London’s Untitled Motorcycles have made a name for themselves with raw and functional customs designed to blast around congested city streets. So this board track-inspired Triumph T100 SS is something of a departure—but a intriguing one at that.
There’s an explanation for the sudden swerve of direction. A few months ago Andy Carol, the bike’s owner, went on a boys’ weekend to the Veterama Oldtimer Autojumble in Mannheim, Germany. While walking up and down the many aisles, he came across this Triumph—half-finished and part-assembled.
“I’d been getting more interested in board track racing and was beginning to harbor a desire to create something reminiscent of that era, but also useable and a bit unusual,” he recalls. “This bike hit the spot!”
The frame had been modified and adapted from an original T100 SS ‘bitza’ by a chap called Carl Frith from Bath, in the west of England. “Carl had started the project but was moving it on, because he’d sourced an early Indian board tracker,” says Andy.
The frame had been modified and welded but was missing foot pegs amongst many other details, and most of the brackets were only tack-welded. It was very much a work in progress, but the stance was already there—and the original Harley ’45 springer forks worked really well with the skinny Avon tyres and Indian board track tank.
Andy struck a deal and returned the Triumph to Untitled Motorcycles’ premises in Camden, London. Adam, Anita and Rex stripped the bike down and refreshed the motor. New bars and pegs were installed and the frame was prepped for powder coating in gunmetal grey. The rims were powder coated off white to add a little contrast and period style.
“We didn’t want to produce an immaculate show queen,” Adam notes, “and we liked the grey primer on the tank. But we became rather obsessed with having various parts brass plated. I sourced inverted brass levers from India and slowly the bike came to fruition. I have a vintage pushbike with wooden mudguards and that gave me the inspiration to find some wooden mudguards—eventually sourced from Woody’s Fenders in California.” Woody made a set in Peruvian Walnut, and also a small wooden chainguard (yet to be fitted.) An old brass car horn was chopped down to create a carburetor intake.
“She’s been primed and fired up and sounds amazing,” says Adam. “All that remains is to put some miles on her, roaring over the hills of Hampstead and Highgate. And of course to the Ace Café for the obligatory fry up!”
Check out the Untitled Motorcycles website here and follow their news via the Untitled Facebook page. Images courtesy of Andre Silva.
