[MaverickRD350]

Hey Sachin

What news on 125. Hope you are planning rebuilding that also. Eagerly waiting updates on 125 and how is 200 doing.

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by MaverickRD350

Hey Sachin

What news on 125. Hope you are planning rebuilding that also. Eagerly waiting updates on 125 and how is 200 doing.

The 125 is been rebuild too put at a very slow phase. 200 is doing fine except for a leak from the right manifold, which I plan to get it fixed in the coming week.

[MaverickRD350]

Originally Posted by SnS_12

The 125 is been rebuild too put at a very slow phase. 200 is doing fine except for a leak from the right manifold, which I plan to get it fixed in the coming week.

That's good news...I stay close to your place. Would really like to visit some time and see the RD's. Do let me know if that's ok.

[mh09ad5578]

Hi @SnS! Any updates on the 125 build? Was curious how it panned out?

[SnS_12]

Its been ages since I have updated this thread and I know many people wanted to have an update on the RD 125 rebuild. Sadly, the build has been put on hold for the past few years due to various issues. It was supposed to resume in February but thanks to current COVID-19 situation it is back on hold again.

Anyway, the original tank was not in a very good condition as the motorcycle was left unattended for many years in the open before I had purchased it. We tried to save the tank as much as possible but the rust formation was just too much. So now I have to source a Tank including a set of silencers.

On the RD 200, I haven't been riding it very often just like my other motorcycles and was standing under the garage cover for almost a year. Plus the papers had expired so had to get that sorted as well. So, finally last year got the papers renewed and the 200 was put in a tempo and taken to Tony's for a full service. She runs just like new now and am eagerly waiting to get back to riding her again hopefully before the monsoon set in.

Some pictures...



Pitting corrosion







The amount of dust collected over a year







Since I had not ridden it for a long time there was a lot of oil that had settled down in the crank and I was not very keen on riding it in this condition.









But she straight away fired up at Tony's

[SnS_12]

Some more pictures...

RD 125 engine waiting to be opened up..



Old school Inline twin













A paint shade inspired from the Lamborghini Murcielago orange.. This was painted at Mkraft and still shines like new even after so many years..





Finally a video of the Baby RD screaming..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yrb3uvUlUM

[SnS_12]

Anyone who has owned a two stroke would know how temperamental these bikes are especially if they are not ridden often.

The 200 has been no different and always comes up with weird issues as if its getting back at me for not riding it often enough.

Since, the last two time I got it serviced there was a strange oil leak from the right manifold and we thought maybe its leaking from the reed valve. But with the problem reoccurring after the work been done meant we had not identified the issue correctly. So after some deeper investigation it was found that the culprit was the oil pump and was feeding the right side cylinder even when standing idle.

So, got that sorted out and also got the fuel tap changed as it started leaking as well. Also, since the RX had competed nearly a decade since the last restoration decided to dismantle the whole bike to paint and replace parts which were ageing.

Some pictures..






















Starting from left how it looked back in 2004 and then 2020 and now back with the OE tank decal in 2021



Got these from the official Amazon page of Yamaha for both the RX and RD






The 2t oil collected below the carbs thanks to a faulty oil pump



After a 3 hr cleaning and detailing session





























The special grab rail gifted by a member of the AircooledRD club from UK



Nothing can beat the sound of an inline twin two stroke 😃

https://youtu.be/Dng4c4Wo4ws

[no_fear]

Seeing the RX 125 dashboard brought back a lot of childhood memories. My uncle used to own the RX 125 and he would let me sit close to the gas tank. I was always fascinated with the instrument panel - all the green indicators..

Your resto-mod is amazing. Kudos to you. I am working on some mods and rebuilds of a few bikes I bought in the past year and this year, and I can understand the amount of commitment and labor needed to bring back these beauties to their true selves.

Carry on the good work. Much luv for these bikes. They have found a good home to live the rest of their lives.

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by no_fear

Seeing the RX 125 dashboard brought back a lot of childhood memories. My uncle used to own the RX 125 and he would let me sit close to the gas tank. I was always fascinated with the instrument panel - all the green indicators..

Your resto-mod is amazing. Kudos to you. I am working on some mods and rebuilds of a few bikes I bought in the past year and this year, and I can understand the amount of commitment and labor needed to bring back these beauties to their true selves.

Carry on the good work. Much luv for these bikes. They have found a good home to live the rest of their lives.

