Ownership Verified: I've Gone Full British! Triumph Sprint 900

KaJuN

KaJuN

Disco Inferno
Joined
Jul 31, 2006
Messages
9,743
Location
Dayton, Ohio
Car(s)
Mini Cooper S, Landy Series III, Vulcan 900 Custom
When I first learned I was coming to this country I decided that I would get a proper big bike and do some sightseeing on it. Now that the weather is warming up it was time to start looking for a motorcycle. I set myself a reasonable budget of 1500 pounds and for that I was finding a lot of 10-ish year old 600-650cc bikes, mostly Hondas. I would have been more than happy with one of those but then I came across a deal that seemed too good to pass up: a 1995 Triumph Sprint 900 for 700 pounds! I was expecting it to be a total piece of garbage but I was very surprised when I saw just how good it was. It even included panniers which is something I really wanted to have and these are interchangeable between the sides and upper rear rack. Best of all it ran like new and was going in for its MOT later that week. I took it on a test ride and after only about two minutes I knew I had to have this bike.

So now a week later I've brought it home. My face hurts from smiling the entire 35 minute ride. Some first impressions:

Holy crapballs is this thing powerful! Above 3000rpm it pulls...and keeps on pulling. The last time I felt acceleration like that was on one of those roller coasters that launch you straight forward then straight up.

It's surprisingly nimble for it's size. I was taking it easy but even then it was almost effortless tossing it back and forth through the corners.

The riding position is excellent! It's a lot more upright than I thought it would be. It's a very, very comfortable bike to be on. I can even comfortably put my feet on the ground which is always a concern when you're short with short legs like me.

There are a few gripes I have about it already. The biggest is with the speedometer. It goes all the way to 200mph and even as powerful as this bike is I highly doubt it can get close to that. As a result the normal everyday range is very small and the numbers are quite crowded. Also, this bike is ginormous! I didn't realize just how big it was until I got it in my garage. And getting it into the garage was no easy feat since the thing weighs about 500 pounds and my driveway slopes downward and sideways. Getting it out is an even bigger struggle since I have to walk it backwards. I think I'm going to have to invest in this to make getting it in and out of my garage possible.









Obviously at the price I paid there are going to be some issues. This is the biggest one but I'm really not all that bothered with it.


This bothers me even more but it should be an easy fix. I'm planning on getting some high-temperature black paint and restoring those pipes.
 
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Watch out for black ice at night, it can creep out and nab you for another month or so. Nice bike, excellent price. In the 1950s we had the leading Motorcycles in the world - got shot down by the Eastern Europeans, Japanese and Italians.

If you get a chance get a ride on a Vincent.

Only a few bikes are made now in Ukania.
 
You went full british man. Never go full british. :p
 
Bah, I got all excited when I saw "Triumph" and "Sprint" in the title...

Also, you should have bought a Bonneville. :p
 
Great now I need to buy a Triple. :p
 
You own an MG, LR, and Triumph. You officially cannot return to USland. Ever. You are now a Brit.

And we welcome you.
 
Trying your best to fit in I see? :lol:

Awesome bike. :)
 
Have you stopped brushing your teeth since entering the country? :p

Congrats on the bike!
 
He also needs to start drinking room temperature beer and supporting royal incest. :p
 
Man, that thing is friggen sweet!

Ride Safe!
 
Awesome!

I quite like the early rebirth triumphs, they really set the stage for how far the company has come.

How many miles are on the clock?
 
Thanks for the comments everyone! I just popped into the garage and I had a huge smile on my face when I saw it sitting there. :cool:

Crazyjeeper said:
Awesome!

I quite like the early rebirth triumphs, they really set the stage for how far the company has come.

How many miles are on the clock?
Click to expand...

That's another reason for the low price. It has 85,000 miles on it. The good news is that it came with a full service history from new and it's had the major checks done with the timing chain replaced about 20,000 miles ago. Along with its MOT last week it had a basic service with oil/filter change and chain adjustment/lube. Mechanically the bike is in near perfect condition. I say nearly because the gear lever is a bit loose and that's making changing gears a little difficult but it should be a fairly easy adjustment job.

Triumphs of this era seem to be very well regarded. When I was getting it cleaned up yesterday a man was walking his dog and said he used to have a 1200 Trophy and he loved it. Before I bought it I read reviews online and almost all of them were completely positive.

Back to the issue with this bike's size...the turntable idea is barely going to work. The bike is damn near as long as my garage is wide. I'm now considering a fully moveable dolly to give me a little more leeway because if I don't get the bike exactly centered on the turntable it just won't fit. I'm just worried the dolly will be more cumbersome to work with.
 
Wow, I might have guessed 40-50k but 85,000 is pretty impressive considering how good of condition it appears to be in.

Have fun with it, just not too much. :p
 
Cobol74 said:
In the 1950s we had the leading Motorcycles in the world - got shot down by the Eastern Europeans, Japanese and Italians.

Only a few bikes are made now in Ukania.
Click to expand...

Actually, just the Japanese. And who's fault was that for cranking out the same tired design from 1954-1982? :p :mrgreen: Sure, if it isn't broke, don't fix it - but it was absolutely broke from day one in 1954! :p

Kajun: Congrats on the new bike - when you rotate back home you should be able to bring it back with you.
 
Spectre said:
Kajun: Congrats on the new bike - when you rotate back home you should be able to bring it back with you.
Click to expand...

I bought it from another American stationed here about to return to the states and he said he was planning on bringing it back but he would have had to change a lot of parts to DOT spec (lights, windscreen, a few other bits) so it wasn't worth it. I haven't even looked into the possibility of it myself yet but it's always an option. Then again I did get it on the cheap as a somewhat disposable bike since I'm only going to be here 2 and a half more years.
 
At which time you will want a Speed Triple. :p
 
KaJuN said:
I bought it from another American stationed here about to return to the states and he said he was planning on bringing it back but he would have had to change a lot of parts to DOT spec (lights, windscreen, a few other bits) so it wasn't worth it. I haven't even looked into the possibility of it myself yet but it's always an option. Then again I did get it on the cheap as a somewhat disposable bike since I'm only going to be here 2 and a half more years.
Click to expand...

Shouldn't be that difficult, actually.
 
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