Well, that's quite amazing! It even has the original spark plug wiring harness which was later recalled and another fitted that warded off arcing across the wires; very powerful ht ignition system, worked on many of them. Only a few failures of the 'boxes' but the alternator armatures were prone to getting internal breakages. Amazing that it has survived without some obvious damage to the main bearings by sitting in one position for so long. Good fortune there... .
+Penny Rogies A few years later, they went to a CDI system like used on the 750H2 model and I don't recall any ignition faults at all then. A neighbor bought one from the dealership I worked at and we sharpened the carburation for commuting - he was getting ~55mpg, about the same as my 250cc Suzuki! I serviced quite a few of them, really a solid engine basically. Ah, memories..!
+Penny Rogies In the U.S., they came with a shift pattern of down for first and up for the rest. I'm not recalling the shift shaft coming out of the case on the right for a conversion on the Kaw but I do remember the 500 Suzuki twin having one. Edit: refreshed memory, they did have it.
Yeah, been a few years, I think on quick recall, I sort of lumped them all together. I did remember the A-1 250cc and the A-7 350cc were all up. There were a few Bridgestones around that had rotary shifting, all the same stroke on the shift lever, back to neutral from top gear..! Now I don't recall for sure about the H-2, wasn't first on the bottom with all of them? Edit: It had neutral on the 'bottom' also, funny how some things are so fresh after so long and others more difficult to recall. I think it was all 'second nature' after a while.
I knew a guy that bought the first one ever sold in our town. It was a beast and as other said when you hit 6000 RPM hold on!! I think they went from about 24 hp to about 60 all of a sudden. I rode one a few years later (the two tone green) and quite enjoyed the experience.
Wow! I can’t believe that after so many years in storage that beauty runs/sounds great! Had myself a ‘72 350 cc Triple Kawasaki as well, first bike I learned what a powerband was! Very cool find, make it safe and enjoy 😉
I had one of those when I was 18. It was good at just one thing: going really fast. It vibrated like hell and was scary to handle, but I was king of the road in High School!
I have a 1969-H1-500 also, its absolutely glorious above 6,000 rpm, at 7,000 it’s mental for a motorcycle that is 56 years old, the trick is never give it full throttle until 4-th,5th gear. I can only imagine what happens if it was pinned in a lower gear 😂
I had a long twisting road duel with one of these way back in 1979. I was on a Suzuki T500 which went like a shower of shite, but the bloke on the H1 was just insane. To be fair though, the H1 and T500 were really two totally different bikes. Both were 500cc two strokes but the similarity ended there. The big twin T500s were much more refined with large heavy crank flywheels, a longer wheelbase and slower steering geometry- the perfect two stroke tourer! The H1s were peaky. Maximum power came on at a much higher rev range to the Suzuki which was reflected in the shorter wheel base and challenging handling. I rode an H4 a couple of times around a race track before a mate rode the bike in "forgotten era" category races many years ago. The H4 scared the shit out if me. You ride the thing thinking, 'wow, feel the triple power pulses and hear that ring rattle', then out of nowhere the revs peak and off you go like a rocket!
Rick, you probably lucked out a bit that these were set up to be very rich on oil feed on this early model so had some good protection from that. There was a service bulletin within a few months of the first sales that had the dealer cut back the oil delivery at the pump, either with a new control arm or we cut and notched it to crimp the end of the control cable for more free play. Easy starting was amazing on this model. I could just hit the kick starter firmly with my fist and it would pop to life...!
Wow...I had one of these in 1980, fantastic bike. Had a tendency to try and kill you! But I was a young man and knew no fear 😂 Great memories Looks wonderful, enjoy it my friend 👍 Thanks for sharing
The value, for those who don't 'get it' is the crustiness of the barn find and it's original funky parts. If you were purchasing to restore, then this wasn't a great deal. Leaving it as it is, and showing it will ALWAYS draw a knowing crowd. I get it.
