I had a couple of the RD 400's in my youth. The first model release in 76 brought many firsts to the industry. Front and rear disc brakes, cast wheels, self cancelling turn signals, the most comfortable seat available at the time, and oh yeah, neck snapping performance and razor handling. after my warranty was up I removed the stock airbox and went up ten jet sizes as I recall and the thing was a total beast. I got 110 mph out of it. I put JR Chambers on it and at 7 k rpm it would kick into warp drive. A fantastic machine! Thanks for posting your story.

They were such fantastic bikes, I wish they still made them.

Very possibly the most beautiful motorbike I've ever seen, something about the RD400, just a marvellous looking motorbike.

The RD400 and 350LC both had 64mm bore but the RD had a longer stroke, produced more torque and developed its power at lower revs. It really was a genuinely great bike. My uncle had one, whilst I was on the GT 380. I did have a go on the 400. Unbeknownst to me, my uncle had put chalk marks on the tyres to see have far over I'd had it. We all had quite a laugh after that test ride.

Brings back great memories, thanks for posting this. I had a 77.

In Canada we had a rd400G as well (1980) our F and G were identical models except for the paint. the 79 F model in Canada was the "Daytona Special"

I had a 1978 RD400 E - loved it - a real fun bike - recently bought a 2021 MT09SP which rekindled the fun factor in motorcyling - well done Yamaha!

My first bike was an RD400D. Loved that bike.It was very fast and handled very well. Great brakes too.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+captainzombie1 Yes, the DX brake caliper's were better in my opinion and that was the model with points instead of electric ignition as well. Cheers Martin

Some great ole rides Martin , Thanks for the share , Thumbs man !!

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+ShawnMrFixit Lee Yes Shawn, I wish I still had this one. Cheers bud Martin

I grew up in the 70's riding about town on various motorbikes and recall a friend's dad bought an RD400 and it was the very first bike that felt like it was going to yank my arms off

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Joe Smith It still does lol. The thrill of the powerband of a 2 stroke is something you never forget. Cheers Martin

I never left with a spare set of plugs and the wrench. Never could get the mixture right and they'd often foul. But when she ran right, she ran RIGHT.

Wow just saw your 350 LC vid and then this one popped up. I miss those two bikes soooo much. I ride a Raider most of the time these days but I also have a KTM 690 Enduro R to act like a jackass on. Great vids man ! Your very close to my age and apparently had the same intrest in motorcycles as I. Back in the day I also had a Kawasaki KH 400 . It couldn't keep pace with the Yamaha though but it was still a lot of fun .

Brings back great memories mine was identical except I had clipons and micron pipes colour coded front mud guard and set back pegs and gear shifter used to ride out to Blackpool in the summer and spend all day riding up and down the front with the front wheel in the air 😂😂 I sold it my mate when I jumped on it one day put it in gear let the clutch out and the bloody thing went backwards 👍🏻

that brings back memories i had a rd250 for a couple of years.had some good fun on it to.i remember putting castrol r in .i can smell it now lol.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+angus ahh Yes, Castrol R, What a great smell that was lol. Cheers Martin

I had a white and red RD400 in 1982, I had it Beckett tuned what a beauty.

Another great vid...nearly 5000 subs!!! Glenn Sussex...

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Glenn Moore Hi Glenn, onwards and upwards lol. Cheers Martin

Back in the day I owned two RD350 air cooled rockets. Then I had the opportunity to get an RD400 so I did. To this day I still think the air cooled 350 was a better all round useable bike, I had a burgundy then a green 350. The 400 was red. Sure it had more power but the 350 was a more rounded bike in my opinion. Would love to get another 350 some day.

lovely putting green behind you

just like my bike history, fizzer 1979 at 16 then a yellow rd250f 1980........happy days...

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

It was the only way to go Mark lol. Cheers Martin

Awesome bike! really nice job you should get another motorcycle and do a video series of a motorcycle restoration project!

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Arron Adams I do have 2 scooters to restore that are in progress but I'll probably do more bikes once the cars are out the way. Cheers Martin

What a beast of a bike!

hey mate , had 76 rd 400 ,bored .055 over ,carbon fiber read valve,dg expandion chambers,making 62hp with newtronic elegtronic ing,and 35000 volt coils,and pure copper spark plug wires! lost in fire in 2006.cheers from flecher,s lake ,(25 km outside halifax ,nova scotia,canada) merry xmas mate!

@retrorestore

3 жыл бұрын

Sounds great Steve. All the best

YO Martin guess what i ve just bought..??? Yes you guessed it a 1980 Yamaha RD 400!!! In black

Thanks Martin, good video. You've aged well !

