Regular readers may already be aware of my near obsession with Triumph's tiddlers, in particular the Tiger Cub. I have owned many of these lively little machines over the years and you can read more about some of them in RC208 and on the Real-Classic.co.uk website. Some have been and gone but a handful have turned in to long-term keepers of various specifications. One of these is my Trials Cub replica.
Inadvertently, over the years, one machine spawned another. The Cub seen here is not the one I originally bought for £80 when I was 15 years old, although it looks almost identical. That first – rather scruffy and well-used – off-road machine ended up on the road in my name just a couple of years later. When its tired little engine and shabby rolling chassis needed a rebuild, I built another engine in readiness for it. The Cub stayed on the road as I cleaned and painted another frame. An old Sports Cub appeared to be beyond repair, so was plundered for wheels, forks, rear subframe, swinging arm, etc. All of a sudden I had a second Tiger Cub in trials spec. This one.
Just as this ‘new'Trials Cub neared completion, the original £80 machine came off the road. It was raided for its 12V batteryless electrical system and lights. The ‘new’ machine was stored in several boxes, as ready-to-assemble parts, at a friend's family premises. One very early morning (after a long night on the pop),
