Page 45 - Oct 2022

Bob is modest when he talks about his accomplishments with bringing
his car back to life but it is clear to anyone who is privileged to examine t
the quality of his work, the tightness and fit of the gaps, (better than the
factory, he offers), the precision of his welds, the reflection of pride in
craftsmanship of every part of the project , that he is far from being a
dabbler. Bob Slayden is an artist and the Italia is his canvas. "Good
enough" is not n his vocabulary.

He hasn't placed a time limit on when he might finally finish the car
and return it to the road. Instead, he keeps a modern Mazda roadster
around for driving. While it's dependable, it's also utilitarian; it does
not thrill his soul or fire his imagination as does the Triumph Italia.
Over the years his passion has connected him to others who share it. He
has become a source of information that has even surprised the Italians
with whom he deals.

"I wanted to buy a missing designer?s signature badge for the
boot handle. The badge says ?Styled by G. Michelotti?, Bob told
me. " My buddies had pictures of the badge on Italia #215.
The outside was worn down to brass, but inside the chrome
handle the original matte gold finish was still obvious.
" The original manufacturer of the badge, Franco Ragni, is still
in business in Torino, Italy. They still offer reproduction badges
in the original style for some cars. I wanted to order the badge
from them in gold, but they only offered it in chrome.

"I corresponded with them and explained that our research
indicated that on the Italia the badge was originally gold. The next
day, a woman in Italy emailed me and told me that she had
spoken with her grandfather and he had told her that the Italia
badge was only ever made in chrome, not gold.

I responded to her and explained that we had proof of the gold
finish. I sent her the photograph. She thanked me and told me
that she would show it to her grandfather. I was touched by
the fact that this was a family business that had endured since
at least 1960, and the owner from that time was still alive. He had
a memory of the Italia, even though he was wrong on the
badge finish."

The family happily made him a badge in gold. Such is the power
of searching for perfection when combined with research.
While Bob has contributed to tracking down the history of the
Triumph Italia he is quick to point out that the title of expert on
the car is Adrian Sinnott, the owner of #3.
"He was my pen pal from about 1986 'til email started up in the
1990?s," Bob explains. Continues on page 46

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