Description
National Motorcycle Museum | Solihull, West Midlands
Viewing: Tues 24th March from 1pm
Auction: Wed 25th March from 9am
Location: National Motorcycle Museum, Coventry Road, Bickenhill, Solihull B92 0EJ
1979 Triumph T160 Legend
From the Keith Mason collection
Estimate
£9, 000 - £13, 000
Registration No: SCG 769P
Frame No: GK05144
MOT: Exempt
Number 52 of only 61 Legends built
Incredibly extensive paperwork file
Supplied with a current V5C
A lifelong motorcycle enthusiast, Keith Mason started working in his local bike shop at the age of 15 before eventually branching out on his own a few years later. From humble beginnings selling secondhand bikes from a small shop, Keith built up the Moto GB empire to become one of the biggest motorcycle retailers and importers in the UK. The group has now grown to include 15 retail shops and is responsible for importing 9 different brands, also supplying many independent dealers, including QJ Motor, Voge, Lambretta, FB Mondial, Morbidelli, SYM and Hero. Keith sadly passed away in 2023, but in recent years he had put together a fantastic collection of his favourite classic bikes, ranging from a humble Honda Express to a beautiful Vincent Black Shadow, documenting his lifetime in the trade. We are pleased to offer all 31 bikes from this collection in our March sale.
After the closure of the Meridan factory, many of the designers and engineers started their own companies specialising in modifying and tuning Triumph twins and triples. Probably the best known was Les Williams, the Triumph factory race team manager best known for building Slippery Sam, the production racing T150 that won the IOMTT production race for five consecutive years. Les set up a spares and servicing operation, producing various bespoke models over the years, the most sought after being the 'Legend'. Just a limited run of 61 handmade 'Legend' specials were put together by Les and his team to showcase his company’s products, this bike is number 52 and was originally commissioned by Ian Bayliss. The specification is fantastic including a distinctive and stylish humped solo race seat and rear mudguard unit, a large capacity alloy race fuel tank with Monza filler cap, as fitted to the original Slippery Sam, Akront alloy rims, AP Lockheed twin front disc, sports handlebars, oil cooler and an oil pressure gauge. The look is finished off with a bespoke exhaust system with 3 into 2 header pipes and upswept high flow silencers. The bike is supplied with an incredible paperwork folder documenting its service and rebuild history, including all the correspondence between the owner who commissioned the bike and Les himself, together with numerous receipts accumulated along the way. The pile of receipts is over 1 inch thick, and there is even a photo of what is possibly the handover of the bike once completed! This machine is being sold as a collector’s item, part of Keith Mason's stunning private collection of Vintage and Classic machines that have all been dry stored for several years and will require recommissioning before use. It will be supplied with the aforementioned document/ history folder and a current V5C.
** Bidding will take place live at the venue, online via our H&H website, by telephone and commission - T&Cs apply**
Parking and entry into the auction is free for auction attendees with a catalogue, available at the door.
Catalogues can be purchased for £20 (admits 2 people).
