The new Triumphs are nice bikes. Not had my 1200 Tiger long so can't really describe it,but I think it compares very favourably to my nephews brand new BMW 1200 GSA. And considerably cheaper too.
I had a T21 with 500 top end back in the '70s and as I recall yes you just dropped the 500 top end straight on. Nobody worried about balamce factors for largrr pistons back then, probably why it was always shaking and rattling.
Don't forget,if you get a Brit bike you will need a complete new imperial tool kit,sockets and spanners!
But your hammers and chisels, mole grips, screwdrivers, tyre levers, and spark plug spanners will still fit just fine.
Does anybody know about the Francis Barnett motorcycles as i've been offered one but not sure what model it is at this stage,which ones are collectable
I used to have a Francis Barnett, it had a 250 Villiers engine, can't remember much more about it, it was back in 1968. Steve
As nice as they are,none of the old Fanny Barnetts have really achieved cult status with the inevitable price hikes that collectability brings.A few people asking proper money for them,those examples seem to be mostly properly restored though I wouldn’t mind having one in my barn,but I wouldn’t bank on the Indians making all the replica parts for them just yet,(although Villiers engine bits are reasonably available),so really needs to be a whole bike to be interesting,only my opinion of course. If the bike is complete,original and reasonably priced,(and you are looking for amusement not profit),might be worth buying.
On the other hand a Frantic Bastard is probably less likely to have been ridden into the ground than the equivalent Bantam. Probably.. I've long threatened to buy something similar just so I can get into the Great Dorset Steam Fair for nothing as an exhibitor.
Francis Barnetts generally used the same Villiers two stroke engines as James; Greeves and some other two strokes (single and twin cylinder engines) - in fact one of the smaller single cylinder engines (125cc or 150cc) was actually used in a chainsaw - which was really heavy. Then along came AMC and engines began to change - Francis Barnett ended up with a single cylinder 250cc two stroke called the Cruiser 80 and there were smaller engined versions of the Cruiser model. Those single cylinder engines were temperamental although quite powerful - when stopped at traffic lights and junctions, my Cruiser engine would suddenly start running backwards for no reason - I had to increase the idle speed far too much to prevent it happening. Also, another AMC bastard bike was the Norton Navigator 350cc (the Torrey Canyon version) which used the identical frame of the Francis Barnett Cruiser model, plus two rather thin head stays bolted between engine and downtube which did sod all. Mine started out with me like a very tatty version of the green one below - but eventually ended up like the other pic.
There is a chap on the bay of evil in Greenford Middx, although his prices may seem competitive shall we say, he often has a shop that has older bikee's looking like they have found an olde sweetshop https://www.motorcyclesunlimited.co.uk/
