Nice shot of a Triumph 3TW or 5TW.............

Seemingly, one (almost) complete example survives of the 3TW at Beaulieu, plus possibly others....

A fair few were manufactured it seems, despite the bombing of Triumph's Coventry factory during late-1940...........and examples have been noted in period images as late as 1942-43..........

Anyone know of other survivors, and/or parts of this interesting machine ?

The machine pictured looks like the 5TW or TRW prototype pictured in "Moose Brain Smiths" "First Military Machine Scene book, it still existed in the 1970s and belonged to Harry Woolridge.

Rob

email (option): robmiller11(a)yahoo.co.uk

Hi Steve

Sorry, but I believe this is not an ohv machine, looking closely it seems to be side valve twin

My belief is that this is the Triumph TRW prototype - a post war machine

There is an example of one of these at the London Motorcycle Museum along with many other military bikes & prototype military engines

Many aluminium parts to include lower fork legs

This could in fact be the same machine, for some reason this also has a London reg plate not a military plate ?

If you haven't visited the museum, please do so, it's not far from ACE Cafe

Best regards

John

email (option): Jonnyob1@googlemail.com

Hi Rob

This stands to reason

Harry Woolridge & Bill Crosbie have been great pals knowing each other through the Meriden days

I think this is the same bike

Might check at weekend

Best regards

Job

email (option): Jonnyob1@googlemail.com

Yes I'm sure the forum picture is a TRW 500 SV twin (tele forks and all)
The 3TW was a 350 OHV twin. Here they still referred to it as a Speedtwin.
I have been talking to a guy here in Dorset who has a genuine WD 3TW engine who is considering making a replica. Ron

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And the one at Beaulieu

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email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

They made a 750 version of the TRW as well...I read an article about it years back..
There were also two versions of the 3TW....Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com

I've got a couple of photos (somewhere) showing what looks to be a modified 3TW fitted with tele forks and other mods...........taken late-war apparently........seems there were a few versions and interest in the twin remained long after 1940........

One version had the alternator housing on the timing side..the other on the drive side..

The BSA WB30 also had an early version of the alternator fitted on top of the mag...

Output of these early alternators was dismally low even by Dynamo standards and there was no proper way of regulating even that...

By the time the WB30 got into production a magdynamo unit replaced the alternator and only 50 or so early examples were alternator equipped..

Of these at least some had 'magdyno' engines retro fitted...

No doubt the Triumph set up would have been equally poor...It was the latter part of the 50s before alternators reappeared on British production bikes...Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com