lol , Right on . Love those IT's . Always wanted one when I was a kid. Ended up with yz's though. I'm 59 and still sporting a 78 yz400 and a 92 yz490 . Both have been well taken care of . The 490 is a museum piece . Still has the carboard sticker on the steering head with the stock # that the dealer used to put on them next to the Yamaha vin tag. Like riding the 400 better though its more ridable .
All i could say the whole video was "wow!" Suprisingly amazing condition and fired right up! That is a diamond in the rough! I vote for full restoration!
This bike is alive and NEEDS a restoration. It DESRVES it and told you so by starting on third kick and running brilliantly. I know it's not sentient but this thing has soul. It still lives so now make it beautiful again.
It for sure does! It's finally got someone who knows a thing or two about fixing bikes and other small engine machines and I feel as if the ride quality and exhaust sound say this bikes excited it's finally being used and shown as a big part of history. The compression was astounding I was shocked a 125 would have that much compression at that age and condition
When I saw the thumbnail on this video, I smiled and thought "he's going to be surprised". My best friend growing up had a 76 RM125 that would flip out from under you if you weren't careful. It had very little power at the bottom but when that power band kicked in, OH BOY!! HANG ON!! Very nice unit for $500!! I really enjoyed this one.
I realize you know everything must be evaluated in the long run. This one should always be remembered as a winner as opposed to the ones that weren’t. Congratulations!
I owned a 75, 77, 79 RM's back in day when I was racing motocross. They all performed well and I rode the heck out them between hours of practice and racing. I was around 20 years old then, that was 47 years ago, hard to believe. Those aluminum tanks were really cool back then. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!
Hey how about that. I grew up next to Glamis, CA and we rode these plenty back in the day. I even got to see Bob Hurricane Hannah on an RM race at the Rockhouse against Marty Tripes and others in 1982 or so.
Have the same exact bike. Found it for 300$ in a shed non running during covid. Have been shipping parts home for my dad to rebuild while im stationed overseas. Absolute amazing little bike to ride. Super snappy alot quicker than I thought they would be. The guys that grew up riding these are animals!
Thanks for your service! I sent my’75 engine to FMF from NC and got back a new downpipe, new airbox, 32mm Mikuni (original was a 26mm) and a modified combustion chamber. I wish I could bring back those days!
@@andrewthacker2743 Man I was 17 back then and had no idea… and I have no idea now! I’m not knowledgeable in all of that but I just know that at that time, FMF was the place to send your engine to get it ‘hopped up’ so that’s what I did! I sent it from NC and spent around $150 or so. I do remember, though that the midrange power was much more noticeably improved big time! Sorry I can’t answer your question.
When you took off across the field for the first time on that bike I had to rewind, crank my speakers and re-watch a couple times. That's a beautiful sounding bike!
No question, this bike screams: Gimme a full restauration! Seldom chance, do it all, strip it to the frame and make all new, inkl. Dampers. Tank is not a big problem to get in shape. I really hope you make a masterpiece out of this lovely 125. Thanks for sharing!
I had a 1977 RM 125 when I was in 7th grade. When I heard the sound as you were riding it brought me back to those days. It was the most fun bike I ever owned. Thanks.
Back in the day I had a 1977 125 it too was the best handling bike I've ever owned never should have sold it in 85 to get my RM 250 in 86 I like my 125 more than I did the 250
I bought 78 RM400 new. What awesome power band, reliable fun bike. I wasn't surprised how easy this bike fired and rode! This video brought back some great memories. I had a friend riding this same bike in tennies put the kick starter through the side of his foot. Still limps to this day. Thank you, Boe
I had a '78 YZ 125 with a gold DG head.on it which compounded it's lightswitch-y ness ... nuthin' on the bottom but when the powerband hit it screamed like a banshee! Oh the good 'ol days!!
This guy only knows how to run up and down straight aways. And starts the bike revving the hell out of it without warming it up. And listen closely lol he misses a gear all the time
I wrote that RM 125 Suzuki once when I was in high school and it was just too fast for me. I love how it sounds and it’s really awesome you found it. My wife really likes your show too.
Braze a Schrader valve onto and old metal gas cap, screw onto tank and then add air...slowly. :D I've only ever done this once, but it worked like a charm. Or call a paintless dent removal guy. They are pretty amazing. Sounds very good...didn't miss a beat out on the land. And the smoking cleaned up. LOL Perfect! Back in the early 80s, I was still riding one of my two 1971 Ducati RT450s. (Still have them...haven't tried starting them since the mid 80s.) Come winter time I went up to one of the local lakes in the BC interior with a few buddies, our families and a few snowmobiles as well. The night before I was furiously screwing as many sheet metal screws into the knobs of the tires to get ready for the next day. What a riot. I could even run on the harder packed snowmobile trails if I kept the speed up and hung my ass out over the rear fender to keep the weight off the front. Like riding in the sand. The lake was glass smooth and I've never had as much fun laying a bike down at any speed and sitting on the seat and spinning around as you slide for 60 or 70 years. :D.
Make a rubber stopper with a schrader valve....Seal it off to tank...Add air pressure gradually.. You can also use a map gas torch to heat the dented areas slowly. The heat will also cause air pressure to expand so go slow and be patient...
Awesome bike! i had a 1978 RM125 I guess I’m an old guy! The gas tank was plastic and swing arm was aluminum. That bike looks all original to me. Instant power from the two stroke, better than four strokes of today, my opinion.
@@Day12MyThat’s because you have no relevance to these old smokers. It’s like when 2vintage make videos of new 4 stroke quads, zero relevance and interest for me, but this video on the other hand
Still have my dads RM375 and RM400 that he bought new back then. I really need one of these to complete my "trifecta" of the greatest 2 strokes out there.
