Meet the man with 49 classic British scooters

Super scooters

Geoff Burton has 49 classic scooters stored on two levels in his garage, and every one was made in Britain.

There isn’t a Vespa or Lambretta in this collection of some very rare, some weird and some wonderful machines.

Real rarities

There are scooters here manufactured by 14 different marques.

And if you didn’t realise many of them existed, that’s understandable – you’re not alone.

Back to the start

That is precisely the reason Geoff became hooked in the first place.

It all started after spotting a Triumph Tigress on eBay, when he was working overseas as an engineer.

Caught the bug

“When I saw the Tigress advertised I thought, ‘That’s interesting, I didn’t know Triumph made scooters,’” recalls the 71-year-old.

In the 20 or so years since, he has amassed a truly extraordinary variety of machinery.

Read all about it

“I was given a book about British scooters, and that was a really big mistake,” he adds.

“When I realised how many there were, I had to go for it and see what I could get.”

The hunt is on

“I get a bee in my bonnet and there’s something driving me to do silly things.

“If they made it, I wanted one,” this enthusiast reveals.

Name game

For example, there are six different versions of the Tigress: the 250 with kick-start, the 250 with electric start and the 175, in addition to the same three models that wear a BSA Sunbeam badge.

Geoff has five of the six.

Completing the set

There are even more very obscure names, too.

The Dayton Albatross came with single- and two-cylinder engines – so, of course, Geoff had to have both.

Making space

When he ran out of space he bought a workshop five years ago to house the collection.

“It was in a bad state,” he says, “so I’ve spent a lot of time doing it up, creating the mezzanine level and a manual vehicle lift.”

Seldom seen

Among the more intriguing ’bikes are a Bond P1 with its distinctive ‘jet age’ rear end.

Or how about the DKR Defiant with its bulbous front fairing and the DMW Deemster ex-police scooter, complete with its (possibly) original radio.

Yes, there’s more

Oddities grouped together include an Ariel 3, a tricycle moped with a £2million development cost that’s said to have killed off its maker, BSA; a Brockhouse Corgi, a civilian version of the Welbike dropped by parachute to support troops in WW2; a Swallow Gadabout; and a BSA Dandy.

The one nod to Italian scooters is the Raleigh Roma, a Bianchi produced in the UK under licence.

Engineering intrigue

A very smart Velocette Viceroy is a particular source of fascination for Geoff.

“I always thought it odd that a scooter’s weight is over the back,” he says, “with nothing over the front.”

Stories behind the scooters

And here is his rare Velocette Viceroy.

He continues: “Velocette thought that wasn’t right, so they put the boxer engine in front.

“It’s the machinery that fascinates me. If I see a beautifully restored, painted and chromed scooter I’ll think ‘that’s nice’ and walk straight past. But if I see one that needs a lot of TLC, I’ll fall in love.”

More to come?

“The objective is to get as many British scooters together as I can,” Geoff tells us.

“I’m doing well and, although it’s not quite finished yet, I do think it’s almost reached a plateau.”

Deviating from the plan

When he first started collecting, Geoff had a “masterplan” to retire at 60.

“Then I would spend a year doing up each one of 20 scooters,” he explains, “and by the time I reached 80 I would just hug and polish them.”

Here, Geoff is sat on his Bond P1, a scooter with an elongated rear.

For the love of it

“Well, I didn’t retire at 60, and probably because of that I went well beyond my 20,” he admits.

“My new plan is to just enjoy myself, and when I come here I enjoy myself – no matter what I’m doing.”

Four-wheel thrills

The scooters share their garage with a 1969 Lotus Elan S4, bought in 1978 but subsequently off the road for 20-plus years.

“For handling, there’s nothing like it,” says Geoff. “The only limiting factor in taking a corner is how quickly you can turn the wheel. It’s phenomenal.”

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