When I was 18 in 1978, I lusted over both these & much more, including a Suzuki GT550A. Because of insurance, I ended up with a GT380B. I’ve owned it ever since & though it’s way slower than the Kawa, the Yam or the 550, I wouldn’t sell or swap it for anything. I understand the attraction if not addiction to these 1970s bikes, mostly designed in the late 60s. Glorious days of freedom, which in retrospect we took for granted. Keep the rubber side down 😎
I will try to keep the rubber side down LOL but I don't even have a street bike anymore. October 10th 2017 I had a really bad shop fire that took all my equipment and my motorcycles in 4 hours. I was living in Lancaster California and had a powder coating metal fabrication shop I still don't know what caused the fire but just before that the antelope Valley had a rain storm of 10 in of rain and one night and I lost my homeowners insurance temporarily which meant I didn't have any coverage on any of my buildings inside one of the buildings was a collection of McCullough cart engines that numbered close to 40 complete running motors and various motorcycle engines all of which or two strokes .
There was also a Suzuki tm400 engine from a crash dirt bike gt550 engine complete running from a crashed street bike and probably a hundred expansion chambers of all different sizes and shapes even adjustable ones. That loss has taken the wind out of my sails so to speak and now I'm here at the Colorado River enjoying the rest of my life.
I wanted the 380 but wouldn't spend the inflated second hand price,And got the 550 for less,The 380 had a inflated reputation it was quicker than the Honda 400cc four,But that's about it,Fortunately my was far quicker than the 380,400,Kh400 and the Yamaha 350/400,and the Honda 500cc four,That crappy Yamaha twin 8 valve DOHC,Probably would not beat a KH500 i had a race with a KH400 and only beat by a few feet,My 550cc was NOT a short stroke it was "under square" meaning the piston travel was just under the width of the piston so redlined at 8000 rpm,My Honda CB350 redlined at 10,000 but power dropped off at 9500 rpm
Bro i was a lucky fool at 18 in 1979 i got a 1974 H2 the Green one omg the widow maker almost made me dead but i learned how to respect her , i had only been riding enduros and dirt bikes until 78 , thats when i got a 350 honda lol slow as molasas and before that the fastest bike i rode was a RM 370 fun ass bike :) 79 came and i got the Mean Green 750 triple loved it even tho i almost stayed Dead !
I bought a new rd350a in 1974 - I also bought a new CB400F in 1975 then a RD400 in 1976. The RD400 had a lot more low down power than the 350 but the 350 was a very exciting bike to ride and super reliable. I actually toured halfway around Australia on it!
I watched the RD350's race in the Isle of Man TT races. 350 2-strokes, vs 500 4-strokes, in a 3 lap race. (The 100 miles was enough for the RD350LC to hold together apparently). The oil burners were incredible and light, but the hook was set, by hearing them pass. The ears screamed in pain, but I'm glad I am old enough to have seen them win, time after time. I rode a Suzuki 550 triple 2-stroke once, but oddly found it rather uninteresting, being used to 70's 750 Honda fours and trials bikes. (I had 2 x 2-strokes: A Bultaco Sherpa 250 and a Greeves Scottish 250 with the Villiers engine). The 550 triple only had one fault..... It was not a Kawasaki triple 2-stroke!!! Loved this video. Thanks!
@@2wheelmonster Yes! This would have been in the1983-84 years. I rode a Yamaha TR1 920 V-twin to the race, with apparently 110hp (but you would not know it). It also had an enclosed drive chain that ran in a sealed oil bath,, to the IOM and met a guy with a Hesketh in Douglas. We were drinking Guinness together at Summerland. Our two bikes parked together drew a lot of attention. Of course his bike was the real reason people stared!, but mine was likely the only TR1 there. Those 350RD's blasting by up on the mountain, crossing the steel tram tracks in the damp mist, whilst wobbling, me in a grassy dug out hole in the field, with a wool blanket rented from the van that sat up there (1 pound), and a cup of hot chocolate from The Roach Coach, will be a great memory till I die!
But the Kawasaki 500 was quick when new but the centre pot had cooling issues and lubrication issues,But it did have electronic ignition and a lighter frame,The issue would cause the bearings on the centre pot to wear out prematurely causing the rattling and probably worn out rings,I was looking to buy a second hand KH500 and approached 6 owners and got a balanced view good when new,Crap after the first or second summer needing copious amount of money on maintenance so opted for the Suzuki GT550 which was NOT a short stroke it was under square,So in between a long stroke a Harley and a short stroke a Japanese bike,Sort of sat in the middle,But being a two stroke and 550cc quicker than the new Range of Suzuki the GS750,CB750,BMW800
@@Dodger2879 That oil bath around the chain was a good idea,I had a CD175 my learners bike with a fully enclosed chain and as a experiment blocked up the drain hole with plasticine and filled the lower case with Castrol GTX,Got 24,000 miles out off that one chain,The store keeper was really impressed with the even wear characteristics and used it in evening classes on motorcycle maintenance and only charged me £1 for a new chain fitted
@@Johnketes54 "Learner's bike" "plasticine"... You must be in the UK! I lived in Hungerford, Berkshire, in those years and lived for riding my bikes! I moved to the US in 1987 with my job and now am retired. I've been riding since I was 8 and still ride. I bought a old rat HD Softail, which is a mix of two bikes and many used Ebay parts. At 68, I don't care too much about cosmetics! In 1985 I bought a brand new Yamaha FJ1200, before Germany influenced manufacturers to put the 125hp limit on bikes, at that time. I rode it for 1 year and sold it in '86 with 21,000 miles and for more than I paid for it, as it was one a a few with 134hp! That's when I bought my first Harley. Since then I've had all sorts of bikes. The most fun was a Buell, but it was pretty tuned and the pipes glowed red at night setting fire to 3 pairs of jeans. My 2006 Softail has an 88ci twin cam engine, (that sucks!) and roasts me in the 100+ weather here in South Florida where I now live, as shoveling snow got old and was exercise in my 30's, now I do what I want, when I want. "It doesn't suck". (Stolen - "Arthur" quote). The IOM was the best! Joey Dunlop was at his peak, Guinness was cheap and in 1985 I managed to find a single woman there, whose speciality was, "romance on short notice" - Perfect! Gotta love those Welsh Girls. The average speed then was in the 118's. Now Joey's son Michael is the resident Irish Nutter and carries his name on. Good luck and if you guys do nothing else, try and get to the island. It really is in a class of its own. I've been to all the events here, I even left Sturgis in 1990 early because I got bored, as burnouts, tits and the 24/7 revving of drag pipes get old. The island does not.
I remember giving my friend my Mustang and borrowing his RD350. I never rode anything bigger than a mini bike. That thing was wicked fast. Let's just say I survived and didn't wreck it.
Stock for stock, brand new, the Yamaha was quicker than any other 350-400 bike. Just look up old Cycle, Cycle World and Cycle Guide magazines road tests. The RD was faster than many bigger bikes too. They didn’t call them giant killers for nothing.
Unfortunately those were journalists who rode bikes and often were bias,Here in the UK many hated two strokes describing them as,Smokey,smelly,Noisy things, omitting the good points,Little to no vibration,40% more power,blinding acceleration and my Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple used no more oil than my Honda CB350 because the honda spat most of the oil out off the breather pipe which i rerouted over the drive chain for maximum lubrication,I read a few off those magazines and read their wild claims about Yamaha,In those day's we had the Kawasaki KH 500 and then the Suzuki GT550 and then the Honda CB500 four cylinder,And Yamaha come up with a twin four stroke 8 valve twin DOHC,What a piece of crap,But no the magazines put it in good standing being competitive with the two strokes what nonsense,I even had a friend who had one making the same claims from these magazines but always turned down a race because he didn't want to be embarrassed
Brings back memories - a buddy owned an RD and I had the S2. Never thought to have a 1 on 1 challenge for some reason. The Kawi was frigging dangerous so of course, that's when they decided to build a 750 - the widow maker!
@@johncunningham4820 haha I heard an old wife's tale that Kawasaki did their testing on an old airstrip. So not many corners. They had the acceleration down great and made awesome power and usually were quicker/faster than everyone else ,but they forgot about corners a little bit,as they didn't have many to say the least. Like a Mopar of the bike world.
@@MrTheHillfolk . This was during the Era before Japan had learnt how to build a Proper Frame . The Primary problem was Steering Head rigidity . Front and rear wheels didn't maintain alignment very well . And misaligned wheels is the Biggest Issue there can be with Stability .