That's a very important bike in the history of Motorcross. I had a 1978 Suzuki RM 125. it had the aluminum swingarm, plastic tank, and different graphics .
Listening to this '77 reminds me of a '78 RM 125 for my 1st motocross bike. The 40mm carb was huge! I remember ripping down the abandoned railroad track beds - it was fast! Learned how to stay in the powerband when going up hills, otherwise, it wasn't fun getting bogged-down on the incline.
What a survivor!!.....ragged from cold missing gears and without an air filter. This historic gem of a piece deserves more respect. $500 absolute bargain, needs restoration but will probably be 'flipped' and we'll never see it again.
great find! so much fun back in the day on bikes like this. All the good times had on bikes of this era and people now riding 10k bikes and complain about everything and laugh at old bikes, but in reality these machines were so fun and we all enjoyed it very much.
What a score! This is what was rode by my friends in the 1980's, and we beat the snot out of them. This one is a survivor, for sure! Looks like someone liked punching the gas tank though, lol! Hearing that thing fire up in less than 5 kicks was amazing. Then hearing it out in the fields brought back those teenage memories. This is a 47 year old bike, that looks all original. Amazing.
This is the first bike I ever owned. Rode the hell out of it for several years, never did a top end on it, mixed fuel and oil in the tank with who knows what mixture and it ran perfectly until the day I sold it.
Just got a 77 RM125 last August. Same steps as yours except I got a new carb. I did get mine started but an sure it needs a rebuild. I had been following your channel and this showed up today and I was excited! Mine wears 78 plastics and tank and I’d love to go back to 77, and yes those tanks - yikes try to find one. Joe Abbate shows how to do them right on coaxing dents out with a hooked rod and a visegrip, and patience. Please save this one patina or full restore. Thanks for great, inspiring do it yourself videos!
Awesome! I bought and raced a ‘75 RM125 (first year of the RM, and with the down pipe) when I was 17. Man how envious I am! Brings back days of DeCoster and Wolsink! Good luck and thanks for posting!
It looks like a restoration is the most popular comment!! Oh yeah!! What a rare opportunity you have to bring back a beautiful bike that really dominated motocross in those years shortly after the Honda Elsinores were on top!
I agree, this bike is very important and should be at the very least preserved if not restored. This is one of the bikes that made Suzuki extremely competitive in Motocross.
Who are in the 125 series was a great bike and 77 I was a teenager riding them dirt bikes I had a YZ 80 YZ 250 and a Honda CR 250 and 2 Hodaka ace 100’s, my brother and I and our friends were very fortunate to have those fantastic dirt throwing machines 😁 Great memories and one of my best friends is still one of my best friends to this day he lives in Ohio I still live in Galveston County, Texas . Every time he and I speak on the phone or see each other in person, we always sit around and reminisce back when we were just young teenagers kids it’s been a lifetime.
You tube brings back so much nostalgia. I had a 77 & 78 RM 80, 78 RM 100, 79 RM 125 and got the first 81 RM 125 water cooled/full floater in our Nor Cal region. My brother had a 77 RM 125 in addition to many others. A great way to grow up.
Love to see you get a paint booth / powder coating set up started. Sand blast cabinet. You have plenty of space on your property to build a small out-building to take your work to the next level and start doing your own cosmetic work.
Definitely a cool bike ! In 77 my dad lived around the corner from a Yamaha shop , I would go in there and just look at the bikes . I'm sure the owner would wonder why I would hang out there for hours on end ! Dude you are livin the dream !
Wow! I was 14 when I bought my 1975 RM 125! I sold my 1972 Honda SL 100 and my 1974 Suzuki TM 100 to do the deal. I loved that bike! I side saddle pushed it until my friends house who lived next to Morgan Cemetery which we also walked/side saddled thru in 2nd gear. Once thru the cementary we pushed them another few blocks until the train tracks that ran parallel to the Delaware river. At the tracks, we looked both ways for cops and moto'ed it about a half mile until we crossed Rt. 73, down the embankment and ended up behind the Palmyra Diner parking lot which was next to the Tacony Palmyra Drive in theatre and the miles of dredged sand dunes from the Delaware River being dredged back in the late 60's and early 70's. One gallon of premix fuel in a plastic 1 gallon milk jug would get us a couple of hours of awesome riding and back home for dinner by 5 and time to walk to the Pennsauken Mart to buy Lynyrd Skynyrds new Street Survivors album on vinyl. The good ol'days with no bills, no worries other than homework, cleaning the dog doo in the yard, trash cans out or washing one of the family cars.
Wow, I rode there before and my friends father took us there with his 80 Husqvarna 430. Brings back memories. I still live on Robbins close to the Tacony Palmyra Bridge.
@@ericbitzer5247 Small world! I was born in Northeast hospital and our parents moved to Palmyra in 1962 and then Cinnaminson. Thats cool that you rode the dunes under and behind the Tacony-Palmyra bridge-Palmyra drive in theatre too! It was a great place to ride! My cousins grew up on Tulip Street across from the park and in 1983, a friend and I bought a corner bar in Mayfair on the corner of Frankford & Brighton called the Harbor Inn. (7026 Frankford Avenue) We had a lot of fun for the two years we owned it and managed to keep the place full on weekends with a DJ and live band on Sundays. It's still in business under the name Toms Sportsmans. That 1980 Husqvarna was a beast! My dad had a 74 Bultaco 360 and it was so fast, us 15 year olds were afraid to get on it. LOL
Reminds me of my first dirtbike, a 1983 rm125 (first blue seat models). I bought it in a very similar state to yours and had been sitting in a shed for 24 years according to the previous owner. Cleaned the very rough looking carb and immediately fired up. These bikes are tough! Having said that, a common issue with these old rm's including mine is that the frames split real easy right under the engine. Nothing a quick weld can't fix though. Curious to see how this one turns out... Keep up the good work and I'm sure you'll flip it without any issues👍 PS. An amazing life hack I never see you use in your videos is mounting/removing the grips with an air compressor. Makes it 10x easier and saves lots of time and energy!
