Lifes a lot better when you ride a Lambretta

09 June 05 So what have I learnt rebuilding my TS1 into for the 100th time? Replace every nut/bolt you can with stainless i.e. PX200 cylinder head bolts, get squish clearance spot on, take your time - don't rush/bodge it.
07 June 05 Just got my new TS1 running & went for a spin on it last night to Woking - remarkably I had no problems! Only taken 40+hours of sweating, swearing etc. I've put my original engine/carb in there but the original AF electronic ignition kit kit I had wouldn't fit so went with the Indian. New rings, swapped wiring loom and master cylinder/front hydraulic disk over, new tyres/rims, rear hub. Started OK but the throttle stuck on and I couldn't turn it off so it did 10K revs for a few mins until the petrol run out (11:00 @ night!) I now consider this engine fully run in!
15 May 05 As I was rebuilding the top end I decided to replace all cylinder studs with stainless versions of the longer PX200 type. However a dodgy thread stripped & after drilling it out I can't re-tap it using a heli-coil. Will now have to have it welded, then drilled out & re-taped - "$#~>%# it"
09 May 05 This should slow my TS1 down by a good 10 mph! It was a present that is kind of growing on me [1]
06 May 05 I've just picked up a nice Italian GP200 (TS1) from a friend. Obviously a non-runner (how many non-running scooters do I need?) but it's an original 1971 British old school TS1. My original scooter  is stripped down & being resprayed.
01May 05 Here's some pics of an original green SX150 a friend Ryan has brought & is being shipped to Vegas. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Very nice, wish it was mine!
27 April 05 Nice new Lambretta site here with a great collection.
26 April 05

Fantastic turn out for the Boxhill ride out - good day. Some pics here.

12 April 05

Updated the trick page with some new items.

08 April 05

The infamous Predictable was up for sale on ebay, £8000+ and reserve not met! Nice scooter with some great engineering.

03 April 05

The trick page can now be found in the "how to" section or here.

01 April 05

Picked up my hydraulic clutch and rear brake conversion from Great Yarmouth (cheers Chris!). Stupidly I left it stashed in a carrier bag in the back a mates car which spent the next few days traveling loadsa miles back to Woking, then up to Northampton until I eventually retrieved it! It's not too much worse for wear & I'm well chuffed with the quality. I'll upload pics into a new "trick" section.

28 March 05 Few pics from Great Yarmouth custom show here.
16 March 05 Scooter delivery, forget all those £1 a mile man and van I've just had an SX150 brought down from near Edinburgh for my mate Ryan for £180. Another Lloydy recommendation, superb service - call Ben on 077933 54212 or click here.
11 March 05 Got a ZXR400 rear master cylinder for ~£17 from my local motorcycle breakers - Bernies of Aldershot - highly recommended. I brought my motorbike from him 4 years ago and it's still going strong. He had several twist and go's there for sale - incredibly cheap i.e. rough ET4 @ £250!
09 March 05 The hydraulic clutch is finished and the rear brake conversion is almost done. I was using a rear master cylinder for the brake from a Piaggio Typhoon but this not up to the job & for the 60-70mm travel a Lammy rear brake gives you this translates into 1mm movement at the brake pads. I need a 14mm diameter master cylinder and am looking at using one from a Kawasaki ZXR400/ZXR750 which will do the job.
06 March 05 Just brought an early (1999) Yamaha R1 shock for £18 + P&P, so have stashed this in the garage and may get round to doing something with it in the next 6 months! A lot of Lammy owners are now buying R6 versions but you need to ensure you get one similar to the pics below (see 12 Feb) Early ones have a crappy horizontal oil reservoir which is pig ugly & won't fit under the panels. I'd recommend the R1 version.
24 February 05 EXCLUSIVE pictures of the new Lambretta being prepared courtesy of Frank Sanderson @ Lambretta Laboratory [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
19 February 05 Here's the latest pictures of the new Lambretta (courtesy of www.philadelphiascooters.com) These were taken at the Indianapolis Dealer Expo last week [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] I don't care what anyone thinks, I'd buy one even if it is made in the USA and has a shitty Piaggio engine in it. More pics here.
13 February 05 ScootRS have updated their Lambretta tubeless rim to a final version that now fits all hub types!
12 February 05 This trick rear shock conversion uses a Yamaha R1/R6 shock that's been converted to take 18 mm bore bush's. [1] [2] These aren't necessarily the best shocks (too hard) Any bike shock could potentially be converted as long as the length between the mount centres is somewhere between 300mm and 315mm.
09 February 05 Pete Kelross (Lost Souls SC) has started an excellent site for the Bisley Nightshift Club held regularly at Bisley Pavilion. Always a fantastic event.
25 January 05 Added several jetting guides to the carbs page for the increasingly popular Keihin PWK28.
20 January 05

 

Update on the ScootRS tubeless rims. They now have a notice on their site mentioning you'll have to "file/grind a bit off the outside of the 4 stud point half circles", which is the flat area around the studs that is larger on most hubs. Looks like ScootRS have dropped the ball again in terms of QA, especially if you have to grind off chunks of your funky chromed/plated/painted hub. Similar problem occurred with their hydraulic front disk brake - great product now but it's been through several iterations to get it right i.e. now come with Japanese Nissin hydraulic components, stainless pistons & new seals, spares available. Mine was an early one and after ScootRS replaced the caliper (foc) it still goes soft after a month or so due to a leak. I'm junking the master cylinder and fitting a Grimeca. As far as the tubeless rims go, again a great product but I'll wait for revision 2, thank you.
17 January 05 Hydraulic clutch and rear conversion for my TS1 is still slowly coming along - slower than a slow thing but soon to be complete, pics to follow, should be ready for rally season. Also embarking on a full rebuild of the same machine i.e. knock all the dents out, do some welding, cheapo paint job etc. Was going to rat it as I've abused it for so long, but everyone is doing that nowadays. Anyway my motorbike is evolving into a proper rat, so no need!
10 January 05 F**king Lambrettas - only done 150 miles and already the head gasket (actually no gasket, just goop) has blown on the TS1. So I'm now riding around on the scooter below until someone buys it! It's no speed machine, but a sweet, smooth ride and doesn't shake your fillings out and threaten to throw you under the wheels of a lorry at 80 mph at any moment!
08 January 05

 

Got a note from ScootRS around Xmas that their tubeless rims are now available to order. The Scootering review looked good and the development of tubeless rims for Lambrettas is without doubt a significant step forward where technology is being used to enhance safety of our beloved 30 year old+ shopping vehicles, at a reasonable price. However there's been some discussion regarding these not fitting certain hubs i.e. the type most commonly fitted to Lambrettas (almost all series I, II, III & Servetta) 

Previous years updates: [2004] [2003] [2002] [2001] [2000

.