Highlights

• A pristine looking example of the Les Harris, post Meriden Tiger 750
• Fully and expertly restored but having stood unused for a couple of years
• Complete with a good archive of interesting paperwork and provenance
  
  

The Appeal

The History and Paperwork

• This Tiger 750 was built and registered in August 1987
• The first owner appears to have kept the motorcycle for around 7 years
• The second owner and third owners retained the bike for around 22 years between them
• The current owner acquired the Tiger in 2016 as a project
• Prior to this the bike had been stored for some time and deteriorated into a poor condition
• The owner rebuilt the engine and attended to the aesthetic condition
• In many places he found that the original components were in good order
• Where they weren’t new or uprated items were fitted
• Having now stood again for a couple of years the bike now needs using and enjoying
• There is a good level of paperwork included with the motorcycle
• This includes the V5 registration document in the name of the owner
• The motorcycle holds a current, advisory free MOT until August 2023
• A number of previous MOTs in hard copy are also present
• These help verify the Tiger’s sensible original mileage
• There are numerous invoices on hand, detailing parts bought, and work undertaken
  
  

The Interior

• The riding environment of the Tiger is typical classic Triumph fare
• The sculpted and squared vinyl seat is finished in black
• It is full length to allow for a pillion when required
• The pillion has use of a semi-circular tubular, chromed grab-rail behind the saddle
• Fold down, rubber covered foot pegs are provided for the pillion
• The rider looks out over a pair of white on black Veglia clocks
• The speedometer carries a Meriden logo despite its Devon manufacture
• The ignition barrel and various warning lights are situated between the clocks
• A supplemental Morgo oil pressure gauge is fitted to the left-hand bar
• Further controls are situated on the grip bases each side
• Fixed, flat, rubber covered pegs are available for the rider
• The rubbers fitted to these are in fine condition and heavily ribbed for safety
• An alloy gear lever is situated on the left-hand side of the bike
• The kick start and rear brake are situated on the right
• The overall condition of this area is generally very good 
  
  

The Exterior

• Our example is presented in a lovely Gold and Black livery
• The painted areas aren’t extensive with just the tank thus painted
• The side panels are finished in gloss black
• The mudguards are chromed, front and rear
• The frame has been powder coated in black
• The overall condition appears excellent throughout
• The familiar Triumph script badges are affixed to each side of the tank
• Rubbers to various controls all look complete and in decent fettle 
• Light and indicator lenses all look to be in good, original order
• The twin silencers are mounted low down and deeply chromed
• Tiger 750 recessed badges are fitted to the side panels 
• The wheels are chromed, cross spoked 19-inch items front and rear
• During the restoration these have been rebuilt with stainless steel spokes
• As such these appear to be in excellent condition
• These are fitted with Dunlop RoadMaster tyres that look to retain good tread levels
• The owner reports that some fittings exhibit some minor surface rust 
  
  

The Mechanics

• The Tiger 750 was fitted with the same 744cc power unit as used by the Bonneville
• This is a four-stroke, parallel twin, OHV unit
• Unlike the Bonneville the Tiger breathes through a single, 30mm Amal carburettor
• In this configuration it was originally rated at 42 bhp at 6,500rpm
• Power is delivered via a five-speed gearbox
• A contemporary road test found this good for a 113mph top speed and 14 second ¼ mile
• The Les Harris era bikes featured a lot more German and Italian components than before
• This was because the UK supply of parts had been severely depleted at this stage
• These parts included Paioli forks, Brembo brakes and Magura switchgear
• The current owner has undertaken a comprehensive engine rebuild during his tenure
• This includes new shells, valve guides and a new clutch pack 
• The alloy side plates of the engine are in good order and deeply polished
• They are deeply inscribed with the familiar Triumph script
• The fins of the cylinder housings seem to be evenly finished and in good order
• The owner reports the bike starting and running well and ready to go
  
  

Summary