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Finally have my unicorn at home, a 1984 Yamaha RZ500.  I made the deal for it years ago with my friend, sight unseen as it was buried in his garage (next to a 1941 Indian 4, made an offer on that when we pulled the RZ out).  I was finally able to talk him into letting me pull it out.  The RZ is missing some parts which may or may not be elsewhere in the garage, or at the old shop.  My question is are there parts that will fit from other Yamaha's as the parts book shows RZ500 (47X) specific parts.

The parts in question are:
47X-84721-11   LENS, Taillight
47X-847232-00   GASKET, Tail Lens
47X-23340-01-39   UNDER BRACKET COMP (lower triple)
47X-24602-00   CAP ASSY (gas cap)
47X-24560-00   FILTER ASSY (fuel outlet from tank to petcock)
47X-24773-01-98   HANDLE, seat (rear grab rail)

Pics attached of the recovery and as uncovered.  Bodywork was in boxes minus fasteners, and in really bad shape.  For having less than 4600Km it led a hard life.  It was shipped in pieces from New Zealand and reassembled in another mentor's shop.  Was ridden hard on and off the track until it was parked at my friend's house.

So the oil pump on my DT100A project leaks from one of the seals inside the cover, not the shaft seal.  I found another similar pump at the shop.  Now as I understand it, Yamaha made pump housings for the number of cylinders for which they supplied oil; 1, 2, 3...  So for my purposes, any pump for a single would work, as long as the gearing is correct.  So, as far as I can tell, there are only two gears that come into play, the worm gear and the internal gear driven by the worm gear.  I'm guessing the gear that is different is the worm gear as this the easiest to interchange.  Also, it is the only gear listed in the parts catalogue, and there are more than one listed.

Anyone out there that can confirm that I just need to make sure the worm gears are the same, or swap them if necessary?  I have to use the driven gear on the existing pump as the one I found doesn't have one.  That's one less gear to worry about.

A recent post regarding an R5 has me reminiscing.  My first motorcycle was an R5.  I was going to Purdue and wanted transportation.  This was about 1989 or so.  Someone listed a 1972 Yamaha in the classifieds for $250.  Being the good son I called my Dad for permission to purchase it.  He says, 'no'.  So I bought it anyway.  I may have disobeyed him, but I did purchase insurance and bought proper riding gear.  Nowadays we call it PPE.  Rode it for quite a while.  Eventually it stopped running between Purdue and my girlfriend's place past the end of S.R. 25.  I'm guessing that the 2-stroke oil ran out, but then again I'm pretty sure my girlfriend's uncle told me to make sure there was oil.  This was back in the late '80's or early 90's so who knows now.  In any case, I borrowed my fraternity brother's truck and brought it back to the frat house.  I came back to HI that year and gave it to my 'big brother' in the frat.  He managed to get it to his father's farm in Monticello.  We stayed in touch and when I was financially stable enough to have it shipped to me I tried to get him to have it shipped.  That never happened.  His dad sold the farm but the buyer agreed to hang on to the R5 since I wanted it.  My 'big bro' never came through.  One of my best friends while at Purdue had a son studying there.  He and his girlfriend drove to the farm to see if they could get the R5 and ship it to me.  No one was home so they left a note in the mailbox.  The farmer called them, he had put it on the side of the road a couple of months earlier.  It disappeared before the end of the day.

Attached are the pics my 'big bro' sent me when I first asked him to take it to the dealership that was willing to crate it and send it to me.  It is still the most beautiful motorcycle I've ever owned.

Picked up an almost all original TA125 with spares.  From what I can tell the only mods were the 2T oil pump has been removed and the oil tank bottom was cut out of the seat, maybe an aftermarket kill button.  With luck and a lot of searching I think I can find the original bill of sale.  Still has the tech inspection sticker from the last race it was in on the upper fairing.  I'm in the process of cleaning it up so I can bring it inside to put in my office.  Apparently the CDI didn't like being disturbed as it leaked a bunch of the resin type substance.  It had a little on it when I removed it so I'm not too surprised it leaked.  My question is what do I need to do to keep it from leaking more?  Do I let it drain and then fill it and seal it?  If so what do I use?  I did some quick searching and it seems there may be places that can take care of the issue, but didn't name any.

Any ideas or information would be appreciated.

I've seen questions regarding high vs low top carburetors at least a couple of times.  I don't recall any replies mentioning the attached Yamaha technical bulletin.  I happened to find it by accident while skimming the parts manual while on hold on the phone.  The TB shows the difference to be an attempt, "...to improve the waterproof qualities of the carburetors and to prevent sticking slides..."

