Beschreibung:

For Edward Turner designing Triumph's first successful parallel-twin would have seemed like a piece o' cake. After all, in 1931 working for Ariel he had penned something much more complex, an overhead-cam 500cc square-four – in essence, two twins situated one behind the other, with each pair of pistons having its own counter-rotating crankshaft geared to the other! In 1936 Ariel purchased financially struggling Triumph and installed Turner as chief designer and managing director. After spicing up the company's staid line of singles, he turned his attention to what would become known as the 5T Speed Twin, powered by a stellar 500cc twin that while simple in comparison to the square-four, would have a profound effect on British motorcycling. Two years into its production run, however, World War II put the 5T on the back shelf. It wasn't too long after V-E Day, thankfully, before Turner had the assembly lines spitting out civilian models once again, including the Speed Twin, its chassis updated with a telescopic fork and 19in. front wheel, while the engine's exterior was cleaned up thanks to new internal oil passageways. Triumph's now-familiar headlight nacelle made its debut on these postwar models. This 1949 Speed Twin with correct frame/engine numbers, was exactingly restored approximately 15 years ago for museum display. For the past decade it has been part of a comprehensive Florida collection of Triumphs, always stored in a climate-controlled facility and taken out for occasional road rides.