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Why do Mods have so many lights and mirrors on their scooters?
Are you guys ready for another debate? The last one was definitely interesting...
So have you ever wondered why Mods have so many lights and mirrors on their scooters? Here's my take on it.
http://parkaavenue.blogspot.com/
I also added a few scans from a vintage Italian accessories catalog.
So have you ever wondered why Mods have so many lights and mirrors on their scooters? Here's my take on it.
http://parkaavenue.blogspot.com/
I also added a few scans from a vintage Italian accessories catalog.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Reid Trotter on -
Hi Patrick, I have spoken to my Dad and Uncles about this dozens of times in the last 32 years(my God! 32 years!!) since I first became a mod. You can`t beat getting it from the horses mouth. This is what they told me. Back in the late 50`s, the scooter was a very popular form of transport and there were many scooter clubs, nothing to do with mods. These scooter enthusiasts were the originators of the accessory adorned scooter, racks, bumpers, pennants, motoring badges and yes, spotlights too. When mods took up the scooter as a way of getting about they "borrowed" the look. At first it was a different paint job with a rack,here and bumper there, but ,mods being what they are, they had to go one better than the next bloke. My Dad particularly remembers 10 foot tank arials as being all the rage at one point `cos they were cheap! As I`ve mentioned before, he and his brothers were mods in `62. The look then was a good non-standard paint job with pinstriping, front and back racks, florida bars, etc, no lights. He says that putting loads of lights on was a south London thing. Eventually, the lights and badges etc look spread and reached it`s peak in the summer of `64, by then the latest trend was taking your panels/mudguard off and painting racing stripes and numbers on your "street racer". This is when skellys first started appearing. Original mods NEVER had loads of mirrors, maybe four at the most. If you look at any pictures of mod scooters from `62 to `65 you won`t see loads of mirrors. I think this look originated from "up north". As mods died away in London and the south, it still carried on in the northern cities like Liverpool and Manchester. Back in those days fashions spread more slowly than nowdays. The northern mods adapted and added to the look and this is when you start seeing lots of mirrors, ironing board backrests etc. Personally, I don`t like lots of mirrors, I only have two, I try to stay true to the early London mod look.
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Permalink Reply by Patrick from Parka Avenue on -
Thanks Reid!
How I wish I had family to tell me all those stories. Maybe you should start a blog too! ;)
I think we're pretty much saying the same thing. I'm certainly not implying that the Mods (of any generation) came up with the idea of adding tons of accessories to their scooters. If you look at the Lambretta LD or the series 2 Lambretta, loads of stunning accessories were sold for those scooters. Scooter Clubs in the 50's were big on the accessories. In fact, I think that more accessories were produced for those models than for the series 3 or the Vespa VBB. And a Lammy LD was the last choice of any Mod.
The point I'm really trying to make is to explain why they loaded their scooters (now and then) with ridiculous amounts of stuff. I think your example of your dad with his 10 ft tank arial (how cool is that!) illustrates my point. It was coming up with the next cool thing and trying to outshine the other. That is pretty much what happened with fashion too.
As for the mirrors, if I remember correctly, in Richard Barnes Mods!, Mods started adding mirrors to their scooters when the British government passed the law that required motorbikes to have one. It was the youths thumbing their nose at government control, a form of protest.
And one influence that we can't deny, even if it wasn't historically accurate, is the Quadrophenia look. That sort of threw all the different styles in one big pot. As for my own personal preference, with my Vespa, I'm going all out. With the TV175, that I'm about to put on the road, I'm more subtle. It doen't even have a single mirror yet!
And here's a photo that proves your point.
Enjoy!
P.-S.: I would like to add your comment to my blog with your permission. Let me know if you agree. - Attachments:
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Scooters_with_L_plates.jpg, 1.8 MB
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Permalink Reply by Patrick from Parka Avenue on
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I just had a second look at that photo and one the Lambrettas seems to be a GP. So I guess the picture wasn't taken in the '60s.
