[Group] YAMAHA RD 350 LC TONG - The Legend

[swiftee]

oh yes, my rd is giving out unholy amounts of white smoke. so much that the pedestrians hate it at traffic lights and when the wind blows its like a cloud. is this normal for lc tong or should i adjust the 2t intake? Thanks.

[pinkomax]

It may be more of a problem than you think. The LC's are 2 strokes obviously and the crank oil seals are prone to failure. The result is engine oil getting into the combustion chamber and burning up with the 2T, only adding to the exhaust smoke which can be very bad at times. Yes, it may also be the 2T pump as the bike is now about 30 years old so you will need to trouble shoot.

 

I am looking for one to, I had one as a teen and had a lot of fun with the bike. I was shocked to see how much the asking prices for them are these days, and the bikes do not even look all that good. I have looked about for parts availibility as well, and I have come to realise that this will be one big issue as well. Some parts are still available but not all the important cosmetic bits.

 

Even scrap machines are quickly broken down and shipped off to Malaysia where these bikes are still respected and valuable. Not here though. I wonder why as this is a real classic. I know about the fuel intake but this is part of owning a LC right.

 

You mentioned a local RD club. There is a very active club for these bikes in Malaysia where they organise charity events and rides, but not so here. Word around town in that there is in fact a local RD club of sorts, but they don't seem to organise anything or arrange outings so very few know who they are. I think it's only a group of friends who own this bike, but this is hardly a club in the true sence of the word. If you guys are out there, please organise a get together where all Tong owners, past - current - and future can meet and get to know each other.

 

I don't blame them though as there are so few of these bikes left and in busy Singapore, everyone has to work and has their own family commitments to deal with. Somehow, riding motorcycles around was something from the past, in a simpler time befire life caught up with them.

 

Anyway, best of luck with your bike but you may have problems with meters as they have not been available for many years now.

 

Ride safe everyone.............

[pinkomax]

One more thing, I have been looking for a RD500 or RZ500 for a while now. Where can I find one and are there any of them left? Any of you LC experts can point me in the right direction please.........

 

Thanks for any help you can give me.

[swiftee]

It may be more of a problem than you think. The LC's are 2 strokes obviously and the crank oil seals are prone to failure. The result is engine oil getting into the combustion chamber and burning up with the 2T, only adding to the exhaust smoke which can be very bad at times. Yes, it may also be the 2T pump as the bike is now about 30 years old so you will need to trouble shoot.

 

I am looking for one to, I had one as a teen and had a lot of fun with the bike. I was shocked to see how much the asking prices for them are these days, and the bikes do not even look all that good. I have looked about for parts availibility as well, and I have come to realise that this will be one big issue as well. Some parts are still available but not all the important cosmetic bits.

 

Even scrap machines are quickly broken down and shipped off to Malaysia where these bikes are still respected and valuable. Not here though. I wonder why as this is a real classic. I know about the fuel intake but this is part of owning a LC right.

 

You mentioned a local RD club. There is a very active club for these bikes in Malaysia where they organise charity events and rides, but not so here. Word around town in that there is in fact a local RD club of sorts, but they don't seem to organise anything or arrange outings so very few know who they are. I think it's only a group of friends who own this bike, but this is hardly a club in the true sence of the word. If you guys are out there, please organise a get together where all Tong owners, past - current - and future can meet and get to know each other.

 

I don't blame them though as there are so few of these bikes left and in busy Singapore, everyone has to work and has their own family commitments to deal with. Somehow, riding motorcycles around was something from the past, in a simpler time befire life caught up with them.

 

Anyway, best of luck with your bike but you may have problems with meters as they have not been available for many years now.

 

Ride safe everyone.............

 

i'm getting on without the meters for now... it would be nice to have the meters working though

as for the smoky problem, i spoke to the previous owner of the bike and he says he did up the engine before passing it to me, guess it's probably the 2t intake then... but the bike is leaking slightly... so it might also be the 2t leaking into the exhaust too...

and the smoke has cleared up somewhat after frequent riding (though noticeably more than the average nsr)... my mech says it's normal... maybe i'll continue to monitor and see how...

