[Tejas Ingle]

It was a shock when I learned that an acquaints Yamaha RD 350 was burnt by unknown miscreants about two months back. Someone burnt the cloth which was used to cover the bike. Everything that came in contact with the cloth was damaged. No one was ther at home when this happened. The neighbours doused the flames quickly but much damage was done by the time. Luckily the damage was repairable.
The restoration job was entrusted to me and I started it from the very next day. It took a lot of efforts to get the bike back in shape. Repairing the wiring was the most difficult job since the RD does not have connectors like the modern bikes.
Completed the job recently. Now she's happily doing wheel-spins around.

[Tejas Ingle]

Attaching pics of the bike.

[hillram]

Thats a sad thing to hear and equally happy to hear that she is back to its glory.Shows the passion of the owner.Any pics?

[akshay4587]

Looks good,but i like the look before it got burnt.
you should have stuck to the red paintjob.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by Tejas Ingle

Attaching pics of the bike.

Did you file a police complaint? Any updates on the miscreants?

[Tejas Ingle]

Originally Posted by hillram

Thats a sad thing to hear and equally happy to hear that she is back to its glory.Shows the passion of the owner.Any pics?

Pics attached. Didn't happen in the same post somehow because of slow connection.

Originally Posted by akshay4587

Looks good,but i like the look before it got burnt.
you should have stuck to the red paintjob.

The owner needed some change and demanded grey. So I selected this shade. Looks rich in daylight. Will click daytime pics when I get to see the bike next.

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

Did you file a police complaint? Any updates on the miscreants?

I adviced him to file an FIR but he did not. Never came to know who it was. Found a matchstick lying next to the bike.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by Tejas Ingle

Pics attached. Didn't happen in the same post somehow because of slow connection.

I had a similar experience, about 10-15 years ago, but that was during diwali some road side romeo threw a diwali rocket towards our scooty and the cover caught fire. luckily it was put off very early so even the cover escaped with few burns. Unfortunate to hear that some flamed a RD. Probably he was jealous of your friend's possession.

[Technocrat]

What's with Pune & burning of RDs. I knew someone whose RD was burnt by one of his friends (this came to light later on) due to jealousy.

The restored bike ran with RDD coils & was a pocket rocket.

I agree with Akshay, the original looks were better but the new look is good too, with some clean paint job. I am sure it must be a pocket rocket

[susan3004]

Kiddish rivalry seems to e the reason for such an uncouth act of vandalism. It surely must have come out of jelousy. But I am glad that it has come out well after the restoration.
What's with the single tail pipe? Does it sound sweeter or otherwise?

[rjstyles69]

Honestly the original paint job with red looked awesome and subtle. The black rims (before restoration) was it painted black or a powder coated ?

[amitwlele]

@Tejas - Thats a very good restoration job that you have done. I thought you were only into building cars but bikes also seem to be your forte.

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by Tejas Ingle

Repairing the wiring was the most difficult job since the RD does not have connectors like the modern bikes.

Good Stuff Tejas on the restoration, have a few queries though
1) were the carburetors hurt?
2) Disc Assembly with Caliper looks cool which was it? Looks more likely from a Yam family however
3) Connectors: Would the bike be on CB ignition system?

Personal note: You have made a good attempt at restoring the bike, any reason for those silencers? No Offense mate

[Tejas Ingle]

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

I had a similar experience, about 10-15 years ago, but that was during diwali some road side romeo threw a diwali rocket towards our scooty and the cover caught fire. luckily it was put off very early so even the cover escaped with few burns. Unfortunate to hear that some flamed a RD. Probably he was jealous of your friend's possession.

Originally Posted by Technocrat

What's with Pune & burning of RDs. I knew someone whose RD was burnt by one of his friends (this came to light later on) due to jealousy.

The restored bike ran with RDD coils & was a pocket rocket.

I agree with Akshay, the original looks were better but the new look is good too, with some clean paint job. I am sure it must be a pocket rocket

This bike seems to be the envy of the town. It may be jealousy or insanity or both. It was an eye sore when I first saw the state of the bike after it was burnt. Being in love with the bike myself, it was a pain for me.
The bike has a lot of punch and feels scary at times.

Originally Posted by susan3004

Kiddish rivalry seems to e the reason for such an uncouth act of vandalism. It surely must have come out of jelousy. But I am glad that it has come out well after the restoration.
What's with the single tail pipe? Does it sound sweeter or otherwise?

It is loud and robust but not a pain for ears. We can feel the aggression in the sound.

Originally Posted by rjstyles69

Honestly the original paint job with red looked awesome and subtle. The black rims (before restoration) was it painted black or a powder coated ?

I too personally liked the earlier colour since it was sportier. But it didn't look very good on the bike since the finishing wasn't perfect. I had to change the colour due to the owners demands. The rims were powder coated earlier.

Originally Posted by amitwlele

@Tejas - Thats a very good restoration job that you have done. I thought you were only into building cars but bikes also seem to be your forte.

Thanks buddy. I am both into cars and bikes. All I need is some scope and freedom to experiment. I love to do such jobs.

Originally Posted by ku69rd

Good Stuff Tejas on the restoration, have a few queries though
1) were the carburetors hurt?
2) Disc Assembly with Caliper looks cool which was it? Looks more likely from a Yam family however
3) Connectors: Would the bike be on CB ignition system?

Personal note: You have made a good attempt at restoring the bike, any reason for those silencers? No Offense mate

No, the carburettors weren't hurt. But the fuel tank was. It seems there was a leak in the tank and the earlier owner had sealed it using some sealant. It came off due to heat and it started leaking again. Miraculously the fuel did not ignite, otherwise 6 litres of fuel in the tank would had done some serious destruction. I have now done brazing and the tank is perfect.
It is from an old Kawasaki. Dont know much details about it since it was already there when my friend acquired the RD.
The bike is running on an electronic ignition system. I did not have to touch the ignition system, but the wiring of lighting and instrument cluster was messed up; less because of the fire and more because of mechanics.
Though the present silencer sounds good, it will be replaced with stock ones. Financial issues have caused us to keep the silencers on hold.

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by Tejas Ingle

No, the carburettors weren't hurt. But the fuel tank was. It seems there was a leak in the tank and the earlier owner had sealed it using some sealant. It came off due to heat and it started leaking again. Miraculously the fuel did not ignite, otherwise 6 litres of fuel in the tank would had done some serious destruction. I have now done brazing and the tank is perfect.

There you go, both the bowls on a RD 350 Carb can hold upto 250 Ml of Petrol which is sufficient to blow up the bike big time, let alone the fuel tank. God is great looks like it has come away unscathed. Very clearly remember a Rd 350 which was restored to full glory getting burnt out in a petrol bunk in Mysore some years ago.
Would you not mind to share some more close ups of the front wheel setup? it sounds interesting to say the least.

Good job once again Tejas

[Tejas Ingle]

Originally Posted by ku69rd

Would you not mind to share some more close ups of the front wheel setup? it sounds interesting to say the least.

Good job once again Tejas

Thanks a lot buddy. Here are the closeups of the front wheel which I clicked while I was working. The brake lever is from Pulsar.