The Tiger 100 (T100) was a

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

first made by the British motorcycle company

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in 1939. Production ceased when the Triumph factory was destroyed by German bombing in 1940 during

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, but recommenced in 1946. Several variants were manufactured until 1973.

Development

Pre-war production

With the sales success of the

Triumph Speed Twin The Speed Twin 5T is a standard motorcycle that was made by Triumph at their Coventry, and later Meriden factories. Edward Turner, Triumph’s Chief Designer and Managing Director, launched the Triumph Speed Twin at the 1937 National Motorcyc ...

, Edward Turner, Triumph's motorcycle designer, looked further into developing the potential of the new parallel twin motor. The lighter and more powerful Tiger 100 was developed as a sports enthusiasts' machine, and as with previous models the "100" referred to its claimed maximum speed in miles per hour (mph). Technical changes over the Speed Twin included

forged Forging is a manufacturing process involving the shaping of metal using localized compressive forces. The blows are delivered with a hammer (often a power hammer) or a die. Forging is often classified according to the temperature at which it ...

alloy An alloy is a mixture of chemical elements of which at least one is a metal. Unlike chemical compounds with metallic bases, an alloy will retain all the properties of a metal in the resulting material, such as electrical conductivity, ductilit ...

pistons, a very early use of the technology. The cylinders were forged in a single casting and held in place by eight studs, instead of the Speed Twin's six. The Tiger 100 featured a single

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carburetor, possible thanks to the 360-degree firing interval of the two cylinders. Finished in silver and costing £5 more, new features included a larger fuel tank and detachable silencers. Early production bikes came with rigid frames and girder front ends. The motorcycle was painted silver with black pin-striping. In March 1939, Triumph came up with an unorthodox launch of the new Tiger 100. Using a Tiger 100 and a Speed Twin straight from dealers showrooms, endurance was tested with a run of over from John o' Groats to

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in Cornwall then to the

Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfie ...

circuit for six hours of continuous high-speed laps, where riders Ivan Wicksteed and David Whitworth averaged with a final lap of , winning Triumph the

Maudes Trophy The Maudes Trophy is a motorcycle award established in 1923 by George Pettyt, owner of Maudes Motor Mart based in Great Portland Street, London who promoted an impartially-observed endurance test for motorcycles and provided a challenge award to t ...

. The Tiger 100's sporting pretensions were later further proven through Freddie Clarke's 1939 lap record at Brooklands of on a bored-out 503 cc Tiger 100.

Factory destroyed in 1940

The Triumph works was destroyed by German bombers on the night of 14 November 1940 - along with much of the city of Coventry bringing production of the Tiger 100 to an end until after the war.

Post-war production

When Triumph recovered and began production again at Meriden the Tiger 100 re-appeared with the new telescopic fork. In 1951 it gained a new close finned alloy cylinder barrel and factory race kits for independent racers. In 1953 a fully race-kitted model, the Tiger 100C, was available although only 560 were made. 1954 saw the first swinging-arm rear suspension models and the Tiger 100 was developed year on year alongside the other models in the range. The Tiger was the sports bike of the Triumph marque and was extensively used for racing. Racing modification included a solo seat. 1959 was the last of the pre-units (separate engine/gearbox) and in 1960 it was completely redesigned in the new 'unit' style as the T100A. A long line of T100SS, T100C, T100R and others appeared during the sixties in the UK and export (mainly US) markets culminating in the Daytona variants which soldiered on until 1973. The historic ''Tiger'' name was revived by the new Hinckley Triumph company in 1993 (see Triumph Tiger 900 (T400)).

Bob Dylan crash

On 29 July 1966,

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

crashed his Tiger 100SS motorcycle on a road near his home in Woodstock, New York, throwing him to the ground. In the wake of his accident, Dylan withdrew from the public and did not tour again until eight years had passed.

''Jupiter's Travels''

Ted Simon rode a police-specification 1973 Tiger 100 T100P around the world, starting that year. In his book '' Jupiter's Travels'', he documents how the Meriden factory was undergoing a sit-in and as a result his motorcycle was hastily assembled.

References

{{Triumph motorcycles Meriden Tiger 100 Standard motorcycles Motorcycles powered by straight-twin engines Motorcycles introduced in the 1930s