Just joined the forums as I need to learn about the Hinkley Triples having no experience of them except for looking a friends Speed Triple some 25 years ago. In fact it's been about that long since I last had a bike the cold weather in the UK played havoc with my knees but over the last few years have been hankering after another bike and as now live in SE Europe and have no need to ride in the winter it's time to get another bike. In my original thinking a Hinkley Triumph was not included as was thinking more of a old British classic and a light weight one at that like the Norton Jubilee or Navigator, note had a Jubilee as an 18 year old, however was rather shocked at prices asked for nice ones. Briefly considered an Enfield Bullet but on researching the Indian built ones dropped that idea and original British ones are getting pricey and as was considering riding it back across Europe their lack of cruising speed killed that idea. So then it was the T140 under the glass ....... bought a new on in 79 one of the early T140E's and might have still had it but it was stolen in Feb 83 and not recovered and finding a nice T140E for the money the misers at Co Op insurance were offering was a no go instead of a 3 year one we were looking at a 5 or 6 year old one which meant a V model for the money was so disappointed that neve did get another Bonnie. Ended up with some older British classics and then building a Chopped BSA then later on the a "Street Fighter" styled chopped Honda 750 FB that was my last bike. Anyway back to the bike search and noticed that for the same money or less I could have a Hinkley T300 Triple and it was the Thunderbird that first caught my eye but again we have the getting it home issue not to mention registering it here and since Brexit that has become more of an issue with British registered vehicles. So the search switched to European sales sites and that brought my attention to the Trophy model as found a few nice ones for sale in Germany and France being EU registered they are less hassle to register here and then today found a 900 Trophy of 2000 vintage for sale in country that has just been brought in from Belguim and so that is why I am here to learn more about them before traveling to view the bike. Of course it means that I need new gear as rodents ate the lining of my helmet when they got into the garage so it went in the skip.
It's only been 7 years for us sadly Brexit has made it more difficult and we are still learning the ways here never mind the language ....... it's a nightmare!
Thank you for the welcome. I must admit though that am finding it rather shocking the changes in the biking scene helmets for one as only a few of the makes that I was familiar with remain my last one was a Centurion in beautiful metallic blue now there are many makes I never heard of before and of course the bikes themselves they are so different. Many of the styles well let us just say say they are not for me! My dream of a Triumph again is hitting snag after snag as in Bulgaria it seems there is only one dealer and the ones in my price range are basically a 900 Trophy of 2000 vintage with 62,000 km that is recently imported here so needs registration and a couple of Sprint ST's also recent imports there is a 1200 Trophy of 99 vintage from a private vendor but it's in Sophia and that means a whole day proving we can find an available translator (required by law as I do not speak Bulgarian) and restricting the search to my region there are no Triumphs listed for sale and with only one dealer here ans that being about 4 hour drive that is not really that much of a surprise. Most I find listed nationally are imports from the UK or the EU notably Germany.
Hello Plezier and welcome to the forum. The very first thing that you need to know about the T300 triples is that they are heavy bikes - whichever model you choose - and, while the weight shouldn't be a barrier to ownership it does need to be carefully considered if you aren't used to tall, top-heavy machines. Don't let it put you off - just be very aware and very mindful of it until you're used to it. The T300s handle far better than might be expected but can be sensitive to tyre choice - I'd, personally, advise against outright 'sports' tyres and look for something slightly more touring oriented. The second thing you need to know about the T300s is that spare parts availability can be dire with a LOT of component parts long since obsoleted by the factory. Some of the early T300s still remain in that "no-man's land" between factory obsoleted parts and lack of good quality aftermarket repro stuff. That might not be so important for minor bits and pieces like indicators (originals have long since been declared extinct!) but for things like body panels, silencers, etc., it can be a real hassle trying to find a suitable replacement. Sprint Mfg. are good specialists for some aftermarket spares and there are a couple of breakers on ebay that specialise in Hinckley models - National Triumph being probably the best known. The T300s are - or can be - very rewarding machines. They have character (as indefinable as that is) by the bucket load; they're strong, reliable and, in the main, great looking machines but they're not without their faults and weaknesses - sprag clutches come instantly to mind. In a world of modern, lightweight, nimble oriental hardware, they're probably viewed far too often as 'dinosaurs', but they have an uncanny ability to reach into your psyche and, especially when pressing on, deliver a soul-stirring soundtrack like few other bikes - there are, IMHO, few finer sounds than a Mk.1 Speed Triple 900 howling through the original carbon cans at 9,500 rpm! Hope the Trophy is all you are wanting it to be - good luck with the purchase!!