I owned a PE 175, 1979. Had so much fun with that bike! As far as the tank dents, I've heard of people using a tennis ball with a Schraeder valve in it to pressure the old aluminum takes and pop out dents. Never done it myself. Look it up on UA-cam!
Joe great find. About the gas tank. This when I was younger. It don't work every time. We used to put them in the freezer with water in them. It will expand the tank. Then we got older. We put water in them and heat the dents. Make the water boil. It would come out. Thank you. It reminds of the good old days.
Use water to remove the dents in the fuel tank. Much safer than air pressure. You can buy kits for removing dents from exhaust pipes. The kit, which includes a pump, can be modified and used for the fuel tank.
Great video on a cool bike. I just recently got a 78 RM 125 and got it up and running again. Haven't been on official first ride yet but soon. I vote for a light restoration, that bike earned all the dents and scratches. Be a sharm to lose that. Keep up the excellent content. Your videos helped me get motivated to buy the RM.
Winner winner chicken dinner on this one Joe. What a very special bike this was in the late 70s.. I'm honestly not even surprised how it went for the first start, but definitely impressed! That thing was a SCORE!!
Brilliant bike. The twinshocks are the best. Not hard to get someone to fix the tank. Carbs not bad at all. They always sound angry from back then. Beautiful sound. Restoration for sure.
Wow this brings back memories. We lived on the edge of a unused field that was used by the neighborhood kids to ride. It had hills and long straightaways and burns and everything you could have fun riding. Got chased away by the police all the time. Lived in Indiana and closest competition track was Red Bud in Michigan. I started out with a late 70s Honda XR75. When my brother went into the Marines I got his Honda Elsinore 125. They hall had their own sound. No one got hurt or fought. Just fun with the neighbors and the girls would come out and hand out in the cleared out spot in the back with plenty of ways to run when the fuzz decided to drive their Chrysler cop cars through the weeds. Awesome video thanks for the ride on memory lane.
Geez me and my friends had several of these back in the day, also a couple 250's, then in 79 at age 16 I bought a 74 TM400. Wish we had them all still! Lol.
Beautiful find! Honestly don't know how you find these deals! Great video! Boy, those tires looked sketchy especially the front, careful!! Would love to see a semi-restore on this one for sure.
If you can find a way to seal up the tank and slowly pressurize it with water it should push the dents right out, it didn’t look like there were any bad creases. Love the old 70s bikes, I had a Yamaha 175 enduro back in the day, my first taste of freedom!
Yep, and maybe combine that with a hot glue dent puller system used on cars. Cheap ones start around $65. Lots of car vids on youtube using this system.
It will still look like sheeit. The major depressions may come out, but it will still look all mashed up and creased. You may also expand or burst the seams. The only real way is for the underside to be cut out and then the exposed tank is smooth rolled using a planishing hammer and/or English wheel. Then the under panel is tig welded back into place. A lot of it can be partially repaired using rod anvils inserted into the tank without cutting out the bottom, but that method will never fully restore it.
That powerband sound reminds me of my teen years racing the old TM125..a few years before 1975 when the first downswept exhaust RM125 came out..I rode that first RM and wow I thought the old TM was fast.
Sound of my teenage hood started with a tm125 when i was 14 had two a rm125n then a yz125f all you would hear down the local river on the weekends was two strokes coming on the band such good memories.hi from New Zealand 🇳🇿
Definite candidate for restauration. I think the biggest challenge will be the tank. Aluminium having been previously stretched by the dents could probably tear when you attempt to take out the dents. You could of course decontaminate and reweld if necessary. Considering your purchase price and the possible retail value of such a rare bike, I personally think that all the time, money and effort you invest will be worth it.
I had one just like it a 77 RM125B Bought it off the original owner back in 1983. Sold it in 2006. That is an awesome bike. Always started and never let me down. On mine the side plates faded. i ran through a barbed wire fence and cracked the front number plate. The wire also looped up and put a hole in the seat cover. I also had the original sales slip from the original owner. $475.00 I believe the only thing missing on mine was the front sprocket guard. I'm not sure they are the original grips. the originals had the Suzuki S on them. I couldn't find a front number plate , I looked for one back in the 80's after I ran through the barbed wire fence. Definitley a good candidate for a restoration. I will say the guy I bought mine form really researched things before he made the purchase. It had to be the top bike in Motorcross Action and Dirt Bike magazine for 1977.
I was working on my 1977 last night ...i run 32 to 1 ...back in the day they used to run ATF ...you might run it thru the gears and then drain .. will help keep clutch plates from sticking.
I have put 2 stator and 3 cdi boxes to get it to run...yours starts 4th kick...I had 2 tanks restored and painted for 700..just sold the extra for 350.
Joe i don't think ive ever seen u do a full restoration.. this is the bike.. id love to see the next level of what 2vintage can do.. i know parts r scarce but strip the bike n shine every nut n bolt, paint n degrease the whole bike n get it back to OEM looks.. i think itd b a great project plus it'll b good content u can break down in several part videos, heck u could even start a new resto series 💯
Love those 70s! I bought my first new bike when I was 16 in 1977. It was a toss up between the Suz or Yam. I liked Bob Hannah so I went with the Yamaha. Those were truly the good ol days! Nice find!
