Allstate Compact

Sears began selling motorcycles and scooters in the '50's and continued into the latter '60's. The earlier models were built by Cushman, but the Eagle was never sold as an Allstate, Vespa (the basic 125 model only), and Steyr-Daimler-Puch. I believe the later machines sold by the catalog company were badged as Sears models instead of as Allstates. Probably many more were sold directly from the mall stores and less from the mail-order catalog business during the later years. The Cushman models were deleted from the lineup early on, and the Vespa followed suit a few years later. Cushman and Vespa were linked as companies back then, so it is no surprise that Sears sold these two brands as Allstates. In the latter years, after the Cushmans and Vespas were gone, Sears began importing a pair of Italian Gileras, the 106SS and 124. You can spot these a mile away if you have a general idea what all Italian motorcycles looked like back then. The much homelier Puchs received updated styling about the same time, along with a few model changes in the lineup. This made for two basic series of Sears machines that we could call "early" and "late".

The Allstate Compact pictured here was one of the Puch models badged as an Allstate in the '60's. The Compact was produced and sold with the earlier group of Allstates. It was sold only in one color combination, red and cream, and it was not updated like the 250 or the Sport 60 when the newer generation of Puch/Allstates were produced. Although the Compact was easily available and low-priced, it was never a popular model, as either an Allstate or a tiddler, since any old YG-1 or Sport 90 could blow it into the weeds in both style and performance. A good description of the Compact would be a Sport 60 on scooter steroids. The two models share the same engine, but the Sport 60 is tall and lanky while the Compact is short and stocky. If you view a Honda 50, as I do, as an official motorcycle with scooter attributes, you could say the Compact is a scooter with motorcycle attributes.

Allstate Scrambler

Allstate Photo Gallery