The parking lot had a number of vendors selling scooters and parts and, inside, there was a scooter show. Stoffregen, who owns the Scooter Source in Lytle, was displaying his latest work, a 1966 Vespa SS180 Grimstead Hurricane.
“Eddie Grimstead built between 60 and 80 of these in the 1960s. They’re pretty rare,” Stoffregen said. “This scooter is 100 percent original, every part on there came on it, and I restored every piece myself, including the engine. I did punch out the engine from 180 cc to 215 cc and it uses an expansion chamber for exhaust so it will really move. It hits 60 mph real easy.”
Stoffregen was rewarded for his efforts at the National Scooter Show in Cocoa Beach where it won Best Vespa.
“I’ve only put about 300 miles on it since I finished it, I don’t want it to get too scratched up since we’re taking it to AmeriVespa to see how it will do there,” he added.
On the opposite side of the restoration spectrum sat the 1960 BMW R26 motorcycle belonging to Jeremy Holbrook of Germantown.
“My mom bought this bike brand-new in 1960, and then she laid it down a couple of times. Then she got a Yamaha, and laid that one down too, so she decided she would be a passenger from then on. This bike sat in the garage for 36 years, untouched, and I finally asked her if I could fix it up,” Holbrook said.
“She said sure, so I cleaned the carbs, flushed the fuel tank, put in a new spark plug and new battery, and it fired up on the third kick,” Holbrook said. “Since then, I’ve replaced the muffler, put new spokes in the wheels and new tires, and then went back the German spec look, with the solo seat and lower German handle bars. That’s all I’ve done.”
The German-built motorcycle is heavy and has a 250 cc single cylinder engine with a 4-speed transmission to a shaft drive.
“It’s not real fast and it weighs a lot, but it has enough torque to pull a tree stump out of the ground,” Holbrook said.
“I had two guys offer to buy it this morning while I was coming over here. It’s all original and has the patina of a 51-year-old motorcycle,” he said. “I have quite a few other bikes, all modern stuff, but this is really a cool old bike. It’s definitely my favorite.”
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