Hello from Portugal... from UK but haven't lived there for 30 years, current bikes... a couple of trials irons, a '76 five speed Bonny, a ratty K100, and just about to buy, maybe , a 1994 1200 Trophy, seems good, cheap, but know absolutely nuttin' about the 'new' Triumphs. Sold a 1200 Flattrack style Sportster recently, the dosh is burning a hole rapidly and, looking for a more comfortable tourer style, came across the Donald locally. Looking for some 'what to watch out for' tips... lost count of the bikes I've had since I was a teen, so I don't need the basic is it knackered info, more like weird noises, specific issues , its 22 so probably had a few mods....what to look for? any info greatly received, and if I go for it I'll keep you posted....Tanx in advance UJB
Hi UJB and welcome in to the Triumph Asylum. Re the early Hinkley range of triples and fours the only obvious issue I know of is a weakness with the 'sprag clutch' which is often made worse by having a less than 100% battery. This can be a bit of a bastid to fix.
Welcome in ujb. There's plenty of knowledge in here so you should get some answers as biglad demonstrated
Welcome!! I'm with Dave re the battery/starter sprag clutch weakness. Good battery essential. Also if the engine dies when hot and will only re-start when cooled down a bit, then the crank position sensor is in need of changing. Some have had front fork oil seals leak on these bikes. Essentially these bikes are solid, reliable, a bit heavy and a bit top heavy. My '95 Trident 900 has just passed the 50,000 miles mark with complete reliability, so far, and has not had any of the above problems ... yet! Just give it a good battery (mine's a Motobatt), regular oil changes and check the valve shims every 12,000 miles and all should be well. As my bike is used quite infrequently these day due to my health issues, I always put a drop of Redex or similar in with the petrol to keep the carbs clean - modern petrol can leave gummy deposits in the fuel system if left for any length of time nowadays, but this method seems to work pretty well so far. Enjoy the Trophy if you get it.
Hello and welcome - echo what Steve says about the 900 triples. Fully charged battery is essential to avoid the dreaded sprag clutch failure.
Not sure if this affects other triples but on my 900 Thunderbird the alternator shaft bolt broke as they were Found to be too brittle, Triumph make a replacement that resolves this issue but just in case, dont under any circumstances pull out the shaft. It should be not able come out.If it can be pulled out even slightly its broken . The reason i mention this is that there is a spacer on the shaft that can fall into the engine and the only way to get it out is to split the engine, not good. It Happened to me but i was lucky the spacer fortunately stayed in place . Dont let the stuff mentioned on this thread put you off owning one, over all the triples are a great engine.
Thanks for the welcome all.....I'm just off now with the trailer to pick up the bike, if its as good in the flesh as the ad pics and the owner's not full of wind. Four hour drive into the heart of most rural Portugal, over near the Spanish border. Was looking forward to getting there by public transport and riding back, but just not possible. many more questions to come. So offwego in the horrid tin box...Ill keep you posted, and unless I'm mistaken, its a four innit? And looking forward to encountering a sprag clutch, whatever that is. Sounds like a wrestling hold.
Look on top of the crankcase below the carbs,if there is a rectangular cover there the sprag clutch can be accessed easily if needed. If not it is an engine out and break in half job. Been there. Good bikes, quite top heavy, comfortable and roomy ,fast and solid. Coils are known to fail,nology or gill are replacments. the seal shrinks back due to heat and damp can get in,easy quick fix is silicon sealant rubbed into the gap. Air filter is a bitch to change so tends to be neglected,triumph charge around 50 pounds for new, you can split the case and put a k and n in if tyre pressures are low the bike feels very heavy and doesnt turn easily neutral light fails regularly,there is a fix using a washer or replace with new. Brakes,my sprint has a judder if using hh pads, gone back to ceramic carbon and it seems cured but braking not so good. Starting, dont use the throtttle, they start better leaving the throttle alone,just using the choke if needed. Battery well you know about that.lol Good luck
So, I bought it...! trailered home last night and out for the first gentle belt round the block just now.....about 30 km round trip on good swoopy a-roads First impressions...? very good but not amazing, nice build quality and detailing, nice touches like can't start in gear, with side stand down, without clutch in....sensible. Fuel guage would be nice. Surprised at how its more sporty than tourer, can't see the fairing or screen doing much in bad weather. Closest thing I have had is the K100, which I have done a few long-ish tours on and to which I am inevitably comparing the Trophy. Fantastic tourer but so good as to be boring. I can see the Trump being much more fun. Seems a bit buzzy, but then I have had Harleys since the late seventies, a couple of big twins, various sportsters ... If I keep it I might consider a sprocket change to reduce revs, make better highway mileage...Anybody done that?. Still early days and so far well pleased.
Obrigado and welcome in, love Portugal. Going back to Sagres in October, great place and beer, although preferred Super Bock.  Would love to ship the bike to Sagres, then spend a few weeks riding it back home. Definitely on the to do list. Enjoy the new bike.
moving over to the general discussion forum...still a bit to say and more questions to ask see you there
Shipping the bike... not easy, except by a man with a van independent hauler...plenty of people doing it both ways for the ex-pats, 250€ per cubic metre . shipped a few over the years from a skinny trials iron with the bars removed for about 80 squid, to a recent quote for a door to door to Nottingham for the Sportster about 250. Depending where you live in UK the Santander/Bilbao ferry is pleasant, but pricey but saves a 1000miles. but a bit of a mini cruise... shell suits and naff tattoos obligatory. But then you have the bike, so Roscoff from Plymouth is fun not expensive and that bit of France is nice and unexplored. 20 hours on the road to the south, blast it in two days, (the K), sort of blast it on the Harley three days or more. less gas more beer. If you pitch up in Sagres contact me we'll have a SuperBock UJB