Yamaha TZ750 - BaT - Veyo, UT

[SoCal250]

(not mine, but sure wish it was!)

Yamaha TZ750 Race Bike
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1973-yamaha-tz750/

Listed as a '73 but I think it's a '74 or '75. No serial number listed in the description. Although if that serial number written on the manual matches the bike then it's a '75 and was on RSBFS back in 2012.
Needs some serious detailing! He probably should have done that before taking the photos.

[preben54]

hi Warren, did you see the non factory swingarm ala seeley looking chain adjusters and longer swingarm ,still a nice looking bike

[Yamanatic]

Hi Preben,
Saw that - strange adjusters; the arm itself looks like a little on the light side. It'sa bit'sa for sure; 700 top end with replacement cases.
Warren

[SoCal250]

Double-checked and it does appear to be the same bike that was on RSBFS, so the serial # is 409-100118 making it a '75 model.

I noticed the odd swingarm and chain pulls. Quite a bit different than the one I saw in July.

[Yamanatic]

SoCal250: That picture is the TZ750A I sold through Iconic recently - Mike Ninci was the original owner. The lengthened aftermarket (unknown Mfg.) swingarm on that bike was very stout; the frame was reinforced too. Wondering where it went... where is that??

Warren

[SoCal250]

Hey Warren. what are the odds? I thought the bike and those pipes looked familiar. That photo was taken 07/19/25 in Camarillo, CA at the Schoenewald Collection. Not sure if he owns the bike or is displaying/storing it for someone else. The collection is pretty large, over 200+ bikes. Sadly, I was there that day for his Celebration of Life.

I also took some pics of it when I was there last October for the 2-Stroke Extravaganza, which has been held at his business for several years.




I'll be visiting the location again next weekend for the 2-Stroke show.

[preben54]

you guys notice on SO Cal pics,those exhaust silencers are old vw aircooled exh tips, I have used them on two strokes before ,works well but maybee not so good looking on that bike imho

[Yamanatic]

Preben, thanks for the location info and extra pics; nice to see the bike isn't in some black-hole collection never to be seen again. The chambers on the TZ750 were the among the earliest that Kel Carruthers (the designer and first builder of X-over pipes) made in 1975 for Mike Ninci. The silencers were installed in the initial build, probably because there were virtually no others available at the time.

I have previously had 2 other vintage 'original chambers' TZ250's with those VW silencers welded on, and also on the early (screw cap) TD2 I'm currently restoring, so possibly they were the least restrictive available early on (un-silenced TZs have claimed more than a few racers hearing, myself included). I'll post a picture of the TD2 pipes before I painted them when I find it.

Thanks again; I'll drop them a note and try to tag the owner - lots of history that never made it into the Iconic listing.

Warren
 

[SoCal250]

Warren, the pics and location info came from me. Not sure how much luck you're going to have getting info on ownership from the Schoenewald Collection since the owner, Daniel passed away suddenly last April. The majority of the bikes in the collection were his, but there were a few owned by friends and stored there on display. I'm not sure what the future plans are for the collection. 

Another photo of it below from July. The view competitors would see.

By the way, I met Kel Carruthers in July up at Laguna. Cool guy full of stories and quite the character.
-Russ

[Yamanatic]

Hey SoCal250, sorry about the mis-directed accolades. I have found myself doing dumb crap like that too much lately ... as much as I hate to admit it, age takes a toll, and dementia runs in our family anyway    Thank you for the info, pics, and understanding!

I remember Kel from some of the major races in the Southeast region, but never dealt with him directly; he was wall-to-wall busy helping the expert class riders at Daytona and Road Atlanta, which were the events I saw him at in the 1970's. Never had much time for social endeavors back then - keeping my lowly RD's running at the track usually ate the entire day(s). I remember once at Moroso in West Palm Beach I lost a rod bearing, and changed motors between the heat race and the Final; the 'Consolation' race actually, I was way novice.

Which brings up an interest point - the age factor, not the bike. Too many of the 'senior' mechanics and racers I know have met their maker, and taken vast amounts of knowledge, experience, and stories with them. On too many occasions I have tried to connect with old friends and associates to brainstorm fixes, source obsolete parts, or just say hi, only to find out they had passed.

Racers Bobby Winters and John Buckner come to mind; Bobby (a 1960's Yamaha Works rider), and John (an Expert TD1 racer from the '60's), had some fascinating stories. Bobby, beat John (2nd place) in the 1966 Daytona 100-mile AMA Championship ... barely. Bobby admitted that even though he was on a Factory TD1, John's privateer TD1 was just a little faster, so required some finesse to cinch the win, by just a few feet:
John and Bobby swapped leads more than a dozen times during the race, but for the last few laps Bobby drafted John and resisted any passing attempts; on the last turn of the last lap, Bobby, who had been watching John's line like a hawk, sandbagged him, dove the corner, made the pass, and managed to stay ahead of John for the win. Bobby said if the finish-line had been 100ft further down the short straight, he would have been passed and lost. John is #155 in the Mag pic, Bobby #20. The 2nd picture below is Bobby Winters standing by the John's bike, 55 years later.

John Buckner has an encyclopedia of stories too; he was a fantastic story teller, and had a great sense of humor =) We had many conversations about the nuts and bolts of making  TD1's fast, but the race reports were the most fun to listen to. He told about how the Honda Factory team was always so secretive and protective of their bikes, but always had their nose in everyone else's stuff, so at a race at Willow Springs with his good friend and race buddy Tony Murphy (Yamaha Factory rider) pulling in the night before, they decided a little payback was in order:
They pitted right across from the Honda team who had left for dinner, unloaded their bikes, boxed them in with their vans, and covered them just like the Honda guys ... Except, before covering they tie-strapped 2 loose expansion chambers above the bike's pipes, and left just enough cover off the rear to see the 4 stingers; the Honda guys had a royal fit trying to figure out what the Yamaha guy had - they thought Yamaha gave Murphy some experimental 4-cylinder 2T or something! There was quite the crowd when they finally pulled the cover off the next morning, and everyone (except maybe the Honda team), got a big laugh because the never let on and surprised everyone with their fakery.

But time marches on, and takes so much history with it. Back in the 60's and 70's nothing much 'Motorcycle Racing' was documented except what made it into Magazines or newspapers, a few short film clips, and zero interviews. If it wasn't for home movies, even big races like Daytona went unrecorded - what's on YouTube is about it. The real stories are going away with the people who actually lived them.   

Warren

[bitzz]

$35,000
Who says prices are depressed?

[Yamanatic]

Well, prices sure are not on the rise:

[preben54]

the yamaha tz 750 from B/T is going to Ireland.my my friend here in town is going to store the bike for him,so maybee I willget a chance too see it,

[Yamanatic]

Hopefully the buyer is a racer too; sadly (for us) Europeans are more likely to ride their vintage racers than we are.

[bitzz]

The problem with racing that is it isn't going to be competitive against a more modern TZ750, with a modern frame... and tires... and wheels... and brakes... and cartridge forks....

Looks cool though