It was not ridden since 1974. My guess is that it was stored with the better quality ethanol free gas they had back then. The new modern 10% ethanol gas will gum up the carbs within months, but that old gas was a lot better. I've bought bikes that sat for decades, and got them to start without rebuilding the carbs. On the other hand, if I let my lawnmower sit over the winter with modern pump gas in it, I'll have to rebuild the carbs in the spring. That is, until I learned my lesson, and started using truck fuel.
Nice find. You need to check the oil pump output and that there are no air bubbles in the oil lines caused by a blocked oil tank filter. I had one seize because of that. There was at least smoke coming out of the exhausts so that was good.
Holey moley! First kick! Great bike. My favorite is the green and black. So what if you spent $5k. It's your money, enjoy your life. People spend tons of money on paintings and sculptures and jewelry. You can't take it with you when you die. Happy for you.
IIRC, Tony Nicosia, a 120lb drag racer who could really ride, ran a razor tuned Mach III thru the 1/4 mile in 12.40 seconds@111.6mph.....50 YEARS ago!!!
1969 was the fastest year. we had 70's and 71's then I got the 72' 750. Hey guess what. All 3 of us guy's are still alive and never really did get hurt riding them. Lucky I guess. We sure did win alot of races. People didn't even know what hit em when we did.
Bring back 2-strokes! Even the 50cc 2-strokes like the Kawasaki AR50 or Honda MB5 were a total BLAST to ride! 55 MPH on a 5-speed, 50cc bike was magic! I can't imagine how much these 500cc machines pulled hard in their powerband!
Well done my uncle owns nearly all the kh kawasakis, 2 strokes and I was always around them or on the back, so his love for them has rubbed off on me. Keep it original were his words on them, piss about an they give you trouble. Lol 😂
Man I wish my 74 S1 ran that good, mine just immediately revs to 5k rpm or more then stays there.....But at that you could sit back and watch it run all day long tho.
I had one of those back when they were new. Hit that power band and zoooooooom. These bikes will kill youif you don't ride them with respect, drum brakes and poor suspention but what fun. I'm in my mid 60's and still scrape footpegs.
@@rickbrett9173 Sure hear alotta bull shit, dontcha Rick? You go guy!! That is THE 500 KAW to have. The 1970 model is a classic, too. Anything after 1972 is nice, but the '69 &'70 Mach IIIs are the top dogs. I can't remember the last time I saw a '69 Mach III out running around on the streets.
Loved my ‘71 blue streak. Get up close to the tank, drop the clutch @ 5 grand, when the rear tire grabs HANG ON TIGHT & keep shifting. At about 100 or so the steering shakes...quickly let off the throttle plus make sure you don’t need to stop for anything - drum brakes worthless
I paid $100 for mine( same condition as yours) Ended up at the salvage yard near home before it made it to the crusher. took her home and 3 weeks later I heard it purr for the first time. Even at this point I didn't know what I had this whole time till I watched this very same video. $100 "very well spent"
Nice bike, love the sound! There was nothing like it in '69. I recently bought a Yamaha YM2 scrambler in pristine condition for $3,750. Being a millionaire, I don't care about the price. I drove a YDS-C in my teens and my friend had an H1. My brother raced an H2 in the '70s and was champ in his class for three years. He still has the racer. A little TLC and you'll have a beautiful bike!