- Attachments:
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Scooters_with_L_plates.jpg, 1.8 MB
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Permalink Reply by Reid Trotter on
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I don`t buy that story about fitting lots of mirrors because of the law. I`ve heard it before (didn`t know it was in "Mods!", I`ll have to read it again instead of just looking at the pictures!). I think Richard Barnes is reading too much into it, the simple fact is, back in the 60`s when the scene was still evolving and coming up with new ideas, if one mod saw another mod with four mirrors, he would have to have six, then the next bloke would have eight, just like centre vents going from 5 inches to 11 inches it`s about going one better! Skelly`s were a reaction to over the top accessories, if all the mods on your manor have got 25 lights and every rack and bumper you can fit on, how can you be different, one step ahead? take everything off! Being a mod in those days was completely different to now, nowdays we are trying to recreate a look from the past (as accurately as possible in my case). Although I don`t like the commercial mod look that encompasses everything from `62 right through to Quadrophenia and the mod revival, I am glad these people choose to be mods instead of anything else, I suppose I`m just a bit of a mod snob! p.s. You`re welcome to use my comments.
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Permalink Reply by Patrick from Parka Avenue on
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Thank you Reid. I think your comments are always relevant and pertinent.
I just posted your last two replies in the comment section of my blog.
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Permalink Reply by Ralph. on -
Hi Reid, what a brilliant and informative reply, its pretty much what i was going to say,,,,in my humble opinion you are spot on.....sometimes its forgotten that there were scooter enthusiasts adding accessories to to scooters before "mod" came along.
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Permalink Reply by Jordan on -
from what ive read, mirrors were only "in" for a short time, other times there were skelly scoots, metal flake, race style, however, i think the mirrors were imortalised bye the film.. you know the one, quad, lol i think like everythink scooter style in moved so quickly within the mod scene
http://oldgloryboys.piczo.com/oldphotos?cr=3&linkvar=000044
some really good pics on here, chrome by colins, probley the best mirror and lights mod scoot ever made :)
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Permalink Reply by LC on -
Why do Mods have so many lights and mirrors on their scooters? Cause they like it!
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Permalink Reply by John Scott on -
The first Scooter Mods appeared in 1960 they wore coonskin hats (Davy Crockett Hats) and green long fur jackets (can't remember the name of them). Scooters were mostly lambretta, the only real adornment were 1 or 2 tank ariels - usually with a coon tail tied to the top.
In 1962 scooter mods wore army parkers and flat hats with the brim inclipped - they rode with their feet close together and their knees splayed wide. Scooters were adorned with cissie bars carrying chrome horns, lamps and anything else chrome. Chrome bubbles and side panels started becoming fashionable towards the end of the year.
In 1963 'christmas trees' were definitely 'out' so the cissie bars, mirrors etc were dropped - they kept chrome bubles etc The scooter mods wore Blue French Macs and black French berets pulled forward over their eyes. The riding style also changed and everyobne rode with their knees togenther and leaning back as far as they could go.
1964 strip down scooters were the style vespas kept one chrome bubble and brettas lost both panels - scooter mods started wearing american style clothes and had french crops - no head gear.
Hope this helps..
John
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Permalink Reply by Reid Trotter on
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John, this is spot on. My Dad told me about berets and said he couldn`t understand why you never saw any pictures of mods wearing them. He also told me they used to wear mocassins which you bought in a pre-cut pack with everything supplied, you had to put them together yourself! I think the 1963 date as being when "christmas trees" were out is a bit early, a look at the "Mods!" book confirms this, most of those pictures were taken in the summer of `64 and clearly show that the look was still strong although on the wain as the newest trend was stripped down street racers. Before mods you had the original "scooter boys". They were a bit scruffy and not really mods but they were teenagers as opposed to the older scooter enthusiasts who belonged to organised scooter clubs. My Dad remembers them bombing about together. Another little gem my Dad and Uncles told me was that at one stage a myth started that if you put aftershave in with your petrol it would make you go faster, so you had all these mods riding around thinking they were going 5mph faster but really just stinking the place out with the smell of burnt Old Spice!
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