Finally found one...

Actually, this Award Cycle finned timing cover kinda found me. I got a call from a buddy that was looking for some parts for his pre-unit drag bike, and he mentioned he had an old finned timing cover as trade fodder. He found it at the bottom of a box of misc Triumph parts that he traded a 12 pack of beer for. Not a bad trade if you ask me. Obviously, it cost me more than a 12er, but in the end, my friend got the parts he needed for his drag bike, and I got the one aftermarket Triumph part that has eluded me for years. It's in great shape, with just one chipped fin at the top- easy fix. Apparently, these things are known for having issues with the crank bushing, but this one fits as perfectly as it's stock counterpart. Can't wait to get this thing all polished up and on my Tiger. UPDATE: I dropped the cover off with Tony at Classic Cycles Inc, and he had the fin repaired and polished it up. Not too shabby.

These old pics of Rich 'Richy' Richards #21 Triumph were recently posted on vintagemotorcycleracing.blogspot.com. This highly successful salt flat racer broke many records, but unfortunately, the bike is said to have been parted out years ago. Check out the rear brake drum swapped over to the other side to permit the use of a smaller sprocket for high-speed runs. In addition to being rediculously fast, the bike has the perfect stance and. The JoMo Triumph ad celebrates the 1954 World Record run at Bonneville and shows the bike in it's mid 50's trim when it wore #11 and chrome fork covers. Notice the top motor mount that's visible in almost all of the pics- it's got to work better than the wimpy stock top mounts.

Indian Sport Scout and Ariel Heavyweight Girder forks

I found these girders and late 30's/early 1940's race tires at a car swap meet along with lots of other very early British and American motorcycle parts. Most parts were 1940's and earlier but nothing was newer than the late 50's. It was a local collector that passed away and his grandson was at the swap meet liquidating for very reasonable prices. Keep that in mind fellow hoarders! I'm waiting to check out a few early Norton singles (International and an ES-2) from the same collection as well as an extensive collection of Whitworth tools. Fingers crossed.

Norton/Knuck hybrid- Then and Now

I'm not sure of the history behind this thing, but I saw modern pics of it a few years ago, and this vintage image of it at a swap meet just surfaced on the JJ. It's a 1940's Norton International with a Knucklehead motor- killer combo. I really hope this bike stays together and doesn't donate it's powerplant to a Knucklehead restoration.

ARE Alloy Triumph top clamp

I saw this ARE (Alloy Racing Equipment) cast aluminum racing top clamp and thought the dimesions looked very similar to a Triumph so I scooped it up and sure enough- it fits 60-68 Triumph forks. I've heard of ARE (I had one of their finned points covers on my black '68 TR6) but I had never seen or heard of any aftermarket Triumph yokes before. I'm not sure if there was a matching lower, but it's ALOT lighter than the factory iron counterpart. Plus, I'm sure it won't look bad with a set of alloy Tomasselli clip-ons underneath it.

60's Show/Drag bike with chromed Indian girder

This is an early 30's Indian girder that's all setup for a Triumph. The guy said it was on his dad's wild chromed out show/drag bike in the 60's. Well, the guy wasn't BSing- he just found the pic of his pop's old Triumph with the girder on it. The pic isn't very clear but you can see the girder with a Borrani rim and spool hub (long gone he says) as well as a green and gold Wassell banana tank. The picture couldn't have been taken any earlier than 1964 based on the Myers Manx in the background. I wonder what happened to the rest of the bike?

Lamoreaux swingarm conversion kit for rigid Triumph

I recently found this 3" over swingarm conversion setup that appears to be the kit offered by Wilbur 'Lammy' Lamoreaux in the early 50's. Paul at Show and Go posted an old article on the Martin swingarm conversion, and it shows the 'Lamoreaux & Ryan' kit- note the pinched swingarm, fender brackets and vertical brace under the seat springs. Also, I took a few pics of a bike at the 2010 Catalina GP running the same setup, but was unable to locate the owner. Here's a few pics.