Very fun to see as I own a stock S2, one of the earliest. I saved it from a garage where it's was kept for 30 years, went throu the whole bike, and it runs really good. Angry as a wasp!
@@2wheelmonster every great bike i've ever had was from a garden, rusting away, or the real gems from a shed. it's the only way. Great bike, i never had either of these, but skirted the perimeter with RD 175/250 and GT380. I hope you have many hours of enjoyment ahead.
I bought a '73 Kaw 350 new when I was a sophomore in high school. I thought they only came in red. This one was repainted I guess, also it's missing the stock decals that came on the gas tank, side panels, and tail.
Very entertaining... I had my 1973 S2A from New for 45 years. I used for drag racing and road racing . I was little quicker in the quarter mile than most Yamaha's but only could beat maybe half a road racing but I'll admit to being a pretty wild rider in those days. I would add my 1970 Kawasaki 350 A7 Avenger was a quicker bike in the quarter mile than the S2A or Yamaha . In 1987 I bought a used Yamaha RZ350 with a few bolt modifications and it was better than any of the Yamaha or Kawasaki 350 to 400 model two strokes in quickness, top speed and especially handling.
Here in the UK it was the LC350 and claimed to be quicker than it's 400cc predecessor,Having 2 litres of cooling water at 1kg per litre and 50cc smaller engine,I always considered it a "wild claim",One day i passed a group of smaller two strokes on my Suzuki GT550 and the lad on his RD350 took umbridge and decided on a race,He was two up and on a smaller machine,Perhaps he believed that his Yamaha RD350 was the biggest two stroke on the road and blissfully unaware they went up too 750cc,Well he tried and failed blowing up his engine silly little boy,I don't believe in all this modification crapp except the rear cog,Failing that get a bigger bike,Most of theses "modifications" are cosmetic or not properly installed,A fellow owner of my Suzuki GT550 bought "expansions" and challenged me to a race i gladly accepted and i won,Rather disappointing as his machine was 2 years younger with fancy expansions costing more than standard pipes,Quite disappointing.
I still have my RD350LC track bike I built in the 80s. I acquired a set of factory TZ pipes then built an engine for them. It is so fast for a 350. So much fun these days to mix up some fuel for it with Castrol R and go out for a ride spreading Prius repellent as I go.
Love that, “Prius repellent”! Did you know that the anthropogenic global warming story is as true at the Wuhan virus story? The perpetrators are from the same Team Diabolical Globalists, too.
Well the way I see it, the Quacker left the RD for dead in looks alone. Late seventies I owned an S1C, RD 250 and an S3 400. I disliked that RD and chopped it in for the S3. The last machine I owned was a ZRX 1100. Kawasaki were always my favourite motorcycle. I do miss that ZR.
@@2wheelmonster Maybe he meant speedblock colour scheme? Lovely bike, the RD400E. A pal had a yellow one & he wheelied then crashed his very early on in ownership.
In my young days way back in 1974, all my friends had 350s, which included a Honda CB 350, Suzuki 350, Kawasaki s2. The RD 350 I had, on this long straight went past all of them.
The "fastest RD350 in town" challenged my buddy to a race against his '73 S2. He thought he could take him, but he knew my '73 S2 was faster so he asked me to race the guy. Mine was stock, except I polished and semi-matched the aluminum manifold to cylinder connection. I pulled the guy 20 feet in first gear and was gone. I didn't even look to see how much I beat him by.
You probably were the better rider,I say this because the Kawasaki had 3 cylinders making it heavier than the Yamaha which was not as smooth but supposedly quicker
The mods on the RD will make a big difference in performance over stock and amount to cheating in this comparison. I had several RD's and many H1 500's, but never an S2 350. I would guess if everything were equal, including rider skill and weight, it would be a toss-up, with the S2 probably making slightly more horsepower, and the RD making up for it with slightly less weight, reed valves for a broader power band, and a 6th gear.
@@vernonstamm1514 Nice video. Thanks. It brought back some great memories. By the way, one of the scariest bikes I've ridden in 50 years was a friend's bone stock-looking 1974 RD350 that was professionally ported and tuned. That thing would flip over backwards so fast you would wonder what had just happened. I almost looped it on the first ride I took on it and never asked to ride it again. He took it to the drag strip and beat the brakes off of every street bike there, including an H2 and a Z1900. Believe me, a professionally prepared RD350 could be an absolute hoot to ride.
@@patthewoodboy Yeah mine had been production raced by the time I got it. Dunlop racing tyres, racing expansion pipes, clip on bars and probably porting and jetting. I put it mostly back to standard apart from the engine.
So, I was maybe 20 yrs old on a '72 S2 when a guy in a new Daytona Special (Yamaha 400) suddenly took off in a wheelie in 1st gear next to me! I was already in 2nd gear, so I slipped the clutch to get into the powerband. It had mild porting, removed baffles, 2mm bigger carbs, and individual K&N's only. I caught him and pulled him smartly in 2nd, pulled him greatly in 3rd though my points were dirty and the bike started misfiring about 7k rpm. It didn't matter: the RD was 10 bike lengths back by that time. Still, I loved the RD's and had several modified smaller ones.
Awesome, I’ve got a 1973 Suzuki gt250k candy apple 🍏 and I absolutely love it, and best of all is the 33bhp at the wheel. Those bikes are gorgeous, and very quick for the year, but I bet they would ear the arse off any modern 250 or 350.
I had a 72 s2and it took awhile to learn to slip the clutch for a good launch. When you hit it right it would do a 3inch wheelie and pack it for twenty feet or so then slap 2nd and your gone. Harleys and triumphs were so far behind that a lot of them just kept going not to be seen for a few weeks. Got a 1974 Z1 and had to learn to feather the throttle to get max traction. S2 could hole shot the Z but at the 1/16 mile it was all over.
My first bike was a 73 S2. Hard to keep points in it and constantly fouled plugs. But there wasn't a 350 made that could beat it in a straight line. My buddy had a Honda 450 and that was an even match. As you could see from the video, there was so much pull, it was hard to keep the front wheel on the ground.
I had a Kawasaki 400 2 stroke triple, then I went to the 500 and finally the 750 triple. Kawasaki wasn't competing with anyone in the 70s they owned the road, everyone was trying to compete with them.
Guys, u can't drag race on a curved road!!!! Inside line is shorter. You didnt announce the winner who went by camera at high speed!! Still enjoyed seeing my first bike demolish the modded Yamaha!!! Thanks!
in the early days i had the RD 400 white tank with red stripes air cooled had bigger expansion chamber pipes fitted MY mate had a GS 1000 Suzuki the the RD would stay with the GS from take of till around 100mph ....The RD would like to stand straight up in second gear
You clearly were the better rider,He had the cc but no skill,I had the Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple and borrowed the GS1000 and at night with street lighting and without trying got that to 140mph in less than a minute way quicker than my 550,I had a race with a KH400 and only just beat him,My 550cc could easily take a 750cc four stroke but a GS1000,I took on a BMW boxer twin upto 100mph and he pulled away from me,But that GS was no slug,The Kawasaki Z900/1000 was a lot quicker
I had a 79 rd400 I think it was a Daytona special it was white looked badass is super easy wheelie bike and a 71 H1 Mach 3 500 with j&r power pipes exhaust ports raised bit the back of the skirts of the Pistons were cut the same as the exhaust ports this bike was a rocket there was nothing that I could not get past even 74° Harley-Davidsons those were easy to be and fun as well
Their power bands come on differently..I found the triple more versatile in traffic...the twin came on later but longer..handled way better and better on fuel. The triple could be fun cutting up freeway traffic
Worrying about fuel on a two stroke,Well that's a new one on me,But we are in 2022 and not 1977 when i was on a Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple and gave 35 mpg and 23 mpg if i caned it,But petrol(gas) was £1.60 a GALLON
@@Johnketes54 Fuel consumption can be an issue no matter the cost. The other day I rode my S3 400 triple up to Mt. St. Helens. Started with a totally fuel tank, and ended by getting my buddy to fetch me a can of gas from the nearest station after I ran out. Distance between stations was less than the maximum range of the machine!