 

thanks much for the reply! hope to see some local rd gathering soon...

 

One more thing, I have been looking for a RD500 or RZ500 for a while now. Where can I find one and are there any of them left? Any of you LC experts can point me in the right direction please.........

 

Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

my mech mentioned that there was a 2-stroke 500 whose owner was willing to sell it, but for a very very high price... but i didnt ask for more details

[Retro7]

Got a rebuilt rd350 tong .AZ plate for sale at 3.6k neg.Many new parts had been replace for rebuilding..call 92980043 to deal

[pinkomax]

i'm getting on without the meters for now... it would be nice to have the meters working though

as for the smoky problem, i spoke to the previous owner of the bike and he says he did up the engine before passing it to me, guess it's probably the 2t intake then... but the bike is leaking slightly... so it might also be the 2t leaking into the exhaust too...

and the smoke has cleared up somewhat after frequent riding (though noticeably more than the average nsr)... my mech says it's normal... maybe i'll continue to monitor and see how...

 

thanks much for the reply! hope to see some local rd gathering soon...

 

 

 

my mech mentioned that there was a 2-stroke 500 whose owner was willing to sell it, but for a very very high price... but i didnt ask for more details

 

 

Would like to know who your mechanic is and what bike shop as if i decide to get one again, may be I can sent the bike there. Care to share?

 

You are right about the Yamaha 500cc. It was ( and I say was ) a RZ500. I first came to know that this bike was in a bike shop in Ubi and I rushed down. The bike was not there but the shop staff told me that the bike did exist and was up for sale at $8,888.88............. not one cent less and yes, I am serious. I decided against it for obvious reasons.

 

Same shop staff told me recently that the owner decided to ride it into JB sometime in Feb or March 08. He went to eat prata or something and the bike disappeared from the car park:cry::cry:! So that was the last one I guess.

[swiftee]

Would like to know who your mechanic is and what bike shop as if i decide to get one again, may be I can sent the bike there. Care to share?

 

i send mine to ah siong at amk industrial park 1... he has a red coloured tong there as well... but not sure if it can still run... anyway he says the owner doesnt want to sell it...

 

You are right about the Yamaha 500cc. It was ( and I say was ) a RZ500. I first came to know that this bike was in a bike shop in Ubi and I rushed down. The bike was not there but the shop staff told me that the bike did exist and was up for sale at $8,888.88............. not one cent less and yes, I am serious. I decided against it for obvious reasons.

 

Same shop staff told me recently that the owner decided to ride it into JB sometime in Feb or March 08. He went to eat prata or something and the bike disappeared from the car park:cry::cry:! So that was the last one I guess.

 

wow that's a sad story...

[pinkomax]

i send mine to ah siong at amk industrial park 1... he has a red coloured tong there as well... but not sure if it can still run... anyway he says the owner doesnt want to sell it...

 

 

 

Thanks, if I ever find one that is not to costly, I will look this Ah Siong up.

[swiftee]

i send mine to ah siong at amk industrial park 1... he has a red coloured tong there as well... but not sure if it can still run... anyway he says the owner doesnt want to sell it...

 

 

 

Thanks, if I ever find one that is not to costly, I will look this Ah Siong up.

 

fyi, theres a yellow tong in a shop at amk industrial park 2 selling for 3.5k... not really that cheap but you could try to bargain

 

shop says it's been newly overhauled but i didnt try it

Edited September 6, 2009 by swiftee

[swiftee]

fyi, the aug 2009 issue of "classic bike mechanics" magazine features lc tong...

[pinkomax]

fyi, theres a yellow tong in a shop at amk industrial park 2 selling for 3.5k... not really that cheap but you could try to bargain

 

shop says it's been newly overhauled but i didnt try it

 

Thanks much for the tip. Parl II has a few bike shops.....do you have the shop name please.