Thank you very much for the informative reply it is most useful. Today I reviewed my search results and going across the three online sales sites only found 8 Triumphs within even my slightly extended budget a mix of Trophy, Sprint and Tiger. The Tiger is out of the running as I simply do not like the style especially the tank. The Trophy was a mix of 900 and 1200 if I could push the budget just a little more then there is a 955 but nearly all require registering being imports from EU countries and that bumps the bill up some more. Also today searched for motorcycle dealers/shops in my region as I need a helmet, gloves and a jacket. After I picked myself up off the floor at the prices a reasonable full face a jacket, fabric/textile, one as cannot afford leather here and gloves come the nearly a 1/3 of the bikes price and the helmet is a popular make out here but one I had never heard of being LS2 the jacket is from them as well. Though I did spot a couple of AGV open face helmets that the budget could just about stretch to. An odd thing I noticed is that helmets me silly graphics all over them are cheaper than plain ones???? Leather bike jackets start at around £350 and go up from there once I figure out the correct size will have to buy one off ebay and get it shipped as can get on with CE armour for less that a third of the price here. Bearing in mind the weight issue which is why initially was considering a vintage classic light weight bike and was looking at T140's after all they weigh 424 wet according to the factory (T140E) fit Burgess type silencers and reduce that but about 15-20lbs those emission control silencers weigh a lot and Burgess type resonator pattern ones about 3-5lbs a pair means re-jetting carbs my T140E needed 105 main jets. Anyway a decent T140 is out of the budget especially as it means bringing one from the UK most likely any for sale in Norther Europe are out of the budget so started searching for suitable bikes and stumbled across a few Ducati 620's for sale and these weigh about the same as the T140 at around 400lbs then found some Suzuki SV 650 that seem to weigh about the same and though was trying to avoid it looks like we may have to arrange to get a day away and go to Sophia as there are some larger dealers there that have selections of both one even has a Speed Triple 1050 in but that is double what my budget is that dealer has 4 Ducati 620 Multistradas in and a 1000 Multistrada plus a 750 Monster and a Ducati ST all just within the budgets reach and a Suzuki SV 650 plus being the capital there are other large dealerships and shops there and of course the only Triumph dealership here. so right now my head is is a right ole spin.
Thank you and may I add my condolences for having to put up with the dreadful state of the roads in Lincolnshire!! Yes that is where we left to move here used to live in Friskney half way between Skeggie and Boston. Mind you the roads here can be as bad in places though it seems they are trying to fix them.
To be honest they're not that bad, or good really. We're all accustomed to crap roads now days, I guess we don't notice it anymore.
surely you jest !!!! The bank road from Eastville to Wainfleet thats the road along rhe drain from A16 to the A52 was so bad I hit a line of potholes in the rain and the istruments light in my MGF went off then came back one it also buckled a front alloy wheel the council claim that if you did not report to the pot hole before hitting it it's not their resonsibility and you cannot claim damages. The one that did the damage was over a metre long and 75mm deep and of course full of water so could not be seen in the dark. That road was more pot hole than tarmac it was impossible to miss at least some of them unless you used a different road sadly that wa snot really possible for us as we need to use it to in and out of home.
Never been down that road, too dangerous . I just like pottering around the Wolds, roads not too bad around that area.
Mum & Dad moved there from Leake Commonside in 86 the raod was no way bad back then but of course they were never built to take the massive farm vechicles that use them nowadays.