My first taste of two-stroke racing was one I had a Suzuki 250 X6 Hustler and cut up a bunch of Schwinn bicycle parts and slipped a 250x6 into a oversized bicycle frame and took it to irwindale raceway on gasoline ran an 1156 and a quarter mile and 112 miles an hour
I have two A7's one I bought new and the other is track bike from back then. The only faster bike than them is a tz350 road racer that I converted to run on the street
i had a KH250 in 1979 and a mate had the RD250, the KH accelerated faster but after 70mph he used to pass me and i could never match the top speed of his RD but once he got the the twisty bits......i had him.....lol.....was great fun.....
@@2wheelmonsterhmm - interesting.. you'd think three sets of piston rings means more internal friction than just two sets.. must be more aggressive timing 'n better breathing S2 ..middle cylinder is always 'petrol-cooled' too 25mpg, otherwise runs too hot.. lol
Hi, back in the day I had two H1's that ran good but lacked that terrifying power they were known for. After pressure/vacuum testing each CC, there was leakage past those inboard rubber seals. The cranks needed work I couldn't afford. The RD has a single inboard seal that's designed to leak slightly. The H1's mentioned were less than ten years old at the time. Have a great day and keep up the good videos.
@@2wheelmonster I think he means, “original” as compared to “stock”. A stock machine remains so even if you rebuild the crank (with OEM seals). I would be very surprised if the 45 year old crank seals retain perfect sealing. Not impossible though. I had a 1976 GT550A and the motor required no work. The entire bike externally was a total mess. But hats off to Suzuki. Their crank seals were good in the few thousand miles I had it for. Wish I’d kept it. Engine had never been opened. Underneath the grime, rust & debts, was a really solid motorcycle requiring only a lot of cosmetics. Harder to do even than in the Noughties!
I had a Kawi H2 350 that I rebuilt from the ground up...bored .030 over. Bike was a BEAST. Hit the power band above 3500 and it would LAUNCH. Speedometer went to 160...bike has some handling issues...never took it above 125...SOB would get you there quick though.
i had both back in the day..I knew the triple would win. Also a baby blue 72 with kz650 mags swing arm and triple discs. crashed my brains out on all of 'em in the Oakland hills.
2 strokes smelled soooo yummy!!!I had a Kawasaki H2 750. It was terrifying to drive!!!!! Not sure who won this one, but I enjoyed a darg race that started in a curve.
so from the early scenes i take it the RD won , but i'll be fked if i could tell from the finish .If the kwaka had not stuffed his start by lifting off because of his front rising , it might be a different outcome , i demand a rematch . A heads up would have been nice
I had a 72 S2 350 that I bought new in high school. My friends all had 350's from Yamaha and Honda. My S2 would easily beat a Yamaha R5, because they still had s give speed. Another buddy of mine got a brand new 73 Rd350. I would race the RD and it would be close to even, but the RD 350 would pull away by a bike length because of the new 6 speed transmission update. No Honda 350 could keep up with an S2 or an RD.
@@2wheelmonster Thanks, I was about 150lbs then, and I'm 200 now. My friends were all lightweights then too. But I agree with you....if i would have emptied out my pockets, and took off my boots, I may have won!
In the old days, everyone outrun the Hondas. Those were days when 2-strokes ruled the roost ! It was also the days when you looked in awe at someone with a 350 ! I started off at 17 on a Yamaha 175 trail CT1. Now 4-strokes are so damned fast ! Today at 66, I am back to a single cylinder Yamaha FZ250 (Made in India). The biggest I owned was a BMW R1150RT. Respect. Trinidad 7 Tobago, West Indies.
And all that started when I was about 16 racing go-karts started with a Mac 6 then a Mac nine then a Mac 91 and then a Max 70 and then finally twin 101s another rocket ship
Not much of a race. Had the RD been bone stock like the S2, it would have been even less a race. I had a '75 S3, the 400 cc version, and it would keep up with the Z-1 900 to about 75-80 mph. I rode with a guy who had a '74 Z-1B, it had a 4 into 1 Hooker header, and I could out accelerate him until he hit 4th gear, then his over-double-my-displacement made the difference. I bought his bike a bit later.
The frame of the R350 was better than the S2. You could basically scrape the footrests on the tar. You couldn't do this with the Kawa.I had a Kawa too. H2 and H1. And I haven't seen anyone doing it now, besides some wheely friends doing only wheelies on it. On curved streets, I could beat any S2, H1/2, or even a Z1. Besides my R350 was an original R250. I only changed Barell, Piston, and Jets, the 350 fitted. I left the 250signs on. I enjoyed the big eyes of the other bikers when they got killed in the curves. I never had a better fun machine in my life. Some roads we used to drive were closed later for Motorbike, because of the death rate.😁😁😁🤩🤩
I knew some Suzuki GT550 owners who fitted GT380 side panel emblems. Nowhere near as good a cover as the Yam 350 as 250. But those who knew the strokers well enough to see it was a 550 at a distance were thin on the ground. The GT550 has very few parts in common with the GT380. Front mudguard, Indicators, clocks, tail lamp, seat, tank. That’s almost it. I also owned a 550, 2012-20, but never fell in love with it as I did with my Suzuki GT750A (2009- present) and nothing will ever displace my 380B in my affection.
Suzuki had a 380 triple, my friend had an Rd 350 my brother the Honda 350, I had an Yamaha sr 500 my other brother had the Suzuki gs 400. A close friend had a ducati 305 or 350 fast for a 4 stroke we'd go riding together for fun and didn't race but I'd ride wheelies on my sr 500
Had both a 250 and 350RDs back in the day, they have to be one of the worst handing bikes I ever owned, like going in straights line cornering was a different story. Also had the old Suzuki 350 Rebel teardrop tank and a later GT350 both bikes handled way better the the Yamaha RD's. The quacker MachIII 500 blow me away bloody thing was lethal.
What's a typical rider? You mean rider's of today where posing is at it's premium,Back in the 70s it was power and if Yamaha produce 2bhp more it was a winner
one rider looks quite a bit larger , and a race is not always about the faster bike. its mostly the rider , back in the day i bought a gt380 thinking it would beat my buddy's 350 kawi ....lol how wrong i was
As I recall, magazine road tests at the time found the GT380 to be slower than Suzuki's T350 twin (which was really only 315cc). The GTs weren't designed to be fast, just smooth and tractable.
@@2wheelmonster I had a RD 250 given to me from brother couldn't figure out why it was fouling plugs Yamaha couldn't either I thought maybe because of it being oil induction something wrong with that I tapped on the oil induction unit and fixed it the bike was a 6 speed rocket I'd be riding with friends and they had their Harley's and suck they be hauling and I'd go by them on a wheelie LOL HAHAHAHAHA
OMG,, my 1st bike in about 1975 was an S-2, orange, i HATED those 3 sets of points, your bike has LOWWWWWWWWWWWW mileage, i beat the hell out of it in 1 summer then sold it and bought a 74 Z-1. Too bad the S-2 didnt have the stock paint
Really nice bike. I had a 1971 Yamaha YAS1 (125cc twin), then a 1972 Yamaha YDS7 (250 twin). Those were both lovely machines. I’d pay a huge sum to acquire a near perfect YDS7, but there don’t appear to be any.
Standard RD350 definitely faster than Kawasaki 350, thanks in part to the reed valve system, which also enabled porting to make it go even faster. S2 was also around before the RD350 iirc
Yes. The Kawasakis were piston ported with a very narrow powerband. The reed-valve on the later Yamahas, helped with torque and a wider powerband. The later YPVS (Power Valve) system Yamaha introduced actually varied the exhaust port timing in relation to piston position. The water-cooled RD 250/350s used this system. Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies.
@@ramishrambarran3998 The YPVS was a wonder,But unfortunately the knucklehead out there didn't or couldn't understand the concept of a powerband all the way through the rev range,They just saw no powerband,Unfortunately technicians don't communicate with the not very educated public,Lotus did something similar,Maximum power to the rear wheel without sliding but the the braindead public want their wheels spinning and squealing on take off,So efficiently goes down the pan to look "cool"
@@jamesbottger5894 Hello James. I am 67. Used to read Cycle World and Cycle Guide magazines, way before the internet. The Yamaha RD400 when it debuted was the quickest amongst bikes of that category. I recall a Cycle Guide comparison test. Honda 500 twin, 500-4, Suzuki GT 380 & 550, Kawasaki KH400. I cannot remember if the 500 was included. The RD 350LC and RZ350LC were to come later and we're quicker bikes. While I am not disputing what you claimed as quicker, I feel that both Yamahas at that time were quicker than the S2, though the Kawasaki would have more top speed. Trinidad & Tobago. West Indies.