[zackbikers]

This bike is not a fuel sucker!My full tank can last me 270km.

Spare parts easy to find,If u mix around wif Old Timer...

It's a vintage bike,Or U prefer S4,every one riding the same bike!(Like there's no other bike you can buy!)

If U skid every time,must B something wrong wif your Head!

I'm proud to own it till now,can service it on my own,And can OverHaul it even on my own!!!Don't U know that there's an RD Club in Singapore till now!We have around 35 active members and still Active!

 

way to go bro!

[swiftee]

Thanks much for the tip. Parl II has a few bike shops.....do you have the shop name please.

 

heh sorry forgot the shop name... was randomly walking around and saw it

[pinkomax]

heh sorry forgot the shop name... was randomly walking around and saw it

 

Thats okay. I did the same yesterday and went walking around Park II to look for the bike. Found it. It was in front of a bike shop run by an Indian boss. The bike appears to have been parked there for some time.

 

I mentioned the bike to a few friends who told me that the bike was only recently painted yellow, it was actually black with some air brush work on the fuel tank. Shop boss says it has been rebuilt and the owner is asking $3.5K for it. Rebuilt, I don't think so as it looks pretty worn out to me. Funny how so many bike shops simply repaint the bikes that they are selling and say that it has been rebuilt.

 

Got a tip that this shop in Yio Chu Kang near the Serangoon Stadium called Yuh Lung, or something like that, has a store with several of these bikes tucked away. Do you know the shop by any chance?

[swiftee]

yuh loong? sounds familiar... but not in a good way...

 

be careful when dealing with them... http://www.singaporebikes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70539&highlight=loong

 

anyway, my tong got slaughtered by them before. the previous owner told me about it... spent quite a fair amount to fix the damage

[pinkomax]

yuh loong? sounds familiar... but not in a good way...

 

be careful when dealing with them... http://www.singaporebikes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70539&highlight=loong

 

anyway, my tong got slaughtered by them before. the previous owner told me about it... spent quite a fair amount to fix the damage

 

That was very interesting to say the least, a real eye opener for me once I looked through all the posts. Last post was in 2007, but I doubt that anything has changed judging from the reactions of the affected bikers. There must be scores more that we don't know about.

 

Thanks for the link and for the reply. By the way, in all your replies you say something about needing meters for the the LC and YPVS models. Are you looking for both? Do you have both of these bikes? Wow if you do man!

[pinkomax]

That was very interesting to say the least, a real eye opener for me once I looked through all the posts. Last post was in 2007, but I doubt that anything has changed judging from the reactions of the affected bikers. There must be scores more that we don't know about.

 

Thanks for the link and for the reply. By the way, in all your replies you say something about needing meters for the the LC and YPVS models. Are you looking for both? Do you have both of these bikes? Wow if you do man!

 

It's me again. I was browsing around and came across your reply to an old reply of mine in the Vintage link. You say you met the owner of those RD500's. You sure it's him as I want to talk to him if possible. I have been looking for a RD500 for some years now. Would be good if I could see it at least.

[swiftee]

Thanks for the link and for the reply. By the way, in all your replies you say something about needing meters for the the LC and YPVS models. Are you looking for both? Do you have both of these bikes? Wow if you do man!

 

I dont have the ypvs model... i'm not interested in dealing with powervalve-related issues

just that i think the meters might be interchangeable so im trying my luck

less complicated parts to break, less money spent, more time spent enjoying the bike

 

 

It's me again. I was browsing around and came across your reply to an old reply of mine in the Vintage link. You say you met the owner of those RD500's. You sure it's him as I want to talk to him if possible. I have been looking for a RD500 for some years now. Would be good if I could see it at least.

 

hahaha... my friend has been trying to buy a 500 from him for very long already... each time not successful lol

um... anyway i dont really know him that well, just met him once at bike shop. was with the ex owner of my tong then, we had a nice time talking about lc tong...