A guy named Roger Decoster, was a champion Motocrosser, who really made Suzuki motorcycles😊 a household word for motocross racing with his Factory RM250,back in the day. Those bikes were very tough and dependable,very simple to fix, without reed or power valves and although not up technically like the bikes of even a couple of years later, were fun to ride. A very restorable bike, Bud that is in decent shape for 47 years old, and one thatbus old guys were drooling over when we were teens😊
Thats from my time. I had that bike. The most fun I ever had. I was 15. So much fun. For me ,it was real fast. My buddy had a same year YZ , it was also incredibly cool.
Brings back memories. I was a motorcycle apprentice and used to work on them. very reliable. Easy to hop up. Torquey 54 X54 bore and stroke. Great find and a testament to solid design.
Restore it! This was my very first MX bike, I bought mine for $200 in 1978 right after the C's came out. DG had a plastic tank and side panel update kit that made them look like the GP bike's. You made an incredible find!
Brilliant video again, had many of these early models over the years, it deservers a full restoration and definitely a keeper, keep up the great work doing these video's and look forward to seeing this Rm125 progress.
Thanks Mister. I have a what I thought was a '77 RM-250 but it has a steel tank I'm sure. Been sitting in a shed for +15 yrs. I quit riding because I'm old and it beat the crap out of me. Think I'll pull that baby out this spring and see,, it was running when I parked it. That sound got my love for the old bike back.
You have no idea how lucky you were to find that bike. My friend had that same year bike in the 70’s and I rode it a bunch of times. I had a Yam MX 250. The RM was a real race bike. Kinda pipey, but the gearbox was really good if memory serves. Enjoy it.
Bikes from the 70s were made of quality materials period. And to find one in that condition is rare. I really hope you will restore and just hang on the wall. Its a history show piece.
I had a Suzuki PE 250, was a bit of a beast, first bike I ever popped a wheelie on. Riding up a bank and gave it the beans and the front wheel lifted off the ground just as I was riding up the bank. Gave me a bit of a start.
40 years ago my friend got one when he was 17 and we used it on the field . We thought it went like the clappers 😂, at the time we had Suzuki X7’s on the road . Thanks for posting .
nice find , one of the easiest ways to get dents out of a tank like that is to fill with water seal it up and freeze it the water will push most the dents out, it takes time but works
That 2 stroke echo is literally the best sound ever!
makes ya' smile doesn't it?
Right on!
makes me SMELL the Bel Rey 2stroke premix right thru the computer screen.....@@vintagemxer9165
I'm 67 and still have a mint condition '78 Yamaha IT400 ... And yeah there is no sound that "speaks" like the 2 stroke echo.
lol , Right on . Love those IT's . Always wanted one when I was a kid. Ended up with yz's though. I'm 59 and still sporting a 78 yz400 and a 92 yz490 . Both have been well taken care of . The 490 is a museum piece . Still has the carboard sticker on the steering head with the stock # that the dealer used to put on them next to the Yamaha vin tag. Like riding the 400 better though its more ridable .
All i could say the whole video was "wow!" Suprisingly amazing condition and fired right up! That is a diamond in the rough! I vote for full restoration!
This bike is alive and NEEDS a restoration. It DESRVES it and told you so by starting on third kick and running brilliantly. I know it's not sentient but this thing has soul. It still lives so now make it beautiful again.
It for sure does! It's finally got someone who knows a thing or two about fixing bikes and other small engine machines and I feel as if the ride quality and exhaust sound say this bikes excited it's finally being used and shown as a big part of history. The compression was astounding I was shocked a 125 would have that much compression at that age and condition
Nope he’s gonna ruin or let it sit or sell regardless in his time of ownership it is ruined
Glad that I'm not the only one. He gets engines "running" that's about all I can say positive.@@johnmicah2193
👍
Where does Joe sell his stuff ??
When I saw the thumbnail on this video, I smiled and thought "he's going to be surprised". My best friend growing up had a 76 RM125 that would flip out from under you if you weren't careful. It had very little power at the bottom but when that power band kicked in, OH BOY!! HANG ON!!
Very nice unit for $500!! I really enjoyed this one.
This bike is a gem. The 70s RMs were awesome. Its a keeper. As a young rider then, its what everyone wanted....
@@Adjust-Fire-jy3dy Roger, The Hurricane and David Bailey....heros all.
That and the YZ . They were great bikes for me, a 15 year old.
I realize you know everything must be evaluated in the long run. This one should always be remembered as a winner as opposed to the ones that weren’t. Congratulations!
I owned a 75, 77, 79 RM's back in day when I was racing motocross. They all performed well and I rode the heck out them between hours of practice and racing. I was around 20 years old then, that was 47 years ago, hard to believe. Those aluminum tanks were really cool back then. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!
Proformed well but not winners
how cool is that
Hurricane bobby won all the time on a banana.@@johnkelly8525
Rm bikes ruled back then
Hey how about that. I grew up next to Glamis, CA and we rode these plenty back in the day. I even got to see Bob Hurricane Hannah on an RM race at the Rockhouse against Marty Tripes and others in 1982 or so.
That took me back to my childhood. When you took off across the field, that sound did it. Great buy.
Have the same exact bike. Found it for 300$ in a shed non running during covid. Have been shipping parts home for my dad to rebuild while im stationed overseas. Absolute amazing little bike to ride. Super snappy alot quicker than I thought they would be. The guys that grew up riding these are animals!
Thank you for your service.
Wow... that 1 brings back alot of childhood memories for sure... I hope ya find a Ole TM some day.. 😊
Thanks for your service! I sent my’75 engine to FMF from NC and got back a new downpipe, new airbox, 32mm Mikuni (original was a 26mm) and a modified combustion chamber. I wish I could bring back those days!