I always figured the 'boot' was to keep water out.  As for the increase in slide length, I've heard more than one explanation.  Now that I've seen this TB it makes sense as the explanations always centered around how the slide moves, either the up/down motions, or from vibrations.  Basically that the longer slide allows the slide to move more smoothly.

*****Keep in mind the 1974 DT125A has an electric start and a12V electrical system*****


Tried to swap out the stock R/R for a Trail Tech unit today as the battery wasn't charging well.  I connected the wires to the TT unit as follows:
Motorcycle - Trail Tech R/R
Red - Red
Black - Black
White - Yellow
Green - Yellow

There was no current to the battery, the voltage was roughly the same before starting as after starting and did not climb when the RPMs were increased.  I'm guessing this has something to do with a 'floating' ground?  I've attached the TT instructions.

Also; here is a post that was on treatland's website regarding the R/R.

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"Wired this bad boy up to a capacitor and oh man, LET THERE BE LIGHT!!!

Black - Ground (- side or ground)
Red - Capacitor/Battery and lights (+ side)
Red/Yellow - Not used
Yellow 1 - input AC current coming from Stator
Yellow 2 - Also Ground

Wired up my pinto this way there was no need to float the ground. Voltage stays regulated around 13V - 14V (adjusted) with no issues.

The post on mopedarmy about wiring this up does not work and you don't have to float the ground."
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I did try grounding each Yellow wire individually to see if it would work.  There was no change.

I'm hoping someone has managed to get this to work...

So the Grom GUS project is all but finished (explanation follows).  It was way more involved than the manufacturer's website (https://industrialmoto.com/) led me to believe. The website lead me believe it would be a 'bolt-on' installation.  Installation was much more involved. 

The kit was purchased as an anniversary present from both of us to both of us.  Unfortunately we didn't realize the lead time necessary so it would arrive late.  Industrial Moto was awesome and sent me a swag package to give to my wife while we waited for the kit.

The kit arrived with the box really beat up.  There were large chips out of the powder coating as a result of the poor packing.  What was most puzzling was the large chip out of the powder coating on a smaller part that was wrapped well and protected by the 'car' portion of the kit.

When I started to assemble everything I realized the tabs that bolt from the motorcycle frame to the sidecar were about 1" out of alignment, on two planes; front to back and side to side.  My email to the company was responded to with it's OK to just bend everything to line up.  Really?  To get all 3 holes to line up I had to bent one bracket forward and use the sidecar 'cart' to increase the torque so that I could get the cart away from the motorcycle enough to drop the bolt in.  On top of that, the installation of the rear bracket put the foot peg bracket about 1/8" away from the frame.  Instructions were to just tighten it down.  Yeah not happening, I bought a washer of sufficient thickness to take up most of the space.

OK, 'cart' mounted.  Time for installing suspension and wheel.  The suspension amounted to a swingarm knuckle and a shock.  When all was bolted up the shock was at about a 30 degree angle away from the 'cart' to the knuckle.  On top of that the amount of lateral play because the knuckle was not captured between anything was scary.  I took the rig for a test ride.  Not only was the amount of shaking due to the play scary, the motorcycle went into a hard left after turning at the end of the street and would not stop turning until I stopped the motorcycle.  The instructions stated everything would be setup pretty close to where it should be.  Research showed it was not even close.

After lots of online research and talking to a friend who has setup many sidecar rigs I learned that the sidecar has to have enough toe-in so that it tracks in a straight line, I've set ours for a speed of about 35 mph as that's about the average on our little trips.  The motorcycle should also lean about 3 degrees away from the sidecar.  To get the toe-in correct I had to remove the rear bracket, section out about 2" and weld in an adjuster.  There was not enough adjustment at the front mount to get the proper toe-in.  As for the lean, there is not enough adjustment to correct that, fixing that will take a lot of work.  As such it has not been tackled.

A lot of the shaking was taken care of by machining fender washers on my lathe to capture the knuckle between two planes, taking away the lateral movement.  As the shock included in the kit had rubber bushings, not a rotating eye, for the bolts I machined spacers so that it only moves in one plane, front to back.  All of these modifications made a huge difference.

Sidecars do cause headshake so I added a GPR steering damper.  That was the final modification and made a huge difference.  The damper unfortunately leaked and was returned for warranty service.  Riding without the damper reinforced how much of a difference it makes.  I can't wait to get it back.

