The Triumph Model H (also known as the 'Type H' and 'the Trusty') is a British

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

made by Triumph Engineering Co Ltd in

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. A total of 57,000 Triumph Model H motorcycles were made from 1915 until production ended in 1923.

Development

At the start of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

in 1914 the

British Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

needed effective communications with front line troops and replaced messengers on horses with

despatch rider A despatch rider (or dispatch) is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle (and occasionally in Egypt during World War I, on camels). In the UK 'despatch rider' is also a term used for a motorcycle courier. Despatch riders were use ...

s on motorcycles. A number of models were tested for suitability and the Triumph Model H was selected. With the rear wheel driven by a belt, the Model H was fitted with a 499 cc air-cooled

four-stroke A four-stroke (also four-cycle) engine is an internal combustion (IC) engine in which the piston completes four separate strokes while turning the crankshaft. A stroke refers to the full travel of the piston along the cylinder, in either directio ...

single-cylinder engine. It was also the first Triumph not to be fitted with pedals, so was a true motorcycle. Engine differences from the previous Model A included a single cam wheel with two cams replacing separate cam wheels for the inlet and exhaust valve, and new design of cylinder casting. Valve head diameter was enlarged and the valves were spaced further apart. The Model H was fitted with a Sturmey-Archer three-speed countershaft gearbox operated by a hand gear change lever. More than 30,000 Triumph Model H motorcycles had been produced by the end of the war in 1918. The Triumph Engineering Co Ltd had been using the advertising slogan ''Trusty Triumph'' since 1910 and the Model H became known as 'The Trusty' as it proved reliable in wartime conditions, despite a weakness in the front fork spring. This was prone to break on rough ground, so despatch riders would strap a leather belt around it as a precaution. After the war, the motorcycle didn't have enough speed for racing, which was one of the principal markets for motorcycles at the time, so Triumph moved on to a motorcycle designed by

Harry Ricardo Sir Harry Ralph Ricardo (26 January 1885 – 18 May 1974) was an English engineer who was one of the foremost engine designers and researchers in the early years of the development of the internal combustion engine. Among his many other works, ...

, known as the Model R Roadster. When the Model H was discontinued in 1923 a total of 57,000 had been produced.

References

External links

Triumph Model H restoration

Triumph Model H running (video)
{{WWI British Soft Vehicles, state=collapsed Model H World War I vehicles of the United Kingdom Motorcycles introduced in the 1910s Military motorcycles

Development

See also

References

External links