my project RD350LC

[ken008]

gday tripod, ive meet you on the rdlccrazy site, good luck, these bikes are just starting to become collectable over here, good luck with it,

[tripodtiger]

I got one of these now, too!

Mines a roughie but the frame has been straightened now.  Lots of detail stuff to get to to make sure it's goign to work properly.
It came with lots of original spares, including barrels, heads and carbs, exhausts.  A mechanic who saw it on a trailer reckoned that the crank has been balanced - drill marks on the rotor.  It's got different carbs, reeds (much larger blocks than oem) and Gibson chambers so it sounds sweet as.

anyway.  I'll gdet to writing something up about it, as I get along.

[ken008]

gday miti,  in australia the code is 5E0 but they are the same as the 4L0, this is the 81 model so it came with engine dampers, beefed up headers and the carbs were fixed, i bet you had fun on your bike in between the hassles untill some lowlife nicked it, these things have a cult following in the UK as you would know and they are slowly getting snapped up here, in the 2 years ive had this prices have moved up a fair bit

[Miti]

Wow..!  That takes me right back... To Feb 10th 1980 actually, the day I picked up my brand spanking new RD350LC.. (Are they model code 4L0 in Aus too..?)

Mine was the same colours... I chopped in my 1yo KH250B4 (14,000 miles) against it...

Buying in the winter was "interesting".  The original Yokahama tyres were feckin' woeful in the wet and my daily commute was far from risk-free..!!

Seems hard to believe now, but I'd changed the tyres on the KH (also Yokahamas) well before they were worn out and fitted Dunlop TT100s... I saved myseld a few quid on the part ex deal by re-fitting the Yokahamas to the KH before I picked up the LC... I also refitted the OEM headlamp and the TT100s and the concave Cibie went onto the LC before the running in period was done...

What a difference..!  I worked weekabout swing-shifts back then and it was dark during most commute runs... The gipp TTs and the dazzling Cibie transformed the LC...

I kept the bike for 15 months before some wassock lifted it ino the back of a van and made good his escape... (lock fitted, hat went too).

They weren't 15 trouble-free months... My LC was one of the first batch to come into the UK and it suffered from quite a few "teething" troubles... Cracking exhausts, incorrectly drilled carbs (leading to partial seizure) and a failed ignition pickup coil...  The bike ended up with new carbs, new zorsts (both warranty claims) and a repaired pickup... The engine was running Hepolite "windowed" pistons (2 ports on the inlet side that effectively opened up the inlet before the bottom of the piston skirt reached the port - made quite a difference), Harpowa fibre reeds (the OEM reeds were metal and couldn't be set to open as wide without fatigue cracking), K&N pod filters and a thermostat conversion to the cyl head to improve warm-up time and temp regulation.

Come to think of it, that's probably why the fecker was nicked..!!

Here endeth my fit of nostalgie...

Miti

[ken008]

thanks jeff, not sure if it will ever be 100% finished,not sure if id want to tackle a full nut and bolt again on anything, a steep learning curve. but you never know, an 1100 would be a nice bike to do up but gee its expensive but fun, these little LC.s are starting to get good money though it would be a long time till id get my money back ,if ever, ken

[excess.11]

Excellent work Ken.............there s nothing more satisfying than doing it yourself and enjoying the fruits of your labour.
Now you ve warmed up on the RD350..............i know your itchin to tackle an XS1100.

[ken008]

gday again, been a long time, bikes done,had to rebuild motor ,every bloody thing actually, but had a good ride today, still needs fine tuning but happy so far, thanks ken

[ken008]

gday, the carbies are 26mm mikuni's, standard for the bike i believe,

[AussiXS11G]

verra nice Ken
Are they Keihin? what size?
I am chasing a carb for my Kawazaki KZ200 - its a Keihin 26mm

This one has issues 

[ken008]

done the carbies today, very happy with them, soda blasted the body and polished the bowsl plus a few new bits inside and out, you big 4 strokers have to admit they look good even if its only half a bike,lol

[ken008]

gday jonesy, not that im aware of, i rarely come across any that have been ridden to swap meets etc or anywhere actually,, see the odd air-cooled for sale at swap meets though.

[Jonesy]

Hey Ken,
any RD 350's going to Bourke that you know of?

[ken008]

engine in nearly there.

[ken008]

been a bit quiet lately, but here goes, got my crank sorted, barrels rebored and have nearly everything i need bar some little things,but there only a couple of weeks away,top and bottom cases together and a bit of bling,hopefully then only a month or so from finishing,

[ken008]

hi ray, slowly making progress, blasted and painted radiator but bike only came with front bit of the radiator shroud/ cover so have just got a NOS one from O/S, another $117,but i can see light at the end of the tunnel, although its just a pin prick, see ya