@@tomwright2862 32mm carb? Was that just to suit the custom chamber or was that the trick move to make back in the day?
@@andrewthacker2743 Man I was 17 back then and had no idea… and I have no idea now! I’m not knowledgeable in all of that but I just know that at that time, FMF was the place to send your engine to get it ‘hopped up’ so that’s what I did! I sent it from NC and spent around $150 or so. I do remember, though that the midrange power was much more noticeably improved big time! Sorry I can’t answer your question.
When you took off across the field for the first time on that bike I had to rewind, crank my speakers and re-watch a couple times. That's a beautiful sounding bike!
same!!
You are not the only one who did so.... great.
My first MX bike was the 1975 RM125. I sold it, and upgraded to a 1976 RM125 (high pipe). Those were some good days (high school in the late 70s).
When it kicked over so easy, all my hair stood up from my neck to my wrists. Congrats on one that will probably never leave the collection!
No question, this bike screams: Gimme a full restauration!
Seldom chance, do it all, strip it to the frame and make all new, inkl. Dampers.
Tank is not a big problem to get in shape.
I really hope you make a masterpiece out of this lovely 125.
Thanks for sharing!
*Restoration
He won't do it 😢
I must say this two crank seals may need be changed preventative maintenance type of repair
@@jumpinjojo you're right, for US it's restoration ;)
_"Tank is not a big problem to get in shape."_ Uhh...what? 🤣
yesterday i purchased a 1974 DT250 ive got the bug. love two strokes from the 70s especially the rm125 and the cr125
I had a 1977 RM 125 when I was in 7th grade. When I heard the sound as you were riding it brought me back to those days. It was the most fun bike I ever owned. Thanks.
i had the '77 100 in 8th grade
Back in the day I had a 1977 125 it too was the best handling bike I've ever owned never should have sold it in 85 to get my RM 250 in 86 I like my 125 more than I did the 250
I bought 78 RM400 new. What awesome power band, reliable fun bike.
I wasn't surprised how easy this bike fired and rode!
This video brought back some great memories.
I had a friend riding this same bike in tennies put the kick starter through the side of his foot. Still limps to this day.
Thank you, Boe
Talk about powerbands.Everybody should try an old 2stroke,it's like a on off switch.
I had a '78 YZ 125 with a gold DG head.on it which compounded it's lightswitch-y ness ... nuthin' on the bottom but when the powerband hit it screamed like a banshee! Oh the good 'ol days!!
Got a 77 rm 250 and the power bands are nasty 💯 talk about a adrenaline rush!!!!!
Hearing a full line of screaming 125s going down the start straight was like millions of berserk hornets.
This guy only knows how to run up and down straight aways. And starts the bike revving the hell out of it without warming it up. And listen closely lol he misses a gear all the time
The sound of that through your field is magnificent!!!
Just freaking awesome. Sounds like brand new.. she's a screamer, and the echo makes it sound even better:) definitely worth a restoration.
I wrote that RM 125 Suzuki once when I was in high school and it was just too fast for me. I love how it sounds and it’s really awesome you found it. My wife really likes your show too.
Braze a Schrader valve onto and old metal gas cap, screw onto tank and then add air...slowly. :D I've only ever done this once, but it worked like a charm. Or call a paintless dent removal guy. They are pretty amazing.
Sounds very good...didn't miss a beat out on the land. And the smoking cleaned up. LOL Perfect!
Back in the early 80s, I was still riding one of my two 1971 Ducati RT450s. (Still have them...haven't tried starting them since the mid 80s.) Come winter time I went up to one of the local lakes in the BC interior with a few buddies, our families and a few snowmobiles as well. The night before I was furiously screwing as many sheet metal screws into the knobs of the tires to get ready for the next day. What a riot. I could even run on the harder packed snowmobile trails if I kept the speed up and hung my ass out over the rear fender to keep the weight off the front. Like riding in the sand. The lake was glass smooth and I've never had as much fun laying a bike down at any speed and sitting on the seat and spinning around as you slide for 60 or 70 years. :D.
I have a 1979 RM100 and it is a BEAST! I love the sound of those old RMs. I need to get it out of my barn and get it going again.
Make a rubber stopper with a schrader valve....Seal it off to tank...Add air pressure gradually.. You can also use a map gas torch to heat the dented areas slowly. The heat will also cause air pressure to expand so go slow and be patient...
I had heard of guys doing the same using a tennis ball with the Schrader valve in it. Cool!
I agree with this idea.
Good advice, just be careful how much heat is added to the aluminium: too much could cause it to melt or even blow too far outwards.
That's exactly the principle I had in mind.
Said the same thing
Awesome bike! i had a 1978 RM125
I guess I’m an old guy!
The gas tank was plastic and swing arm was aluminum. That bike looks all original to me. Instant power from the two stroke, better than four strokes of today, my opinion.
Nothing beats the sound of an old air cooled 2 stroke lol. Awesome find
Sounds like a chainsaw to me
@@Day12MyThat’s because you have no relevance to these old smokers. It’s like when 2vintage make videos of new 4 stroke quads, zero relevance and interest for me, but this video on the other hand
Still have my dads RM375 and RM400 that he bought new back then. I really need one of these to complete my "trifecta" of the greatest 2 strokes out there.
That's a very important bike in the history of Motorcross. I had a 1978 Suzuki RM 125. it had the aluminum swingarm, plastic tank, and different graphics .
1979 here- bad ass bike ....
Wow what a find..
