SCOOTER DETAILS

Name of scooter & reason: Calamity Jane, from the 1953 musical.

Scooter model: Silver Special 150 Li.

Any specialised parts or mods: Anti-dive disc brake, long-range tank, hand-stitched bag, patch and key ring, tooling all made by Paul Hunter (lovely work) tough on the hands.

Engine build: We have both gone through sleepless nights, blood, sweat and tears. This has been a mammoth task. Parts don’t always go in like they should do. At one point I stuck a screwdriver in Midge’s thumb, yes, he drew blood, we were putting the ball bearings in the layshaft, he never shouted at me, must be love!

ENGINE SPEC

Kit: Rapido 225 race kit.

Crank: AF race 58mm.

Carb: 30mm Dell’Orto.

Exhaust: JL.

Clutch: Five-plate Surflex with extra strong spring.

What brand of oil do you run: Stihl @ 2%.

CHASSIS SPEC:

Tyres: V-rubber.

Suspension: BGM front dampers with progressive springs – standard rear shocker. Seat: Scootopia seat – extra padding and recovered in vinyl and piping with hand sewn on leather patch at the rear.

Fuel tank & Tap: 17-litre long-range tank – polished stainless steel fuel tank.

Brakes: Anti dive – disc brake – hydraulic polished master cylinder – Venhill braided hose.

Paintwork by: The Garage Artwerks – Colin Fitzgerald

Powder coating by: Ste Sumner – Electopack, Preston.

Chrome by: Bought tank, and engine cowls from Scooter Restorations.

Overall cost of work and components: £3000.

Tech tip or advice for anyone starting a project: Study and dry build all the frame and body parts before going to paint. Make sure the badge holes are all where you need them to be.

Thanks to: Midge (Paul Riding) for stripping and building the scooter, Garage Artwerks’ Colin Fitzgerald for air brushing, Paul Hunter at Hunter Leatherworx for saddle bag, patch on the rear of the seat and key fob. David Hale, Scooter Restorations, Andy Francis, Daniel at Preston Car Trim, Barry Blacklidge from Chorley, Shaun Munns from Preston, Tony Parkinson from Preston, Helen Speak from Preston, Badges from America.