Thank you for your kind words. Just to clarify this is a RX 135 and not a RX 125. The tank and side panel monograms were bought from Malaysia as they has the yellowish gold lettering to match with the wheels.

The RX especially being my first motorcycle has been through many changes since 2005 and the experience over the years has been a really valuable learning exercise. After the block was ported for the first time I seized my piston on a ride to Vapi (Gujarat) with other biker buddies. Had never experienced a piston seizure before and it was my quick reflex of pulling in the clutch at 100+ kph to get the bike on the side of the road safely. Luckily was riding with friends who managed to tow me with a rope to Vapi city (happened around 10-15 kms before Vapi city)where we managed to bore the block and change the piston and rode the bike back home at a steady pace of 60 kph. This is when I learnt the importance of not riding on a lean mixture and we went about getting the jetting sorted the next time around.

The second experiment we did was to fit a RD connecting rod and the bike just became mental with that insane torque. On a trip to Nashik with my cousin as pillion we were doing some silly 3 digit speeds and there was a Santro guy who was just awe struck looking at us overtake him at speeds at which the RX would struggle even riding single forget about doing that two up , Sadly this setup didn't last long either as the top end connecting rod bearing couldn't handle the extra power and gave up.

As luck would have it I seized my piston one more time thanks to a stupid mistake of not topping up the 2t oil tank and it went completely dry by the time I got back home. It was not bad as the first time as the bike was still rideable.

Now, currently I am running on the fourth oversize piston and its one of the best setup with power all across the rev range. The only parts original on the bike from when I bought it would be:

a) Head, Block, engine casing , gearbox
b) Magnet and coil set
c) 2t oil pump
d) Carburetor (with revised jets though)
e) Air box (with holes drilled in them for more air intake)
f) Power box
g) Tool box
h) Rear grab rail

[srini1785]

One of my acquaintance from Sri Lanka is looking for the decal set and the original badge for RD125. Where can i find one here in India?.

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by srini1785

One of my acquaintance from Sri Lanka is looking for the decal set and the original badge for RD125. Where can i find one here in India?.

Only the RD 350 (air cooled) was sold in India officially so depending on the model whether its an LC (liquid cooled) or air cooled you can try out ebay for the RD 125. Chances of getting OE stuff which is still in its packing for these classics is a challenge and if you find one they will be really expensive. I paid close to 20k for a set of meters I had ordered a decade ago.

[Micki9559]

Originally Posted by SnS_12

Only the RD 350 (air cooled) was sold in India.

Just came across this thread. I have 2 RD 125s, (Yes, 2 of them) One is a '76
and the other is an '82 RD125DX. Would love to get in touch with you next time I am in Mumbai. I know of atleast another 3 bikes too!

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by Micki9559

Just cam across this thread. I have 2 RD 125s, (Yes, 2 of them) One is a '76 and the other is an '82 RD125DX. Would love to get in touch with you next time I am in Mumbai. I know of at least another 3 bikes too!

Hey, that's lovely to hear and do let me know when you're in Mumbai next. Mine too is the DX which produces 18 bhp and was a single owner run for about 28k and well maintained (engine internals) cosmetic wise the Mumbai humidity took its toll over the years it was parked in the garage I picked it from. Sadly, its still awaiting its time to be restored fully and hit the road again. I have only seen pictures and videos of other 125's down south. Do you mind sharing pictures of yours?

[Burjis Zaveri]

Since the thread seems to have gone dormant, attaching a post that would be relevant here.

I happened to have been going through older Bombay VCCCI rally images and spotted a Yamaha RD 125. Attaching the same here.

The post is #33 in the thread- https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/vinta...-2015-a-3.html (VCCCI Rally in Mumbai on 1st Feb, 2015)

All picture credits to Stanher who has uploaded the same there. That particular bike too seems to be a 125DX.

Also attaching the picture here in the thread.

[thebikemaster]

Wish there was a barn like this for me also to jump in and go through this fantastic time period.
I can clearly understand how painful it is to see some bikes degrade like this in abandoned stage. Clearly requires the courage to take them and blow life back into it.
I have gone this similar path in restoring my 83 Yezdi and 89 Rx100 and my beloved RD350.
Restoring is a never-ending process I feel, the itch to make it perfect step by step will be there throughout our ownership period.

Loved reading through the thread and those old memory photos from the mobile phone cameras.