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Al Copley Haha, heavier though but I can sort that out lol. Cheers Martin

Had a 79 model myself with clip on bars same two four seat and microns mine had white plastic with red piping front mud guard and the rear removed it had white heat signed across the top of the tank the front end was always in the air had a 250 with the same colour and bar's also micron pipes great memories

@retrorestore

6 жыл бұрын

Yes, I can relate to all of that lol

Ahh I remember those days,early 80's Martin,.your Stevens tuned Rd250/350...then later the 350 power valve ..Chelsea Bridge,then over to Heston afterwards,..Happy days !.....I hope you/Sharon and the clan are keeping well...take care,..Rob ( Stahl)….

@retrorestore

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks Rob, Yes good times. We had fun back then.

My RD250F had black wheels LND 327V , it was Silver, and my first RD250F which I wrote off in less than 3 weeks was Yellow with Black wheels !

Great video fantastic bike I had the same model i sold it to my mate for £375 I regret it now stay 🇬🇧👍

I wanted a YDS7 but it was sold when I went to the shop so I came out with a RD200 on a M plate. So wish I still had it but I still have half of the front number plate which we all took off as soon as we had the chance. Probably less risk of being ID 🤣🤣

i had one that was nearly double the std horse power it was so easy to ride around town as well, the motor was 86 bhp at the rear , on microns dyno 91

Nice looking bike, I wouldn't have sold it! I heard you say that you have a YZF750R, that is my favourite 90's bike. I've had mine for about nine years, I bought it to go to the NW200 in Ireland and I still have it. It's a very underrated bike.

@retrorestore

3 жыл бұрын

I had the 350lc in this series of videos too.

Couple of my friends had rd 400 very impressed by it speed and handling pity still not made

I rode one into a car that turned in front of me at 70mph. Put his windshield out with my face., tore off my left hand, ( they sewed it back on and it works!) Broke my femur, totaled the bike.

Cool RD I got a 79 RD400f Daytona am working on.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+m1a1hm Nice one, nice and simple to work on. Cheers Martin

How do you keep the water in your pond so clear?

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

Haha, We'v really struggled the last year with that algae so we are going to drain it soon.

@garybullwinkle6784

6 жыл бұрын

Looks like you could walk on it!!

@mebeasensei

5 жыл бұрын

retrorestore looks interesting. Perhaps just leave it and see what happens? Lochness might be under there? Godzilla.

@isaachunt5799

5 жыл бұрын

lol

@kenpics

3 жыл бұрын

it’s not a pond it’s a burglar trap. It’s great fun when they run across it!

I made the mistake of buying an XS250 when I got my provisional license back in the last year before the restricted 125's came in, because i was a bit snobby about 2-strokes (and I coudn't afford a Ducati 250 Desmo). Big mistake. A few months on I spotted a nice orange (or was it bronze?) RD250B parked up near where I lived - left a note asking if I could buy it, a week later it was mine. What a difference to the slow, overweight XS. It cemented my respect for Yamaha (bought myself a 1999 Fazer 600 for my 40th B-day - another brilliant bike), the firm always gave the impression of having more of a real passion for bikes than the other Japanese makers, and I reckon the RD's can rightly be regarded as *true* classics. It's worth mentioning that the RD's up to the C had opposed-piston, solid calipers on the front, much better than the cheaper single piston sliding ones fitted on the later ones (even the LC's) to save money.

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

Yes, I agree about the earlier brakes on the RD's being better. The DX had them too. I remember the XS being a sluggish bike compared to the RD250.You can't beat a powerband lol.

I had white and red mags RD 250 my bf had yellow RD 400 but had front twin discs. That reg was very close to my moped I had one letter one number different lol

And never run em without airfilters without checking your fuel air mix it'll cost you a top end .

Lovely bikes mart bet you wish you kept an lc350 now.was that a young prompted gary you cohurst into interviewing you 😅.

@retrorestore

Жыл бұрын

lol, yes it was Pete.

I had 2 RD's. My first bike was a used 1972 RD250 then a 1979 RD400 Daytona Special. Great times on those bikes.

@retrorestore

6 жыл бұрын

Yes, I agree, I loved that biking era.

BTW - remember how, quite bizarrely, Yamaha used to disable 6th gear on the RD250/350 for the UK market by simply blanking off the cam in the selector? I had to replace the one in mine to get all 6. To this day it still makes me think; "WTF?".

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

Yes, it was a strange thing to do. You have a good memory lol.

@robbateman7987

7 жыл бұрын

Yep remember that too, but if i recall did you not have to careful not to click up another gear from 6th and land back in 1st as there was no stop?

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

Wow, that's scary. cheers Martin

@andypandy9931

7 жыл бұрын

M R A Scott Yes I had a one of the first RD250 and I got the blank removed. People said that if you did this the bike would change from 6th to first but it didn't. The 6th gear was very high and only an overdrive really.