Listening to this '77 reminds me of a '78 RM 125 for my 1st motocross bike. The 40mm carb was huge! I remember ripping down the abandoned railroad track beds - it was fast! Learned how to stay in the powerband when going up hills, otherwise, it wasn't fun getting bogged-down on the incline.
Sounds like a 2 stroke
@@Mike-jv4rzsame, mine was a 79RM 100, I wish we had GoPros then.
absolutely love the sound of the RM 125 reflecting off the trees as you whip around the field.
What a survivor!!.....ragged from cold missing gears and without an air filter. This historic gem of a piece deserves more respect. $500 absolute bargain, needs restoration but will probably be 'flipped' and we'll never see it again.
great find! so much fun back in the day on bikes like this. All the good times had on bikes of this era and people now riding 10k bikes and complain about everything and laugh at old bikes, but in reality these machines were so fun and we all enjoyed it very much.
What a score! This is what was rode by my friends in the 1980's, and we beat the snot out of them. This one is a survivor, for sure! Looks like someone liked punching the gas tank though, lol! Hearing that thing fire up in less than 5 kicks was amazing. Then hearing it out in the fields brought back those teenage memories. This is a 47 year old bike, that looks all original. Amazing.
The Iconic look of RM’s from the 1970’s are second to none. There is a reason these bikes won so many races👍🏼 Awesome bike … I’m jealous!!!
I bought a new one in 76. Awesome how easily it came back to life. I’d like to find another one. Good job.
This is the first bike I ever owned. Rode the hell out of it for several years, never did a top end on it, mixed fuel and oil in the tank with who knows what mixture and it ran perfectly until the day I sold it.
Joe, 100% restore it just like you planned with an engine refresh and the same style, but new tires. Can't wait to see you make it like new.
Just got a 77 RM125 last August. Same steps as yours except I got a new carb. I did get mine started but an sure it needs a rebuild. I had been following your channel and this showed up today and I was excited! Mine wears 78 plastics and tank and I’d love to go back to 77, and yes those tanks - yikes try to find one. Joe Abbate shows how to do them right on coaxing dents out with a hooked rod and a visegrip, and patience. Please save this one patina or full restore. Thanks for great, inspiring do it yourself videos!
Awesome! I bought and raced a ‘75 RM125 (first year of the RM, and with the down pipe) when I was 17. Man how envious I am! Brings back days of DeCoster and Wolsink! Good luck and thanks for posting!
RM or TM?
RM
Where road our bikes, this kid came with a rm, I was so envious, I think it was a 75 ?
What a beauty........ had an old 125 in the 80s when I was 14 that brings back memories.....
It looks like a restoration is the most popular comment!! Oh yeah!! What a rare opportunity you have to bring back a beautiful bike that really dominated motocross in those years shortly after the Honda Elsinores were on top!
I agree, this bike is very important and should be at the very least preserved if not restored. This is one of the bikes that made Suzuki extremely competitive in Motocross.
Who are in the 125 series was a great bike and 77 I was a teenager riding them dirt bikes I had a YZ 80 YZ 250 and a Honda CR 250 and 2 Hodaka ace 100’s, my brother and I and our friends were very fortunate to have those fantastic dirt throwing machines 😁
Great memories and one of my best friends is still one of my best friends to this day he lives in Ohio I still live in Galveston County, Texas .
Every time he and I speak on the phone or see each other in person, we always sit around and reminisce back when we were just young teenagers kids it’s been a lifetime.
You tube brings back so much nostalgia. I had a 77 & 78 RM 80, 78 RM 100, 79 RM 125 and got the first 81 RM 125 water cooled/full floater in our Nor Cal region. My brother had a 77 RM 125 in addition to many others. A great way to grow up.
Love to see you get a paint booth / powder coating set up started. Sand blast cabinet. You have plenty of space on your property to build a small out-building to take your work to the next level and start doing your own cosmetic work.
Agreed😊
Definitely a cool bike ! In 77 my dad lived around the corner from a Yamaha shop , I would go in there and just look at the bikes . I'm sure the owner would wonder why I would hang out there for hours on end ! Dude you are livin the dream !
Had a 250 that year, dangerous as heck! Rear suspension bounces at high speed, crazy how these bikes were built back in the day
Wow! I was 14 when I bought my 1975 RM 125! I sold my 1972 Honda SL 100 and my 1974 Suzuki TM 100 to do the deal. I loved that bike! I side saddle pushed it until my friends house who lived next to Morgan Cemetery which we also walked/side saddled thru in 2nd gear. Once thru the cementary we pushed them another few blocks until the train tracks that ran parallel to the Delaware river. At the tracks, we looked both ways for cops and moto'ed it about a half mile until we crossed Rt. 73, down the embankment and ended up behind the Palmyra Diner parking lot which was next to the Tacony Palmyra Drive in theatre and the miles of dredged sand dunes from the Delaware River being dredged back in the late 60's and early 70's. One gallon of premix fuel in a plastic 1 gallon milk jug would get us a couple of hours of awesome riding and back home for dinner by 5 and time to walk to the Pennsauken Mart to buy Lynyrd Skynyrds new Street Survivors album on vinyl. The good ol'days with no bills, no worries other than homework, cleaning the dog doo in the yard, trash cans out or washing one of the family cars.
Wow, I rode there before and my friends father took us there with his 80 Husqvarna 430. Brings back memories. I still live on Robbins close to the Tacony Palmyra Bridge.
