Triumph T160 gearchange conversion

A friend of mine had his Triumph T160 Trident in my workshop over the last few weeks, and I asked him if I could post some pics of his left to right gearchange conversion. I remember riding the bike with the standard left shift and it was sloppy and didn't do justice to the rest of the machine. However, those of you with T160s (such as our Moderator, I think) may say that if all the parts are in good nick then there should not be a problem. The engineering involved is not as simple as one may think. If anyone is interested in following up on this, I should be able to get more details of the internals and the machining involved.

Timing side




Drive side




As you see from the photos, he decided to go with rearsets as well. They are a bit too far back for my liking, but better, in my opinion, than the standard position. The gearchange action is now crisp and precise, as it should be.

Thanks for showing the photos, as it looks a very well made conversion, and I'm sure the lads on the Triples Online forum would also be interested to see that: http://www.triplesonline.com/ so I've posted a link there.

is that a manufactered kit?, can you just fit a T150 outer cover and block off the redundant holes? because when I ever get my T160 back on the road my feet will not be cleaver enough

splatt said:

is that a manufactered kit?, can you just fit a T150 outer cover and block off the redundant holes? because when I ever get my T160 back on the road my feet will not be cleaver enough

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No, this was designed and made from scratch by a friend of both the owner and myself who is an engineer in London. He also did the recent engine rebuild, which was a wonderful job. The engine is mechanically quiet, oil tight, has crisp performance and ticks over like a watch.

I don't know enough about Tridents myself to be able to answer your questions, but I will ask the man himself. Back in a few days.

The following question was asked about the conversion over on the TOL forum:

JohnL said:

A neat piece of engineering but, in my total ignorance, I'm left wondering whether this is an engineering exercise or is it done for practical reasons?

Can someone enlighten me, please?

Curious of Somerset

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L.A.B. said:

The following question was asked about the conversion over on the TOL forum:

JohnL said:

A neat piece of engineering but, in my total ignorance, I'm left wondering whether this is an engineering exercise or is it done for practical reasons?

Can someone enlighten me, please?

Curious of Somerset

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Not practical to move the shifter to the correct side?

I will ask the owner the and engine builder, but I think it was because the right side gear change is more direct and precise in operation, like the T150. I rode the bike with the left side gearchange (i.e, standard T160) and it was unpleasant. The owner is quite at home with a right side gear change, having already owned a T150.

The original gear change action of some motorcycles with cross-over gearchanges suffered, becoming more sloppy and imprecise with all those linkages that can develop wear. I am thinking of not just Tridents but also Ducati V twins. I don't know about Commandos, because I have never ridden a Mark 3. The best cross-overs were on some older Japanese machines which had through-shafts with splines at either end, so you could stick the pedal on either side, depending on your preference!

Oh well, all my Brit. bikes (850 MkIII, T160, T140V) have the cross-over left foot change, and I'd have to say my T160 has the best gear change out of the three, as the T160's action is more precise than the MkIII, and certainly not as stiff as the T140.

L.A.B. said:

Oh well, all my Brit. bikes (850 MkIII, T160, T140V) have the cross-over left foot change, and I'd have to say my T160 has the best gear change out of the three, as the T160's action is more precise than the MkIII, and certainly not as stiff as the T140.

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That's interesting, and I had forgotten about the T140. If I had a choice of another British classic, it would be the T160, left shift or not!

In reply to the question, "is this an engineering exercise or has it been done for practical reasons", apparently it was a bit of both. Since rear set controls were being fitted, it was felt that adding yet another linkage to the left side, which was already linked, was undesirable. The machining, fitting and materials were not costed because it was experimental and a challenge. A T150 outer cover and anything else needed (not certain what else) would have been an extra cost. It is reversible, so it can be returned to standard if necessary.

My conclusion from all this is that if you are happy with the existing footrest position and everything is in good working order, then a standard left shift T160 is fine as it is. Apologies if I unfairly criticised the T160 gearchange in general. I based my remarks on one particular example.

L.A.B. said:

Oh well, all my Brit. bikes (850 MkIII, T160, T140V) have the cross-over left foot change, and I'd have to say my T160 has the best gear change out of the three, as the T160's action is more precise than the MkIII, and certainly not as stiff as the T140.

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Changing the MkIII back to rss is a fairly simple matter of swapping inner and outer g/b covers with an older model, removing the crossover shaft and attendant monkey-motion gears, and plugging the extra holes in the primary. Converting the rear disc to left-side operation is a bit more involved, but can be done with stock parts and a little cutting, welding and replating.

Dagnabbit Les are you telling me that you of all people do not own a PROPER right-side shift English bike?!?!

BrianK said:

Dagnabbit Les are you telling me that you of all people do not own a PROPER right-side shift English bike?!?!

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Oh the shame of it!

But, yes you are right, I do not own a bike with a right side shift-and I never have!