Posts by tag: wayne rainey

Sport Bikes For Sale May 13, 2018 posted by Marty

Quail Motorcycle gathering 2018: Munro Racer, Flying Merkel and more

Another year and another good time at the Quail Motorcycling gathering in Carmel California last weekend. This year was a bit warmer and was the 10th anniversary event. Almost all the prior year winners were present and highlights included an actual race Yamaha, the Burt Munro racer and some amazing one off customs including my personal favorite a 1985 Yamaha 500cc two stroke melded to a modern day R1 chasis. Enjoy the photos!

Rainey Yamaha, windscreen and seat were replacements but everything else looked like it had come off the track.

Here is the one I mentioned in the header. The sign on the front is a bit hard to read due to glare but it says 1985 Yamaha RZV500. Bodywork looks like a 2nd gen R1. Sadly I didnt get to hear it fire.

Is that the Burt Munro Indian special? yup..super cool

Note: for anyone who hasn't seen the Burt Munro movie with Anthony Hopkins, definitely worth a watch.

How about some rotary engine goodness? there was actually a whole selection of these, this was the cleanest and had a super cool rotational dash unit that sadly I didn't get a photo of in operation.

A fair selection of mid 1980's and 1990's sportbikes:

Classics including this years best in show, a Flying Merkel:

Many of the winners from the last 10 years were present too:

Some super cool customs were on hand too, including this Yamaha GTS that looked like something master chief would be on:

Some old and new electric bikes showed how far these machines have come. The past:

The present:

Last but not least, a bit of fun - the bat cycle...admit it, you heard the classic theme in your head:

There were also lots of good bikes out in the parking lot but my memory was running low so I didnt take any shots. There were also vendors on hand including Bonhams and Aprilia and Moto Guzzi were offering test rides. All in all, a truly great way to spend a spring day.

Note: Price for a ticket was $75 via advance purchase and included parking and a really nice lunch, crowd was about 3000 over the course of the day. I got there early and was able to get up close and personal with a lot of these machines. While the next trip I have on my motorcycling bucket list is to the Barber Museum, I plan on returning again in the future.

-Marty/dallaslavowner

Quail Motorcycle gathering 2018: Munro Racer, Flying Merkel and more

Yamaha June 6, 2014 posted by Mike

Got Wayne? 1985 Yamaha RZ500 in Florida

RSBFS is on a RZ500 roll these days, and here is another gorgeous V4 smoker. Unlike the stock bikes found last week, this particular example appears to be a well-built hot rod and sports the awesome Marlboro colors reminiscent of the glory days of Wayne Rainey. This bike has a lot of high-end pieces on it, and there is no doubt you could attract some attention on this machine. The seller has shared some good information, as well as several tasty pics. Read on and good luck!

1985 Yamaha RZ500 for sale on eBay

From the seller:
Up for GRABS!!! My RZ500 / YZR 500 rep Just fully rebuilt Rick Lance / Lance Gamma motor. Heads were decked and mild port work was done . 5 k worth of greatness inside that motor.. runs amazing !!! Chassis and fabrication done by Wyn Belorusky / Rooskie Heavy Industries . Paint and assembly done by Jim's custom Refinishing, New jolly moto carbon silencers from Morgan Racing .. List of Goodies 04 R1 Forks and wheels , Ohlins rear shock , JMC Mega braced Swingarm . ZX7R radiator , custom ride height adjuster from Ron A . 28 mikuni flat slides , custom cables from Motion pro . GPS speedo . indy temp gauge . Many hand built parts Rear sets , kick stand , sub frame .... Spare parts as follows Frame , transmission , clutch assembly , kick starter , and other parts shown . As for riding this bike ? endless smiles will be yours and countless questions asked about what it is ... Its a shame for it just to be sitting so I'm going to try to sell ... Free and clear florida title with headlight and tail light ..... I've driven it around these parts for years and no problems but every state and city is different ...

Kawasaki November 24, 2011 posted by Mike

1982 Kawasaki Eddie Lawson Replica KZ1000R

For Sale: 1982 Kawasaki Eddie Lawson Replica KZ1000R

Before the influx of the Ninja, GSX-R, Hurricane and FZR, this is what real men rode on the racetrack. Cutting edge by the current day standards, this KZ1000-based replica racer pays homage to the Superbike titles won by Eddie Lawson in 1981 and 1982 - fighting the likes of Freddie Spencer, Wayne Rainey and Fred Merkel, amongst others.

