BSA Ve Vetter Rocket 3

‘X-75 Hurricane Prototype’

X-75 Hurricane Prototype

Estimate: £28,000 - £32,000*

Reg No: EBW 172J Frame No: VR2

CC: 750 Engine No: A75RNE00193

MOT: Exempt

• An extremely rare and iconic Craig Vetter machine

• Verified by the BSA Club as the works’ prototype

• Long-term ownership since 1982

The X-75 ‘works prototype’ being offered here is a unique machine and is only being offered to a new custodian, due to the passing of John Simmonds. John lived and breathed this machine, it was interwoven with his life. Vetter created the Triumph Hurricane in the summer of 1969, and in October 1969 he unveiled the prototype with “BSA” on the tank as the new ‘Rocket 3’.

Offered here, this 1971 machine is currently the only road-going ‘BSA Vetter Rocket 3’. The provenance on file, includes the BSA Owners’ Club Dating Certificate. It is thought that this Umberslade prototype, was badged as a Triumph and sold off in a factory clearance sale, with no importance attached to its status as a prototype. Classic Bike magazine told the story in a 2001 feature. The prototypes differ from the production machines in a number of ways. They include: Different dimensions - Triumph Hurricane items will not fit the BSA Vetter; Brackets project the headlamp further forward; The machine is being offered with the original V5 (TKX 33M) on file and a current V5C (EBW172J).

1981 Triumph 750 Tiger Trail Homage

No Reserve*

Reg No: TDU 863W Frame No: T140V JB27513

CC: 750 Engine No: TR7 RV JB27513

MOT: Exempt

• Part of a collection of Triumphs

• A nice homage to a Tiger Trail

• V5C will need to be applied for Triumph is one of the most iconic and revered names in the history of motorcycling. Established in Coventry in 1885, by the start of the 1900s the company had made its first motorcycle beginning a continuous run of production under various ownership until its eventual closure in 1983. In 1937 the Edward Turner-designed Speed Twin was released launching a range of Triumph twins that went on to epitomize British motorcycles in the post-war years. By the early 1980s, after a failed merger with Norton Villiers, Triumph twins were still being made by the workers’ co-operative in Meriden. One of the last new models to be launched before its eventual demise was the Tiger Trail, a model aimed squarely at BMWs R80GS largecapacity trail bike.

The 1981 Triumph Tiger Trail homage on offer has been with the current vendor for many years. Part of a large collection of Triumphs that the vendor had, this is a very original machine that is showing some signs of age. This machine has not run for a couple of years and will need to be recommissioned before use. A V5C will need to be applied for.