Source: Bike Bound
[[{“value”:”“A hair-raising noise…”
Introduced in 1994, the Triumph Speed Triple became the first factory-built streetfighter, a naked bike with a triple-cylinder engine from the British brand’s Daytona 900 sportbike.
“The naked bike phenomenon became popular after cash-strapped riders who had crashed their sportsbikes started removing damaged plastics and fitting flat bars as a cheap way to keep their bikes on the road. These early streetfighters, as they were called, turned out to be incredibly good fun to ride and manufacturers started to cash in on the trend.” –MCN
In 1997, the second-gen T509 Speed Triple appeared, bringing the iconic “bug eye” headlights, tubular aluminum perimeter frame, single-sided swingarm, and an 885cc / 108-bhp triple that combined the torque of a twin with the rev power of a four. Though the T509 would come to be regarded as a great machine, it was only available for two years.
One man who loves the T509 Speed Triple is our new friend Tom Gessner of Munich, Germany. Tom has been wrenching and riding motorcycles for 43 years, but he credits / blames Japanese workshop AC Sanctuary for giving him the restomod bug…that and his first T509:
“I really do not remember when things got seriously out of hand. But thinking back, I believe it was at that moment when I took the old T509 Speed Triple apart only to find more dirt, grime, and neglect the deeper I was digging. I remember that I sat back in frustration and thought about what to do: Rebuild the bike so that it would just run ok. Or go all in.“
It’s obviously that Tom went “all in,” and as you can see in these photos, not just once. In fact, besides the two Speed Triple restomods pictured here, Tom has built a total of five of them! As you might imagine, he’s discovered just the right mix to turn these T509 Triples into lighter weight, sharp-handling weapons.
He gives us the full build specs below. The engines boast worked-over heads, reground valves, optimized engine mapping for better low-end and midrange punch, and titanium manifolds courtesy of MAB Germany.
Tom says these triples are only good for around 100 bhp, so “adding lightness” was key. He’s managed to drop 19 kilos (42 lbs) from the bikes through the use of titanium hardware, lightweight PVM forged wheels, and an eye toward weight-saving wherever possible.
Suspension has been upgraded with Andreani and Wilbers goodies, while Beringer six-piston brake systems bring these Triples to heel. Sattlerei Sam in Munich did up the suede seats, while R.H. Lacke laid down the paint on both bikes.
All the upgrades make quite the difference in the riding experience, though Tom says they might even be too sharp for some riders:
“My resto-mods are very sharp-handling bikes and that might not be to everybody’s taste… The little 885cc engine is very rev-happy and produces good thrust from 4.5k/min up to about 8.5k/min (while making a hair-raising noise doing so).”
Bravo to Tom not just once, but twice for these finely tuned Speed Triples. Below is full uncut interview with Tom and the full build sheet on the bikes.
Triumph Speed Triple Restomods: Builder Interview
Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop.
I live and work in Munich, Germany, and started riding motorcycles at the age of 15 (no, that is not the legal age to start riding bikes in Germany). Writing this, I just realized (a) that I have been riding for 43 years and (b) that I am an old git.
I have been wrenching and restoring bikes for some years before embarking on the resto-mod journey. As with many other hobbyist resto-modders, AC Sanctuary is to blame for that. I always had a weak spot for Triumph Triples. The second-generation Speed Triple, the 885cc T509 model from 1997, is a good starting point for a resto-mod, as the engine is reliable, the ECU can be re-mapped easily, and the frame and the geometry are almost up to modern specs. Quite surprising that no one seems to care to use these bikes as a platform as a basis for a resto-mod.
My first “real” resto-mod happened rather more by accident than on purpose: I just continued tinkering after my first T509 restauration project was complete. That was nine years ago. After that, things got a little out of hand and I am currently doing my fifth T509 build.
Garage space in Munich is scarce. The city is more about posh hotels and office spaces these days, so wrench-monkeys like me are the bottom of the food chain. But I was lucky to get hold of a garage in our backyard, which I have converted into a modest workshop. Most of the chassis work is happening there. In addition, I also have a little engine workshop (which other members of the family wrongly call our garden shack) where I build my engines.
Tell us a little about the builds.
I really do not remember when things got seriously out of hand. But thinking back, I believe it was at that moment when I took the old T509 Speed Triple apart only to find more dirt, grime, and neglect the deeper I was digging. I remember that I sat back in frustration and thought about what to do: Rebuild the bike so that it would just run ok. Or go all in.
In the end, no component of the bike remained untouched. The engine was completely rebuilt, and the engine mapping was optimized. I rebuilt the wiring harness, replaced all bolts with titanium fasteners, installed a Beringer endurance brake system, lightweight PVM alloy wheels, installed new Speedhut clocks with new sensors and wiring, and had a bespoke titanium header made for the bike.