The model you have there would be called the E model in New Zealand,we got the different tank and the tailpiece Daytona F,then the G MODEL which was virtually the same F but different striping on the tank.I always thought the E onwards were more powerful than the previous C and Ds.Keep up the good work.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

Thanks Mike, glad you enjoyed the vid.

@simonlyons272

6 жыл бұрын

Quite correct, I lived in N.Z. for 6 months in 1980 when I was 17 and had the Daytona (250) a really classy bike. I returned back to U.K. in `81 to buy an E, got T-boned and bought another RD250E with a 350B top end. It evolved into a classic 80`s 2 stroke teenage hooligan icon machine quite possibly contributing to the the next generation of wheelie merchants ; )) A winter strip down resulted in a spring awakening of an immaculate and delicious blue E model with Allspeed F111`s shooting plumes of blue smoke at the lights ::))))) Boyeson reed valves, K and N filters a 38 tooth rear sprocket with the most outrageous wheelie assistive high level handlebars available (a trend late 70`s 80`s) My mate with his KH250 and I would somehow contain going above 3k revs for half a week so that we could "treat" Altrincham town centre on a Saturday afternoon to some blue medicine ! Unbelievably good fun !! Due to the extra torque of the 350 barrels my exquisite RD would casually loft the front end in the first 2 gears BEFORE the powerband allowing me to gain a reputation and emulate my road heros from the age of 10 years old from when I first saw a blue RD250 racing 3 other 2stroke bikes in a blue haze from a petrol station in Stretford.. thank you boys, you`ll never know what passion you inspired ! Of all my bikes... FS1E, RD`s Z1000`s RG500, this RD350E was the most loved.

My mate had an RD400E with an Allspeed exhaust system it sounded great. I bought an RD400DX with points ignition, it couldn't hold a candle to an E version.

@retrorestore

4 жыл бұрын

The E had tapered downpipes as well as a few other little mods if I remember right.

If that bike is stock (minus expansion chambers of course, and seat), it wasn't the same as the '79 Daytona Special sold in the U.S. It looks like the '76-'77s. The '78s had a different seat, and as far as i know, came in silver only.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+yammer haw The Dayona was the American version of the RD400 as you probably know. There were detail changes throughout it's lifespan but this was a 79 model, the RD400F. Cheers Martin

OK, first thoughts, that is NOT an F model, based on my American version 400 Daytona F model. After further looking, this IS an F model, just different from what Yamaha sent us. (Or, USA.) Great looking bike! Great restore! My bike ended up with an RZ-350 engine, AND all the electronics, and cooling attached. Also the twin-rotor front wheel. FUN bike! EXPLOSIVELY fast! I wouldn't put rear lights on the stalks, because if it went out from under me, it would send me flying. steve

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Steve Skouson HI Steve, Yes, you got a different F model in the USA and you also got the G model as well. Ours only went up to the F model in this design. I had the LC350 watercooled as well. Great engines. Cheers Martin

IS an RD 400 a better bike for a weekend of fun (Sport touring) than an LC 350?

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

Wow, that's a hard one to answer. I loved both but I have better memories on the LC 350 so i'll go with that one. Cheers Martin

Love these bikes i had a 1977 Yellow black Yamaha GT80 street legal, 1977 Blue RD250, 1980 RD400F Daytona Special all White BlackGold stickers stock , 1985 Red white blue RZ350R ,1986 Red white blue RZ500V4 Steel framed bike , the two RZ's were Brand new Purchases in the Prime of my life in my Early 20's. I Would Absalutely Love to have Everyone of these bikes Again instead of the Current 2016 /17 ,4 Strokes bikes there is Today.

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

Great bikes and you'll always have the memories. Thanks for sharing. Cheers Martin

@rarecat1716

7 жыл бұрын

Anytime Mister.

@rarecat1716

7 жыл бұрын

you said it.

Some fabricator is missing a trick on them back mud gaurds. How hard can it be? uh? Martin? Moolah? Yankee Prepper (YT USER) Did a great restore on a Yamaha TW200. Full strip and restore. Great videos!

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+69Phuket I think they now make pattern rear mudguards now, this was filmed in 2006 so someone saw the gap in the market. I'll check out that user as well. Cheers Martin

@theravedaddy

5 жыл бұрын

2018 here, theyre stamped in taiwan. I bought 1 off ebay but it didnt arrive. The replacement did. Then 1 month later the 1st one arrived so i can bob 1 and keep 1 spare. :)

The rubber engine mounts on the 400 can be cut down, and larger holes drilled in the 350 cases to accept the cut-down rubber mounts. You have to be careful to not drill the 350 case bolt holes too big as you'll end up with too little metal, thus, the danger of cracks.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+yammer haw Nice tip. Never tried it but it would have helped. Cheers Martin

Kewl...

