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Under a savage looking sky, here's my 1971 Suzuki TS-250R "Savage"

The Yamaha YG1, first introduced in 1963, was a popular small motorcycle known for its sporty design and practical features. It featured a 73cc single-cylinder, two-stroke engine with a rotary disc valve and a four-speed transmission. The YG1 was praised for its reliability, ease of maintenance, and enjoyable riding experience, making it a successful model for Yamaha. Just like Honda's C100's the little YG1 was Yamaha's bread and butter during the early to mid sixties which kept the company afloat. 

Here's my 1963 and 1964 YG1 Yamaha's. Both are pre-mix models as Autolube wasn't released until August of 1964.


The 1964 is a survivor, I did a partial restoration on the '63 as it had more patina than I liked.


The easiest way to identify the '63 from the '64 is by the tail light. In 1964 the tail light was enlarged from the round '63 to meet new DOT requirements beginning the first of the year in 1964.

Picked up this rough looking Mini Enduro as part of a package deal. I've got it to run nice but have many parts on order to complete it. Not looking to make it a show bike but hopefully a respectable rider.

I was really happy to find this complete 1970 DS6B. They were a one year model for Yamaha (actually less than 9 months), before being replaced by the YDS7 which was the first horizontally split 250. Going through the carbs etc before firing up. Still haven't located a key so may have to hot wire.


 

Just like the American and European motorcycle manufactures, Japan had many companies that didn't survive in the post war motorcycle industry, but a few of them came close. Manufacturers such as Yamaguchi, Tohatsu, Marusho and Pointer lasted into the early 60's before collapsing due to various economic reasons. Kawanishi Naval Aircraft Corporation started producing Pointer motorcycles in 1946 and by 1962 or '63 had stopped manufacturing motorcycles but still continued with other products under several different name changes. The last Pointers were built by Shin Meiwa Industry Co., Ltd., of Osaka Japan. It was one of Japan's leading aviation firms.
While most of my collection is focused on the "Big Four" Japanese bikes that were commonly purchased during the '60s to early '70s, I am fascinated by the rarely seen or heard of models that also came out of Japan during that era. Pointer had several models that were advertised in nearly all the cycle magazines from about '61 to early '64. The Super Lassie and a larger Comet model were the most heavily promoted. From the research I've done, I believe the factory quite producing motorcycles by late '62 or early '63, and any bikes sold after that time were just closeouts. This Super Lassie is titled as a '64 so it was probably one of the very last Pointers sold in the US. Now it has finally found a home in my "Rizingson Collection", where it will be occasionally ridden, shown and preserved as is. If anything breaks on it, it will become an instant boat anchor as there are absolutely no parts available that I am aware of at this time. Only one other and possibly a 3rd exist in the USA, and one I've found in Canada. If anyone knows of one hidden away please speak up!

The Pointer Super Lassie was a sleek, mostly cream colored, 90cc two stroke motorcycle imported into Cleveland, Ohio, from Japan, beginning in 1962. The 89cc 2-stroke engine put out 7 hp and could reach the advertised top speed of 60 mph, which was verified by a road test in Cycle World (April 1963). Mine will need some fine tuning to perform that well, as it feels a little boggy now. I understand that the luggage rack may not have been a factory option, but seems to fit the bike well without detracting from the styling.

A few people have suggested that the styling is taken from Honda's C110, due to the upswept pipe, full chain guards and horizontal engine. Also the plastic front fender with rubber mud flap. The leading link suspension looks similar to other Japanese brands, but is said to be a torsion type designed by Neidhalt. The dual rear view mirrors were standard equipment, unlike Honda.

The speedometer is showing only 442 miles, but it is hard to say if it is correct, however the Mecum ad says it is believed to be correct. Within the speedometer is the neutral light and charging light. The Super Lassie is also equipped with turn signals; fortunately these are in good working order, as are all the electrics, such as headlight, starter, tail lights and horn

One particularly interesting feature is the fuel tank.  A new type of construction incorporates the fuel tank as an integral part of the frame structure, allowing a greater fuel capacity (2.4 Gal). Here you can see how the fuel tank is part of the frame. The 3 position ignition switch is located in the left side of the headlight bucket.

I first saw this 1967 Yamaha Bonanza about 5 years ago, but passed on taking it with me. It had spent 40+ years in a barn and then another 5 years in an abandoned munitions bunker. After getting another chance at it, now it's time to finally get this street bike back into riding condition. Since the trend now is to leave bikes completely original as opposed to full restorations, I've attempted to do just exactly that. While this bike appeared to be well preserved under a lot of dust and road tar, it would take dismantling and more work than I anticipated, to be able to give it a deep cleaning. More than once I was tempted to forgo the clean up and proceed with blasting and a nut and bolt restoration.

Here you can see the heavy layer of protective dirt and grime that was on this YCS1 when I first saw it 5 years ago. Thankfully the climate in Southern Colorado isn't humid and rust wasn't an issue.


First I needed to lose the sissy bar and luggage rack combo as well as the crash bar. Then after a good washing with a pressure washer which still left plenty of grime everywhere, it was time to haul it home and get serious with cleaning it up. They said it would be fun!


As with many barn finds, a little time is needed to remove old batteries and mouse nests. This is starting to look a little uglier, especially around the electric systems.


I was hoping to start with the front of the bike and work my way back with cleaning. Here I've removed the front wheel, which got a new ribbed tire and tube installed. Also a little clean up and polishing on the front fender and forks.


Much further disassembly was required to get into all the nooks and crannies. Here I've removed the whole rear end. Was surprised that the engine had spark here, a good sign!


After continuing clean up, a new Avon rear tire is installed, rear fender and mufflers polished up! Some areas around tool box and battery compartment did need some touch up, but still trying to preserve original paint in areas that are seen when side cover, seat and tank are back in place. Hope it's still considered a survivor! 


Had to get it off the lift so I could start getting other bikes ready for upcoming shows. So I took it outside for a couple more photo's. Finally finished except waiting for new turn signals to arrive and some final carburetor sorting.



Cockpit view showing pretty average mileage on this one, hope it still has a few more miles in it!


Now all I need to do is get motivated once again to get my matching '68 YCS1-C Bonanza scrambler up and running. One more project out of the way for now!

No, this isn't the sportiest RD ever but I don't doubt it will be a blast to ride! The 1973 Yamaha RD60 is actually a 55cc bike, but it such a cool little bike I couldn't help not wanting to put a nice one in my stable.

Under the sideways flip over seat was a complete original tool kit with a spare spark plug. Also the last registration papers for street legal riding dated for use in '92/'93. The required 6V battery had been removed though, which is a good thing for storage. Not one speck of corrosion could be seen in the unsealed tank!


The very streamlined tank holds an impressive 2.1 gallons of fuel providing a traveling range of nearly 200 miles on a single tank. The injection oil tank also holds a generous 1.1 qt of oil.


The engine is a 7 port reed valve induction 2 stroke putting out a mere 4.9 HP. It will take a lot of shifting of the 5 speed transmission to maintain the rpm's within the power band. Top speed is claimed to be 53 MPH. A 10,000 rpm red line will allow this little engine to scream. Although it is said to be low on power, especially under 5k RPM's, the fun factor should be right at the top of the scale.