 

by the way, what do you intend to do with the rd500/lc tong? with old 2-strokers, you really need to treat it like a queen to reduce downtime (since parts are limited to a certain extent)... not to mention that for powerful 2 stroker wear and tear rate is relatively high... frankly speaking mine became more like a pet already... just sit around most of the time, go out jalan jalan once in a while, now and then spend my money... hahahahaha

 

i would also say lc tong is not as much a "racer" as it's reputation suggests, because of limitations in the old technology (suspension, brakes, etc.) and also the bike's age... it's an interesting and fun bike, but don't expect to push it too hard

Edited September 17, 2009 by swiftee

[pinkomax]

I dont have the ypvs model... i'm not interested in dealing with powervalve-related issues

just that i think the meters might be interchangeable so im trying my luck

less complicated parts to break, less money spent, more time spent enjoying the bike

 

 

 

 

hahaha... my friend has been trying to buy a 500 from him for very long already... each time not successful lol

um... anyway i dont really know him that well, just met him once at bike shop. was with the ex owner of my tong then, we had a nice time talking about lc tong...

 

by the way, what do you intend to do with the rd500/lc tong? with old 2-strokers, you really need to treat it like a queen to reduce downtime (since parts are limited to a certain extent)... not to mention that for powerful 2 stroker wear and tear rate is relatively high... frankly speaking mine became more like a pet already... just sit around most of the time, go out jalan jalan once in a while, now and then spend my money... hahahahaha

 

i would also say lc tong is not as much a "racer" as it's reputation suggests, because of limitations in the old technology (suspension, brakes, etc.) and also the bike's age... it's an interesting and fun bike, but don't expect to push it too hard

 

 

I'm not sure if the YPVS meters can fit on the LC350 Tong but it's worth a try if your meters are not in good working order. Will be hard to find I'm sure, same with the Tong stuff as these parts seem to be finding their way into Malaysia on a regular basis.

 

Well, to your second point. Bikes like the RD500, or even the 350, for me will be a weekend bike only. Can't afford to run the bike as a daily runner as fuel consumption is way too high. I'm sure you can relate in a way. Getting the RD500 will be a dream come true, but I know that Japan does not make parts for this bike any more so rebuilding it will be rather tough.

 

You are correct to point out the wear and tear issues as all 2 strokes tend to run through rubber, cylinders , sproacets.....etc, rather quickly. What to do, if you love the bike you will need to do the necessary in order to own it. For now, looks like only the 350 Tong is a possibility as no one can help me to get a 500... sigh....

 

Actually, the RD350LC was one heck of a racer back in the day. All over the world in fact, in production racing. Some of this is even available on youtube so do take a look when you get some time.

 

So far any luck with meters? Anyone been in touch as yet?

[swiftee]

I'm not sure if the YPVS meters can fit on the LC350 Tong but it's worth a try if your meters are not in good working order. Will be hard to find I'm sure, same with the Tong stuff as these parts seem to be finding their way into Malaysia on a regular basis.

 

Well, to your second point. Bikes like the RD500, or even the 350, for me will be a weekend bike only. Can't afford to run the bike as a daily runner as fuel consumption is way too high. I'm sure you can relate in a way. Getting the RD500 will be a dream come true, but I know that Japan does not make parts for this bike any more so rebuilding it will be rather tough.

 

You are correct to point out the wear and tear issues as all 2 strokes tend to run through rubber, cylinders , sproacets.....etc, rather quickly. What to do, if you love the bike you will need to do the necessary in order to own it. For now, looks like only the 350 Tong is a possibility as no one can help me to get a 500... sigh....

 

Actually, the RD350LC was one heck of a racer back in the day. All over the world in fact, in production racing. Some of this is even available on youtube so do take a look when you get some time.

 

So far any luck with meters? Anyone been in touch as yet?

 

mine has gone from wkend bike to night time bike... bike really hates busy traffic to the max and lets me know all about it

 

meters are pretty much out of production and out of stock everywhere. so im getting on without them for now...