Do a video on the Honda Cubs...

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+bluekangaroo kw I might restore one in the future. Cheers Martin

@hondahut

8 жыл бұрын

Thanks!!! There seems to be plenty in the UK

I used to see these bikes everywhere Martin. I think the Seca 400 was a better seller as was a 4 stroke and didn't have to buy 2 cycle oil as well. Easier to maintain as 2 strokes needed plugs cleaned often. The Rd had a much better power to weight ratio though as was quicker. Anything happening with that Moped in pieces?

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Brian Percival I preferred the powerbands of a 2 stroke back then Bri, Not done anything on that moped yet. Soon Maybe. Cheers Martin

@brianpercival1829

8 жыл бұрын

+retrorestore Getting colder out, you won't want to spend winter months in a shed.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

Brian Percival Got a heater in there bri lol.

@brianpercival1829

8 жыл бұрын

+retrorestore Guy Fawkes Night? What's for dinner?

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

Chilli and hot dogs.

No its not a "YR5" simply just the R5 was its correct model name. Before it the R3 in 1969 then the YR2 in 68 and the YR1 in 67. The R5 differed a fair bit from the R3 mainly by having a 6 speed transmission. The R3 however did the 1/4 mile in 13.9 seconds which eclipsed the ET's of most muscle cars produced in 1969 and was much cheaper.

Had a RD400 c wish i still had it lol

I HAD A 250 B/350 ?😂And All SORTED And NO VIBES and A GIANT KILLER ON L PLATES 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂BLOODY FAST Bike g

Lovely bike....except I hate the seat. the older seat cowling was much nicer.

@retrorestore

7 жыл бұрын

I like both seats but the standard one was softer lol

I wish the rd's come back in 4 stroke version but with the same looks

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+Tanishq Aurangabadkar They did make the XS400 that was basically a 4 stroke RD. www.roadsmile.com/images/yamaha-xs-400_key_19.jpg Cheers Martin

@Tanishq.A

8 жыл бұрын

unfortunately production was stopped later, i find myself lucky to have a rd350 1985 lol. :)

The 'F' in Australia had a ramair head. Perhaps in England they called your model the 'F' but in Australia the 'F' is the same as the Daytona Special in USA.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+ibanmayo2 Probably due to the hotter climate. Cheers Martin

Top tip: if you don't want your pride and joy air cooled RD's to go walkabout . Chain em up! The ignition barrels were soft as shite Just about any key would fit , worst of all pulling the side panel off revealing the bank of 4 main fuses a bit foil off a fag packet from 1st fuse to 4rth fuse starts em !!

Shouldn't the 400 have twin discs upfront....

@retrorestore

Жыл бұрын

No bud

sort ya pond out mate

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+llionwilliams When I get time.

Its an E not a F. F models had dog leg levers. 1980 V reg not T.

@simonlyons272

6 жыл бұрын

I though the same thing.

@LTLT900

5 жыл бұрын

Yep it's a E alright. I know cos I had one.

Lovely bike but seat looks trash

@retrorestore

3 жыл бұрын

Its what I had when I was young.

400F on a T plate?. Its an E.

400cc but only single front break disc.

@retrorestore

6 жыл бұрын

Good old 70's motorcycling eh.

@theravedaddy

5 жыл бұрын

A+ for observation but D for spelling.

The 400 had twin discs….

@retrorestore

Жыл бұрын

No it didn't

@wilderbeestmcc6539

Жыл бұрын

Oh…your right😂 I’m getting old… Never could afford one at the time but I dreamt a lot about owning one.

@wilderbeestmcc6539

Жыл бұрын

RD 350…. 😂👍

Sorry mate. The last RD 400 was the 'G' model. I had the 'F' model and the engine is slightly different from yours. Believe me, yours is not an ' F'. Google it.

@retrorestore

8 жыл бұрын

+ibanmayo2 It was an F i'm afraid. I imagine that the spec was different in Oz and the ram air was probably fitted due to the hotter climate. Cheers Martin

Wrong! My rd400c came with the mag wheels.

@retrorestore

2 жыл бұрын

Its not wrong, Yours might have been a crossover one. The C's never had mag wheels.

@bruceelrick8842

2 жыл бұрын

@@retrorestore you're wrong mate. Even the Haynes manual for repair has a 1976 rd400c on its cover showing mag wheels. No crossover.

@retrorestore

2 жыл бұрын

@@bruceelrick8842 I take it you are in the USA or Canada. It was probably different than in the UK. In the UK Mag wheels started with the DX model. If you are in the UK, we shall have to differ on our opinions.

I have a rd400d but I prefer my yamaha rd350b. It has a wee bit more torque down low. But both smell fantastic 👌 😍 smokey and they banned them