Anyone know about old Triumph + Honda Trail 70 motorcycles?

MikeWhitney · **Joined:** Wed Aug 20, 2003 9:15 pm **Posts:** 4724

Kendra's aunt has two old Triumph twin motorcycles (probably late 70's) and two Honda Trail 70 bikes sitting in her garage in Michigan since Uncle Chuck passed away a few years ago.

Anyone know anything about these bikes? I'm looking for a new project, and I think I could get these for cheap/free. It would be fun to restore a couple of old bikes to good mechanical condition ... assuming there aren't big, big gotchas. One Honda is a 1978, the other looks older and doesn't have a year badge on the head tube.

I'm mostly interested in finding out just what the Triumphs are and whether they have any value. I took a couple of crappy pictures, I'll post tomorrow.

If we have any old-bike enthusiasts here, let me know!

Carl Fisher · **Posted:** Wed Jul 26, 2006 2:15 am

David Stone has a Honda 70, he might be a source of some info. I rode one a few times as a kid, I think they had the funky "4 down" shift pattern.

I might think one in good condition could be worth some money these days.

Contact me if you want/need David's email addy.

MarcusMcRae · **Posted:** Wed Jul 26, 2006 7:52 am

The Honda trails are neat bikes. I used to have an old z50 that was similar. Great steal stamped frame and no clutch. My first motor bike.

http://www.hondatrail70.com/Polson.htm

Their used to be a good shop in Lillington that would be an excellent resource for Triumph restorations but I think they closed. Try Barnett's or Matison, they sell some Euro bikes.

BretLuter · **Posted:** Wed Jul 26, 2006 9:11 am

Sam Blanton (drives a yellow pinto at the Rallyx's sometimes) knows a little about odd old bikes, IIRC.

Not sure about the Triumphs, I know there were lots of those made + sold here back in the day- so it's probably not worth a ton of money unless it's pristine and a more desirable model. Shouldn't be too hard to get spares for, thanks to Al Gore and his internet... :wink:

The Trail 70 has a strong following, again, not worth a ton of $$, but there are definitely collectors and enthusiasts out there. Parts are not too hard to find, but some of the NOS parts are $$$$$$$$$.

A quick Ebay search might help you with the value of some- once you weed out the scam postings and see what's really selling and for how much.

Bret.

Sam Blanton · **Posted:** Wed Jul 26, 2006 9:26 am

call me at 266 0111

SAM

MartynWheeler · **Joined:** Mon Jan 02, 2006 9:30 pm **Posts:** 303

Old Triumphs are great. Remember, though, that a non-running motorcycle of that era is essentially a collection of parts that may or may not be able to be assembled into a motorcycle.

That and the British car/motorcycle philosophy is you should dedicate every Saturday morning to maintenance so that you can ride worry-free through the rest of the weekend. If you do it well, it should run until next Saturday morning. (This is not a joke. British sports cars failed here because Americans did not understand this philosophy.)

But enough people get enormous pleasure from restoring old British bikes and riding them out to Michaels on Sunday morning to be adored that it is clearly far from a pointless pursuit. Some people even race them -- vintage bike racing is fabulous.

As to the Trail 70, restoring it is for you if you would find it fun to restore a K-car.

MikeWhitney · **Joined:** Wed Aug 20, 2003 9:15 pm **Posts:** 4724

So can anyone identify the 2 Triumphs below? Sorry for the crappy pics, they are stuffed in the back of a garage.

C'mon Martyn, the Hondas are a little cooler than a K-car

Thanks for the sound advice -- I've had 2 MGBs so I am already a masochist. As for the Hondas, well, I've always been fascinated with Honda hardware from the 70's and 80's. It's the stuff I grew up with

I've done a few basket-case 80's Honda road motorcycle projects on the cheap.

More pics here: http://www.nogumracing.com/whitney/phot ... index.html. Last 2 of are some old ice racing bikes I have no interest in...

clinehall · **Posted:** Thu Jul 27, 2006 8:13 pm

Hey, I have been thinking about trying to find an old Triumph to restore (or at least try to-I can't shake that triumph demon, I once had a tr3a, spitfire, and tr6 at once paid for mostly with school loans. paid the student loan off before the visa bill for parts but I am rambling. Why don't you sale me on of the triumph's to finance the honda restoration?

I will pull up you other pics and try to get them to a buddy of mine that has several triumphs, he might be able to identify.

Justin Barbry · **Joined:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 5:01 pm **Posts:** 5

Triumph Bonneville maybe? Guessing 650cc...mid '70's model? That silver one looks like it might be a Tiger???

Bernie Baake · **Posted:** Thu Jul 27, 2006 9:45 pm

Notice the oil stain on the infamous wet clutch

Graham Jagger · **Joined:** Fri Aug 29, 2003 12:53 am **Posts:** 1718

Justin Barbry wrote:

Triumph Bonneville maybe? Guessing 650cc...mid '70's model? That silver one looks like it might be a Tiger???

I was thinking the same thing. The blue one looks like a Bonneville 650cc. The 650cc Triumph and BSA were very popular back then across the pond.

THSCC Forums

Anyone know about old Triumph + Honda Trail 70 motorcycles?

Who is online