If the green party ever got in,It would be horses,Horses and carts send us back to the stone age,They would make mess of everything because saving the planet is their priority
Oh Goody . The H2-R and TZ-750's baby brothers are playing together . I love Two-Strokes . But you need to understand them . YOU have to adapt . The Bike cannot .
@@johncunningham4820 That’s for sure. Because they were heavier and slightly less powerful, they were just nicer to travel distances on. The GT380 ran out of puff quite early, though I do recall trips to York & to Haverfordwest (from Portsmouth) on the 380, singing it’s heart out at mostly 75-80 mph. Never missed a beat or broke down in a way which required roadside recovery in over 40 years. My GT750A, you could ride all day at 80-85mph & it wasn’t even tiring. Full of character, old bikes!
They also dump a surprising amount of weight in the swap. The most extraordinary weight loss I personally experienced was a 3:3 system on my GT750A. Stock Kettle pipes, especially the outers, weighed as much as a small child, each! Hard to beat the original pipes, though.
All cosmetic! Supposed to make you go faster,I race motorcycles with expansions couldn't see any difference,Look at the race the Yamaha rider is clearly a poser,More money than sense,A standard Yamaha should have seen that Kawasaki but didn't
Neither Rider could pull a hole shot to save their LIFE's. You need to be on a flat straight section of road with riders that know what the hell they are doing. The guy on the Yamaha did a marginal hole shot but the guy on the Kaw was flat ass an amature. On those things you brought them up to around 5500 and slipped the clutch to keep the traction and get as far forward on the bike as you could. Sorry am 69 years old and actually had several of these bikes. Would love to find a mid displasement 2 stroke road bike but now days they are made of UNOBTAINIUM.
@@2wheelmonster Over the years I have owned several fire breathing smaller 2 stroke bikes. The most interesting one was a highly upgraded Kaw 500 tripple. I went stupid with it and it was a handful to control, I doubt that either of those clowns could even get it rolling without stalling it continiously. You CANNOT simply dump the clutch and grap a handful of throttle. It if it even stays running will bog badly then when it hits the power band you suddenly have a front wheel reaching for the sky, and if you pull the clutch in you get a tremendous hard drop of the front end followed by the Mother of All Speed Wobbles. In the learning experiences on and off the track I learned how to control one of these machines. Now the Kaw couldn't be made to handle better than a overloaded dump truck due to the plastic swing arm bushings, frame made of cooked noodles and the fron forks made from Bic Pen parts that failed Q.C. The Yam could be made to handle quite well for what it was but you had to have your head out of your ass on throttle, gear selection and clutch control to make it around the track in one piece. Also remember that these 2 strokes had the engine braking of say "Zip/Shit", so you also had to learn proper braking techniques. You may zip past some rather slower 4 strokes on the straight to only have them use engine braking and charge past you entering the courner braking marks. If it was a curvy course or a long race your brakes eventually got hot so your brake point would have to drop further back so you could make the courner while the slower 4 stoke guys kept the same point. Inexperienced 2 stroke riders tried to match the brake points and experienced the Straw bails in front of the armco.
A drag race on a bend,what could possibly go wrong LOL
I know right!!!
The bike on the Inside curve has a huge advantage . They should have started them off staggered to compinsate for distance variables .
😆😆😆
When I was 18 in 1978, I lusted over both these & much more, including a Suzuki GT550A.
Because of insurance, I ended up with a GT380B.
I’ve owned it ever since & though it’s way slower than the Kawa, the Yam or the 550, I wouldn’t sell or swap it for anything.
I understand the attraction if not addiction to these 1970s bikes, mostly designed in the late 60s. Glorious days of freedom, which in retrospect we took for granted.
Keep the rubber side down 😎
I will try to keep the rubber side down LOL but I don't even have a street bike anymore. October 10th 2017 I had a really bad shop fire that took all my equipment and my motorcycles in 4 hours. I was living in Lancaster California and had a powder coating metal fabrication shop I still don't know what caused the fire but just before that the antelope Valley had a rain storm of 10 in of rain and one night and I lost my homeowners insurance temporarily which meant I didn't have any coverage on any of my buildings inside one of the buildings was a collection of McCullough cart engines that numbered close to 40 complete running motors and various motorcycle engines all of which or two strokes .
There was also a Suzuki tm400 engine from a crash dirt bike gt550 engine complete running from a crashed street bike and probably a hundred expansion chambers of all different sizes and shapes even adjustable ones. That loss has taken the wind out of my sails so to speak and now I'm here at the Colorado River enjoying the rest of my life.
I bought a new S2 350 in 1972.
It was a real dog compared to the 1975 Kawasaki 900 Z1B I bought next.
I wanted the 380 but wouldn't spend the inflated second hand price,And got the 550 for less,The 380 had a inflated reputation it was quicker than the Honda 400cc four,But that's about it,Fortunately my was far quicker than the 380,400,Kh400 and the Yamaha 350/400,and the Honda 500cc four,That crappy Yamaha twin 8 valve DOHC,Probably would not beat a KH500 i had a race with a KH400 and only beat by a few feet,My 550cc was NOT a short stroke it was "under square" meaning the piston travel was just under the width of the piston so redlined at 8000 rpm,My Honda CB350 redlined at 10,000 but power dropped off at 9500 rpm
Bro i was a lucky fool at 18 in 1979 i got a 1974 H2 the Green one omg the widow maker almost made me dead but i learned how to respect her , i had only been riding enduros and dirt bikes until 78 , thats when i got a 350 honda lol slow as molasas and before that the fastest bike i rode was a RM 370 fun ass bike :) 79 came and i got the Mean Green 750 triple loved it even tho i almost stayed Dead !
I saw two blurs go zipping past, but I'll be hanged if I could tell which blur was which!
Right
The Kawasaki was in front.
I bought a new rd350a in 1974 - I also bought a new CB400F in 1975 then a RD400 in 1976. The RD400 had a lot more low down power than the 350 but the 350 was a very exciting bike to ride and super reliable. I actually toured halfway around Australia on it!
Wow. Australia? Thats amazing
I had a S3400A, it always beat the RD400's , the acceleration when it kicked in was unique !
Big time
I watched the RD350's race in the Isle of Man TT races. 350 2-strokes, vs 500 4-strokes, in a 3 lap race. (The 100 miles was enough for the RD350LC to hold together apparently).
The oil burners were incredible and light, but the hook was set, by hearing them pass. The ears screamed in pain, but I'm glad I am old enough to have seen them win, time after time.
I rode a Suzuki 550 triple 2-stroke once, but oddly found it rather uninteresting, being used to 70's 750 Honda fours and trials bikes. (I had 2 x 2-strokes: A Bultaco Sherpa 250 and a Greeves Scottish 250 with the Villiers engine).
The 550 triple only had one fault..... It was not a Kawasaki triple 2-stroke!!!
Loved this video. Thanks!
At the Isle of man?
Thats crazy
Hopefully someday I can make it there with an RZ350 dry clutch!!!!
Thank you for sharing your story
@@2wheelmonster
Yes! This would have been in the1983-84 years. I rode a Yamaha TR1 920 V-twin to the race, with apparently 110hp (but you would not know it). It also had an enclosed drive chain that ran in a sealed oil bath,, to the IOM and met a guy with a Hesketh in Douglas. We were drinking Guinness together at Summerland.
Our two bikes parked together drew a lot of attention. Of course his bike was the real reason people stared!, but mine was likely the only TR1 there.
Those 350RD's blasting by up on the mountain, crossing the steel tram tracks in the damp mist, whilst wobbling, me in a grassy dug out hole in the field, with a wool blanket rented from the van that sat up there (1 pound), and a cup of hot chocolate from The Roach Coach, will be a great memory till I die!
But the Kawasaki 500 was quick when new but the centre pot had cooling issues and lubrication issues,But it did have electronic ignition and a lighter frame,The issue would cause the bearings on the centre pot to wear out prematurely causing the rattling and probably worn out rings,I was looking to buy a second hand KH500 and approached 6 owners and got a balanced view good when new,Crap after the first or second summer needing copious amount of money on maintenance so opted for the Suzuki GT550 which was NOT a short stroke it was under square,So in between a long stroke a Harley and a short stroke a Japanese bike,Sort of sat in the middle,But being a two stroke and 550cc quicker than the new Range of Suzuki the GS750,CB750,BMW800
@@Dodger2879 That oil bath around the chain was a good idea,I had a CD175 my learners bike with a fully enclosed chain and as a experiment blocked up the drain hole with plasticine and filled the lower case with Castrol GTX,Got 24,000 miles out off that one chain,The store keeper was really impressed with the even wear characteristics and used it in evening classes on motorcycle maintenance and only charged me £1 for a new chain fitted
@@Johnketes54
"Learner's bike" "plasticine"...
