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WHAT we’re doing, and HOW we’re doing it!

January 13, 2025

Every time you take to the road for an enjoyable drive in your Triumph, it is the interior that you see and feel the most. You can’t see that small scratch or dent where the grandkids got too close with their bikes, nor any of the small rust bubbles that are slowly raising to the surface. The sound from the tail pipe and the snick of the gear lever join together with feedback from the steering wheel to enhance the experience, but it is the feel from the seats and the visuals of the interior that are front and center to a pleasant Triumph drive. Collapsed seat springs and padding, worn and dirty carpets, and sagging door panels and ripped seat seams only detract from a pleasant drive, whether you realize it or not. But make an easy upgrade to the interior components (including the instrument panel and gauges) and it’s almost like driving a brand new Triumph would have been all those many decades ago. You can spend a small fortune on “upgrades” that are the talk of the internet chat rooms, but how much quicker will those competition parts really get you to the doughnut shop next Saturday morning? To get the most bang for your buck, a complete interior refresh is hard to beat!

January 6, 2025

Front bearing covers on TR2-TR6 transmissions (gearboxes) come in two different lengths. The longer of the two (shown on the left) measures 2-3/8” in length, and the shorter one (right) is only 1-31/32” long. The longer of the two is the “early” design, originally used on the TR2- TR4, and the short cover is the “late” design originally used on TR4A-TR6 models. But over the years, salvage yard parts were swapped between early and late cars, so today we’re liable to find either version in the “incorrect” model of car. This length difference was necessitated by the type of clutch installed; the early cars with the long cover used a 3- finger style clutch and the later cars with the diaphragm style clutch (multiple flat steel fingers) needed the shorter cover. Release (throw-out) bearings and the sleeves they press onto are also different, according to the type of clutch installed. Mix any of these components with peices from the other “set” and trouble will follow. The long cover shown here has a strange groove worn into the end, caused from rubbing the diaphragm clutch in a TR250. Checking the serial number of the transmission in the car shows it to be from a TR4, probably a junk yard swap, which explains the mis-match and the unusual wear, not to mention the strange noises coming from the clutch area!