UNEARTHED AFTER THIRTY YEARS

THE STORY OF THE ‘GARDEN BIKE’

One morning in January 2019 Dave got a call from a builder friend who had been preparing the ground for an extension by clearing a very large and overgrown garden.  He said he had found an old motorbike buried up to the petrol tank in the garden and asked Dave to go and look at it. 

They discovered that it had been in the garden for more than thirty years.  As they began to dig it out they  found a 6” diameter tree growing through the frame! Eventually, when it was fully excavated it turned out to be a Triumph TR6, in a sorry condition. The frame was almost completely rusted through and the number plate was as thin as paper and clearly indecipherable.

Now, Dave loves a challenge and when the builders laughed at the state of the bike and told him that he would never be able to do anything with it, the gauntlet was laid down!  Challenge accepted!,  The bike was brought back to the workshop where Dave carefully dismantled what was left of it. He began privately to wonder if the builders had been right – but then came the defining moment when he knew that he would do everything he could to restore the old Triumph.  He gently removed the tank badges and was astonished to find that underneath, the original colour of the bike – a beautiful shade of Spring Green – was still as vibrant as the day it had left the factory

So began the painstaking task of renovation/restoration using a few of the salvageable parts while ensuring that everything that was replaced was correct for the year and model. Finally, after six months, the bike was ready to be re-sprayed in its original Spring Green. The new owner is inordinately proud of both the bike and its history.

You can see the ‘before and ‘after’ pictures here along with some of the photographs of  the work that was carried out during the rebuilding process – and I think you will agree that the result is a great example of the care and dedication of a real ‘old school’ motorbike enthusiast.

Challenge completed.