Dan's Black Prince
By Anthony van Someren - 01 Jan 13
Londoner Dan got in touch with The Bike Shed to show us his Vincent-inspired Triumph which he's called Black Prince. The gloss black, gold pinstripe and graphic scrolls hark back to the Black Shadow, Norton and of course those fag-packet JPS Grand Prix cars of the 70s.
It's a truly classic look and has been really well executed on Dan's bike, with Jet black base paint and hand-tinted gold pinstripe sorted by Cyclesprays in Surrey. The badge was redesigned by his girlfriend in the style of the limited edition Belstaff Bonneville. She also knocked up a Deus style poster of the bike for him. Nice.
The Wheel rims were pained black and the bike is suspended at the rear on a set of Hagons, which lower the bike around an inch, and he'd also added gaitors at the front to protect the stanchions from stone chips and look a little more retro.
Race style Arrow 2 into 1 sorts out a few extra bhp and looks the part too, nestling under gloss black engine casings, carbs and speedo pots, attached by a T9 bracket.
After getting hold of a gel seat, Dan headed down to Lee & Co at Viking Vinyl in Brands Hatch where they shaved an inch and a half off the front and recovered it in tan, which has darkened over time.
The final touches were new lights & license plate, and the job's 99% done - although we all know that no bike is ever truly finished, and Dan has his eye on a few other bits and pieces.
Overall it's a lovely job and the bike looks superb. Dan rides it to work in Camden every day so we'll be keeping our eyes open for it.