@@ericbitzer5247 Small world! I was born in Northeast hospital and our parents moved to Palmyra in 1962 and then Cinnaminson. Thats cool that you rode the dunes under and behind the Tacony-Palmyra bridge-Palmyra drive in theatre too! It was a great place to ride! My cousins grew up on Tulip Street across from the park and in 1983, a friend and I bought a corner bar in Mayfair on the corner of Frankford & Brighton called the Harbor Inn. (7026 Frankford Avenue) We had a lot of fun for the two years we owned it and managed to keep the place full on weekends with a DJ and live band on Sundays. It's still in business under the name Toms Sportsmans. That 1980 Husqvarna was a beast! My dad had a 74 Bultaco 360 and it was so fast, us 15 year olds were afraid to get on it. LOL
Reminds me of my first dirtbike, a 1983 rm125 (first blue seat models). I bought it in a very similar state to yours and had been sitting in a shed for 24 years according to the previous owner. Cleaned the very rough looking carb and immediately fired up. These bikes are tough! Having said that, a common issue with these old rm's including mine is that the frames split real easy right under the engine. Nothing a quick weld can't fix though. Curious to see how this one turns out... Keep up the good work and I'm sure you'll flip it without any issues👍
PS. An amazing life hack I never see you use in your videos is mounting/removing the grips with an air compressor. Makes it 10x easier and saves lots of time and energy!
I owned a PE 175, 1979. Had so much fun with that bike!
As far as the tank dents, I've heard of people using a tennis ball with a Schraeder valve in it to pressure the old aluminum takes and pop out dents. Never done it myself. Look it up on UA-cam!
Joe great find. About the gas tank. This when I was younger. It don't work every time. We used to put them in the freezer with water in them. It will expand the tank. Then we got older. We put water in them and heat the dents. Make the water boil. It would come out. Thank you. It reminds of the good old days.
Use water to remove the dents in the fuel tank. Much safer than air pressure. You can buy kits for removing dents from exhaust pipes. The kit, which includes a pump, can be modified and used for the fuel tank.
Love the sound of the old bike.
Great video on a cool bike. I just recently got a 78 RM 125 and got it up and running again. Haven't been on official first ride yet but soon. I vote for a light restoration, that bike earned all the dents and scratches. Be a sharm to lose that. Keep up the excellent content. Your videos helped me get motivated to buy the RM.
Winner winner chicken dinner on this one Joe. What a very special bike this was in the late 70s.. I'm honestly not even surprised how it went for the first start, but definitely impressed! That thing was a SCORE!!
Wow what a bike. Nothing better than a classic motorcycle. It’s definitely in the right hands with you Joe. By far the best channel on UA-cam
I would love to see you do a really thorough restoration.
Love you videos and your skill set is excellent.
I have learned so much from you.
Thank you!
Definitely worth a little work. I grew on bikes like this. They were brilliant things, light and simple. Just great fun bikes.
I'd absolutely love to see a restoration on this one. Wow ...what a great find Joe.❤
Brilliant bike. The twinshocks are the best. Not hard to get someone to fix the tank.
Carbs not bad at all.
They always sound angry from back then. Beautiful sound.
Restoration for sure.
Hey..I use to race a TM 125 with half the travel\suspension that the
RM's had! Those were the days!👍👍
I had a TM 250
Wow this brings back memories. We lived on the edge of a unused field that was used by the neighborhood kids to ride. It had hills and long straightaways and burns and everything you could have fun riding. Got chased away by the police all the time. Lived in Indiana and closest competition track was Red Bud in Michigan. I started out with a late 70s Honda XR75. When my brother went into the Marines I got his Honda Elsinore 125. They hall had their own sound. No one got hurt or fought. Just fun with the neighbors and the girls would come out and hand out in the cleared out spot in the back with plenty of ways to run when the fuzz decided to drive their Chrysler cop cars through the weeds. Awesome video thanks for the ride on memory lane.
Historically this thing is priceless. I would love to own one of these. Great find my man.
Geez me and my friends had several of these back in the day, also a couple 250's, then in 79 at age 16 I bought a 74 TM400. Wish we had them all still! Lol.
That is a beauty, I would do a full restoration on it and put it the family room as art. Nice job buddy!
Beautiful find! Honestly don't know how you find these deals! Great video! Boy, those tires looked sketchy especially the front, careful!! Would love to see a semi-restore on this one for sure.
If you can find a way to seal up the tank and slowly pressurize it with water it should push the dents right out, it didn’t look like there were any bad creases. Love the old 70s bikes, I had a Yamaha 175 enduro back in the day, my first taste of freedom!
I agree. Maybe even pressurize it with water with a little heat the same way you fix dented stroke pipes.
Exactly what I was thinking
Yep, and maybe combine that with a hot glue dent puller system used on cars. Cheap ones start around $65. Lots of car vids on youtube using this system.
It will still look like sheeit. The major depressions may come out, but it will still look all mashed up and creased. You may also expand or burst the seams. The only real way is for the underside to be cut out and then the exposed tank is smooth rolled using a planishing hammer and/or English wheel. Then the under panel is tig welded back into place. A lot of it can be partially repaired using rod anvils inserted into the tank without cutting out the bottom, but that method will never fully restore it.
@@drott150 absolutely right it’ll never look perfect but it’ll be 100% usable and you won’t have to cut the tank apart.
That powerband sound reminds me of my teen years racing the old TM125..a few years before 1975 when the first downswept exhaust RM125 came out..I rode that first RM and wow I thought the old TM was fast.
Wow brother what a gem. The more you drove it to he less it smoked. Runs well
Sound of my teenage hood started with a tm125 when i was 14 had two a rm125n then a yz125f all you would hear down the local river on the weekends was two strokes coming on the band such good memories.hi from New Zealand 🇳🇿
Another great video, you always have great content. 170 compression, wow!!!
I would definitely do a full restoration on it, it deserves to be brought back to its original state
Wow..what a little beast.
Not even gunna lie.. I was waiting the whole video to see if it was going to get the cleaning it deserved. Always great work and good finds!