You must be in the UK!
I lived in Hungerford, Berkshire, in those years and lived for riding my bikes! I moved to the US in 1987 with my job and now am retired. I've been riding since I was 8 and still ride. I bought a old rat HD Softail, which is a mix of two bikes and many used Ebay parts.
At 68, I don't care too much about cosmetics!
In 1985 I bought a brand new Yamaha FJ1200, before Germany influenced manufacturers to put the 125hp limit on bikes, at that time. I rode it for 1 year and sold it in '86 with 21,000 miles and for more than I paid for it, as it was one a a few with 134hp! That's when I bought my first Harley. Since then I've had all sorts of bikes. The most fun was a Buell, but it was pretty tuned and the pipes glowed red at night setting fire to 3 pairs of jeans. My 2006 Softail has an 88ci twin cam engine,
(that sucks!) and roasts me in the 100+ weather here in South Florida where I now live, as shoveling snow got old and was exercise in my 30's, now I do what I want, when I want.
"It doesn't suck".
(Stolen - "Arthur" quote).
The IOM was the best! Joey Dunlop was at his peak, Guinness was cheap and in 1985 I managed to find a single woman there, whose speciality was, "romance on short notice" - Perfect!
Gotta love those Welsh Girls.
The average speed then was in the 118's. Now Joey's son Michael is the resident Irish Nutter and carries his name on.
Good luck and if you guys do nothing else, try and get to the island. It really is in a class of its own. I've been to all the events here, I even left Sturgis in 1990 early because I got bored, as burnouts, tits and the 24/7 revving of drag pipes get old.
The island does not.
I remember giving my friend my Mustang and borrowing his RD350. I never rode anything bigger than a mini bike. That thing was wicked fast. Let's just say I survived and didn't wreck it.
An amazing story
You forgot it has another carb and cylinder
KH750 was the quickest two stroke and put that piddly 350 to shame
@@Johnketes54 by far!.....widowmaker
Excellent choice off the bikes. It is very difficult in a video to see what bike was faster.
Interesting
Stock for stock, brand new, the Yamaha was quicker than any other 350-400 bike. Just look up old Cycle, Cycle World and Cycle Guide magazines road tests. The RD was faster than many bigger bikes too. They didn’t call them giant killers for nothing.
Unfortunately those were journalists who rode bikes and often were bias,Here in the UK many hated two strokes describing them as,Smokey,smelly,Noisy things, omitting the good points,Little to no vibration,40% more power,blinding acceleration and my Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple used no more oil than my Honda CB350 because the honda spat most of the oil out off the breather pipe which i rerouted over the drive chain for maximum lubrication,I read a few off those magazines and read their wild claims about Yamaha,In those day's we had the Kawasaki KH 500 and then the Suzuki GT550 and then the Honda CB500 four cylinder,And Yamaha come up with a twin four stroke 8 valve twin DOHC,What a piece of crap,But no the magazines put it in good standing being competitive with the two strokes what nonsense,I even had a friend who had one making the same claims from these magazines but always turned down a race because he didn't want to be embarrassed
Brings back memories - a buddy owned an RD and I had the S2.
Never thought to have a 1 on 1 challenge for some reason. The Kawi was frigging dangerous so of course, that's when they decided to build a 750 - the widow maker!
Absolutley
Kinda like ford and chevy rivalry I guessp
It was the 500 Kawasaki that was Really Lethal . The bit of extra weight of the 750 made it SLIGHTLY more stable . The 500 was just as fast .
@@johncunningham4820 I truly miss those days - had more fun on my death machine than anything since.
@@johncunningham4820 haha I heard an old wife's tale that Kawasaki did their testing on an old airstrip.
So not many corners.
They had the acceleration down great and made awesome power and usually were quicker/faster than everyone else ,but they forgot about corners a little bit,as they didn't have many to say the least.
Like a Mopar of the bike world.
@@MrTheHillfolk . This was during the Era before Japan had learnt how to build a Proper Frame . The Primary problem was Steering Head rigidity . Front and rear wheels didn't maintain alignment very well .
And misaligned wheels is the Biggest Issue there can be with Stability .
Very fun to see as I own a stock S2, one of the earliest. I saved it from a garage where it's was kept for 30 years, went throu the whole bike, and it runs really good. Angry as a wasp!
It seems all my bikes from the 70's and early 80's were in a barn
@@2wheelmonster every great bike i've ever had was from a garden, rusting away, or the real gems from a shed. it's the only way. Great bike, i never had either of these, but skirted the perimeter with RD 175/250 and GT380. I hope you have many hours of enjoyment ahead.
@@MHLivestreams i never heard of a rd 175????????
@@leeturner1838 Maybe a DT175?? The trail bike.
@@FunAllDayLong4353 s2 was 72, 73, so it would have been ct 175, cause at was 125 ct was 175, dt was 250, and rt was 360!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I would love to see that race again, properly on an empty straight dry road.
Exactly. BTW, which one was the winner?
The saki
@@2wheelmonster Bone stock :)
Interesting... a drag race on a curved road. 🤔
I thought that too 👍
@@Welderady i know, a bit strange, but the length/wind/et cetera is equal though i guess
I thought the same thing
Yep....when i went to school the circumference of a circle is larger the larger the radius......maybe things have changed.....climate change maybe? 🤣🤣
Haha
I bought a '73 Kaw 350 new when I was a sophomore in high school. I thought they only came in red. This one was repainted I guess, also it's missing the stock decals that came on the gas tank, side panels, and tail.
Very entertaining... I had my 1973 S2A from New for 45 years. I used for drag racing and road racing . I was little quicker in the quarter mile than most Yamaha's but only could beat maybe half a road racing but I'll admit to being a pretty wild rider in those days.
I would add my 1970 Kawasaki 350 A7 Avenger was a quicker bike in the quarter mile than the S2A or Yamaha . In 1987 I bought a used Yamaha RZ350 with a few bolt modifications and it was better than any of the Yamaha or Kawasaki 350 to 400 model two strokes in quickness, top speed and especially handling.
Outstanding
And you are still pretty fast even today on your Triumph and BMW.
@@billdee9622 Nah but on the Royal Enfield I am a shaker.😄😄
Here in the UK it was the LC350 and claimed to be quicker than it's 400cc predecessor,Having 2 litres of cooling water at 1kg per litre and 50cc smaller engine,I always considered it a "wild claim",One day i passed a group of smaller two strokes on my Suzuki GT550 and the lad on his RD350 took umbridge and decided on a race,He was two up and on a smaller machine,Perhaps he believed that his Yamaha RD350 was the biggest two stroke on the road and blissfully unaware they went up too 750cc,Well he tried and failed blowing up his engine silly little boy,I don't believe in all this modification crapp except the rear cog,Failing that get a bigger bike,Most of theses "modifications" are cosmetic or not properly installed,A fellow owner of my Suzuki GT550 bought "expansions" and challenged me to a race i gladly accepted and i won,Rather disappointing as his machine was 2 years younger with fancy expansions costing more than standard pipes,Quite disappointing.
I still have my RD350LC track bike I built in the 80s. I acquired a set of factory TZ pipes then built an engine for them. It is so fast for a 350.
So much fun these days to mix up some fuel for it with Castrol R and go out for a ride spreading Prius repellent as I go.
Love that, “Prius repellent”!
Did you know that the anthropogenic global warming story is as true at the Wuhan virus story?
The perpetrators are from the same Team Diabolical Globalists, too.
@@GT380man I’’ll sit out on that. Not here for politics just love of cars bikes and boats.
I see GT380man deleted his silly comment.
@@donziperk What was his silly comment
@@Johnketes54 He talked about how much fun bikes were then got all silly political about climate change conspiracy theories.
Just wondering if they made the denco performance package for the 350 they did for the 750 130 hp hang on for life.
Good question
Well the way I see it, the Quacker left the RD for dead in looks alone. Late seventies I owned an S1C, RD 250 and an S3 400. I disliked that RD and chopped it in for the S3.
The last machine I owned was a ZRX 1100. Kawasaki were always my favourite motorcycle.
