Tommy’s Tips will be appearing in Scootering until our September edition. Hopefully they will assist those readers who wish to pass the A2 motorcycle test before the new, more stringent test comes into force next October.
Tommy’s Tips are prepared by Tom Blears, the proprietor of Tommy Bee Motorcycle Training.

The tips are meant to be read in conjunction with the DSA Official Publication ‘Official Motorcycling CBT, Theory & Practical Test’ (ISBN 978-0-11-552645-9), price £7.99.

Buy The Official DSA Guide to Learning to Ride - £6.39 on Amazon

Much more in the current issue of Scootering Magazine...

My first steps into the world of metal fusion technology…

Like most scooterists I can cock a job up with the best of ’em. What I object to is taking stuff that I want repaired to a professional and being less than impressed with the results. To add insult to injury you then get asked for payment for something that you think you could have done better.

With that experience in mind, I decided some years back to put my money where my mouth was and enrol in a basic NVQ level 3 welding course at the local tech – sorry adult learning establishment.

Learn it yourself

Now, don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of extremely able scooter-friendly workshops out there that offer expertise tailored towards our frail old shopping bikes. The problem comes when you go to an establishment that doesn’t understand what’s needed and cares even less for the quality of the finished product.

Most workshops that specialise in scooters are fully conversant with the frailty of vibration prone, single cylinder machines and are usually worth every penny charged when rebuilding machines to last. I, on the other hand, never plan ahead and usually find myself in need of specialist services in the middle of the night just before a rally – hence my self sufficient leanings!

Even though I can weld I would never class myself as a welder – there’s a huge difference between the two levels of ability and experience and I hasten to add that I only aim here to pass on some basic knowledge that will help prepare readers thinking of following in similar footsteps and having a go themselves.

If you are after a step-by-step guide so that after reading all four pages you can go and weld petrol tanks, shorten forks or alter frames, well I’m sorry but this isn’t it. These are jobs that you really should be going to a specialist with.

Much more in the current issue of Scootering Magazine..

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At the (fairly) recent 28th International Classic Motorcycle Show in Stafford, the winner in the scooter class was the cute little Italian 155cc machine you see here. Spotted by our Gary as he was perusing the various displays, he obtained the owner’s details that fortuitously turned out to be just a couple of miles away from me in sunny Essex.

Background

If you hadn’t yes guessed or noticed, then this cutie is MV Agusta’s Chicco scooter and while MV may be known today for their sleek superbikes and racing heritage, like a lot of companies at the time they weren’t ashamed to give scooters a go to fill their coffers.

The story goes that after WWII, Count Domenico Agusta was looking to produce an economical, basic motorcycle. Indeed this is a plan he initially intended to put into action some years earlier in an attempt to rescue his late father’s aeronautical company, but hostilities put paid to that. To be named the Vespa, his company, Meccanica Verghera didn’t however register the name in time, Piaggio (another former aeronautical company) beating them to it, and so MV’s first two-wheeler in 1946 was named simply the MV98, after its two-stroke engine – coincidentally the same capacity as Piaggio’s first Vespa too.

From 1949 until 1954 MV dabbled in the production of scooters, both open framed and full bodied (and their tenuous link to Lambretta being that three were named the Model A, Model B and Model C!), before concentrating on motorcycles only, for a short period. In 1959, however, they unveiled the Chicco at the Milan Motorcycle Show and this cute little scooter began production in 1960 and lasted for four years.

Much more in the current issue of Scootering Magazine..

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BSSO Championships - Round 5 – Mallory Park

Welcome to Mallory Park for Round 5 of the BSSO road race championship. With 31 on the grid, it’s another good mix of scooters for two seven-lap races.
With no real dramas for any of the solos, this left the first mechanical failure of the day to Chris Taylor’s 189 Gilera outfit. His Polini big block reed-valve fell apart and the screws went for a stroll up the barrel causing damage on the way (I stopped using those after it did a similar thing to me five years ago).

RACE 1

Stu Day’s pole position start was not to be, as he arrived in the holding area before we went out. Rob Rees noticed his anti-dive had come undone and despite diving back to the SRP Racetec van, they couldn’t fix it in time.
The lights went out very quickly, catching a couple of people out, so off into the headwind we accelerated all the way round Gerrards; the wind was blowing you sideways but when you hit the back straight, the scooter leapt to 14,200 revs with the tail wind’s assistance. The chicane was always going to be interesting on the first lap, and sure enough, Richard Conneely went in far too hot and nearly took out Jon Uffindel.

Guy Topper made a blistering start from 21st on the grid and within a lap was right at the front. Lap 2 and Will Reber’s race finished with a bang after a blown water pipe sprayed water over the rear wheel and off he went, doing the teenage mutant ninja turtle on his back. Doug Turner’s race also finished on the same lap with a seized engine. After a lap or two, things settled down – that was until I decided to check out the rumble strip on the exit of the bus stop, only to get both wheels off the floor and passed by both Tom Oliver and Clive Preston. Clive quickly pulled away, leaving me to fight with young Tom for the rest of the race. At the flag, Guy had a three second gap to Charlie and there was only one second between 3rd and 5th place.

Much more in the current issue of Scootering Magazine..

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THIS MONTH'S COMPETITION...

Taking place over the weekend of 5-7 September and run by Gatecrashers SC, Ripley Harrierscooters SC, Skegby SC, and Worksop Lions, here’s a pretty unique competition on offer for the Scooters in Thunder Valley weekend.

The event takes place at MFN Nightclub and features live bands and entertainment throughout Saturday (see their advert elsewhere for full details), but the four clubs are offering two prizes of two pre-erected two-person tents and two sets of two weekend passes. Yep, all the winner will need to do is turn up on their scooters with a sleeping bag and beer tokens and they’ll be ready to party!

To enter the competition >>

Much more in the current issue of Scootering Magazine..

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