With an inline four cylinder, air cooled powerplant, the KZ1000 was tricked out with cast alloy wheels, a four-into-one Kerker exhaust from the factory, bikini fairing taken from the GPz line, upgraded piggyback shocks in the rear, triple disc brakse (drilled), an oil cooler and a special paint job commemorating the Superbike championship. These bikes were made in limited numbers, and finding a clean example today is not easy; they are around, but not plentiful.

From the seller:
This is a collectors item and extremely rare bike. 1982 Eddie Lawson Replica KZ1000 R1 (US Model) 37,800 miles on odometer,300 miles since total restoration.This is bike number 422 of a limited 900 ever produced. Chassis has been powercoated. All bearings inspected,greased and or replaced.Forks have fresh oil and seals,has Marzocchi shocks in place,also have stock shocks to be included. New chain and sprockets,brand new Dunlop D404 tires,new brake pads with steel braided lines. Engine is original bottom end that has been dis-assembled and inspected. Cylinders have been overbored 3mm with wiseco pistons. Head has been rebuilt to include 3 angle valve job and resurfaced. Stock air box with K/N filter. Cosmetics are 100% factory orginal 8 on scale of 10. Bike speaks for itself. The bike is owned and restored by Dan Batterby of Danco Performance, a motorcycle mechanic of 35 years, pro race tuner/engine builder, proven in roadrace, supercross, and off-road circuits.

ELRs have graced the pages of RSBFS many times in the past few years, and each time the prices reflect the quality of the bike. This particular example is one of the higher mileage bikes we have seen, yet is in terrific condition and appears to be very clean and very well cared for. One look at that rear sprocket tells me that this seller has prepped this bike very well indeed!

This bike had been listed previously by the seller - it was bid up to $8,100, with reserve not having been met. Top level ELRs will draw between $12k and $15k - but those figures are top dollar for very low mileage, perfect examples. Most ELRs will be in the $7k - $9k range, and it is unknown how much the "total restoration" plus upgrades adds to the bike.

The auction is on right now, and there have been a small number of interested bidders. Currently this bike sits at just over $1,000, with a reserve in place. It is hard to tell what will make the seller happy, but I would consider anything over $8,500 to be fair money for this bike - even if that does not cover the cost of the full restoration. A collector bike can only be original once, and originality is what pulls in the big bucks. For more information and to check out all of the action, click on the link and jump over to the auction. Good Luck!

Sport Bikes For Sale November 11, 2011 posted by Ian

Race Replica Nirvana: 1991 YZR500 Replica (RZ500)…..And It’s Legal!

Race Replica Nirvana: 1991 YZR500 Replica (RZ500)....And it's Legal!

Update 11.11.2011: Back on eBay but with new pictures and a lower purchase price. eBay indicates the last auction went in the $27k range. Thanks to everyone who emailed that this one was back online. Links updated but new pictures can be found with the auction. -dc

Did you do a double take? Wayne Rainey might have to look closely to make sure something with two wheels isn't missing from his house. We've had a couple of top shelf replica builds on RSBFS and each one seems to get better. This one should be hard to top.

The YZR500 replica bodywork really makes the bike. According to the seller they are an exact copy molded from a set off a YZR500. Nice! Bodywork can be a real pain in the behind when trying to make your project look like something that rolled out of a factories R&D department.

Yep, it has been rebuilt and breathed on.

Take a breath, here are the details

As a young impressionable man growing up, I have very fond memories of watching the Moto GP 500cc two stroke Grand Prix racing. The fastest riders in the world on the fastest machines. Kenny Roberts, Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Kevin Schwantz. It was a special time in racing. My fist bike, a 1984 Yamaha RZ350 was as close as I could get to those incredible machines. Yamaha, of course, never offered the YZR 500 to the public. It was the pinnacle of their race technology.

About 5 years ago I began the project of building a replica of the 1991 Yamaha YZR 500, as raced by the great Wayne Rainey. No expense was spared in this incredible build. What does it take, besides big $$$, to complete such a build.

