Description
This is a full on race bike, not to be confused with lesser Rob North replicas.
I have loved the works RN triples since childhood, they simply looked the coolest race bikes to me. With the 1971-1972 transatlantic match races featuring about 10 or 12 of these bikes all racing at once, with the best of the UK and US riders on board, making the unique triple howl on open meggas, who could ask for more?
I started building this bike when I bought the frame for myself on my 40th birthday, I wanted a replica of Ray Pickrill's 1972 'Triumph' works bike lowboy chassis No4. This bike was originally a BSA in 1971 painted red, but with the demise of BSA in 1972 the bike was simply painted blue and kitted out with Triumph stickers on the fairing and petrol tank. Ray won the 1972 F750 TT on the bike with race number '6' which is why I ran race number 6 at the Goodwood member's meeting in 2022, 50 years on from this historic win.
I liked the idea of having two petrol tanks and two fairings, one set painted and badged as BSA and the second set badged as Triumph. Anyway as I already had a BSA Rocket 3 engine it made perfect sense to go down this route. Prior to building this bike I had built myself a Slippery Sam replica Triumph but found that it wouldn't go round corners without dragging the exhaust pipes, even with tuck-under pipes, so I either needed a 'Short' T150 frame or go the whole hog and get a North frame.
FRAME and SWINGING ARM:
TE118 was welded up by the legendry Mick Pearce, who at the time had created about 600 of these frame, so there was no lack of knowledge or experience there! I got all the proper fairing mounts put on and opted for a wide oval swinging arm, the oval swingers are more expensive to create but they are what the works RN's ran and look so much nicer than a cheap box section job. My swinging arm is wider than the originals, as they only had to fit fairly narrow 19" tyres in, but in classic racing you need a wide 130x 18" rear tyre, so that's where I went.
FORKS; these are magnesium slider 35mm Ceriani's with Maxton internals, yokes are steel Rob Norths with the top yoke professionally modified to give handlebar mountings if you didn't want to run clip-ons. Clip-ons are P&M racing. I originally used factory steel slider forks, but found they had little or no damping under heavy braking so binned them.
REAR SHOCKS; These are Maxton's, adjustable for spring preload and damping. I originally used Falcon but found the Maxtons better.
WHEELS; Front is works type cast / ribbed hub with stainless spokes sand Ackront flange-less rim. Rear is cast / ribbed hub with zinc plated steel spokes (stainless used to break, particularly jumping the mountain at Cadwell), and Ackront flangeless rim. Rear sprocket carrier with built in cush drive from P&M racing. Bike comes with a range of 8 rear sprockets from 46 tooth Goodwood gearing (fitted) up to 52 tooth for Lydden.
TYRES; Both Avon AM22 110 front and AM23 130 rear both race tyres only used for one Member's meeting at Goodwood.
BRAKES; Twin lightened 10", 6 bolt discs with AP racing three rib replica calipers, HH pads up front. AP racing twin disc master cylinder. Single lightened 10" 6 bolt disc at rear with another AP racing 3 rib caliper, cross drilled to lighten it a bit. AP racing rear master cylinder. This is all modern replicas of the original early 70's kit as fitted to factory bikes.
ELECTRICS; Boyer power box, Boyer micro power ignition, with mini PVL coils, low oil pressure waning light, and a kill switch. Some people talk down Boyer kit preferring to spend lots more on Pazon kit, however I found Boyer 100% reliable so stuck with it.
ENGINE; Crankcases were NOS BSA R3 all matching case numbers and main caps. No engine number stamped on the DS case, but these are a late set of cases with no tappet feeds off the main caps. They have been modified by P&M to take a larger oil feed as on works race bikes.
Crank; is standard size big ends and mains, modified by P&M fully lightened, balanced, cross drilled for fourth oilway, and plasma nitrided.
Conrods; are Carrillo
Pistons; are forged 11;1 but shaped to give a better fuel burn.
Barrels; are +0. 020".
Cylinder head; full race spec from P&M with big valves, race springs, titanium retainers, inlets ported to suit the Amal concentric carbs at 33mm. Centre plugged, and with extra holding down screws.
Rocker boxes, lightened, polished and shimmed boxes by P&M.
Camshafts; Megacycle race cams 51B.
Cam followers; lightened by P&M.
Pushrods; Heavy duty by P&M.
Solid copper base and rocker gaskets, composite head gasket by P&M.
Gearbox; Late T150V inner cover with oil dipstick, T120V type outer lightened cover. P&M close ratio 4th and 5th gears with P&M extended mainshaft to suit P&M belt drive.
Primary drive; P&M belt drive system with outboard six spring, multiplate aluminium clutch. In my opinion the best modification you can make to these engines. loads light in weight and lever pull. Re-live your youthful dreams on this supercool race bike.
Race it, parade it, or just sit back and look at it?
Or register it and use it on the roads. You'd need to refit the baffles and drop down to 260 mainjets, but the engine is really easy to use and well behaved. Of course you would attract a lot of attention, maybe even from some school children dressed as coppers! However with baffles in, it is under 105 decibels so shouldn't upset your neighbours too much.
You may be wondering why, if the bike is so good, am I wanting to sell it? Well the truth is I want to sell it about as much as I'd want to sell one of my kidneys, but I need some cash to re-develope my workshop and to pay for my daughter's upcoming wedding.
To some extent I have realised my dream of owning and building a Works type racer, I've built and developed the chassis, and I've built and developed the engine (after paying Richard Peckett many thousands of pounds for his awesome kit).
I've started racing with the CRMC on this bike and won their 'Novice racer of the year'.
The following year I was second in the CRMC pre '72, unlimited capacity championship on this bike which remember is only a 750, and I was regularly competing against 930 and 970 engined Norths and Honda 4's. I have always maintained the bike myself and that year I started 50 races in 750 and unlimited classes, and finish 49 of them, the only DNF was an M6 rose join on the gear linkage breaking at Mallory, leaving me stuck in second gear!?!
Since retiring from championship racing I've been lucky enough to be invited to race at Goodwood in their F750 races at the Member's meeting. Coming fourth in the first one, and finishing all the rest of them, whilst entertaining the crowd with 9000rpm and an open megaphone! It's a great bike and I've had a great time riding it.......
