MAN & MACHINE
Name: Tony Bowey Job: Offshore mechanical engineer Scooter club: Lambretta Chopper Owners Club First interest in scooters: My grandfather used too have a TV175 when I was a boy and I’ve loved scooters since then. First scooter: Lambretta Starstream 125. Favourite scooter model: GP 200. Favourite custom style: AF Rayspeed DTC Type. First rally or event: Scarborough 1983. How did you get there: On my Starstream 125. Any stories: Set off home from Morecambe on my Li-225 with my mate and my engine lockedd up. Turns out I had put the wrong oil in the gearbox and I had to push it for 20 miles before we could get a tow rope. Those were the days! Favourite rally: DISC 1985 – it rained all weekend but it didn’t bother us. We just danced in the mud to Bad Manners, great times. Funniest experience with a scooter: My mate Chris Hall borrowed my old cut down and washed it. He told me to be careful but I didn’tt listen. When I tried to shut off the throttle, the carb jammed open – typical Amal 34mm – andd with all the water in the brakes I couldn’t stop! I hit a wooden fence and came off, ripping my private parts. I was rushed to hospital where myy privates were stitched back. Furthest ridden on a scooter: Isle of Wight on Bones. Took me over 12 hours and I walked likee John Wayne after the ride. Young and daft, lol.
Scootering feature: Custom reports on scooters and I love seeing old scooters being restored back to their former glory. Favourite custom scooter of all time: My all-time favourite chopper scooter has to be Illusion.
Name of scooter & reason: Original name Bones and new name Bones Returns from when I built it back in 1985 and restored in 2015-16. Scooter model: Li-125. Date purchased & cost: 1985 then sold it and bought frame back in 2014. Time to build & by who: Fabricated and built by myself in my mate’s workshop. Frame mods: Cut off Lambretta fork tube and welded on Harley-Davidson springer front end. Specialised parts: Headlight by Elite Customs USA. Rear light by Kris at Mental engineering. Engine spec: RB-250. Crank: PM Tuning race crank. Carb: 34mm Dellorto. Exhaust: NK chromed race. Clutch: AF Rayspeed race clutch. Gearbox: GP200 – 20 front sprockets, 47 rear. Top speed & cruising speed: Too scared to open her up. She goes to fast for a chopper lol. Paintwork & murals: East Coast Airbrush and frame painted by Wizard paint shop. Engraving by: The Master – Don Blocksidge. Chrome: Quality Chrome and Midas Touch. Overall cost: £8000. Anything still to add: More gold plating. Thanks to: AF Rayspeed for talking me out of race tuning the engine and a big thank you to the Wizard paint shop and Kev at East Coast Airbrush and of course master engraver Don Blocksidge and Quality Chrome.