YL1.. Project thread

[m in sc]

and here it is. Picked up friday. its in relatively amazing shape considering the age. yes, the seat is an abomination and the original pan is hacked, so i need something for that. wiring needs to be addressed, had to fix kick starter already as well. but.. i finally got it to run after the carbs were cleaned and some other stuff sorted. motor sounds good, the elec starter actually works, and the frame is rust free. best part, inside the tank looks new. and i had a clear title.








makes a 350 look like a touring bike.



after i fixed kick start mechanism. yes, oil injection works.






does this count as downsizing? 

[Striker1423]

That thing is sick! Those pipes make the little bikes so much throatier sounding than they deserve to be.

[1976RD400C]

Nice. Mine's running like a champ after giving it a once over. One problem I had was I can't get the main baffles out, just the little 3" end tip pieces. I cleaned the whole pipes the best I could but after about 25 miles of hard running, I noticed it was slowing down bad. I pulled the baffle tips back out and pieces of carbon were blocking the tiny little exit holes on them, 3 on each baffle tip. After cleaning, it was a new machine, both sound and power.   

[mills]

Good find!

[SoCal250]

Cool! Congrats Mark

[Kawtriplefreak]

I love it!

[m in sc]

got it idling. loudest tiny carbs ever. 

the rattle is the advance unit. at least i got it to finally idle.

i'll def bun the silencers out, had to do that w the hs1. the headpipes were pretty loaded up, burned them out over the weekend. 


https://youtube.com/shorts/_kN6hGpBa44?feature=share

[msr]

It's such a cool little thing. Reminds me of the stamped metal toys my dad had as a kid. And honestly not much bigger.

[Djg8493]

These are awesome and run like sewing machines!.  I just sold my L5T at Vintage Days last weekend and I know I will regret it.

[soonerbillz]

Nice!
Looks good already.
I've got some parts I think.. I'll look and see.

[m in sc]

yeah, im digging it so far. always amazes me how beat up some of the little bikes are.. i need to straighten the bars and def ger a RH control, mines broken the brake perch off(no surprise).

it doesnt seem to be charging, so now that i have it idling, i can explore that. have a switch and key on way since the old one was all fucked up. 

I am in need of a seat pan, in a bad way. mines all cut up, would prefer to run a stock seat (can get a cover and local guy will do the foam for me).  so whatever anyone has, let me know.

I plan on a deep dive into all things electrical int he next few days. i already had to remove and straighten the foot peg brace, it was bent in some weird ways. like they ghost rode it a few times. unreal. somebody had fun trying to kill it.    

[Striker1423]

Mark, people beat on the little bikes and many (I have found anyway) were used as a dirt bike at some point lol.

[m in sc]

I agree. i imagine me at 12 or so in the 80s would have just trashed it myself .. because i was an idiot. 

[msr]

I would have KILLED for one of these at 13 or 14. Instead I had to beat a Honda SL70 to death. RIP.

[1976RD400C]

My YL1 had the same clues it had a dirt bike life. Mud up under the fenders, bent handlebars, bent shifter, side cover scratches. This thing has been down...... many times.