Bring a restmod process to fruition using a Yamaha RD400is only available to geniuses in the sector, as may be the case of our protagonist, Roland Sands Design (RSD). And if not, take a look at this marvel that we show you today and that, particularly for 2T lovers, will surely have already produced an instant crush on you. I speak from pure personal experience, because here a server is still very enthusiastic about this beautiful preparation.
The same one that we have learned about thanks to the colleagues at Pipe Burn, who have talked at length with Roland about this RD400 project. In any case, if you still don’t know RSD’s work, here are some of his latest works that we have covered from the SMN editorial team:
Yamaha RD400 by RSD in detail
Apparently, this RD400 is owned by a friend of Roland himself who, in homage to his deceased brother, a lover of 2T motorcycles, commissioned the RSD team to prepare it at the highest level, using the legendary Japanese mount as a base. Roland comments: “We all love two-strokes in the shop. There is something about the simplicity, the light weight, the sound and the smell that continues to captivate us. Growing up around two strokes, rebuilding the engines and pre-mixing the fuel is something that sticks in your mind.”
“When you hear one, when you smell the premix burning at a ratio of 32 to 1, it takes you back to a simpler time, a time before cell phones and the modern world swallowed up children. It takes you back to a time when having the right ratio, a five-gallon jug of fuel, and enough oil to get you through the day was all that mattered. So here we are, going back in time with an RD400 built, and it feels great.”
The motorcycle arrived at the workshop in very poor condition, with a good part of its structure disassembled and in boxes. The first thing to do was remove the 398 cc two-stroke parallel twin engine and send it to be completely rebuilt. In addition, this task was used to improve the archaic mechanics of the RD400, increasing its compression and including a new reed box, 28 mm Keihin carburetors and installing an ETD exhaust system with silencers finished in carbon fiber.
A new clutch system or the modification of the gearbox ratios are also part of the modifications carried out on this charming Old School. But this is just the beginning because in-depth work has also been done in the cycle part, including:
- 17” Dymag wheels
- Dunlop Q5 tires suitable for track
- Trac Dynamics 6061-T-6 Aluminum Swingarm
- Yamaha R6 forks,
- R6 Bottom Clamp
- Vintage RSD top post
- Rear shock absorbers are fully adjustable
- Yamaha radial calipers
- Brembo discs
- Custom color scheme with Speedblock graphics
Roland ends by commenting on this RD400: “We were originally going to go crazy with the bodywork, but after more thought, we decided to keep the original tank and remove the upper fairing design and tank modifications, keeping the stock aesthetics intact with a TZ750 tail section.”
Concludes: “Instead of the fairing, we used an Indian FTR headlight and a massaged bracket. This allowed us to focus on the performance aspects of the bike. It is meaningful to bring back life to a machine that is capable of creating new memories and resurrecting old ones. “It’s the closest thing to a time machine we can get.”