I do miss that ZR.
Thanks for sharing!!!
I bought a brand spanking new YAMAHA RD400 1977 KENNY ROBERTS EDITION in Hawaii in 1977. It was a WHEELIE MONSTER!!!
I thought kenny roberts only had the rz?
Thats awesome though the rd400's are killer
@@2wheelmonster Maybe he meant speedblock colour scheme?
Lovely bike, the RD400E. A pal had a yellow one & he wheelied then crashed his very early on in ownership.
In my young days way back in 1974, all my friends had 350s, which included a Honda CB 350, Suzuki 350, Kawasaki s2. The RD 350 I had, on this long straight went past all of them.
Havent seen a suzuki out there but I am sure they are out there
It was my understanding that the suzuki had a smaller engine. 305cc in 1970 and increased slightly to 315 cc by 1972.
Don’t think Suzuki made a 350 twin & defo not a triple.
Twins went up to RD400, through 250, 200, 185, 125. Singles below all the way to Fizzys.
@@smitajky From 1971 it was the triple 380
@@GT380man Honda made a 125 twin but with a single carb,Suzuki 185 road bike was a twin,Yamaha twins were the 200,250,350/400
The "fastest RD350 in town" challenged my buddy to a race against his '73 S2. He thought he could take him, but he knew my '73 S2 was faster so he asked me to race the guy. Mine was stock, except I polished and semi-matched the aluminum manifold to cylinder connection. I pulled the guy 20 feet in first gear and was gone. I didn't even look to see how much I beat him by.
You probably were the better rider,I say this because the Kawasaki had 3 cylinders making it heavier than the Yamaha which was not as smooth but supposedly quicker
The mods on the RD will make a big difference in performance over stock and amount to cheating in this comparison. I had several RD's and many H1 500's, but never an S2 350. I would guess if everything were equal, including rider skill and weight, it would be a toss-up, with the S2 probably making slightly more horsepower, and the RD making up for it with slightly less weight, reed valves for a broader power band, and a 6th gear.
Interestinf concepts
@@vernonstamm1514 Nice video. Thanks. It brought back some great memories. By the way, one of the scariest bikes I've ridden in 50 years was a friend's bone stock-looking 1974 RD350 that was professionally ported and tuned. That thing would flip over backwards so fast you would wonder what had just happened. I almost looped it on the first ride I took on it and never asked to ride it again. He took it to the drag strip and beat the brakes off of every street bike there, including an H2 and a Z1900. Believe me, a professionally prepared RD350 could be an absolute hoot to ride.
I had an 250 S1 with the drum brake. Super chilled bike as long as you kept the timing accurate and the points clean.
So true
me too , it was a pain , but so fast as it had been ported and used as a drag bike. 33 mpg , went to reserve tank in no time
@@patthewoodboy Yeah mine had been production raced by the time I got it. Dunlop racing tyres, racing expansion pipes, clip on bars and probably porting and jetting. I put it mostly back to standard apart from the engine.
So, I was maybe 20 yrs old on a '72 S2 when a guy in a new Daytona Special (Yamaha 400) suddenly took off in a wheelie in 1st gear next to me! I was already in 2nd gear, so I slipped the clutch to get into the powerband. It had mild porting, removed baffles, 2mm bigger carbs, and individual K&N's only. I caught him and pulled him smartly in 2nd, pulled him greatly in 3rd though my points were dirty and the bike started misfiring about 7k rpm. It didn't matter: the RD was 10 bike lengths back by that time. Still, I loved the RD's and had several modified smaller ones.
Crazy
I had a 1974 RD 350 from 80 to 84. Very fun. I really miss that bike.
I miss my rd also
I would buy my 1974 RD 350 back tomorrow. After 40 yrs of marriage it was my first and possibly only true love 🤣
Me too. I miss mine
Awesome, I’ve got a 1973 Suzuki gt250k candy apple 🍏 and I absolutely love it, and best of all is the 33bhp at the wheel. Those bikes are gorgeous, and very quick for the year, but I bet they would ear the arse off any modern 250 or 350.
Yes it would!!!
I had a 72 s2and it took awhile to learn to slip the clutch for a good launch. When you hit it right it would do a 3inch wheelie and pack it for twenty feet or so then slap 2nd and your gone. Harleys and triumphs were so far behind that a lot of them just kept going not to be seen for a few weeks. Got a 1974 Z1 and had to learn to feather the throttle to get max traction. S2 could hole shot the Z but at the 1/16 mile it was all over.
Outstanding
My first bike was a 73 S2. Hard to keep points in it and constantly fouled plugs. But there wasn't a 350 made that could beat it in a straight line. My buddy had a Honda 450 and that was an even match. As you could see from the video, there was so much pull, it was hard to keep the front wheel on the ground.
What kind of honda?
CB, CL....?
I had a Kawasaki 400 2 stroke triple, then I went to the 500 and finally the 750 triple. Kawasaki wasn't competing with anyone in the 70s they owned the road, everyone was trying to compete with them.
I had a 750 triple also
Made me rattle all the time
@@2wheelmonster people just don't know, they just look at numbers.
Guys, u can't drag race on a curved road!!!! Inside line is shorter. You didnt announce the winner who went by camera at high speed!! Still enjoyed seeing my first bike demolish the modded Yamaha!!! Thanks!
Nice
Well
We felt drag races are always on a straight track why not try something different
in the early days i had the RD 400 white tank with red stripes air cooled had bigger expansion chamber pipes fitted MY mate had a GS 1000 Suzuki the the RD would stay with the GS from take of till around 100mph ....The RD would like to stand straight up in second gear
You clearly were the better rider,He had the cc but no skill,I had the Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple and borrowed the GS1000 and at night with street lighting and without trying got that to 140mph in less than a minute way quicker than my 550,I had a race with a KH400 and only just beat him,My 550cc could easily take a 750cc four stroke but a GS1000,I took on a BMW boxer twin upto 100mph and he pulled away from me,But that GS was no slug,The Kawasaki Z900/1000 was a lot quicker
I had a 79 rd400 I think it was a Daytona special it was white looked badass is super easy wheelie bike and a 71 H1 Mach 3 500 with j&r power pipes exhaust ports raised bit the back of the skirts of the Pistons were cut the same as the exhaust ports this bike was a rocket there was nothing that I could not get past even 74° Harley-Davidsons those were easy to be and fun as well
Always wanted a RD400
Their power bands come on differently..I found the triple more versatile in traffic...the twin came on later but longer..handled way better and better on fuel. The triple could be fun cutting up freeway traffic
Power bands are something
Worrying about fuel on a two stroke,Well that's a new one on me,But we are in 2022 and not 1977 when i was on a Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple and gave 35 mpg and 23 mpg if i caned it,But petrol(gas) was £1.60 a GALLON
@@Johnketes54 Fuel consumption can be an issue no matter the cost. The other day I rode my S3 400 triple up to Mt. St. Helens. Started with a totally fuel tank, and ended by getting my buddy to fetch me a can of gas from the nearest station after I ran out. Distance between stations was less than the maximum range of the machine!
My first taste of two-stroke racing was one I had a Suzuki 250 X6 Hustler and cut up a bunch of Schwinn bicycle parts and slipped a 250x6 into a oversized bicycle frame and took it to irwindale raceway on gasoline ran an 1156 and a quarter mile and 112 miles an hour
Thats crazy
i had a 69 kaw a7 and never had a problem taking an rd350 an s2 down . but they were all great bikes
Dual rotary valves FTW. So much easier to tune, also.
definitely
I have two A7's one I bought new and the other is track bike from back then. The only faster bike than them is a tz350 road racer that I converted to run on the street
i had a KH250 in 1979 and a mate had the RD250, the KH accelerated faster but after 70mph he used to pass me and i could never match the top speed of his RD but once he got the the twisty bits......i had him.....lol.....was great fun.....
Outstanding!!!
So the yellow and blue souped up RD is noticeably slower than the stock standard all purple S2 . . !
Yup
@@2wheelmonsterhmm - interesting.. you'd think three sets of piston rings means more internal friction than just two sets.. must be more aggressive timing 'n better breathing S2 ..middle cylinder is always 'petrol-cooled' too 25mpg, otherwise runs too hot.. lol
The cacophony of screaming 2 strokes was the soundtrack of my teenage years !!!.
Many many years
stock vs mod? and the triple likely has crank seal issues.
How can you tell about the crank seal?
