstanding machine.
Carefully curated Series 3
Taking a route that included an extremely nice GS160 Series 1, he eventually settled on creating a sharp yet understated TV175 Series 3 in a mid-Sixties Clubman style. These scooters were often bought by young Mods straight from the concourse d’elegance circuit of organised scooter club rallies. Adorned with practical accessories, these scooters sometimes had the odd trinket added to make them stand out in a sea of dazzling chrome and sparkling paintwork. Of course, the Mods would simply add more of everything in a bid to outdo their friends in their own version of the concourse shows outside youth clubs, cafes and seaside resorts.
This modern-day recreation was thoroughly researched by trawling through photographs from the period. The finish of Lotus Green over the standard new white was applied by JG Auto Refinishing in Newcastle, to which was added a spartan, yet well-chosen, collection of accessories. As we’ll see, one of these would become his signature look. For the Series 3 he took a pair of Super fork boot embellishers and a compass wheel disc and rear carrier, which are mated with an Ulma backrest and Piper Deluxe Florida bars. A Dante Pegasus seat has been re-covered in tartan, with matching spare wheel cover and a Rimini toolbox fitted behind the legshields.
More subtle modifications were the fitting of an American-spec rear Stingray light lens and rear light housing and a unique set of front crash bars with ‘jug handles’ and a flat front bar to enable a close-fitting carrier to be added. To this a pair of working spot lamps were fitted and to top it off a flyscreen that was hand crafted with the use of Dave’s oven! This took a huge amount of time to create using an original screen as a template. Dave heated the Perspex and shaped the plastic by hand before trimming to the desired shape.
Pure Decadence
This wasn’t enough though, as by now Dave had developed a taste for period-correct scooters, and those Piper Deluxe bars would make another appearance on his next creation, the Series 2 we see here and which he calls Pure Decadence. Dave describes the style he’s trying to evoke as being later in timescale than the London-centric halcyon pre-’65 days, more of a regional ’67 onwards look, one of continuation, evolution and distillation. From the era when soul boys continued dancing in northern clubs while the south moved on stylistically.
This latest offering is painted in a very non-standard Ferrari colour named Nocciola (this time painted by SWM Paint) that he found while searching the internet and is contrasted with acres of chrome plating. A colour-coded seat with waffle pattern sides and contrasting top has been paired with a distinctive separate backrest; again this was fabricated by Dave using reference points to original photos.
Studying photographs, he noticed that some owners preferred to mount a wheel disc to a front carrier instead of the more accepted grouping of rare (read expensive) lamps, horns and mascots. It’s a very distinctive and specifically ‘late Mod’ look, and those Piper Deluxe (Delux in the adverts but that may well be a print error or translation mistake) were fitted again. As Dave is keen to point out: “You can’t have too much of a good thing.”
The frontal adornment is taken care of with one of three (two on the central spare wheel!) Super Championship wheel discs rather than a compendium of small lamps. Items from Vigano, Covelli, Ulma, Raydyot and Lucas were all on Dave’s accessory shopping list along with a number of custom features such as the double Z splash plate and Super horncast crest.
Engine-wise, this TV is anything but old school or standard. A 25mm carb feeds the GT 186 barrel kit with the exhaust gases exiting through a modified Casa big bore. AF supplied the six-plate clutch and a five-speed gearbox transfers power to the rear wheel, but with a custom dual pipe fishtail exhaust manufactured again by Dave on rather than the single cloverleaf.
Whatever his aims were, they must be appreciated by ‘those in the know’ as the scooter has steadily amassed a collection of trophies. Has Dave created his ultimate incarnation of his Mod scooter? Probably not. With so many ideas to exorcise from his mind I’ll bet by the time you’re reading this feature Dave will be well on his way to completing his next masterpiece!
Dave describes the style he’s trying to evoke as being later in timescale than the London-centric halcyon pre-’65 days, more of a regional ’67 onwards look
Pay the piper
Both Vigano and Ulma made a deluxe range of accessories. Vigano produced its front bumper bar, crash bars, integrated front carrier and legshield protectors with rubber piping. On the other hand, Ulma had single bar Piper rear Floridas with a ‘double Z’ plate, while the company’s more expensive Piper Deluxe double bar range had a second bar above the double Z. This bar extended up around the side panel, framing the front of the bodywork up to the seat mounting. Brochures showing the Piper range date from the mid-Sixties onwards, which might explain the scarcity of photo evidence of them being fitted or they may have been a little more expensive, leading to many simply not being able to afford them.
Scooter specification
Name: Pure Decadence.
Model: Lambretta Series 2 TV175.
Paint: Stuart at SWM Paint.
Chrome: Quality Chrome/Chromefix.
Engine: GT 186, GT 60mm crank, AF six-plate clutch, 25mm carb, MB bearings, seals etc. Casa big bore modified by the owner, standard gearbox.
Accessories: 3x Super Championship wheel discs and spinners, Super in line wheel carrier, Super fork boots, Super mudguard bumper, Super legshield badge by Carte Blanche, Ulma rear carrier, Lambretta Concessionaires wheel disc, Vigano hockey sticks, Vigano rear disc, Covelli floorboard extensions, Vigano jag lights, Vigano number plate surround, Piper Deluxe Florida bars from Iain Wilkins’ fabulous fabrications, Lucas owl reversing and rocket lights, double Z splash plate by Keith Newman, Raydyot mirrors, wavy mirror stems, Covelli legshield protectors, seat and backrest cover by Andy Nixon, backrest and flyscreen self-made by the owner.
Thanks to: Iain Wilkins, Dean the Crackley Racer, Nev ‘the international man of mystery’ Cope, Lee Geary, Dave Holford, Lee Maxey, Carte Blanche, Keith Newman, Andy Nixon, Nick Tollazzi Tolley, Scootopia, Cambridge Lambretta.
Words and images: Richie Lunt
