Whenever the ‘desert sled’ is mentioned, inevitably the connection is made with the King of Cool, legendary actor and motorcycle enthusiast Steve McQueen. Brought into the spotlight by pop culture icons like McQueen and Elvis Presley, desert sleds have a history stretching back several decades. It all began on the arid terrains of Baja California and the American Southwest, where motorcycle racers would gather to take part in gnarly scrambles traversing vast, desolate landscapes.
Clearly, participants needed their machines to handle countless miles of treacherous sand-crawling without so much as a complaint. This necessity is what gave birth to the desert-sled sub-genre, with early iterations being, for the most part, heavily-modified Indians and Harleys. Knobbly tyres, high exhaust pipes, a skid plate and enduro bars were the usual mods. But once lighter British bikes started appearing on the scene, the racers quickly recognised the benefits of a sled that could be easily picked up and was, usually, faster than the old-style American bikes.
That led to a wave of 650cc twin-cylinder Brit bikes hammering around the deserts in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. McQueen himself rode a Triumph Bonneville-based desert sled, which makes this particular example all the more appealing to bike enthusiasts with a love for the marque and the desert-sled scene.
Manufactured in 1977 but first registered in the UK in 2012, this bike is being sold by the vendor on behalf of the owner, a collector who is reducing the size of his stable of rare and unusual motorcycles. There’s very little in the way of paperwork with the bike; the current owner bought it in 2018 from a previous owner in the north of England, who he believes was responsible for the desert-sled modifications.
As an historic bike it’s now MoT- and tax-exempt but there are recent MoT certificates from 2018, 2014 and 2015 within the paperwork.
Although Triumph did make some original desert sleds, most were stock bikes that were modified according to the owner’s wishes, and this seems to be the case with this one. It is, though, a bike that has clearly been well looked after; it really does look striking.
There’s a very smart custom paint job on the fuel tank, with glittered-but-subtle gold flames, although there’s a minor chip on the paintwork. The tank-mounted Triumph badges look superb. The Akront 18” wheel rims are an expensive upgrade, and look to be in excellent condition. Everything else looks to be in remarkably good condition for a 45-year-old bike, reflecting the fact that it has been stored, for the last few years at least, as part of a collection.
The early 650cc T120 Bonneville was replaced in the early 1970s by the T140 Bonneville, the same basic machine but with a 750cc engine. Refined from the later 'oil-in-frame' version of the T120, the first few T140s, designated T140V, featured a larger-capacity engine of 724 cc, a five-speed gearbox option and indicators, but still retaining drum brakes and kick-start. Shortly after, the engine was further bored out to 744 cc and front disc-brakes were added; this example has discs front and rear.
The vendor has sympathetically recommissioned the bike, to get it up and running before sale, as it has been stored as part of the owner’s collection and not used for some while. It has a new battery, and starts and runs well – it’s ‘really loud, and sounds cool!’, according to the vendor. The bike also has an in-line oil filter and isolator ignition. There’s no speedometer or rev counter, and because the bike has no lights it is registered only for daylight running and not for use at times of poor visibility.
The Triumph Bonneville is a legendary British bike, and this example is really distinctive, with its desert-sled customisation. It’s a bike that would draw a crowd at any classic bike meet, but that also promises the new owner a thrilling riding experience.
Find somewhere that resembles the deserts of southern California, and you could almost imagine yourself as a modern-day Steve McQueen…
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1977 Triumph Bonneville 750 Desert Sled
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