[Prithvi Mundur]

The Bike:
Always knew, never had the flair or the grip with which my Dad used to ride on his bike.
Back then, I was content being a passenger roaming around seated on the motorcycle’s petrol tank.

Gradually, graduated to the designated pillion rider's seat.

There were few instances during my childhood, when I tried to kickstart the motorbike, the bike used to return the kick, and I distinctly remember having swollen ankle couple of times.
Perhaps, that was one of the reasons that I never wanted to progress being the main rider of this bike, for I always felt that the bike has already chosen its master.

I'm good at self-assessment, so it was a foregone conclusion that I was nowhere close to the requisite mastery to handle such a heavy 2-wheeler.

Grew up reading about the legendary Chetak and Maharana Pratap, and somehow used to correlate this bike with that difficult to tame horse.


Eventually, time has come for me to become one with Rajdoot.
Moment has arrived to wake up the bike from its deep slumber.
Dusted it off, and after 3 sneezes and literally over 100 kicks, the 175CC engine roared!

My Mom was joyous revving Rajdoot in neutral.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Zm1fLh-qHJY?feature=share

My name is Rajdoot, and I’m not a Yamdoot. (Just an analogical statement made on the lines of the popular Bollywood dialogue -- My name is Khan, and I'm not a terrorist.)


Trials:
Did a trial run, and soon realized that the kick pedal has got stuck.


My chance encounter with a mechanic (Anand) was a blessing, for he knows in & out of vintage bikes.
He taught me the trick to start this bike without using the kick pedal (With the key in ignition ON, one must push the bike in 1st and while holding the clutch put it in 2nd gear, and the bike then magically starts.)
For I didn't want to always depend on this trick to start the bike, went ahead with procuring a new Kicker. The new kicker had Rajdoot logo, and the part number embossed on it was the same as on the old one. Felt happy to have received a genuine original item sourced from a place in Coastal Andhra even though had to wait couple of weeks for the parcel to arrive.



Unsure of the veracity but while chitchatting with Anand, I was told that the Duke bikes are new avatar of Rajdoot, and then onwards, started to find the sound notes of Duke to be similar to that of the 2-stroke Rajdoot.
Another fascinating trivia is that the maiden bike of aficionado MS Dhoni is from the stable of Rajdoot.

Small garage of "Mekanig" Anand. One may reach out to him as appropriate.



I once parked Rajdoot between two Ninjas at a Tapri, and soon Rajdoot stole the limelight and became the talking point amongst the tea sippers.
It was a facepalm moment for the well suited up Ninja bikers, and I slyly enjoyed the brouhaha.

Choke:
I’m a noob in automobiles, and who isn’t, for the subject is too vast and is difficult to comprehend.
Sound notes of the bike was conspicuously louder when the choke was turned ON.
My mom chided me on whether I did some mischief to increase the volume of the already loud bike.
Looking at the exhaust made me realize that more fuel would be consumed than what is necessary if driven in Choke mode. Felt silly to have realized this so late, but consoled my selves that it’s better late than never.

New ISKCON:
Now that the trial runs are over, and the kick issue is sorted out, wanted to meetup with the Lord Balaji, so as to seek his protection from falling off from this bike.
Vroomed to the new ISKCON near Kanakapura Rd in Bangalore, which is modelled on the Tirupati Balaji Temple.
Upon reaching home, opened Facebook, and could see bombardment of Ads relating to Akshaya Patra foundation.
Evidently, Facebook is sneak peeking into our lives in a big way.

Keyless Rajdoot:
Discovered the keyless feature in Rajdoot. After the key is set in IGN position, one can pull out the keys and safely put inside the pocket. Bike can be then kick started and put into motion. A beneficial feature to foil the stunts of the Traffic cops preying to snatch away the keys.

Body Cover:
Was circumspect while purchasing a Waterproof body cover for Rajdoot via amazon, but was impressed to find out that the cover fits perfectly as if it’s tailor-made for this specific old bike.
Highly recommend waterproof body covers costing approx. Rs.500 as it really is bang for the bucks.

[Abhyjith K.A]

A great short & sweet writeup. Love the bike and the humour! Keep writing and never stop.

Reminds me of the time I was considering one of these for my first own bike (This was well before their market prices, and the market prices of classics in general, shot up into the sky). And it's no wonder why. All 2 strokes are so feelsome and soulful.

Met a wonderful gentleman named Mr. Vivek at a small classic car show once, back in 2018. He was the only one to turn up in 2 classic bikes. A similar black Rajdoot which he restored to perfection himself, and a white Matchless. The Rajdoot was on my mind that time obviously, and we ended up talking, while completely losing track of time.

Since it's your dad's bike here as well, it's something to be cherished forever. Wish you many wonderful miles on it!

Cheers & Happy Riding!

A.

[MVM]

Hello sir, loved reading about your experiences with your Dad's beloved bike.

Originally Posted by Prithvi Mundur

The Bike:
Always knew, never had the flair or the grip with which my Dad used to ride on his bike.