Once all the above had been I added a brake light and blinker to the sidecar, and disconnected the right blinker on the Grom (so as not to confuse people).  I spliced a trailer tail light plug into the stock harness in a way that makes it easy to disconnect the sidecar and reconnect the stock lights if necessary.  (Once again to no confuse people when getting the annual safety check required in Hawaii.)

I did contact Industrial Moto regarding all of the above.  They did say they would work with me to modify the rear bracket but never did.  In reality the rear bracket should not be fixed, it should have a Heim joint on both ends so that the toe-in can be adjusted from the rear.  The front should be as close as possible to the motorcycle.  In fact the whole sidecar assembly should.  That is one part of the design that is correct.  The sidecar is about as close as possible to allow an adult foot to use the rear brake.

The sidecar assembly is already showing rust, apparently the powder coating wasn't that good.

The next addition will be a backrest and small rack behind it for the sidecar seat.

Pictures as it is are attached.  I also have pictures of it before bending things to line up, and of the modifications done to it.

All in all we love it, but at $2000 it was overpriced due to all of the issues.  In reality the 'suspension' doesn't do much, it moves about 1/2" when I jump up and down on it, and barely moves when my wife does.

Looking for a good Koso or Trail Tech type gauge assembly for 6 volt system that monitors; speed, RPM, and temp; as well as indicators for neutral and blinkers.

Haven't been able to find one.  Does anyone know of one?  This would go into my DT100A or YSR50/80, or possibly both.

Another of the many projects going on.  Actually there are two of these.  Both are works in progress and are up for sale.  One needs the rebuilt carburetor installed, the fork boots cut off to check the condition of the forks, and a test run.  The other hasn't run in years but is also complete.  I have a rebuilt carburetor for it also.

Pics is of the former.

Frank's Forks has a projected opening date on their site now; May 1, 2021.

http://franksforks.com/

I noticed Economy Cycle's thread about JIS screwdrivers and wanted to add some more info;

Vessel tools are awesome.  I've been using them for years. 
I started with the blue handled 900, 910, and 920 series as they were a bit more affordable, and also the Impacta's.
I then decided to step up to the 930 series.
Here is the link to their complete line-up:
https://www.vessel.co.jp/english/

At the same time I noticed tools made by Engineer, Inc.
I have an assortment of screw removal tools and e-clip removal pliers.
The screw removal tools are awesome.  I was skeptical but since I was in Japan and wasn't sure if I could find them in the US I bought them along with the Vessel screwdrivers.
Here is the link to their complete line-up:
https://www.engineertools-jp.com/

All I can say is that having the proper tool for the job is indispensable and saves all kinds of time and frustration.

So...this was purchased as an engine donor for a YSR project.  Popular opinion is that it should be brought back to roadworthiness.

I should have taken pictures of it before we pulled it down.  It was on a shelf about 4.5' off the ground.  Just tall enough to have motorcycles under it and on top of it.  When I first met my friend the bikes on top were 2 Montessa's, a Saracin, Yamaha DT250 (GYT kit, built to Kenny Roberts specs), 1974 Yamaha DT100A, TZ250 with 350 cylinders and pistons (original parts are in the shop), and a TA125.  Sorry don't know the years of the Montessa's, Saracin, DT250, TZ or TA. The TZ has been sold, took less than a week after we pulled it down and took pics.  The DT100A is obviously the one in the title of the post.  The rest are up for grabs.  Make a (reasonable) offer.  Shipping is from Hawaii.

I've attached pics of the DT100A as it was when I brought it home, as well as pics with missing parts that were found in the shop installed.  The ignition and left hand switch aren't correct but I can rewire to work.

The bike was well abused before my friend rescued it.  Just look at the pic of the oil pump side and you'll get an idea of the flywheel/magneto side.  As far as I can tell the left hand flywheel and countershaft sprocket covers had been removed to fit a shift lever not meant for the motorcycle.  The shifter wouldn't fit after I put the covers on...

I have the lenses for the front blinkers, the rear blinkers, taillight, and headlight.  As of right now I haven't found the oil tank or headlight ears.  A stock exhaust would be nicer, but not necessary.

Got back a YSR50/80 project I started 25 years ago and sold about 15 years ago.  I still hadn't been built or started.  I now have the engine running.  It has a Team Calamari 24mm flat slide w/o oil injection.  I would like to add oil injection so I don't have to worry about premix.  The easiest way I can think is to add a carb spacer with an oil injection port.  Has anyone done this?

