sixspeedtwin

It all began in 2003. I was in the 8th sem of college and had purchased an RD for the princely sum of Rs 18k.

Taking the bike to college the first time was like a dream come true.

I had to actually do a guided tour of 3-4 batches of buddies to explain why the bike was sooooo special.

One Sardarjee, in particular was really bowled over by the bike. His name was Mandeep Singh (Mande for short).

Riding my bike around the empty bylanes of Anushakti Nagar in Mumbai, Mande in one phrase described the amazement of a first time RD rider.

Working through the gears he said " Gears khatam hi nahi hotey!!"

College done, we went along on our career paths and gradually drifted apart, though the camaraderie was as strong as ever.

Cut to 2010. A colleague at work who had ridden his RD with us for a few rides said something every one of us dreads: "Getting married, wanna sell the RD"

The bike was a 1979 import. Being the "Kadka" that I am, I could not buy the bike, but was hell bent on finding a good buyer for the bike.

As Jung's synchronicity would have it, Mande called within a few days and expressed his desire to get himself an HT RD350.

After looking for an HT for a few weeks, It suddenly came to my mind that the US spec RD was still available.

Soon the bike was with us and we were thinking of the best way to restore the bike.

Attached are the pics of the bike when bought. NOTHING on the bike is US spec.

Now the restoration is on!!!

Attached Thumbnails

   

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02 Qualis GS
03 Zen Carbon
62 Jawa 353 "Tank Switch"
83 RD350 HT
87 Yezdi 350 Twin
99 Yamaha YBX
03 RXZ 5-speed
08 Suzuki Access
None Sold!!! All in the Stable

sunilg

Topic approved.

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(Been There Done That) x 3.25

Join xBhp On

arvindraju

nice story alok !! "Gears khatam hi nahi hotey" ha ha nicely said !!
good luck with the resto

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Yamaha 2002 RX135 4 Speed - Street Fighter
Yamaha 2004 RX135 5 Speed - Weekend Adrenaline
Yamaha 1984 RD350 HT - The Beast


I really enjoy the sound of 2-strokes idling. I love the uncertainty of it

jd666

agreed... another one bites the bug.. and yet again... does the front fork have the mounts for the single piston caliper??

__________________


My offerings to the gods of speed -

- KTM Duke 200
- Yamaha RXZ 5 speed

sixspeedtwin

It sure does (now)!!!

__________________
02 Qualis GS
03 Zen Carbon
62 Jawa 353 "Tank Switch"
83 RD350 HT
87 Yezdi 350 Twin
99 Yamaha YBX
03 RXZ 5-speed
08 Suzuki Access
None Sold!!! All in the Stable

sixspeedtwin

Once we had the bike, we went ahead with the analysis part.

What needed repair and what was to be replaced.

Our objective was to restore the bike again to COMPLETE 1973 specs.

It would mean getting all the stuff ordered from abroad.



The following items were from our Desi RD350:

- Front drum
- Fork
- Speedo-Tacho
- Headlamp
-Tail lamp
- Silencers & Bent pipes
- Head
- Pistons & Rings
- Fuel tank
- 2T oil tank
- Rear shocks were the Pulsar ones


The block, however was the US speck 39bhp, sleeved, 2nd OS.


As the chassis is a very rare one ... ie the foot rest arms come from beneath the Silencers, we decided that a powder coat job will be better than conventional paint.

The chassis was sand blasted (not immersed in chemical wash) to clear the paint.

The sand blasted chassis looked ok in terms of the finishing (but would be better than paint in terms of protection)

Pics attached of the chassis after Powder coat

Attached Thumbnails

     

__________________
02 Qualis GS
03 Zen Carbon
62 Jawa 353 "Tank Switch"
83 RD350 HT
87 Yezdi 350 Twin
99 Yamaha YBX
03 RXZ 5-speed
08 Suzuki Access
None Sold!!! All in the Stable

Ray13

Wowwweeee!!! Sigh... Alok man you have some kind of Midas touch. How jealous am I of you and the lucky dudes around you who get their hands on great bikes

Will be following this one closely.

Cheers,

Rahul

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www.beingthomas.wordpress.com

jd666

nice touch... just make sure that the sand does not remain inside the frame.. though iirc, its a sealed frame.. not much chance of anything entering the tubular structure.

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My offerings to the gods of speed -

- KTM Duke 200
- Yamaha RXZ 5 speed

dafc

Oh boy! I think I am gonna shit my pants when the job is done

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RIP ਕਾਕਾ ਭੈਣੀਆਂਵਾਲਾ (Santokh Singh Rataurh)

sixspeedtwin

The following parts were then ordered over eBay

- Std Unsleeved block 39bhp
- US spec Head
- Dykes type pistons and rings
- Fuel tank with petrol cock, lid and Orig Key (3.5 US Gal)
- 2T-oil tank
- Front fork assy (with lugs for caliper)
- Caliper
- Disc
- Disc pads
- Bent Pipes
- Silencers
- Mufflers
- Speedo-Tacho console
- Ignition key
- Headlamp (Koito)
- Tail lamp ( Stanley)
- Indicators (OE, rear with red lenses)
- Speedo - Tacho cables

Items that we were not able to source / sourced but not usable

- Front fender
- Master Cylinder (round with Yamaha sticker)

Attached are the pics of the

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
02 Qualis GS
03 Zen Carbon
62 Jawa 353 "Tank Switch"
83 RD350 HT
87 Yezdi 350 Twin
99 Yamaha YBX
03 RXZ 5-speed
08 Suzuki Access
None Sold!!! All in the Stable