Category: Restoration

We’re continuing to work on our customer’s 1969 Triumph Bonneville.

As we’ve mentioned previously, this bike started as a fine build from a reputable shop.  We’ve been helping to make this bike an even more correct and perfect restoration by applying the correct paint scheme, among other things.

We’ve gone through the bike twice, and swapped out incorrect bolts, nuts, fasteners and other small parts.  Pictured below are a few of the parts we’ve removed and replaced recently, including the crossover pipe and clamps.

The original ’69 Bonneville crossover pipe clamp was a double clamp measuring about 3″ long, and included two bolts on each clamp.  You can see examples of this original clamp on one of our core bikes in the photo below.

Later in 1969 and into 1970, these double clamps were replaced with single clamps.  While high-quality single clamps are readily available, the double clamps simply don’t exist.  We’ve never seen a good-quality reproduction, as those which are available are just not correct – and it shows.

We love our customers, and love helping them make their bike as perfect as possible.  In this case, we were able to find a single set of NOS clamps.  After taking some time to clean the dried masking tape off of them, and shining them up, we installed them on this bike, helping bring this restoration up to snuff.

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One of our customers whose bike is featured here on our website wanted to find out whether his paint job was correct for his particular machine.

In 1969, Triumph featured three different paint schemes on the Bonneville during it’s production run from August of 1968 through July of 1969.  The first featured of an Olympic Flame tank with a 3-inch Silver Sheen stripe down the top-center, much like that of the 1968 Bonneville.  Soon thereafter, the factory moved to a scheme which featured a swept-back scallop coming off the top of the tank badge.  Finally, in later 1969, the factory added a lower wing off the bottom of the tank badge.

Our customer’s bike has both the top scallop and the lower wing as featured on late-1969 Bonnevilles.

We examined two 1969 Bonneville cores in our warehouse (either of which, incidentally, we’d be happy to restore for you) and noted that each bike features the single scallop paint scheme. We then took note of the serial numbers on each bike.

The first VIN begins with “AC” which denotes that it was produced in January of 1969.  The second begins with “GC” which denotes a production date of June of 1969.  As our customer’s bike has a serial number which begins with “AC” and falls between those on our two bikes, we believe the bike came from the factory with only the single top-center scallop.

So, we’re looking forward to getting it right on this bike by furnishing it with a brand new, and factory-correct, Don Hutchinson paint job.

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As you can see by the photos below, we’re starting to see a motorcycle taking shape.

We started by assembling our frame on the lift, and weren’t thrilled to find that the swingarm that came back from powercoating was missing the brackets for the lower shock bolts, as they’d both broken off at some point in its lifetime. Luckily, we happened to have a NOS ’68 swingarm that is in near-mint condition, and so we’ve added that to the long list of factory-original parts on this bike.

Both wheels have been built, including the brake assemblies, and are on the bike which is now officially a “rolling chassis.” The freshly-painted oil tank is on, as is the rear fender, which gives us an idea as to how beautiful the Riveria Blue and Silver Sheen paint is going to be.

Our NOS headlamp assembly is on, as are our rebuilt speedometer and tachometer – all looking fantastic. This week we’ll add a few more things to the chassis as we get started on the motor rebuild. We’re going to build the lower end on the chassis, so we don’t risk damaging the finished part by trying to install a fully-built motor.

We keep saying it…this is going to be a very special bike.

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We’re thrilled to present our latest classic restoration – this stunning 1967 Triumph Bonneville T120R.

We’ve been working on this bike for many months, and it’s an outstanding Triumph restoration we’re very proud of.  There’s not a single piece or part on this bike we haven’t touched.

We’ve used many NOS parts throughout, rebuilt and tuned the engine from the bottom up, powder-coated the frame and other black parts, and applied our signature paint job in Aubergine and Alaskan White, including hand-striped Gold.

This bike is undoubtedly a show-winner, with every nut and bolt as close to factory original as we can muster.  Priced at [price], we expect this bike to find a new home this summer.

Check additional photographs of this bike out in our “Bikes for Sale” section.

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As you likely know if you’ve visited our shop or website, we have a collection of over 100 original vintage Triumph fuel tanks from which we’ve devised our formulas for original paint colors.