I love this line. We look up to our fathers at every stage in our lives no matter how accomplished we become. Baap toh Baap hota hai.

Sound notes of the bike was conspicuously louder when the choke was turned ON.
Looking at the exhaust made me realize that more fuel would be consumed than what is necessary if driven in Choke mode. Felt silly to have realized this so late, but consoled my selves that it’s better late than never.

Sharing what my dad taught me about chokes. The purpose of a choke is to provide a rich air fuel mixture (ie more fuel than what is necessary to run the bike). This is done to make cold starting the bike easy. Once the bike is running and the engine has warmed up you can close the choke valve since the bike will be running rich.

After the key is set in IGN position, one can pull out the keys and safely put inside the pocket. Bike can be then kick started and put into motion. A beneficial feature to foil the stunts of the Traffic cops preying to snatch away the keys.

Absolutely hilarious that this feature even exists. What was the purpose behind this feature?

[adrift@life]

My friends dad from school had one, this was in 2003, it was vintage and was grabbing eyeballs even at that time. I have had the pleasure of riding this for short trips. Nothing can beat the charm of vintage bikes. Great to see you were able to source spares for the bike. Keep her in top shape.
Happy motoring.

[Prithvi Mundur]

Originally Posted by Abhyjith K.A

A great short & sweet writeup. Love the bike and the humour!

Much thanks for your kind words and appreciation. It's motivational.

Originally Posted by Abhyjith K.A

Keep writing and never stop.

As you say Abhyjith

Following is an addendum to the initial opening thread.

Personality:
Rajdoot knows he is photogenic and a heartthrob.
So, he doesn't shy away from the cameras, and here's a pic of the Black & Handsome Rajdoot.


Streets are empty on account of eclipse, but here cometh the rebellious Rajdoot ain't giving a damn.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=8LQNCd1nDPQ?feature=share

Originally Posted by Abhyjith K.A

And it's no wonder why. All 2 strokes are so feelsome and soulful.

Originally Posted by adrift@life

I have had the pleasure of riding this for short trips. Nothing can beat the charm of vintage bikes.

Absolutely. It's addictive. Once you have experienced rides on the classic bikes, you start to feel something amiss in the new gen ones and it's never the same, and always long for the old and raw.
Old school ways, their charm and grace are poetic, and it reminds me of the song which I'm unable to stop humming now -- Adayein bhi hai, mohabbat bhi hai..Sharafat bhi hai......Woh deewanapan..woh zaalim ada..

I especially like the admonishment I receive as feedback from the bike whenever I slot the gear incorrectly, and the shriek from the bike is as if I'm the cause for Tsunami or the currently ongoing war in Ukraine.

Originally Posted by MVM

Hello sir,

"Sir!" बहुत शरीफ सा लगता है| Call me Raj
Aforesaid is a filmy quote on the lines of the famous dialogue in the Shah Rukh starrer Don 2.

We look up to our fathers at every stage in our lives no matter how accomplished we become. Baap toh Baap hota hai.

I second that.

Absolutely hilarious that this feature even exists. What was the purpose behind this feature?

Shall soon share a demo video of this.
Accidentally found out the keyless feature, and I guess Yamaha Rajdoot wouldn't have intended to run the bikes without the keys.
It's kinda irony that we need to safeguard the keys even from the Police.
Nonetheless, it's a good to have feature in all bikes as it eliminates the risk of Traffic cops or anyone else's forceful attempts to grab away the keys while it's still slotted in the bike, and thus leave the rider stranded.

[Prithvi Mundur]

Originally Posted by MVM

loved reading about your experiences with your Dad's beloved bike.

I love this line.

Thanks again for all the love. It means a lot

Originally Posted by MVM

Absolutely hilarious that this feature even exists. What was the purpose behind this feature?

Here's the keyless feature in action, and the keen-eyed would notice the return kick too.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=DurrjF2xix4?feature=share

Originally Posted by Abhyjith K.A

2 classic bikes. A similar black Rajdoot which he restored to perfection himself, and a white Matchless.
A.

Initially, didn't quite get on what you meant by Matchless. Rereading your sentence, and then googling made me gain bit of intro about the yesteryear bike company.
Coincidentally, there is a connection between ISKCON and the word "Matchless".

Originally Posted by adrift@life

Great to see you were able to source spares for the bike.

Lucky me!

Keep her in top shape.

Yeah. Tentatively, planning to get the bike repainted. Unsure on whether to leave it as is or apply a new coat.

this was in 2003, it was vintage and was grabbing eyeballs even at that time.

Now, 2003 itself feels ages ago. Time just keeps passing by.

Another pic:
Rajdoot with Rajadhiraja

[boniver]

Originally Posted by MVM

Absolutely hilarious that this feature even exists. What was the purpose behind this feature?

Originally Posted by Prithvi Mundur

Shall soon share a demo video of this.
Accidentally found out the keyless feature, and I guess Yamaha Rajdoot wouldn't have intended to run the bikes without the keys.

This is probably due to a worn out key or key cylinder. A new lock set will solve it