PHOTOGRAPHY AMY SHORE
The Yamaha RD350LC was brilliant in its day, but that was a very long time ago. Patrick Lyall has given his a superb modern makeover
For the generation who were taught the fine art of letting rip by caning a Yamaha RD350LC all over the place, the two-stroke hoodlum machine holds a special place in their hearts. But the poor old thing doesn’t really cut it in the modern era – the engine’s perky, but everything else is a bit crap. ‘That’s why I built this,’ explains Patrick Lyall, 59. ‘It’s like riding a modern bike, except noisier and funnier.’
‘I got a lot of advice from Nigel Kimber [of NK Racing, who has built some incredible YZR and RGV GP replicas – Ed] who told me what would and wouldn’t work. You can’t use massive forks, for example – ones from 600s are best, and mine are from a Kawasaki ZX-6R. Nigel machined some new yokes and grafted them onto the old headstock. I didn’t do any of the engineering myself – I was the project manager.’
Everything except the LC’s frame has either been modified or completely ditched. ‘The advantage of a hybrid bike like this is that you don’t need all the hard-to-find parts like you would for a restoration,’ Patrick tells Bike. ‘So arguably it’s easier to get something on the road than doing a standard restoration.’
That may be the case, but it still wasn’t a straightforward project. Take the swingarm… ‘Ah yes, you get people putting stupid swingarms in that are too big so the bikes never handle. The LC frame’s swingarm opening is only 200mm, so the best options are from little 400s – the NC29 [aka CBR400RR] and NC30 [VFR400R] which are the right size. I used an NC29 arm on this bike. A lot of people use the RGV swingarm, but I think they’re too long and ruin the proportions.
Patrick got the engine tuned by Ron Phillips from Fahron Engineering. ‘He’s a contemporary of Stan Stephens and does really nice porting,’ says Patrick. ‘His speciality is taking the sleeves out [ie, the cylinder liners] and replacing them with bigger ones to increase the capacity. Mine’s now up to 375cc. I think back in the day 250 racers went to him to, well, cheat. He’s a lovely old guy.’
‘It’s phenomenal. I’ve got a Fireblade, and the LC is just as fast in short bursts’
Patrick went for a relatively mild tune to make it more civilised to ride on the road. ‘It could have been taken up to 80bhp, but I wanted to enjoy riding it, so it’s now 65bhp. It’s still fast, because it weighs next to nothing. With big 32mm flatslide Mikuni carbs on, it sucks so much fuel I had to fit a high capacity fuel tap. It’s got the fuel economy of a Maserati.
‘And it’s phenomenal to ride. I’ve got a Fireblade, and the LC is just as fast in short bursts. It redlines at 13,000rpm and there’s no doubt that it’ll go bang one day – I’m waiting to get a strengthened crank fitted. And it sounds incredible. It screams. Those Jim Lomas pipes are superb.
‘It’s been hard work – it’s taken four years. I had a massive setback when the engine and swingarm were stolen from the back of my car. I was absolutely gutted. But I’m glad I persevered – when I ride it, it never fails to put a massive grin on my face.’
ENGINE
New cylinder liners (or sleeves) take the capacity of the two-stroke twin up to 375cc. Peak power is 65bhp (standard is 47bhp), but the light tune makes it road friendly
CHASSIS
Frame is standard RD350LC, forks are from a ZX-6R and the shock is a YSS item
WHEELS AND BRAKES
Wheels are from an Aprilia RS125, so Patrick can get sticky rubber. Brake discs and radial calipers are new from Brembo
EXHAUSTS
Made by Jim Lomas from mild steel, which performs better apparently. It does rust, though, so Patrick has lacquered it to save polishing time.