 

you are right about the malaysia part. when i bought my wiring harness, mine was the only unit that remained in singapore, the rest were snapped up and shipped to malaysia, my mech had to ask them to retain one unit for my bike

 

for now parts for 350 are still ok, if you go to the right people there are still parts available. but i dont know if the same is true for 500...

[pinkomax]

mine has gone from wkend bike to night time bike... bike really hates busy traffic to the max and lets me know all about it

 

meters are pretty much out of production and out of stock everywhere. so im getting on without them for now...

 

you are right about the malaysia part. when i bought my wiring harness, mine was the only unit that remained in singapore, the rest were snapped up and shipped to malaysia, my mech had to ask them to retain one unit for my bike

 

for now parts for 350 are still ok, if you go to the right people there are still parts available. but i dont know if the same is true for 500...

 

Hi again,

 

I am getting more discouraged by the day. Before diving in head first, I thought it better to do some research into parts availibility for the 350 tong before doling out money to buy one. You are right that pats are available, but not the important stuff. Cosmetics like the fuel tank and fenders/side covers are not in production.

 

Parts shops don't carry much stock so I will need to put down a deposit and have them order the parts for me from Japan. Boy, these parts are expensive to say the least. They said something about the Japanese currency being at an all time high now, so that is the cause of the higher prices. What ever the case, i simply can't afford this..... who can? The Malaysian's apparently for some reason are able to buy up a lot of this stuff.

 

I had better give this more thought.....

 

Someone said that he bumped into a RD500 the other day? May have been a 350 as both bikes are similar. You seem to know the owner?

[swiftee]

Hi again,

 

You are right that pats are available, but not the important stuff. Cosmetics like the fuel tank and fenders/side covers are not in production.

 

 

side panels and fuel tank you can always patch it back and respray. used ones are still available though but in varying condition...

 

Someone said that he bumped into a RD500 the other day? May have been a 350 as both bikes are similar. You seem to know the owner?

 

Hm... you'll have to check with Project 2-stroker on that one...

 

 

 

Really depends on what you want to do with the bike, if you want one that looks like it just rolled out of the showroom, it's going to be difficult.

 

If you just want one that can run, can ride it around and have fun, it might not be so bad...

 

Anyway if you decide you dont want it anymore can just sell it off for a small loss

[pinkomax]

side panels and fuel tank you can always patch it back and respray. used ones are still available though but in varying condition...

 

 

 

Hm... you'll have to check with Project 2-stroker on that one...

 

 

 

Really depends on what you want to do with the bike, if you want one that looks like it just rolled out of the showroom, it's going to be difficult.

 

If you just want one that can run, can ride it around and have fun, it might not be so bad...

 

Anyway if you decide you dont want it anymore can just sell it off for a small loss

 

Hi,

 

WOW! Lucky you!

 

I was hoping to get hold of a speedometer and a tachometer myself as those on most of the tong's I have seen for sale are not in good working order. Please share what shop you get yours from? Any more of the same at this shop? Would be good to have these parts handy once I decide which tong I am going to buy.

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide with this.

[swiftee]

Hi,

 

WOW! Lucky you!

 

I was hoping to get hold of a speedometer and a tachometer myself as those on most of the tong's I have seen for sale are not in good working order. Please share what shop you get yours from? Any more of the same at this shop? Would be good to have these parts handy once I decide which tong I am going to buy.

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide with this.

 

Meters were a gift from a friend. Very very sweet of him...

For new spare parts you could try the Yamaha dealer first, see if they can bring it in for you...

[pinkomax]

Meters were a gift from a friend. Very very sweet of him...

For new spare parts you could try the Yamaha dealer first, see if they can bring it in for you...

 

Yup, I did try, but was told that I am not the first one to try to order these. They were about $350 each when last available, according to the parts shop Auto Machinery. They can not be supplied now, so thats the main prob.......sigh..

 

If you get any other leads, do keep me in mind please.