1969 Triumph 500 Daytona

['72TR6RV]

Hi Folks
Been a while since I posted anything or checked in.
Wondering how rare if it is rare a 1969 Daytona 500. 1300 original miles so the ad says. Looks all original and in nice garage find condition. Always been inside. Belongs to a woman I graduated high school with. She asking $7000.
I’m thinking $4000-$5000 is more reasonable. Being obviously sitting most of its life, I would be willing to bet there is condensation throughout the case and engine and would need to be cracked open, cleaned and inspected and parts replaced as needed. Hope to get back home this summer and have a look at it up close. What’s everyone’s thoughts?

 

[Greyfell]

Certainly worth taking a look at; looks very nice in its current condition! I would be more concerned with seals, gaskets and other rubber-ish parts than with metal parts, but that's my personal opinion.

 

[Rudie]

Wondering how rare if it is rare a 1969 Daytona 500.

Several thousand made and exported to the US so not particularly "rare" in the day; however, one 54 years old and looking in unmolested original condition is undoubtedly "rare".

69 is the first year of the decent bottom end - crank on drive side roller and timing side ball bearing, end fed crank - but last year of the timed breather. Otoh, unfortunately it is also the first year of the O ring pushrod tube seals so likely some fiddling when it first goes on the road.

Always been inside.
Being obviously sitting most of its life, I would be willing to bet there is condensation throughout the case and engine

While an engine strip would be wise, if only to replace all the seals and fit a 19 tooth gearbox sprocket, condensation depends where the bike has been sitting - where there have not been fast temperature changes (engine allowed to become very cold then ambient rises quickly), little or no condensation.

Speedo and tacho lube has probably dried out so a pro service for them?

Also probably wise to replace the tyres ...

Hope to get back home this summer and have a look at it up close.

Imho, if you want the bike, turn "Hope" into reality sooner rather than later; if the seller is willing to accept $5K, someone is going to bite her arm off.

 

[Meathead#1]

7 g is a lot to ask for a bike that will need tires and has been sitting. kick start the motor to see if it is not frozen and offer 4g. it may need 2g worth of work. check the gas tank for rust and goopy old gas contamination which will require carb work.

 

['72TR6RV]

7 g is a lot to ask for a bike that will need tires and has been sitting. kick start the motor to see if it is not frozen and offer 4g. it may need 2g worth of work. check the gas tank for rust and goopy old gas contamination which will require carb work.

I agree, the little things usually turn into expensive repairs. I’m gonna try and meet up with her this summer and have a good look at this machine. Like Rudie mentioned in an above post, rare to see a bike like this unmolested and complete with so few miles, and I’m sure they know that’s a selling point.

 

[dhowlan]

I'll start with something you probably are aware of, each Triumph is uniquely it's own kettle of fish. Having said that, I may be in a position to guess as well as anybody what you are in for. A few years ago I came into possession of a similarly low mileage 1969 Triumph 500. It had broken (primary gear) and been parked over 20 years previous. It had been parked in a garage. There's quite a bit of info on the process on triumphrat 1969 T100R rehab thread . Mine seemed to have been through more than that one you are looking at. It was filthy for one thing. The front fender is gone. Aftermarket silencers. Dent in the fuel tank. And yet, much of it was unworn.

I will attempt a list of all the bits and bobs that have been replaced or renewed in the interim. Bear in mind, my thought process in the beginning was to keep it all original. Hah!

In no particular order:

All the fluids changed, anything that can be greased with new grease, greased

Air filters

Forks rebuilt as gators were in several pieces and seals were leaking. Additionally, I'm on my second set of new gators as the first lasted less than a year. IIRC, I got "10 year" gators from CBS the second go around and those are substantially better.

Steering head bearing

Carbs rebuilt including new floats and needles. Bike fuel had not been drained before parking. Tank and petcocks have not been a problem.

Fuel lines replaced.

Tachometer and speedometer locked up and needed repair. Speedo went first and took out the cable. The cable/instrument place in Canada is fantastic. I have cables from them and and their turnaround time on repairing the meters is excellent. Vintage british cables

Plug wires replaced

Coils (siba) failed about 2 years in.

Tires and tubes (originals looked so nice except for the cracking sidewalls)

Chain

Pushrod tube seals et al (this was quite the engineering project-seek out Rudies posts on this as they were the clarification I needed to understand I was going to have to sort out the pads in a custom way) The seals sealed for almost 2 years, but when they stopped, it was quite the oil mess. The rubber down there was rock hard. It was disappointing at the time to have to tear down the engine that much after it was working just fine, but C'est la Triumph vie.

Battery strap

Kickstart and shifter rubber

Rocker box o-ring (this was a nice reminder that I did this, at the time I was not convinced the o-ring made it substantially intact to where it would adequately seal, but it is not leaking yet)

Gas tank rear mounting rubber

Shock mount rubber (actually only one fell to bits, the others seem fine)

\\\\\\\\\\

I think that's about it up to now.

My thoughts on value are this. I have always thought my bike was worth 4-5K. I kind of thought that before and after the work has been done. I can see how a person selling THAT bike would think it's worth more. However, they probably don't appreciate the amount of work it will require BECAUSE it has low miles. If you tally up my list cost plus labor, I bet you could illustrate how much less than 7k it is worth. I could easily see 7k after it's sorted. Kinda depends on whether a person wants to look at it or ride it.

Hth,
Daryl