triumph TR6R briosa from tricana motorcycles is the 'lively' classic

triumph TR6R briosa: minimal, elegant and beautifully finished, this custom bike comes from tricana motorcycles, a small workshop in portugal that’s gathering a reputation for building classy café racers that certainly catch the eye. tricana is run by jonathan natario, and his latest creation is called the ‘briosa’, a term that derives from italian music for ‘lively’. but when the triumph ‘TR6R’ had first arrived in jonathan’s coimbra workshop, it certainly wasn’t living up to its name — it was an incomplete, beaten 1972 ‘TR6R’ that had seen better days.

unfazed by its rugged appearance, jonathan saw its potential, ‘I thought it’d be an excellent bike to reconstruct in a ‘classical’ way,’ he says. ‘the owner had just one special request: make it a two-seater.’

much time was spent modifying the bike’s depleted stock of original parts, but he has managed to retain the exquisite feel of a vintage triumph. the handlebars are particularly striking, with a wheelbarrow sweep and finished with brown grips matching the intricate leatherwork found elsewhere.

after taking the 650cc engine apart, jonathan discovered that it was full of mismatched components and one side of the crankcase had been machined apart then welded back together again. a complete overhall was in order, including new pistons, valve springs, valve guides and tappets. the workshop also installed a modified cylinder head, so two amal carburetors could be used, instead of one. the mufflers are from leo vince — attached to the original headers — and a boyer electronic ignition now provides a reliable spark.

much of the beauty is found in the detail: both the fuel tank and the koni shocks have new mounts, to make them lean at slightly racier angles. the front suspension has been lowered slightly to match, then cut and re-welded the headlight and front fender mounts into a different positions. the rear frame has been built to accommodate the striking custom seat, which is sat above a discreet fender.

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