Watchlist Wednesday Suzuki RD350LC

This week’s Watchlist Wednesday sees two bikes come together to create something a little bit interesting. And we love specials and projects here at BeMoto (check our Modified Bike Insurance here).

Bike buyer, seller, breaker, tyre kicker, doodler and shed sheriff, Scottie Redmond, picks up the reasons why this is this week’s Watchlist Wednesday…

“For decades motorcyclists have been fitting an engine from one model into the chassis of another. I blame our dad’s with their Tritons (TRIumph engine in a NorTON Featherbed frame) antics back when we didn’t even exist and before we were a twinkle in an eye.

“The 1980’s were possibly the golden era of sticking this in that and often never more for the reasons of ‘because it might work’.

"The well-known examples of this are the RG250/ YPVS 350 ‘YamaGamma’, even fitting the Yamaha YPVS engine into the now cult icon RD350LC. Then there was that craze for big bore single-cylinder lumps into things like a Cagiva Mito 125 (also parallel twins, like a GS500) and BeMoto recently met a fella with an MT-07 engine in a CB500 chassis (more on that later…).

“Perhaps the coolest motorcycle motor mash-up was the GSX-R7/11. No end of Suzuki’s bulletproof oil-cooled classics got carved up in the sheds of the UK to make that combination.

“Anyway, the engine transplant format usually involves a chassis from a smaller capacity model, like say the Yamaha FZR400 being treated to a ‘slot in’ power-up kit from something like the same firm’s FZR600/Thundercat donkey (engine).

“This eBay punt is slightly different in using a GSX-R400 chassis and fitting a RD350LC engine. Other than the two-stroke water cooled motor looking a little lost in that up-and-over GSX-R frame, I’m not convinced that taking two sought after bikes like the GK-76 and LC and making one! But I guess it depends on the condition of the donor bikes until it dawned on me, perhaps there is a 350LC by-product with a GSX-R400 motor in it to be had.”

The seller built the bike himself and he’s an engineer with a proven track record in special builds, so the quality of the build won’t be in question.

Ebay Listing: NO LONGER LISTED