Two-Stroke V3: The “Tait Triple”

As Seen at Kickback: Bob Tait’s Two-Stroke V3 Triple…  

Born in 1935 in Birmingham, England, Bob Tait was an engineer and toolmaker who worked his way up to Chief of Design at Norgren Engineering before finishing his career at Turbine Blading in Shipston-on-Stour. But his true passion was motorcycles, and he spent most of his free time designing, building, and riding them.

Tait is best known for his work to design and produce a “double-wishbone” hub-center steering system known as the “Tait HCS,” which was used on FF (“Feet First”) motorcycles such as Malcolm Newell’s Phazar and Royce Creasey’s Voyager.

Among many other projects, Tait also build an entire three-cylinder trials bike engine from scratch, though it proved a tough horse to break:

“It put him over the handlebars enough times for him to park the engine for thirty years until a friend fitted it to a race bike and ran it in an Isle of Man parade lap in 2011.” -Royce Creasey

Last month at the Kickback Show at Sammy Miller’s Motorcycle Museum, we came across another Bot Tait creation, the “Tait Triple.” Tait spent decades designing both the engine and the bike to go around it, but sadly he passed away in 2017 at the age of 82 with the bike uncompleted.

Fortunately, the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum decided to finish the bike in his honor:

“Making use of a cupboard full of blueprints, drawings and sketches of the triple — created by Tait from 1982 to 2009, mainly while cloistered away in his bedroom — they have finally turned his vision of mechanical perfection into a real, live motorcycle.” –Classic Bike

Those with a keen eye will immediately notice the unique powerplant — yes, that’s a two-stroke V3 reminiscent of the DKW 350cc Grand Prix engines from the 1950s and the Honda NS500 that Freddie Spencer rode to victory in the 1983 500cc GP Championship. According to MotoGP journalist, author, and former racer Mat Oxley, racing engineers had their reasons for choosing the V3 layout:

“The V3 configuration has various advantages over a conventional inline three-cylinder — a slightly lower centre of gravity and, perhaps more importantly, more room for the transfer passages within each cylinder casting.” -Mat Oxley

Whereas the DKW was a 75° V3 and the Honda a 112°, the Tait Triple is spaced at little less than 90°. Tait reportedly engineered his own 120° crankshaft, designed and cast his own crankcases, and used modified Villiers heads and cylinders. Bore and stroke is 66 x 60mm, with port timing based on an MZ 250cc single. There are 32mm Amal carbs, a belt primary drive, a Royal Enfield five-speed transmission, and an ignition system custom-built by Bob Stanley of the Sammy Miller Museum.

The frame is a semi-cradle duplex design that uses both round and square tubing, and the lack of lower rails allows space for the bespoke expansion chambers. Given that Tait is so well-known for his hub-center steering design, it’s interesting that he opted for leading-link forks in this case. A pair of Hunter shocks bring up the rear.

According to Oxley, who got a go on the triple once it was finished, the bike is in fine fettle, with production-level engineering and build quality:

“The engine fires easily and runs well, with a sharp crack to the expansion chambers which are untroubled by silencer cans. It’s peaky, but not too peaky — and it’s no great surprise that it sounds a bit like a Suzuki GT750 triple.”

Sammy Miller says he’s very proud he and his team could transform the project from parts and blueprints into a fully-running machine that honors the memory of late, great Tait:

“Bob was a great engineer and innovator. He will be remembered by all who knew him as a caring, generous, talented and all-round decent bloke.”

What a great tribute to the man, and an incredible bit of old-school engineering to boot. Below are a few more photos from our man at the show, Roberto Garagarza (@roga______).

More Photos

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Web: sammymiller.co.uk
Facebook: Sammy Miller Museum
Instagram: @sammymillermotorcyclemuseum

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Photography: Roberto Garagarza (@roga______)

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