Anyone have a pdf on the Dave F mod?  The link on Economy Cycle's site is dead and I can't seem to find them via a Google search.

I'm rebuilding carburetors for an RD350.  Current main is a 160, main in the rebuild kit is a 140, manual shows main as a 130.  Needle is a 5I4, manual shows a 5J6 in 3rd position, if I'm reading it correctly.  Also, where do you count clip position from?  Furthest from the point?  Closest to point?  It's been a while.

Any tips for getting the master cylinder dust boot over the piston?  Currently working on an RD350 master, but have an RZ350 not far behind that will need to be done also.

Attached are pictures of a pair of pipes from a parts RD350 I picked up.  Looks like the previous owner liked riding over parking blocks.  Both are pretty flat on the bottom.  I'm guessing they were also crashed as the bike was crashed.  I'm planning on cutting the damaged parts out an repairing them by beating them back into shape over a piece of pipe.  Either that or just buying sheet metal and shaping it the same way.  Then welding the pieces back in.

I also need to repair the baffles as they are rusted and broken.  I can't find any markings on the pipes that tell me who the manufacturer was.  They appear chrome where the black paint is chipped off.  Anyone have an idea of who the manufacturer may have been?  If so I can try get get replacement baffles from them.  Or, does anyone know where I can buy the perforated tubing so I can rebuild the baffles?  The diameter is 2.5" where the baffles go, the perforated tubing is 1" in diameter.

OK, so I'm trying to figure out a good Li-Ion / Li-Fe battery for my RD350's and RZ350's.  I started the research years ago but my projects were put on the back burner.  With the whole COVID-19 pandemic I've had more time to work on the projects, hence all my recent posts.  The following is the information I've compiled:

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YUASA:
Product Specifications for 12N5-5A-3B Dry Charge Battery:
SPECIFICATIONS:
Yuasa Part #:   12N5.5A-3B
Voltage:   12 Volt
Capacity:   5.5 Ah
Type:   Dry Charge
Length:   4.06"
Width:   3.56"
Height:   4.5"
Cold Cranking Amps:   44 CCA

SHORAI (POSSIBLE REPLACEMENT):
SPECIFICATIONS:
Shorai Part #:   LFX09A2-BS12
Voltage:   12 Volt
Capacity:   9.0 Ah
Type:   LiFe
Length:   4.45"
Width:   2.28"
Height:   3.50"
Cold Cranking Amps:   135 CCA

SHORAI (RECOMMEDED BY SHORAI):
SPECIFICATIONS:
Shorai Part #:   LFX14L2-BS12
Voltage:   12 Volt
Capacity:   14.0 Ah
Type:   LiFe
Length:   4.45"
Width:   2.28"
Height:   3.50"
Cold Cranking Amps:   210 CCA

BATTERY TENDER (POSSIBLE REPLACEMENT):
SPECIFICATIONS:
Battery Tender Part #:   BTL09A150CW  *****corrected brand and part number*****
Voltage:   12 Volt
Capacity:   2.5 Ah (I think this is the lithium rating, not the lead-acid rating)
Type:   LiFePO4
Length:   4.50"
Width:   2.80"
Height:   3.40"
Cold Cranking Amps:   150 CCA
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All of these have more than 44 CCA.  Shorai recommends one with 210 instead of the one with 135.  Does anyone know the reason?  I was going to use the one with 135, but I also have the one with 210.  Both aren't being used right now.  I included the Battery Tender one as they now have built in monitoring, which seems benificial.

Looking for gaiters for the RD350.  The Emgo ones I purchased didn't last long at all.  I purchased these for the DT125 and they are holding up much better, 2 years and still looking good:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/30mm-Black-Rubber-Forks-Boots-Gaiters-Gators-Yamaha-RD200-DS125-DT175-more/153097894133?hash=item23a55878f5:g:5h8AAOSwo4pYd~XN

Found the following listing while trying to find gaiters for the RD:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/30mm-Black-Rubber-Forks-Boots-Gaiters-Gators-Yamaha-RD250-RD350-RD400-DS7-TD3/202354646998?hash=item2f1d46dfd6:g:5h8AAOSwo4pYd~XN

Both are the same item if you look at the specs.  My concern is how much will the stretching around the circumference affect the life of the gaiter?  Does anyone have any experience with this?

Does anyone know of any gaiters that have the same circumferences of the RD fork tubes and lowers?

Does anyone have 3D print files for R5 and RD350 tank badges?  I seem to recall someone was working on tank badges at some point but can't find the thread.