And all of that, I did not just once: Over the course of the last eight years, I have built four T509 Speed Triples and meanwhile also re-built my first T509 build — which raises the count to five Speed Triple builds: Three resto-mods (one of them currently in its final build phase), two of them featured in the pics and one “low-cost” T509 build for a German bike mag (just to prove — mostly to my wife — that you do not have to spend a fortune to build a nicely running vintage Speed Triple).
Crazy? At first sight, probably. But building bikes (for me at least) is more about the process of building than about the result. So, soon after one project was done, I embarked on the next.
Why always the same model?
There is this story about that Russian cello player, living in the taiga with his wife. One day his wife traveled to the city and when she came back, she asked him: “I have been to a concert in the city and the musicians played many different notes. You, however, always play the same note on your cello. Why?” Says the cello player: “Wife, those musicians in the city, they are still searching for the perfect tone, but I have already found it.”
Both bikes have been featured in Germany’s Custombike magazine. The red Mk2 has also been featured in Germany’s PS motorcycle magazine.
Any idea of horsepower and/or performance numbers?
Both bikes have around 100hp and an optimized engine mapping. The weight of both bikes is at 201kg with 18l of fuel. This represents a weight saving of 19kg compared to stock.
Here are some further technical details of the two builds:
Base bikes: Two Triumph Speed Triple T509 (build designation: Mk2, Mk4)
Year of first registration: 1997
Engines and transmission:
Heads revised and reworked with new valve guides and new timing chain tensioner
Valves reground
Improved “single-spring” clutch baskets
Titanium manifold system hand-built by MAB Germany with Blueflame carbon rear silencer (EG approved)
520 chain kit with DLC-coated Sitta sprocket
Suspension:
Fork with Matris cartridge type F12S with rebound and compression damping in separate bars (Mk2) / fork with Andreani cartridge (Mk4)
Fork inner tubes DLC-coated
Wilbers type 641 shock absorbers
Titanium engine mounting bolts and axles custom-made
All steel bolts and fasteners replaced with titanium
Wheels and brakes:
PVM 5Y forged rims
Beringer six-piston brake system with 310mm Beringer brake discs (silver anodized) and Beringer brake pump
Electrical system and instruments:
Adapted engine mapping for improved low-RPM performance and overall smoothness
LiFePo starter batteries
Rebuilt original wiring harnesses
Speedhut instruments with custom wiring
Ergonomics and design:
Seats in suede leather made by SAM saddlery in Munich (concave shape)
Paintwork in Honda yr-1c Candy Topaz Orange and Honda r8cs Candy Presto Red with golden separating stripes from R.H. Lacke paints Germany
Paintwork in Honda r4c Candy ruby red Honda nh1 Black with silver separating stripes from R.H. Lacke paints Germany
Do the bikes have nicknames?
I am German: Our children can be lucky if we give them names, not numbers. But seriously, the question about naming the bikes came up when I did my second build, so I called my second project “Mark 2”. And so, it went on. The bike that I am currently building is the Mk5, the orange and the red ones are Mk4 and Mk2, respectively. Not very imaginative. And yes, sometimes I do mix up the numbers myself.
Can you tell us what they’re like to ride after the modifications?
You can bolt expensive parts on the bike, but will it perform better, or have you just polished a … ? That really is the 30k$-dollar question.
Luckily for me, the original T509 Speed Triple does have a lot of untapped potential in stock form: The factory engine mapping is way too lean, the front fork is under-damped, and the rear shock is too stiff. A new engine mapping in combination with a shorter gearing made the jerkiness of the original bike disappear. This, in combination with decent brakes and suspension does make a difference.
Is it a big difference? Yes and no: Compared to a recent low-cost build without all the expensive parts, the difference is down mainly to the precision of the handling. You could probably build a similarly handling T509 for a lot less money (which I also did, btw: “The 2000-Euro-Roadster” was a Speed Triple build for the German Custombike magazine). My resto-mods are very sharp-handling bikes and that might not be to everybody’s taste, anyway.
The new engine mapping that I developed is focused on low- to mid-RPM rideability. The bikes can be ridden from around 2k/min without any hiccups, which is probably the most noticeable improvement compared to stock. The little 885cc engine is very rev-happy and produces good thrust from 4.5k/min up to about 8.5k/min (while making a hair-raising noise doing so).
Still, the engine is only good for about 100hp. To improve performance, I had to “add lightness.” Each of the bikes weighs around 201kg with a full tank of fuel, this is almost 20kg less than stock. You can definitively feel this when riding. The weight loss was possible only by swapping all steel fasteners, axles, and the exhaust headers with mostly custom titanium parts.
Follow the Builder
Resto-Mod diaries:
www.tumblr.com/t509speedtriple
www.tumblr.com/thespeedtriplebuild
Stories (mostly in German): lifeisacurve.tumblr.com”}]]