The bike actually broke down many years ago and it was just put away, there are signs that a lot of effort was put into fixing it but failed, turns out there was a broken terminal on the coil - once reconnected it find right up :)
@@rickbrett9173 Hey Rick-I experienced the same exact thing on a 1971 Norton Commando. I paid $2,200 for it in 1996. It didn't run, but looked like new. In fact, it won 1st place in a bike show. Musta pushed it inside to show it!!! Anyway, had 2,900 miles on it, and hadn't run since 1972!! Guy bought it in Fall, 1971, put it away in late Spring, 1972, when he joined the Air Force. Life got in the way for many years after, and it sat in his parents garage from then on. His dad told me he came home on leave in '72 or '73, took it for a ride, and the bike stranded him. Got it home and they couldn't get a spark, and was still that way when I bought it. The key was down on the left (as you sit on the seat) side cover. When I reached down to turn on the key, I saw a spark where there shouldn't be one, at the switch where it plugged into the main wiring harness. One lousy wire was about 3/8".too short. Lengthened it, and presto-The Norton was snortin'! Had to go thru the carbs first, then put it up for sale. Guy came from 6 states away. Ironically, I sold it for 5 grand, too. But this was 23 years ago. Always thought maybe I shoulda asked $7,500. But hey, that's life........
Back in 1996 i rescued an old rd 200 dx from a rubbish tip, probably left outside for years, but minimal fettling , and it exploded back to life, in a huge cloud of blue smoke
Sounds like a bag of nails, but they did :>) I had a 1971 H1-B. Now I have seen yours, I miss it. How did the restoration go as it is now 5 years later?
Any engine I have that sits for a while gets a good dose of Marvel Mystery oil . I run one full tank with that and another one (second tank with the first one empty or very near ) with Berryman's ( pour in ) carb and injector cleaner and it does wonders . In 41 years of muscle cars , motorcycles and erasing the damage of crap fuels , those two have proved to be worth their weight in gold for breathing life into old engines and maintaining new ones . PK
Steve and Rick?? It's Wayne. Good to see you last year at the Vintagefest!! Lana and I will be in Y19 this year in the upper swap meet at Barbers. Be sure to come see us!
My Brother had that exact bike back in '69. He paid $500.00 for it. He laid it over going around a turn and it was never the same after that crash.. He promptly sold it.
The early Mach 3 had CDI ignition which was excellent for 2-strokes cos there was no misfiring at high revs like you get with the horrible points ignition. Kawasaki switched to points ignition around 1971 to save money and the engine always misfired when the points had more than a thousand miles on them. -The carburetors should be disassembled and the jets properly cleaned. Also change the oil in the transmission. This bike deserves proper restoration.
Johan Engqvist Well I wouldn't have given a crap about someone else's car radio at the time lol. Riding a modified Triumph Street Triple R for the last 5 years; what a fun bike! My 1971 Mach 3 was the first bike I ever owned that power wheelied in first gear and a 100+ mph quarter mile was very fast back in the day. High speed bumpy corners were scary though even with the hydraulic steering damper.
+Burt Hulbert True, in my day nothing went like them either. Just the thing for a luny like me those days. Denco`d up with pipes the H2 blew everyone and everything off !!!!. Goodbye Z1, See you a lot later Honda 750 slugger. The problem was fuel consumption. No good for a long run unless you were "on the pipe " then you were going far too fast. The H1 certainly was very quick too. It had two power bands I remember. Oh! Those far off halcyon days. I gave my son my old RG500 Gamma which was a great stroker as well. I later on had 4 strokes as well, Commando, Suzy GS 1000. Borrrinnnnnggggg. But practical. I`m old now (74) Anyone got an H2 I can borrow to scare myself shitless?. No problem to do that on those strokers.
Crobular I in 1972 I was 17 with a new s2 350 triple. It came on like a rocket at 6/7 grand on the tach. At 55/60 mph it maxed at 28 mpg. There was hardly a day I didn't bust 100 mph. It sounded like a screaming formula one car. Two neighbors had Honda CB 450s. My bike ate them in corners and acceleration.
+Rick Brett You would know more than I do about these but I did ride a lot of these in my youth ,I worked in a few motorcycle dealerships when they were new, remember the first one I rode I hit 4.000 rpm and it lifted the front wheel, shit brakes horrible in corners but fast, they managed to kill at lot of young boys...
Interesting comment Brian, I am sure that a LOT of riders came unstuck on the bikes, lets face it there was bugger all back then that you could buy at a dealership that would perform to this degree - It was the start of the turning point from commuter bikes to performance bikes!
