Nice LC (Ebay).....

[OzzyElsie]

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/yamaha-rd35 ... Sww-BaU-OD

......nice price (at the mo ), nicely spec'ed and detailed . I'm not sold on the graphics or seat - a black cover is included which might help some what.

(Not mine and not associated etc etc )

[JonW]

Seller in a member on here. nice chap too. Make a great hybrid with those graphics and seat imho.

[Ozhammer]

The fact that it is already a bitza makes it ripe for a special I reckon and it will be interesting to see what it makes.

[JonW]

I wonder what his reserve is, he's spent quite a bit of money on it thats for sure.

[Ozhammer]

Everyone these days seems to think if it’s old and two stroke it’s worth a mint, so I am watching it just to see what happens.

It is quite difficult to know what the real value of bikes of this era is, as it seems to fluctuate somewhat. I just offered a mate one of my projects (a rough but matching numbers RD400E) at what I thought was a fair price and he turned me down flat, wheras another guy nearly tore my arm off at the same price until his missus told him the family savings were allocated for a holiday home! I am debating whether to advertise it on here or put it on EBay, as I need to free up the space and funds for other projects (and definitely not a holiday Home!).

[JonW]

Well truth be known, these days if its an LC and in good nick with a bunch of new / nice parts then it really is worth a mint. Eg. that seat alone is $500+ for example. The cost of a full paint job on a nice set of tank and panels has to be round $2k now... it soon adds up... and thats on top of a bike that worth over $1k as a box of bits. So, while this one might not be to everyones taste, the rusty pipes dont help either, there is a lot of 'new parts' and also 'a lot of bike' there, especially when you consider what new bikes cost now. This one with 2 days to go is under $4k. Thats no where near what the seller has in it Im sure of that, hence its not reached its reserve. The days of getting something like this for under $2k are long gone.

The debate about what anything is worth and how annoying it is if you want one when you last sold 'a really good one' for $500 in the 2000s, is all a bit moot now, the LC has become very collectable... even if we dont always like it. What it does mean is that we can spend more restoring them now and not be so out of pocket, which is good news as nos parts cost silly money now.

I dont know anything about the AC models, have they appreciated like the LC and RZs?

[Ozhammer]

Yeah you are right on the money there JonW (pun intended), prices have risen steeply in the last 5 years or so here in Oz and for the last decade in places like the UK.

As so few are offered for sale due to various factors it is difficult to establish what the market value truly is. AC models are up there with the LC’s but it’s about buying wisely in my opinion. Matching numbers genuine Oz bikes will always be the holy grail as far as return on investment goes, provided they are restored to the right standard. The last RD400E that I saw listed for sale (and it was mint) sold for $9.5k, which made my eyes open somewhat.

You are right when you say that the age of the bargain has come and gone as far as old two strokes is concerned, however, I did pick up an almost complete but disassembled matching numbers RD400F for $500 a few months back, which meant that my Xmas came a bit early!

[JonW]

I should have guessed that the AC models would be priced similarly, they hold the same interest for many of the same buyers.

I agree, bargains can still be found if you know where to look. I was offered a bunch of ACs a while back for cheap to restore, but Ive no synergy with the model so passed on them. However, I did pick up a 'proper' (rectangular headlight) 86 F2 for a good price at the end of last year, it was missing a bunch of bits but its a one year bike in Aus and was priced right for my budget.

Grab em while you can boys (and girls?), many are now finding homes in collections and not being seen on the market again.

[Ozhammer]

I have an F2 (1WT) project in my collection but goodness knows when I will get round to fixing it up. I don’t suppose you know of the guy with the AC stuff still has it do you, as I would likely be interested.

Cheers
Mark

[JonW]

Sadly it was someone i bought something off, and (hope mrs not seeing this) but Ive, er, well, bought quite a lot of stuff lol

[JonW]

didnt make reserve at 3900 and quite right too. too cheap.

[Ozhammer]

I just noticed that the VIN seems to have a 5E1 prefix, so a 250 frame not a 350. That will likely limit its final sale price.

There is a black LC now listed with a starting price of $7k and it’s not even a very nice example. Again it’s a 5E1 so no way will it attract interest at that sort of money, as that is the realm of matching numbers, nice condition machines. This is what I was talking about when I mentioned the trend of if it’s old and 2T it must be worth a lot of money, so I can make a killing.

A bike is only worth what someone will ultimately pay for it but the savvy buyer will always look for the right deal. I am watching the black bike just to see if my view of it being overpriced is confirmed and would be totally gobsmacked if it attracts a single bid. He would have been better to have posted a more accurate ad with a low start bid and a sensible reserve if he really wanted to achieve a sale. Apologies if the bike is someone’s on here, as my comments are only intended to be an honest opinion.

I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that we are better off looking to buy bikes and projects from other members of forums like this one, as we are far more likely to get a better deal. I would much prefer to pay a fair price for something than facilitate an ever upward spiral of unrealistic prices, as that will almost certainly kill this little hobby of ours.

[JonW]

I was talking about this subject the other day with a member on here. We deduced that the chances of finding a matching numbers 5E0 are so small now that a 5E1 with matching numbers and a proper (not just cylinders, but wheels, brakes, carbs etc etc) 350 conversion is seen as much the same and worth very decent money now, especially when fully restored with lots of nos; But only when done properly - there are too many supposedly restored bikes out there that just arent done right. Id rather a bike like that than a bitty job with a 350 frame, they are the same frame after all lol Ive also bought bare 350 and 250 frames over the years, they cost the same...

Ive seen that black one, its not as nice as Yahn's, not the same amount of work gone into it or new parts. its probably a 5k bike from the description and the pics. he has added a start bid of 2500 now, someone will bid i bet.

Interestingly someone on facebook reckoned (cos they all know it seems) that Yahn's bike was built by some shop in Sydney, strange as I thought he was doing it himself. Two Stroke World I think it was. Later the same Fb forum panned the work of said company. Ive no idea, never heard of em. Has anyone here?

EDITED: I should add the according to the Fb'ers anything 5E1 seems to be seen as substandard and worth about 20c from what ive read, they have quite a 'tell him he's dreaming' attitude. And, yet I bet many of them own 350 LCs with 5E1 numbers, you just cant find that many 'real' 350s in Aus now lol.

[rdrob]

Guys thought I'd chime on this as it's a matching numbers 350 which I have checked myself
yes it's rough and yes he wants a bit as one member on here chased it up but really as they are
getting hard to get maybe it's worth paying that bit extra for maybe????

Just showing as hate seeing it sit there every time I go over to the shop where it is.

As Jon knows I was thinking about myself before I bought the Z1 to restore.

[JonW]

Rob, if only he didnt want so much for it, its scary to wonder how bad that frame is... :/

(youre much better off with the Z1 imho )