Hi, back in the day I had two H1's that ran good but lacked that terrifying power they were known for. After pressure/vacuum testing each CC, there was leakage past those inboard rubber seals. The cranks needed work I couldn't afford. The RD has a single inboard seal that's designed to leak slightly. The H1's mentioned were less than ten years old at the time. Have a great day and keep up the good videos.
Outstanding!!!
@@2wheelmonster I think he means, “original” as compared to “stock”.
A stock machine remains so even if you rebuild the crank (with OEM seals).
I would be very surprised if the 45 year old crank seals retain perfect sealing. Not impossible though.
I had a 1976 GT550A and the motor required no work. The entire bike externally was a total mess. But hats off to Suzuki. Their crank seals were good in the few thousand miles I had it for. Wish I’d kept it. Engine had never been opened. Underneath the grime, rust & debts, was a really solid motorcycle requiring only a lot of cosmetics. Harder to do even than in the Noughties!
@@GT380man New rings and small ends every 20,000 miles,So the engine had never been opened in reality the crankcase had never been opened
I had a Kawi H2 350 that I rebuilt from the ground up...bored .030 over. Bike was a BEAST. Hit the power band above 3500 and it would LAUNCH. Speedometer went to 160...bike has some handling issues...never took it above 125...SOB would get you there quick though.
I had the H3 750 and it would rattle like no tomorrow above 120mph
Someone was shifting too soon...gotta let those two-stroke's Rev high!
Aw yea
Not pay attention to the rev counter,Who won anyway the Kawasaki?
Yeah, not the most official comparison race. But the triple takes the win. Not surprising. Enjoyed two screamers! Always a treat. :)
Woohoo
Have a local state park that has 4 miles straight road .. my S2 best shed do was 117 but still toasted my buddies Honda xl 360
Nice
Toasted
So which one won?
Not the fat guy
i had both back in the day..I knew the triple would win. Also a baby blue 72 with kz650 mags swing arm and triple discs. crashed my brains out on all of 'em in the Oakland hills.
Thats crazy
I owned the 73 S2 and my buddy bought the RD350. We raced constantly for years, yammy never got in front. I weighed 130 lol.
Ha.
Nice
Wish I weighed 130
We had a lad down our road a skinny little runt but had Yamaha RD200 electric and would beat the bigger 250cc
I had a GT250 and went off the side of the road trying to keep up with a guy on a RD350. I loved that Suzuki though!
So? Who won?
The guy who looks smaller. Haha. The bigger guy is me and well let’s say I weigh just as much as the bike so that doesn’t help
2 strokes smelled soooo yummy!!!I had a Kawasaki H2 750. It was terrifying to drive!!!!! Not sure who won this one, but I enjoyed a darg race that started in a curve.
The black one won
I had an H2 750. Rattled my balls off
I made a couple videos of it and its on my channel
@@2wheelmonster So all that crap(modifications) made no difference,figgers
so from the early scenes i take it the RD won , but i'll be fked if i could tell from the finish .If the kwaka had not stuffed his start by lifting off because of his front rising , it might be a different outcome , i demand a rematch . A heads up would have been nice
A reatart would be cool
But those bikes are long sold ago
Nice comment
but who won? my little 200 rd beat every 350 kawi I ran across
Not the fat one
Had a H1. Wicked fast for the times but handled terrible. The bias ply tires we had sucked compared to today.
and I believe those tires had straight lines in it if I'm not mistaken
Soooo...which blur won?
The saki
@@2wheelmonster wow no doubt! Bone stock no less!
I had a 72 S2 350 that I bought new in high school. My friends all had 350's from Yamaha and Honda. My S2 would easily beat a Yamaha R5, because they still had s give speed. Another buddy of mine got a brand new 73 Rd350. I would race the RD and it would be close to even, but the RD 350 would pull away by a bike length because of the new 6 speed transmission update. No Honda 350 could keep up with an S2 or an RD.
I think if you took ex lax and didn’t eat for two days prior to racing and had a snickers the day of racing your bike would’ve won!!!
@@2wheelmonster Thanks, I was about 150lbs then, and I'm 200 now. My friends were all lightweights then too. But I agree with you....if i would have emptied out my pockets, and took off my boots, I may have won!
R 5 was a very docile bike ..Nice to ride ..
In the old days, everyone outrun the Hondas. Those were days when 2-strokes ruled the roost ! It was also the days when you looked in awe at someone with a 350 ! I started off at 17 on a Yamaha 175 trail CT1.
Now 4-strokes are so damned fast !
Today at 66, I am back to a single cylinder Yamaha FZ250 (Made in India). The biggest I owned was a BMW R1150RT.
Respect. Trinidad 7 Tobago, West Indies.
RD rider is bigger, and messed the start up, otherwise the bikes were equal, on a curve, and should be best of 3.. To be be precise
Maybe the bigger rider had bigger fingers. LOL
And all that started when I was about 16 racing go-karts started with a Mac 6 then a Mac nine then a Mac 91 and then a Max 70 and then finally twin 101s another rocket ship
Wow
And the winner was?
The s2
so who won...?
The smaller guy
I want both.
Me too
Not much of a race. Had the RD been bone stock like the S2, it would have been even less a race. I had a '75 S3, the 400 cc version, and it would keep up with the Z-1 900 to about 75-80 mph. I rode with a guy who had a '74 Z-1B, it had a 4 into 1 Hooker header, and I could out accelerate him until he hit 4th gear, then his over-double-my-displacement made the difference. I bought his bike a bit later.
Thats neat
Okay, which one won?
The black motorcycle
The frame of the R350 was better than the S2. You could basically scrape the footrests on the tar. You couldn't do this with the Kawa.I had a Kawa too. H2 and H1. And I haven't seen anyone doing it now, besides some wheely friends doing only wheelies on it. On curved streets, I could beat any S2, H1/2, or even a Z1. Besides my R350 was an original R250. I only changed Barell, Piston, and Jets, the 350 fitted. I left the 250signs on. I enjoyed the big eyes of the other bikers when they got killed in the curves. I never had a better fun machine in my life. Some roads we used to drive were closed later for Motorbike, because of the death rate.😁😁😁🤩🤩
I knew some Suzuki GT550 owners who fitted GT380 side panel emblems.
Nowhere near as good a cover as the Yam 350 as 250.
But those who knew the strokers well enough to see it was a 550 at a distance were thin on the ground.
The GT550 has very few parts in common with the GT380. Front mudguard, Indicators, clocks, tail lamp, seat, tank. That’s almost it. I also owned a 550, 2012-20, but never fell in love with it as I did with my Suzuki GT750A (2009- present) and nothing will ever displace my 380B in my affection.
who won???
The saki
The only thing I would prefer over my RD350 was a RZ500.
Me as well!!!
Yamaha, Hoda, Kawasaki, Suzuki did they already had 350??
Maybe
Suzuki had a 380 triple, my friend had an Rd 350 my brother the Honda 350, I had an Yamaha sr 500 my other brother had the Suzuki gs 400. A close friend had a ducati 305 or 350 fast for a 4 stroke we'd go riding together for fun and didn't race but I'd ride wheelies on my sr 500
@@marcalampi5036 You managed to pull wheelies? Yanking hard on those handlebars in first?
Who won
The saki
I had a 71 Kawasaki 350 avenger ss and raced against these bikes, never a loss did I have! 5 bike links!
Woohoo
Great engineering and very fast but I never could stand the smoke and the raspy exhaust of these rice burners.
I feel they were designed to be oil factories as well
Had both a 250 and 350RDs back in the day, they have to be one of the worst handing bikes I ever owned, like going in straights line cornering was a different story. Also had the old Suzuki 350 Rebel teardrop tank and a later GT350 both bikes handled way better the the Yamaha RD's. The quacker MachIII 500 blow me away bloody thing was lethal.
The rz was a pretty good handling bike
They are so close it doesn't matter to the typical rider.
Nope
What's a typical rider? You mean rider's of today where posing is at it's premium,Back in the 70s it was power and if Yamaha produce 2bhp more it was a winner
one rider looks quite a bit larger , and a race is not always about the faster bike. its mostly the rider , back in the day i bought a gt380 thinking it would beat my buddy's 350 kawi ....lol how wrong i was
Yes and to this day that rider is still quite a bit larger.
Lmao. While eating a sub!!!
Stop telling lies lad
@@billybarr7443 what does that mean?