Definite candidate for restauration. I think the biggest challenge will be the tank. Aluminium having been previously stretched by the dents could probably tear when you attempt to take out the dents. You could of course decontaminate and reweld if necessary. Considering your purchase price and the possible retail value of such a rare bike, I personally think that all the time, money and effort you invest will be worth it.
I think a restoration would be better than converting it into a restaurant. 😂
@@Biffo1262 🤣 I dunno, you could call it the Rotisserie Meat {RM} Cafe.
You're definitely right. Thanks for your feed.
I had one just like it a 77 RM125B Bought it off the original owner back in 1983. Sold it in 2006. That is an awesome bike. Always started and never let me down. On mine the side plates faded. i ran through a barbed wire fence and cracked the front number plate. The wire also looped up and put a hole in the seat cover. I also had the original sales slip from the original owner. $475.00 I believe the only thing missing on mine was the front sprocket guard. I'm not sure they are the original grips. the originals had the Suzuki S on them. I couldn't find a front number plate , I looked for one back in the 80's after I ran through the barbed wire fence. Definitley a good candidate for a restoration. I will say the guy I bought mine form really researched things before he made the purchase. It had to be the top bike in Motorcross Action and Dirt Bike magazine for 1977.
I was working on my 1977 last night ...i run 32 to 1 ...back in the day they used to run ATF ...you might run it thru the gears and then drain .. will help keep clutch plates from sticking.
I have put 2 stator and 3 cdi boxes to get it to run...yours starts 4th kick...I had 2 tanks restored and painted for 700..just sold the extra for 350.
Had one of them back in the day won a lot of trophies with it loved hearing that bike run brought back a lot of memories
Joe i don't think ive ever seen u do a full restoration.. this is the bike.. id love to see the next level of what 2vintage can do.. i know parts r scarce but strip the bike n shine every nut n bolt, paint n degrease the whole bike n get it back to OEM looks.. i think itd b a great project plus it'll b good content u can break down in several part videos, heck u could even start a new resto series 💯
100% agree!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love those 70s! I bought my first new bike when I was 16 in 1977. It was a toss up between the Suz or Yam. I liked Bob Hannah so I went with the Yamaha. Those were truly the good ol days! Nice find!
Letsgooooooo. Love this channel Joe!!!
I had one of those. Man, it was fun to just open it up and let it sing. The sound it made while shifting with the close ratio trans was so sweet.
Oh an oldie. Heck yeah!
4 kicks after sitting 20+ years?!?! Not bad at all, Joe. She’s a ripper.
Oh the sound of the old 70s 2 stroke Suzukis, bad asses!!!
I had that bike back in 1978....great memories....I was 15 years old
Holy crap! ... it started. That sounds - exactly like the 1978 RM 125 I had with basically the same engine.
A guy named Roger Decoster, was a champion Motocrosser, who really made Suzuki motorcycles😊 a household word for motocross racing with his Factory RM250,back in the day. Those bikes were very tough and dependable,very simple to fix, without reed or power valves and although not up technically like the bikes of even a couple of years later, were fun to ride. A very restorable bike, Bud that is in decent shape for 47 years old, and one thatbus old guys were drooling over when we were teens😊
I'm a huge fan of Roger DeCoster. He was simply the goat when it comes to motocross.
Thats from my time. I had that bike. The most fun I ever had. I was 15. So much fun. For me ,it was real fast. My buddy had a same year YZ , it was also incredibly cool.
I actually have the 1980 version all original, great bike . Owned it since 1981
Brings back memories. I was a motorcycle apprentice and used to work on them. very reliable. Easy to hop up. Torquey 54 X54 bore and stroke. Great find and a testament to solid design.
Restore it! This was my very first MX bike, I bought mine for $200 in 1978 right after the C's came out. DG had a plastic tank and side panel update kit that made them look like the GP bike's. You made an incredible find!
That RM was my first dirtbike and you just couldn’t kill those bikes. It was amazing motorcycle
Congrats! You found a real gem. Runs better than some of those rescues 30 years newer👍
Brilliant video again, had many of these early models over the years, it deservers a full restoration and definitely a keeper, keep up the great work doing these video's and look forward to seeing this Rm125 progress.
Thanks Mister. I have a what I thought was a '77 RM-250 but it has a steel tank I'm sure. Been sitting in a shed for +15 yrs. I quit riding because I'm old and it beat the crap out of me. Think I'll pull that baby out this spring and see,, it was running when I parked it. That sound got my love for the old bike back.
You have no idea how lucky you were to find that bike. My friend had that same year bike in the 70’s and I rode it a bunch of times. I had a Yam MX 250. The RM was a real race bike. Kinda pipey, but the gearbox was really good if memory serves. Enjoy it.
Wow, that brought back some memories, I had one of those as a teenager in the 80's and it was tons of fun.
Bikes from the 70s were made of quality materials period. And to find one in that condition is rare. I really hope you will restore and just hang on the wall. Its a history show piece.
I had a Suzuki PE 250, was a bit of a beast, first bike I ever popped a wheelie on. Riding up a bank and gave it the beans and the front wheel lifted off the ground just as I was riding up the bank. Gave me a bit of a start.
Hey mate definitely deserves a resto, what a great find this was the bike that got me into a lifelong love of motorcycles.
40 years ago my friend got one when he was 17 and we used it on the field . We thought it went like the clappers 😂, at the time we had Suzuki X7’s on the road . Thanks for posting .
nice find , one of the easiest ways to get dents out of a tank like that is to fill with water seal it up and freeze it the water will push most the dents out, it takes time but works
Be very cautious, too much water will tear tank apart when the water freezes & expands. Many videos on youtube proving this.