I had one of those bikes when i was 16 years old it was my first bike i used to race this bike so fast then one day the motor blew up because i had it in the red too long the piston exploded in the cylinder.
discharged from the military, summer of 1969,,,two weeks home and i bought one!! Fun every mile,,,never a bad day,,,never a fall. As i remember it,,,at 6000 rpms, the beast was let loose. Nearly 30 mpg if you were careful,,,,20mpg if you were having fun!! So,,,with the limited tank,,about 4 gal,,,you had to be careful how far the next gas station was! Annnd,,keep that right hand side oil tank filled!!
Brakes? Who ever tried to slow down on this rocket. I thought that the entire idea was to keep in on the rear wheel at all times to save wear and tear on the front suspension.
5k is nothing these days and on a beautiful old kwacka i would have spent also. people are very short sighted when it comes to classic collectors. my favorite is the yam rd 400 what a lil champ.
very nice bike 'I bought a 1974 Honda cb 360t just a few months it sat in the garage for 35 years 'was froze up bad I took the side casing off and got hold of the flywheel 'but first I filled the cylinders full of mystery oil left it over night next day to connected a 4 ft bar to the flywheel started rocking back and forth just a little when the engine started to move I 'put the casing back on 'connected a car battery to it hit the button and it started to spin after it spun a few times 'I checked the carbs they needed a little cleaning 'then I filled it with fresh gas turned on the ignition hit the switch' and it started right up 'now it runs like new for such a little bike it has a lot of power 'I just cant seem ti find parts for it 'lights ECT.ECT.
i am 59 and i have rode one ....the sound brings back the best days of my life thank you BRO
I'm 57 life used to be fun and simple back in the 80s I used to like my life as long as I had a bike petrol money i was happy simpler times
@Sunflower Seeds nutter they are the last word in rocket ships mental fast nothing like the sound of them excelorating lol 😀
It's nice to see these bikes get a second shot at life. Bikes are people too, they need sunshine and and open road to enjoy themselves :)
Well, that's quite amazing! It even has the original spark plug wiring harness which was later recalled and another fitted that warded off arcing across the wires; very powerful ht ignition system, worked on many of them. Only a few failures of the 'boxes' but the alternator armatures were prone to getting internal breakages. Amazing that it has survived without some obvious damage to the main bearings by sitting in one position for so long. Good fortune there... .
+Penny Rogies A few years later, they went to a CDI system like used on the 750H2 model and I don't recall any ignition faults at all then. A neighbor bought one from the dealership I worked at and we sharpened the carburation for commuting - he was getting ~55mpg, about the same as my 250cc Suzuki! I serviced quite a few of them, really a solid engine basically. Ah, memories..!
+Penny Rogies In the U.S., they came with a shift pattern of down for first and up for the rest. I'm not recalling the shift shaft coming out of the case on the right for a conversion on the Kaw but I do remember the 500 Suzuki twin having one. Edit: refreshed memory, they did have it.
Yeah, been a few years, I think on quick recall, I sort of lumped them all together. I did remember the A-1 250cc and the A-7 350cc were all up. There were a few Bridgestones around that had rotary shifting, all the same stroke on the shift lever, back to neutral from top gear..! Now I don't recall for sure about the H-2, wasn't first on the bottom with all of them? Edit: It had neutral on the 'bottom' also, funny how some things are so fresh after so long and others more difficult to recall. I think it was all 'second nature' after a while.
Oil pumps would fail too. Kaw drove the Tach cable via the oil pump. So if your Tach quits, shutterdown!!!!
@@whalesong999 Also had optional points ignition starting in 1972.
That sound bought back the H1 i rode and raced in the 70's. When it hit 6000 it was hang on time. Well done another one saved.
I knew a guy that bought the first one ever sold in our town. It was a beast and as other said when you hit 6000 RPM hold on!! I think they went from about 24 hp to about 60 all of a sudden. I rode one a few years later (the two tone green) and quite enjoyed the experience.