First and foremost, I commissioned master bike builder and fabricator Wyn Belorusky for the build. Wyn can fabricate just about anything out of billet aluminum. In addition, he built for himself a YZR500 replica which has been featured in several magazines internationally.

The Build began:

Chassis:

Finding a titled frame was not easy, but patience pays off. A real Japanese RZV500 frame, which is the lighter aluminum version of the RZ500 steel frame offered elsewhere. 11 digit VIN, titled in Florida, in my name. The sub frame has been modified by Wyn. He installed custom billet Y supports, eliminating the stock sub frame bracing to clean up the rear of the bike for use with YZR bodywork. After all machine work was complete, the frame was freshly powder coated black.

Aprilla RS250 gull wing swingarm. This is an ideal choice, having the same length as the stock RZV swing arm, with the look of the YZR 500. Extensive modification was performed by Wyn to fit this swing arm to the RZV frame, shock linkage, and rear brake hanger. Once fabrication was completed, the swingarm was also freshly powder coated black.

Suspension:

Wilbers rear shock, with ride height adjust and remove reservoir.

Wyn also fabricated and installed a separate billet adjustable ride height linkage strut for additional adjustment. New Ohlins steering dampener, custom fabricated mount by Wyn.

2007 R6 forks, modified lower triple tree to accept a RZV500 steering stem for installation. 2007 R6 wheels front and rear.

I have a small fortune in the brake setup on this bike; Brand new billet Brembo front brake calipers, custom braided brake lines front and rear from Yoyodyne, New Brembo Radial front master cylinder, R6 rotors front and rear, R6 rear master cylinder and caliper.

Motor:

I started with a complete low kilometer stock RZV500 motor, bench stock from Mr. Belorusky, thank you very much. The motor was crated and shipped to Martin Marino of Madmann Engineering. Along with the motor I purchased and supplied a complete Brand New Yamaha OEM top end, Brand new Yamaha RZV500 cranks, new clutch, and new OEM Yamaha gaskets. Martin did a full high performance build with mostly brand new parts to work with. His porting, milling, and modification to the reed cages makes these motors come alive! Check out his link.

http://www.madmanengineering.com/rz500.htm

It's set up for premix in its current state per Martin’s recommendation. I have an oil reservoir and set up to run the oil injection, which will be included in the auction, should the new owner wish to run the injector. It can run safely on 93 octane, but the motor does like the race gas. Additionally, brand new mikuni 28mm flat slides were purchased and installed, along with K&N individual filters, and new throttle cables. The motor makes great power, is jetted just a little rich to be on the same side (I’m at sea level in Florida) and runs cool. The stock RZ has a habit of the rear cylinders running hot. Rick Lance added an accessory radiator to allow additional cooling of the rear cylinders

Exhaust:

Jim Lomas stainless steel GP chambers, with carbon fiber canisters. Built to order in Czechoslovakia, the quality and workmanship is amazing. The sound, weight savings, and performance are equally impressive. Wyn did a beautiful job in modifying the exhaust hangers on the pipes to fit with the new swing arm, and the upper pipes were gently molded to slightly point inward to replicate the upper YZR pipes on Rainey’s bike

Bodywork:

Many years ago, Wyn was fortunate enough to borrow a set of REAL Yamaha YZR bodywork from a 1991 works bike, just long enough to make molds. Genius! From these very molds comes the bodywork on my bike. It’s the real deal. The custom brackets Wyn fabricated for mounting the bodywork is nothing short of artwork. Additionally, all quick release pins and real Dzus fasteners were used. Careful custom modifications were performed to allow installation of the functional headlight and tail light. A custom windscreen was fabricated as well, which fits perfectly.

I saw Rainey’s 1991 YZR500 in Laguna at the 2005 MotoGP, and took many pictures. This was an invaluable reference point for the build, particularly matching the color and logos. Paint by Paula in Titusville, Florida performed the paint work. She used a very rich pearl white, along with a day glow orange (from the house of color) to match Rainey’s bike. No decals were used; all work was done with paint. It does look sweet, and correct to Rainey’s 1991 YZR500.

