Itom Competitzione recommission...
Posted: Mon Oct 18, 2021 6:41 pm
Can't let 911hillclimber have all the two-wheeled fun, can we?
So, a well-known Porsche (and cars in general...) collector also has a selection of two-wheeled machinery in varying states of storage, amongst which is a pair of Itoms, one in pieces, one complete. For many years I've been in love with small European motorcycles, the products of tax and licence laws which led to a multitude of 50cc 'sports' machines coming out of France and Italy in particular (and, to a lesser extent, Germany). This helped fuel a burgeoning 50cc series at World Championship level, resulting in races which saw hoards of angry-wasp bikes hurtling six-abreast into every corner and working their way up through their eight-speed gearboxes along the straights. Names like Flandria, Kreidler and best of all Itom come to mind.
Del (for it is he) often quipped that I should take an Itom home and get it running, so this weekend, as I had driven my Golf estate up to Surrey to then head down to Goodwood, I took the opportunity to rescue one. What's cool is that there is now a three-way Porsche connection here: a 914 owner is taking charge of it, a serial Porsche owner has owned it for probably 30 years, having bought it from no less a Porsche guru than the late Barry Curtis. Barry imported it from Italy eons ago, rebuilt it and then flogged it to Delwyn Mallett. And there it has sat, never having been used.
It is complete (well, 99.9 per cent complete) but hasn't taken kindly to poor storage – some surface rust has started to show through the Barry-applied paint, and all the chrome has started to flake (it's the original Italian plating, so say no more). But it's all there bar one thing: in 'racer' fashion, it's had any form of starting mechanism removed (pedals for some markets, kickstart for others), meaning that you'd need to paddle along with your feet to get it going. But that's a bridge to cross at a later date...
The aim at this point is just to get it running – the gear change is Lambretta-style twist grip combined with the clutch lever and the cables need adjusting as I can't get it in neutral at present, and the clutch needs sorting, too. The engine turns over, has tons of compression (they were quite highly tuned for their day, giving a top speed of around 55mph+), and the brakes appear to work well.
Tonight, I unloaded it out of the back of the car (single-handedly, I might add – it only weighs about 90lbs) and popped it in the shed, and I dare say tomorrow will see me standing staring at it going "Hmmmm" and prodding the odd bit here and there. So, more at a later date... This is 'as found':
And finally 'liberated'...
So, a well-known Porsche (and cars in general...) collector also has a selection of two-wheeled machinery in varying states of storage, amongst which is a pair of Itoms, one in pieces, one complete. For many years I've been in love with small European motorcycles, the products of tax and licence laws which led to a multitude of 50cc 'sports' machines coming out of France and Italy in particular (and, to a lesser extent, Germany). This helped fuel a burgeoning 50cc series at World Championship level, resulting in races which saw hoards of angry-wasp bikes hurtling six-abreast into every corner and working their way up through their eight-speed gearboxes along the straights. Names like Flandria, Kreidler and best of all Itom come to mind.
Del (for it is he) often quipped that I should take an Itom home and get it running, so this weekend, as I had driven my Golf estate up to Surrey to then head down to Goodwood, I took the opportunity to rescue one. What's cool is that there is now a three-way Porsche connection here: a 914 owner is taking charge of it, a serial Porsche owner has owned it for probably 30 years, having bought it from no less a Porsche guru than the late Barry Curtis. Barry imported it from Italy eons ago, rebuilt it and then flogged it to Delwyn Mallett. And there it has sat, never having been used.
It is complete (well, 99.9 per cent complete) but hasn't taken kindly to poor storage – some surface rust has started to show through the Barry-applied paint, and all the chrome has started to flake (it's the original Italian plating, so say no more). But it's all there bar one thing: in 'racer' fashion, it's had any form of starting mechanism removed (pedals for some markets, kickstart for others), meaning that you'd need to paddle along with your feet to get it going. But that's a bridge to cross at a later date...
The aim at this point is just to get it running – the gear change is Lambretta-style twist grip combined with the clutch lever and the cables need adjusting as I can't get it in neutral at present, and the clutch needs sorting, too. The engine turns over, has tons of compression (they were quite highly tuned for their day, giving a top speed of around 55mph+), and the brakes appear to work well.
Tonight, I unloaded it out of the back of the car (single-handedly, I might add – it only weighs about 90lbs) and popped it in the shed, and I dare say tomorrow will see me standing staring at it going "Hmmmm" and prodding the odd bit here and there. So, more at a later date... This is 'as found':
And finally 'liberated'...