1950 Triumph Speed Twin 500
Engine Number:5T H3 9815. Frame Number:Correct. Rego on hold.
$5,000 - $8,000
Provenance: From the ‘Going When Last Ridden’ Barry Pointon Collection

Proudly Brought To You By Mr Turner

It was the Speed Twin that ensured Triumph’s post-war success. Launched in 1937 under the ever-present guidance of then managing director and chief designer Edward Turner, the Speed Twin, with its 500cc overhead-valve vertical twin configuration nested within a stiff(ish) lightweight frame, was the first truly successful British twin. It set the standard towards which an entire industry soon strove. Few could have guessed at the time how influential the design would prove to be as it was the forerunner of many of Triumph’s vertical-twin overhead cam models, including the Bonneville, the Tiger 100 and the Thunderbird. The example offered here dates from 1950, by which time the Speed Twin had been upgraded with a stronger, eight-stud cylinder barrel (replacing the original six-stud) and Triumph’s own telescopic front fork. It is also equipped with the Turner-designed ‘Sprung Hub’, which was Triumph’s attempt to provide a measure of rear-suspension movement while retaining the rigid frame. The machine has been in the current owner’s collection for the past 20 years.

Auction March 2013
Image and text courtesy Webbs Auction House NZ
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Triumph Motorcycles of the 1950s