Miscellaneous:

The rearsets are custom fabricated by Wyn Belorusky. Included are two separate sets of rearset brackets, one for the stock position as pictured, and a set for the full race position. I initially had the race ones made, but then subsequently had a stock set made as I have only ridden the bike on the street. Again, both sets are included. They are beautiful. Wyn even machined the right side foot peg to fold up, to allow for clearance of the kickstarter when starting (like the stock RZV right side foot peg does). It’s the details that I love!

The dash was a custom fabrication setup with the tachometer mounted, a Daytona digital Temp gauge, and a GPS which can be used as a speedometer.

The sprocket cover was modified, by shortening the rear portion and milling out the holes. It turned out sweet. The right side engine cover, water pump, and left side sprocket cover were also sand blasted to give the appropriate GP look.

Wyn took the wiring harness and stripped any unnecessary wires, then cleanly wrapped and reinstalled all wiring. It’s very neat.

New 520 chain/sprockets, custom billet swingarm spools.

.

I really can’t even come close to listing all the fine details that went into this incredible build. I have many many pictures documenting the entire build. The bike needs a home with someone who appreciates what went into this project to achieve this final result. It’s awesome..

Everyone who does a build should do it for themselves first and foremost. I say that because I will nit pick here. My nit picky point being, if you spent all the money to replicate a 1991 YZR500, shouldn't the pipes look period? Mild steel (or titanium if $$$ is no question) for the pipes would do the trick. A totally personal choice, just wondering since so much detail went into the bike.

They don't get built overnight. That's a RZV frame not the more common RZ500 frame. I've always thought it would be cool to track down an old Harris or ROC YZR frame and use that for the base of a YZR replica. If you'd like to drool a little more, check these replicas out of Australia out. I think you can buy the frames seperatley if you are do it yourselfer.

Remember, it is road legal too. I hope all the bargain hunters stopped reading a long time ago. I would be surprised if the reserve on this bad boy isn't in the mid twenties. On one hand I say it is completely worth it. It is an absolutely beautiful bike that a lot of care, time and money was invested into. On the other hand after you get past the good looks and expert craftmanship you still have a spindly mid 80's frame hiding in there. When you get into high dollar builds there are options out there, like the Aussie built replicas. Don't get me wrong, I love the bike, I'm just sayin...... To get in the mix on this beautiful bike, simply click here.

Ian

Sport Bikes For Sale August 22, 2011 posted by Ian

Best Replica Yet? Mick Costin Yamaha RZ500/YZR500 Marlboro Replica

What a couple of months for YZR replicas! Each one seems to get better. In my humble opinion this is the one to own. I remember stumbling across the Microproducts website and just weeping knowing I couldn't afford one. I honestly don't know how well they are constructed, the quality of components or how they handle. What I do know is that they are visually the best replica I've seen of a YZR500.

Some of it is exotic, some isn't. You've got a custom frame housing a mildly breathed on RZ500 engine. A TZR supplied the swing arm and forks are RGV units. Subframe is all custom. Custom tank? Nope, it is off a VFR400. I don't know if the fairings are the real thing or copies but they are from a 1996 YZR500. The tail section is from an RS250. That is quite a mix and match project. I wonder what the fit and finish looks like in person?

It just looks the business. I'm actually surprised they haven't done a RGV500 replica with a proper frame and RG500 engine.

How about that for some tail?

What RZ or RG owner hasn't dreamed of a frame like this? Here is some advice Yamaha and Suzuki. Dust off the cobwebs of your two stroke department. Grab some old engines and plug them up anyway you need to, to meet environmental standards. Proceed to stick them in a modern frame. Give us two versions please: one can be a 1990's GP replica and one can be a more modern version. You will sell every damn one of them. We will unplug them on our own, don't worry.

Well we all know my pissing and moaning on here won't get us any new two strokes so you might have to look here for satisfaction. How much to play? Roughly $30,000. Oh and shipping from Australia. Yep, they are down under. They are open to offers on this one though. Make room in your garage and buy it here.

Now are you thinking, "I like it but I still know it isn't a YZR"?

Now that looks like it fell off a Yamaha race trailer! They are apparently building a replica of a 1990 YZR500 for a customer. To do so they have created this replica frame. I'm keeping my fingers crossed they stick something in there more exotic than a RZ500 engine.

Grab a tissue and enjoy:

Ian