I'm at a crossroads with this bike. With only less than 2,400 miles and all original everything (including tires), do I drain the fluids and put it in the living room, or do I install new rims/tires/brakes and start riding it?
Owned the Kingpin about a year now, well on the road DownUnder .Took 6 months to get here. Sorted a few things, new battery, upgraded the R/R . Brake pads. Swapped over my Burleigh Bars, pillion seat and backrest. Definitely more grunt than my souped up Vegas, which sold 5 mins into test ride! Only dropped $2500 after 7 years and 170,000kms... So it just about paid for the Kingpin ex ercise. Racked up around 7000 miles in the year I been riding it,, alternating between my black Victory CrossCountry and the yellow bike...
Man that's a really tough decision! That Trident is a pristine museum piece! Do you follow your head or your heart?
That is the million dollar question. This bike has been in the Radnor Hunt Concours d'Elegance, in the Simeone museum in Philly, 1st place at the National Triumph rally... etc,etc. I get told 'it's only original once' by many people, and I agree. But..this thing begs to be ridden. It won't be cheap, but I'd like to lace up new rims with modern tires and start using the thing. Every time I ride it I'm reminded of how good of a bike it really is.
The other thing I'd like to do if I put it on the road is paint a spare tank and put the original away for shows. Original paint was very thin and very susceptible to fading out to pink/purple in no time when exposed to UV. A 70's Triumph with original paint is rare- they all faded away. I can't afford to lose the original paint as it is stunning and in as-new condition. It just doesn't stay that way when exposed to daily use.
Good thinking , and 'if' you start riding it again, how long have you owned it ? by the way. ... Sourcing another faded tank and running it faded wouldn't look out of place.....On the other hand, With the advances in paint technology it maybe possible to replicate fairly closely the original colour scheme. By all means preserve the original. 'if' you start riding her again. Oh and I'd insure to the max with a reputable motorcycle insurer . We need to enjoy what freedoms we still have, while we can, and motorcycle riding is High on my list of Freedoms!
My brother-in-law bought this T160 Trident new in '75. He then met my sister and was married in '77. My sister is the most un-motorcycle person on the planet so the bike rarely got used but was always well care for, and in the early 90's I mentioned to my wife that his bike was always my dream bike. In a conversation with my sister, my sis mentioned that were selling the bike cause they needed the $$, and my wife said "I'll buy it" and gave me the bill of sale in a Valentine's Day card in '92. What a surprise! The kids were small at the time so I didn't use it much either, but a good clean-up and a rebuild of the carbs/brakes/forks in '16 and it was as good as new. So fast forward nearly 30 years and my wife is thinking of a bike of her own. She loves the T100 Bonneville we looked at, but I don't know if it will be too big. I wish they had a Street Twin to try. Anyone out there with Street Twin experience?
We used this PIC of my family and I for our 1997 Christmas card, the year I purchased my bike. Obviously, we don't take ourselves too seriously. Life is good.
That's a nice Triumph. What would you be saving it for? As nice as it is, it isn't going to make you rich if you "save" it. You can ride an old bike and keep it nice to where its not really going to depreciate. I've put nearly 20k miles on the 48 Chief and it looks as good as it did 11 years ago and riding it has not devalued it 1 cent. The enjoyment and experience you gain will far exceed any monetary loss in value. I know guys that ride $50,000-$80,000 antique bikes and they aren't de-valued. In fact if anything just the opposite because they are proven reliable runners. Insure it properly and ride it if you desire. Having said that if riding it does not bring you enjoyment, then keep it to look at. If you decide to ride I wouldn't go to the expense of getting another set of rims. Just replace tires and keep the originals sealed in plastic. We humans have a tendency to want to "save" our hobby vehicles but really, unless its has significant historical value as well as monetary value, we are better off using them vs saving it. Life is short. You should consider joining the AMCA and have that bike judged. It could be a 100 pointer in the original class! https://www.antiquemotorcycle.org/
Fiona, my '14 Triumph Rocket III Touring, during a ride from Miami, FL to Tucson this past August. It was a phenomenal ride completed in 3-road days (Stopped off for two days in Texas to see some grandchildren.) -MIG
Just sold my 1980 Shovelhead FX to buy a one-owner collector's item..... 1982 FXB Sturgis. Purchased from the original owner in Idaho, and about to be shipped down under (with a few Wildcat parts in the same crate). I feel your pain a little, CMCE. You can't change damn-all on one of these Sturgises without committing a sin equivalent to spraying a GSX purple....