When we paint a tank, there comes a point in the process where we bring an original tank into the paint room, and hang it next to our work in progress.  That helps us as we apply the various layers and pinstriping to match the original pattern exactly, right down to the underside of the tank.

This photo is a good example of just how closely we’re able to match original paint color and scheme.  You can also see one of our newly painted fenders peeking out in the background.

We haven’t seen too many of these on the road, and we’re getting excited, as we think this paint job will be stunning.

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We’ve got some goodies stashed away in the corners of our shop, and this is one that’s finally going to see the light of day, so we thought we’d share.

Some of these goodies are for sale…some of them are not.  We’ve been saving this all these years for a special project, and we’ve decided to use it on our ’68 TR6R restoration that’s currently underway.

It’s a 1968 Lucas headlamp assembly, complete with wiring harness, window-type ammeter, and horn/dipswitch.  It’s a little musty, and the rubber bands that held some of the wiring have long since hardened.  But it’ll clean up nicely, and we’re looking forward to seeing it put to good use.

And yes, we have more of these and other goodies.  But, to get your hands on one of these, we’d kindly ask that you buy a bike from us we can include it on….maybe the ’67 or ’70 Bonnevilles that are on deck.

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Our 1968 Triumph TR6R project is moving along nicely.

As you can see in the photos below, our black parts, including the frame itself, have returned from powder coating, and they look fantastic.  There’s nothing quite like seeing these parts born again in deep glossy black with not one scratch or greasy mark anywhere.  Our powder coaters do amazing work.  While having these parts power coated is a bit more expensive than paint, the results are well worth it.

Our oil tank is painted and ready for buffing, and our fuel tank has been sandblasted and is joining the fenders in the queue for paint.  We’ve got our Riviera Blue and Silver Sheen colors mixed and ready to go.  The paint on this bike is going to be special.

We’re having fun pulling parts together from various dark corners of the shop, as we’ve uncovered some goodies.  At the core is our super cool and all original NOS Lucas headlamp and wiring harness.  We’ve also found a matched set of Smiths gauges we’ve had rebuilt, a made-in-UK set of pipes and mufflers, an Amal 930/23 carburetor, and all of our rubber bits.  Wrapped in paper are the polished aluminum covers, and the boxes contain all of our powder coated parts.  Also, we happened across a nice set of ’68 wheels which we built at some point and stored away for just such an occasion.

The engine still needs a bit of work.  It’s been torn down and can be seen below sitting in a couple of crates.  We’ve sent a load of various bits to be cadmium plated, and next step will be to bead blast the cases and start rebuilding the engine.  We’ll also be focused on building the front end of the bike in the coming couple of weeks.

This project has us excited, as the end result will be outstanding.

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Our newest bobber has been turning heads since hitting the showroom floor recently.

If you’re into bobbers, you’re going to love this. Our goal was to make a fast, tough, beautiful bobber that won’t break the bank. We’ve spared few expenses. Read more in our “Bikes for Sale” section.

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We’ve made some progress in the last couple of weeks. First, we’ve sourced and sandblasted just about all parts which are to be powder coated black. In the photo below, you can see 47 parts ready to go. Seems to us there should be something on the order of 56 black parts, so next steps will be to compare these parts against our checklist and see what, if anything, is missing.

We’ve also found a fuel tank in our back stock that will work nicely. As you can see below, it’s in rough shape. It’s dented, dirty, rusty, and a nice shade of glittery bluish purple. We’re going to fix all that, as it’s the correct tank for this bike, and should be a nice transformation to document here.

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Marissa brought her 1967 BSA Starfire B25 to Don Hutchinson Cycle so the team could bring the bike back to life. As she tells the story…

“The bike was found abandoned and tied to a tree in an apartment complex some 25 years ago. The owner of the complex was going to trash the bike just to get it off the property. A friend rescued the sad little bike and brought it home where it sat in a basement for another 10 years or so.

Working on this bike has totally changed my way of thinking and what I want out of life. I now can’t get enough of British motorcycles. I eat, sleep, live, breathe my bike and anything to do with it; I’m hoping all my research and lessons turn out to be a great career for me in the future because I can’t see myself doing anything else.”

The guys at Don Hutchinson Cycle have taken a liking to Marissa and her little B25, and will be helping her through the winter to get her on the road.

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