1954 Triumph Thunderbird

1954 Triumph Thunderbird emblem

1954 Triumph Thunderbird Background & History

The 1954 Triumph Thunderbird was about to go through some major changes.  1955 would a big year at Triumph, in general. Finally the archaic rigid frame and troublesome sprung rear hub would be ditched for a proper swing arm frame. Not a moment too soon, either. AMC, Royal Enfield and the BSA Gold Star were already running swing arms and Norton was about to introduce the swingarm-equipped Dominator with the legendary Featherbed Frame. Triumph had some catching up to do, something new for Triumph.  They were usually leading the way.  This would prove to be a year of change for the Triumph motorcycle line.  However, this was 1954 and so the trusty Thunderbird soldiered on with its ancient rigid frame and sprung rear hub.  

Also in 1954, Triumph released a hopped-up version of the T-Bird, the T110 Tiger, which would change the Thunderbird's role in the company forever.

1954 Triumph Thunderbird

ABOVE & BELOW: Early 1954 Triumph Thunderbirds retained the rigid frame and classic styling.  Little had changed, looks-wise, since 1950.  That was about to change.

1954 Triumph Thunderbird

1954 Triumph Thunderbird Engine Upgrades

Performance also got a big shot in the arm for the 1954 Triumph Thunderbird.  Spurred on by the development of the high-performance 650cc T110 Tiger, which was itself spun off of the Thunderbird, both bikes benefitted by the improvements.  All Triumph 650 engines got a stiffened crankshaft with increased shaft diameters, larger connecting rods and a new crankcase with larger 1-1/8″ MS11 ball race on the timing side. Revisions to the primary cases were made to accommodate the new Lucas RM14 3-lead alternator.

1954 Triumph Thunderbird engine
1954 Triumph Thunderbird engine
1954 Triumph Thunderbird gauges

1954 Triumph Thunderbird Now the 'Cooking Model'

With the introduction of the red-hot T110 Tiger in 1954, the 6T Thunderbird was no longer the top model. Starting with the 1954 Triumph Thunderbird, it became relegated to what the Brits call a “cooking model”, or basic commuter, as well as sidecar duty, pretty much from then on for the rest of its career. Until the arrival of the Triumph TR6 in 1956, then the Bonneville in 1959, the Tiger T110 was the hottest model Triumph had, churning out 42hp and easily breaking “the ton” (100mph). This all led to overheating problems in the T110 that didn’t affect the Thunderbird as much, because of its lower performance. The changes that were made to the T110 to solve its problems trickled down to the rest of the line, including the 6T Thunderbird.

1954 Triumph Thunderbird sprung hub

The sprung rear hub gave a small amount of suspension travel, but at the cost of instability.  It was a poor compromise, at best.  However, help was on the way!  The new swing arm frame launched in the 1955 model year, relegating the sprung hub to history.

1954 Triumph Thunderbird with swing arm-L

The 1954 Triumph T110 Tiger got the new swing arm frame, but retained the styling of the Thunderbird, with it's full fenders and headlight nacelle.  Until the TR6 came out in 1956, the T110 Tiger was Triumph's fastest bike, and one of the fastest motorcycles on the market.

1954 Triumph Thunderbird Specifications

Engine type

Displacement

Bore & Stroke

Compression

Carburetor

Ignition

Engine output

Primary drive

Primary sprockets

Clutch

Gearbox

Ratios, overall:

1st, bottom

2nd

3rd

4th, top

Final drive

Final drive sprockets

Frame Type

Suspension, front

Suspension, rear

Brake, front

Brake, rear

Tire, front

Tire, rear

Wheelbase

Seat Height

Ground Clearance

Fuel capacity

Dry weight

Air-cooled OHV vertical twin, non-unit

649cc / 40.0 ci

71mm X 82mm / 2.79″ X 3.23″

8.5:1 (US & export); 7.0:1 (UK)

1-SU Type MC2

Lucas magneto

34 bhp @ 6500 rpm

1/2″ X .335″ X 5/16″ chain, 70 links

24T X 43T

Multi-plate, wet

4-speed constant mesh, right foot shift

11.9:1

8.25:1

5.81:1

4.88

5/8″ X .400″ X 3/8″ chain, 101 links

18T X 46T

Brazed lug, rigid

Telescopic fork, hydraulic damping

Swing arm, 2 Girling dampers

8″ SLS drum

7″ SLS drum

3.25″ X 19″

3.50″ X 19″

55.75″ / 141 cm

31″ / 77.5 cm

5″ / 12.7 cm

3 Imp gal (US); 4 Imp gal (UK & export)

395 lbs / 179 kg


1954 Triumph Thunderbird Books







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1950 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1951 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1952 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1953 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1954 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1955 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1956 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1957 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1958 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1959 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1960 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1961 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1962 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1963 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1964 Triumph 6T Thunderbird
1965 Triumph 6T Thunderbird


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