Devil in the Design – Custom Vespa street racer

Ridden not hidden is a perspective that Potteries-based scooterist Lee Brereton firmly subscribes to.

Words: Sarge Images: Gary Chapman

Illustrating as well as emphasising his philosophy, Lee, known to his mates as Flee, had this to say about his recently completed Vespa street racer. “In the 14 years I’ve owned this scooter I’ve ridden it, thrashed it, blown it and rebuilt it, and all more than once. Scooters are for riding, enjoying and having a bit of fun.” With one short-lived exception, he’s always been a Vespa man. “It was a combination of getting a Vespa 50 Special when I was 15 and watching a mate rebuild a Lambretta that got me into scooters in the 80s. After the 50, I had a Vespa 90, then a PX. I only ever had one Lambretta, I didn’t get on with it, it felt like riding a breeze block. After I had the PX the T5 Mk1 came along, though when the T5 Classic came out, that really caught my eye, it’s been my favourite make and model since it was launched. Devil in the Design is only the second custom I’ve built, the first was more than 20 years back, that was a T5 Classic street racer too. That was called Mean Machine and was based on the Vinnie Jones film. It was on the front cover of Scootering in August 2004. My other, everyday, scooter is another T5 Classic street racer, with a water-cooled 225 engine.”

Devil in Disguise

This project evolved over three years or thereabouts, and was created by Lee, along with a lot of help from good friend Wolfy (Craig Mothershaw) at Wolf Speed. The build was forced on Lee when the crank, piston and barrel in his T5 Classic’s engine committed the mechanical version of hara-kiri. With the motor coming out for a rebuild, Lee decided that it was time to treat his Vespa to a total makeover. From a basic idea which underwent countless tweaks, rethinks and changes over 36 months of an off-and-on process of transformation, the end result was eventually reached. In addition to the necessary engine strip down and rebuild, bodywork, frame and fittings were disassembled in readiness for new livery and prior to being despatched both side panels were smoothed.  

The man commissioned to carry out the work was Richard at Riding Dirty Customs in Warrington, who found himself tasked with applying stunning deep red metal flake paintwork, as well as the subtle murals and signwriting. The latter being the number of the beast, pentangles, satanic runes and symbols that adorn the red and, in places, black bodywork.

It wasn’t satanism, but rather the red metal flake paint’s depth that inspired Lee’s choice of name, Devil in the Design; needless to say, there’s an abundance of detail. While some of this is obvious, much of it is very subtle indeed; in fact our photographer said that capturing the paint was one of the most difficult jobs he’s ever had!

A good example of the more instantly obvious are the side footplates and centre footplate, made to Lee’s design by Gary at Roo Engineering, the private number plate which embraces the theme of the scooter as well as loosely incorporating Lee’s nickname. The smooth black indicators in the bodywork and side panels enhance the visually smooth lines and work perfectly with the red and black logoed seat which came courtesy of Seat Refurbs. Less instantly obvious, but equally significant, details include the one-off horncast badge, red LED lights hidden in the underframe air scoop, plus red, black and chrome runes in the handlebar ends and on the oil filler cap. Then there are some very clever touches of matching hydrographic print on the rear mudflap, engine and flywheel cowling and the petrol tank top, all in red and black. Lee’s choice of moniker to bestow on his creation is both accurate and apt.

Number of the Beast

As is the case with almost every custom project, while most of the work went exactly as it should, there were a few areas that required a bit of extra effort. Not to mention additional time, along with blood and sweat lavished on them getting them to work or do what they are supposed to, and Devil in the Design was no exception. As Lee explained, some of them caused him more than a few headaches. “After fitting the rear disc brake to the hub, it turned out the engine was touching part of the set-up. The eventual solution was to make and fit a spacer to the wheel. Getting the indicators to work properly was more trouble than it should have been, that was entirely down to wiring issues. The idea behind fitting the red LED lights under the scooter inside the scoop was to provide a bit of light to a darker part of the scooter when at shows. That was a lot more awkward and fiddly to do than it should have been. I got the kick-start lever from SIP, but had a few problems with it catching, which we solved by cutting and shortening it.”

Now Devil in the Design is up and running, it’s a good time to ask Lee about any niggles since completion, what it’s like to ride, and if he has any changes planned. “While running in there was an air leak that developed on the way to Newark causing a breakdown. That’s sorted now, I finished running in riding to Birkenhead and then Nantwich. The top speed is as expected with this set-up, around 75mph and it rides really well. The whole project turned out almost exactly as I wanted, so there are no changes planned. I’m just looking forward to riding it.” There’s no doubt that Devil in the Design is a truly stunning custom street racer Vespa. The accompanying images capture much of the machine’s majestic appearance but, to truly experience the visual impact of the red and black colour combination and the gorgeous deep red metal flake paint with simple, subtle artwork that depicts the custom theme, this scooter is one to see firsthand. It definitely lives up to its name.

Owner details

Name: Lee Brereton (Flee).

Scooter club & town: Stoke-on-Trent Scooter Club.

What was your first scooter and how did you first become interested in them:

First scooter was a Vespa 50 Special, purchased when I was 15. I first became interested in scooters as the scooter scene was big in the 80s when I was a teenager and I watched my mate rebuild a Lambretta. From that point I was hooked.

What was your first (or most memorable) rally/event:

Skegness scooter rally was my first ever rally, but in a back-up van with about 12 mates.

What do you like about rallies/events:

I like to see how many others have made the effort to do custom scooters, and meeting new people with a shared interest.

If you had to recommend one scooter part or item of riding kit, what would it be:

A switch to turn the rain off or, failing that, some good waterproofs.

Your favourite custom/featured scooter of all time:

Lambretta street racer SkinSane.

What is your favourite scooter model:

Vespa T5 Classic.

What is your favourite style of custom scooter:

Vespa T5 street racer.

Scooter specification

Name of scooter: Devil in the Design. This is my second custom scooter. Reason behind the name is because of how red the metal flake is.

Scooter model: As my favourite model, a Vespa T5 Classic street racer.

Time to build and by who: It’s been an ongoing project for three years with Wolfy (Craig Mothershaw) at Wolf Speed.

Engine specification

Kit: Malossi 172.

Crank: standard.

Carb: 28mm.

Exhaust: SIP.

Clutch: standard.

Gearbox: standard.

What’s it like to ride: Nice to ride but still running it in.

Frame specifications:

Paintwork and murals by: Richard at Riding Dirty Customs, Warrington.

Powder coating by: Jon Smith at Wolf Speed.

Seat by: Jack at Seat Refurbs, Stone.

Any frame modifications: Swage lines taken out of side panels, small black LED indicators fitted into frame and side panels. Both by myself and Wolfy.

Are there any specialised parts: Foot plates and centre foot plate designed by myself and engineered by Gary at Roo Engineering.

What was the hardest part of the project:

Making my initial vision a reality with a thousand changes along the way with a bucket of cold coffee thrown in.

Do you have any advice or tips for anyone starting a project:

Be patient and have deep pockets.

Is there anyone you wish to thank: Wolfy and Jon, Richard at Riding Dirty Customs, Jack, Adam at Vital Hydrographic printing, Gary at Roo Engineering and Kev Stannard for the majority of the parts.

Any additional information:

I’ve owned this scooter for 14 years: rode it, thrashed it, blew it, rebuilt it!