I just had a sub from subway this afternoon
As I recall, magazine road tests at the time found the GT380 to be slower than Suzuki's T350 twin (which was really only 315cc). The GTs weren't designed to be fast, just smooth and tractable.
I wanted the GT380 but was suspect about it's wild claims and the overpriced secondhand value i opted the cheaper and quicker GT550
Which one won the race? I couldn't tell
The s2
@@2wheelmonster I had a RD 250 given to me from brother couldn't figure out why it was fouling plugs Yamaha couldn't either I thought maybe because of it being oil induction something wrong with that I tapped on the oil induction unit and fixed it the bike was a 6 speed rocket I'd be riding with friends and they had their Harley's and suck they be hauling and I'd go by them on a wheelie LOL HAHAHAHAHA
Who WON!???.?
The s2
OMG,, my 1st bike in about 1975 was an S-2, orange, i HATED those 3 sets of points, your bike has LOWWWWWWWWWWWW mileage, i beat the hell out of it in 1 summer then sold it and bought a 74 Z-1. Too bad the S-2 didnt have the stock paint
Which won….🙈???
The one on the left
I think the Kawasaki triple black helmet
Had a 1969 YR2 Yamaha 350cc blew off 2 different Kaws a low pipe & high pipe model.
Woohoo
Really nice bike. I had a 1971 Yamaha YAS1 (125cc twin), then a 1972 Yamaha YDS7 (250 twin).
Those were both lovely machines. I’d pay a huge sum to acquire a near perfect YDS7, but there don’t appear to be any.
@@GT380man I borrowed a YDS7 and that encouraged me to get a Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple
Standard RD350 definitely faster than Kawasaki 350, thanks in part to the reed valve system, which also enabled porting to make it go even faster. S2 was also around before the RD350 iirc
Yuppers
No way. The S2 was definitely the quicker of the two...
Yes. The Kawasakis were piston ported with a very narrow powerband. The reed-valve on the later Yamahas, helped with torque and a wider powerband. The later YPVS (Power Valve) system Yamaha introduced actually varied the exhaust port timing in relation to piston position. The water-cooled RD 250/350s used this system. Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies.
@@ramishrambarran3998 The YPVS was a wonder,But unfortunately the knucklehead out there didn't or couldn't understand the concept of a powerband all the way through the rev range,They just saw no powerband,Unfortunately technicians don't communicate with the not very educated public,Lotus did something similar,Maximum power to the rear wheel without sliding but the the braindead public want their wheels spinning and squealing on take off,So efficiently goes down the pan to look "cool"
@@jamesbottger5894 Hello James. I am 67. Used to read Cycle World and Cycle Guide magazines, way before the internet.
The Yamaha RD400 when it debuted was the quickest amongst bikes of that category. I recall a Cycle Guide comparison test. Honda 500 twin, 500-4, Suzuki GT 380 & 550, Kawasaki KH400. I cannot remember if the 500 was included. The RD 350LC and RZ350LC were to come later and we're quicker bikes. While I am not disputing what you claimed as quicker, I feel that both Yamahas at that time were quicker than the S2, though the Kawasaki would have more top speed.
Trinidad & Tobago.
West Indies.
A drag race with no finish?
Well. The video editing made it too close to call who won
Who won?
The black bike
@@2wheelmonster The Kawasaki, yes?
Yes
Not fair. Those mods make a big difference
True
Yamaha always looks fantastic!!!
Giggity
Should I assume *somebody* won?
Yes
@@2wheelmonster Yes? There was a winner? Not so. It was a tie.
My Bridgestone 350 GTO was likely faster than either one. Amazing bike.
Likely
I almost forgot about bridgestones not the tire lol the motorcycles. I also had a 350 that was a rotary valve motor very snappy
Never heard of a Bridgestone 350 and a quick Google suggests otherwise producing a little less bhp
Can't even tell which bike won
The black one did
Noise and smoke. The green party dudes will slash your tyres lol
LoL
If the green party ever got in,It would be horses,Horses and carts send us back to the stone age,They would make mess of everything because saving the planet is their priority
Never tried anything that slow. I had the 1972 H2.
Nice
Looked to me like the Kaw. Got him. This time lol!😎👍
Yes it did
ストレートは3気筒
曲り道が多いと２気筒有利かな🤔
Yup
F*** yeah, do they sound good or what?!!!
I miss mine
A bit unfair conducting the race on a bend, given the Kawasaki triple's handling handicap, when it comes to corners.
Well
We felt drag races are always on a straight track why not try something different
Wow, the guy riding the Yam was changing gear before it hit the powerband....what a drongo.
I know right
Oh Goody . The H2-R and TZ-750's baby brothers are playing together . I love Two-Strokes .
But you need to understand them . YOU have to adapt . The Bike cannot .
Especially the tz's
@@2wheelmonster . ANY of them .
Although , the Suzuki triples were easier to live with .
@@johncunningham4820 That’s for sure. Because they were heavier and slightly less powerful, they were just nicer to travel distances on. The GT380 ran out of puff quite early, though I do recall trips to York & to Haverfordwest (from Portsmouth) on the 380, singing it’s heart out at mostly 75-80 mph. Never missed a beat or broke down in a way which required roadside recovery in over 40 years.
My GT750A, you could ride all day at 80-85mph & it wasn’t even tiring. Full of character, old bikes!
@@GT380man . Yeah I absolutely LOVED my 750 . I should never have sold it . They're so scarce here now as to to be virtually irreplaceable .
@@GT380man I screamed around at 95mph but virtually no brakes on my Suzuki GT550 two stroke triple so 85mph gave me some brakes
To think they are 50 years old.
Where has the time gone!!!
The reeds might help but the rest not so much.
Agreed
Looks like the saki got him
The saki. Nice
The RD isn’t tuned right! I have owned several of both of these bikes and bone stock the RD would easily beat the S2 every time!
Wow
The triple need chambers.
Big time
They also dump a surprising amount of weight in the swap. The most extraordinary weight loss I personally experienced was a 3:3 system on my GT750A. Stock Kettle pipes, especially the outers, weighed as much as a small child, each!
Hard to beat the original pipes, though.
All cosmetic! Supposed to make you go faster,I race motorcycles with expansions couldn't see any difference,Look at the race the Yamaha rider is clearly a poser,More money than sense,A standard Yamaha should have seen that Kawasaki but didn't
Love these triples. My wife and I have the whole collection. 250 - 750 And my 750 is a 122hp Denco cobra.
Hardly a drag race
More like a rat race
Neither Rider could pull a hole shot to save their LIFE's. You need to be on a flat straight section of road with riders that know what the hell they are doing. The guy on the Yamaha did a marginal hole shot but the guy on the Kaw was flat ass an amature. On those things you brought them up to around 5500 and slipped the clutch to keep the traction and get as far forward on the bike as you could. Sorry am 69 years old and actually had several of these bikes. Would love to find a mid displasement 2 stroke road bike but now days they are made of UNOBTAINIUM.
Yea. Maybe someday these two guys can get it together and figure how to properly do this to save their life
@@2wheelmonster Over the years I have owned several fire breathing smaller 2 stroke bikes. The most interesting one was a highly upgraded Kaw 500 tripple. I went stupid with it and it was a handful to control, I doubt that either of those clowns could even get it rolling without stalling it continiously. You CANNOT simply dump the clutch and grap a handful of throttle. It if it even stays running will bog badly then when it hits the power band you suddenly have a front wheel reaching for the sky, and if you pull the clutch in you get a tremendous hard drop of the front end followed by the Mother of All Speed Wobbles. In the learning experiences on and off the track I learned how to control one of these machines. Now the Kaw couldn't be made to handle better than a overloaded dump truck due to the plastic swing arm bushings, frame made of cooked noodles and the fron forks made from Bic Pen parts that failed Q.C. The Yam could be made to handle quite well for what it was but you had to have your head out of your ass on throttle, gear selection and clutch control to make it around the track in one piece. Also remember that these 2 strokes had the engine braking of say "Zip/Shit", so you also had to learn proper braking techniques. You may zip past some rather slower 4 strokes on the straight to only have them use engine braking and charge past you entering the courner braking marks. If it was a curvy course or a long race your brakes eventually got hot so your brake point would have to drop further back so you could make the courner while the slower 4 stoke guys kept the same point. Inexperienced 2 stroke riders tried to match the brake points and experienced the Straw bails in front of the armco.
Nice
under skin control has begun
While you’re right, the most independence you can easily have these days is an analogue motorcycle.