TR2/3/3A Commission Numbers TR3

I know that you can get all the build information for the car through the Heritage group but does anyone else have information other than that. I want to research colors and other items on the second car I picked up but didn't want to get a certificate yet?

You can get a Build Record for your car if you join TRA and send $20 and your Commission number to Joel Rosen. The Build Record has about the same info as the BMIHT Certificate, but costs less.

And isn't so fancy.

Original Triumph TR2/3/3A by Bill Piggot has lots of useful information.

JP,

If you post the comm# someone here might have one close to yours and might be able to approximate its build date etc if that is of any help....not sure what you are looking for other than colours etc.

Cheers,
M. Pied Lourd

Twosheds said:

You can get a Build Record for your car if you join TRA and send $20 and your Commission number to Joel Rosen. The Build Record has about the same info as the BMIHT Certificate, but costs less.

And isn't so fancy.

Click to expand...

Assuming it is not a TR3B :frown:

Hmmm...it is a TR3B....early version.....So what now....TSF series...

It is my understanding that TRA does not have the TR3B numbers. They were assembled in a different location. Unless this has changed in the last twenty years.

Makes it easier in that TSF 3B's only came in 4 x colors. Choice of Black, Signal Red, Powder Blue or Spa White.

You can often find a remnant of the original colour up under the dash, or in the fuel tank area or the spare wheel well.

My TCF 3B came down painted BRG, but a corner under the dash revealed it was originally Signal Red.

Viv.

Thanks Viv, didn't know that about the colours for the Bs. Learn something new every day here.

Cheers,
M. Pied Lourd

rlwhitetr3b said:

Twosheds said:

You can get a Build Record for your car if you join TRA and send $20 and your Commission number to Joel Rosen. The Build Record has about the same info as the BMIHT Certificate, but costs less.

And isn't so fancy.

Click to expand...

Assuming it is not a TR3B :frown:

Click to expand...

My bad, sorry.

I thought the commission number in TR3aguy's signature was for the car in question, and it isn't.

Very good information from everyone....I think this car was Powder Blue....I was also interested in the other numbers like chassis and engine.....I have found where to look .....just need to check it next time I am close by that car.


Thanks

vivdownunder said:

...You can often find a remnant of the original colour up under the dash, or in the fuel tank area or the spare wheel well...

Click to expand...

Or, if all elese fails -- under the commission plate (but you may not want to mess with that).

Tr3aguy said:

...the other numbers like chassis and engine...

Click to expand...

There may also be a number (and possibly build date) on the gearbox. As I recall number on the drivers side (LHD) and date on the other side in some sort of code.

Another place to look for left over original paint is inside the door. Dad's 56 TR3 was powder blue when we got it. After taking it down we found the Salvador blue. Same with my TR3b,it was silver but found the black under dash.

Marv

Twosheds said:

You can get a Build Record for your car if you join TRA and send $20 and your Commission number to Joel Rosen. The Build Record has about the same info as the BMIHT Certificate, but costs less.

And isn't so fancy.

Click to expand...

What is TRA (Joel Rosen)? Sorry, I suppose this is a NOOB question...

Pat

It's the Triumph Register of America.

Hello JP,

Welcome to the world of the TR3B, better known as "DOCUMENTATION? Fuggedabouddit!"

The guys on here can really give you some good advice. I particularly appreciate the responses to your post, as I did not know that the TRA's build records do not include the Bs, as they were assembled elsewhere. BTW, the "F" in TSF and TCF stands for Forward Radiator Company, as that is where they were assembled, as the factory was going full-bore assembling the TR4.

One of your responses was very good in suggesting "hiding places" for your original color, but not infallible. On my B, those places mentioned were all painted over. The PO gave me photos of the restoration, including the complete disassembly and repainting of the tub and panels. (The car now is red with black interior.) The PO told me that the body guy (a Brit, BTW) who did the repaint took it down to bare metal, and went thru a series of 3 or 4 colors, including yellow! He said that the last color he hit before bare metal was black. So, I was "forewarned" what to expect on my BMIHT Certificate. Sure enough, the car left the factory black with red interior. From the certificate data, I even got the name of the ship that brought it to America, and found the ship on the Internet, and have 3 photos of it in my Triumph folio.

Even my commission plate and body number plate were removed for repainting, so there is not an INCH of black on the car anywhere! (Any black is oil leaks.)

Getting back to your car, the deeper you dig the more you will find. Whether TSF or TCF series, it was built with TR3A parts, TR4 parts, and maybe TR3 parts, if it was necessary to get the car out the door.

Then, of course, the Dealerships enter the picture. Besides the normal dealer-installed options, they were not above switching out interiors, tops, tonneaus, and sidecurtains if it would provide a sale. Which would explain how the last car on the lot was a yellow car with blue interior, black top and white sidecurtains.

Good luck, and enjoy your TR. Mine is my second childhood!

Phil

P.S. Re-reading this, I thought of something else. I read somewhere that ALL TR3Bs came with WHITE tops and side curtains. I believed this, because my black top is a replacement and my black sidecurtains are WHITE underneath and re-colored black. Then, in Bill Piggott's last book, I read that the Bs came with either white or black tops and sidecurtains.

Hi JP,

It surely would make life easier for "Yourself" and others on this forum if you posted "Somesort" of VIN Number. Whats it say on your title?

Russ

Updated info below......

Did I dream this? Weren't the last 200 TR3B's all black on black. There's a picture in one of the books that shows the factory workers around the last TR3B and it was black.

Marv

"One of your responses was very good in suggesting "hiding places" for your original color, but not infallible. On my B, those places mentioned were all painted over."

There really is a very simple way to determine the original paint colour. This is valid for any TR that has not been stripped to the bare metal. You simply take some 220 paper and gradually sand down through the layers. We validated the silverstone grey on my 3A this way after the po had painted it with black. The painting process at Canley has been well documented and you can expect to see the layers revealed in the reverse sequence that they were applied. Bill Piggott documents the Mulliners painting procedure in his book, "TRIUMPH BY NAME TRIUMPH BY NATURE, 1995, Dalton Watson Fine Books. You can find the details on page 39. However, here are the layers that you should find, starting with:

1. red stoving primer - before assembly (including welding)
2. build primer(light grey) exterior only - after assembly
3. red stoving primer - interior and exterior
4. red stoving filler
5. 5 coats of colour

If you want to preserve the current finish, I suggest you remove either a head lamp or rear tail lamp and test this area. Carefully sand through the layers and see what is revealed.

Good luck!