Wow! I can’t believe that after so many years in storage that beauty runs/sounds great!
Had myself a ‘72 350 cc Triple Kawasaki as well, first bike I learned what a powerband was! Very cool find, make it safe and enjoy 😉
I owned the exact bike the cdi hummed when you put the key on ,its not a piece of junk,its a piece of history
What a beautiful bike!! Sounds like sympathy playing! Worth every penny.
A rough diamond, but what a sweet sounding engine... You lucky sod!!
That 3 cylinder was a beast.
what a beauty the engine roars like a symphony of perfection.
Nice one Fella - yes we remember these - you have a piece of History there
Sound & Vision connection to my golden era of motorcycling...
Never gets old watching this video Rick what a great find!
I thank you sir! Barney is semi retired now and down in Florida - I'll be out on "her" this week.
Can't help but smile as I watch and listen to this machine.
👍🏁
Incredible it runs as it does looking like that. Awsome bike! Iam restoring a h1 500 Mach my self, from 71 though
What a great find. Have fun!!!!
She's a runner, just needs a little TLC. Nice score, Rick!
I had one of those when I was 18. It was good at just one thing: going really fast.
It vibrated like hell and was scary to handle, but I was king of the road in High School!
I have a 1969-H1-500 also, its absolutely glorious above 6,000 rpm, at 7,000 it’s mental for a motorcycle that is 56 years old, the trick is never give it full throttle until 4-th,5th gear. I can only imagine what happens if it was pinned in a lower gear 😂
I had a long twisting road duel with one of these way back in 1979. I was on a Suzuki T500 which went like a shower of shite, but the bloke on the H1 was just insane. To be fair though, the H1 and T500 were really two totally different bikes. Both were 500cc two strokes but the similarity ended there. The big twin T500s were much more refined with large heavy crank flywheels, a longer wheelbase and slower steering geometry- the perfect two stroke tourer! The H1s were peaky. Maximum power came on at a much higher rev range to the Suzuki which was reflected in the shorter wheel base and challenging handling. I rode an H4 a couple of times around a race track before a mate rode the bike in "forgotten era" category races many years ago. The H4 scared the shit out if me. You ride the thing thinking, 'wow, feel the triple power pulses and hear that ring rattle', then out of nowhere the revs peak and off you go like a rocket!
They are one of the best looking bikes. I like that version without the tail and the drum on the front.
the air intake is noisier than the exhausts!
love it ...hahaha picked my sweetheart for 150 bucks Canadian low clicks also parked since 1976 bought it 2016 , all in one piece !
Rick, you probably lucked out a bit that these were set up to be very rich on oil feed on this early model so had some good protection from that. There was a service bulletin within a few months of the first sales that had the dealer cut back the oil delivery at the pump, either with a new control arm or we cut and notched it to crimp the end of the control cable for more free play. Easy starting was amazing on this model. I could just hit the kick starter firmly with my fist and it would pop to life...!
Wow...I had one of these in 1980, fantastic bike. Had a tendency to try and kill you! But I was a young man and knew no fear 😂
Great memories
Looks wonderful, enjoy it my friend 👍
Thanks for sharing
Me too
The value, for those who don't 'get it' is the crustiness of the barn find and it's original funky parts. If you were purchasing to restore, then this wasn't a great deal. Leaving it as it is, and showing it will ALWAYS draw a knowing crowd. I get it.
Wise words! - Thankyou!
Aaaaaah! There's always something special about the sound of any 3 cylinder engine. It's like a demon howl!! :¬D
Amazing that the Jets weren’t clogged. I found a GT 750 wants fresh gas bark plugs fired right over
It was not ridden since 1974. My guess is that it was stored with the better quality ethanol free gas they had back then. The new modern 10% ethanol gas will gum up the carbs within months, but that old gas was a lot better. I've bought bikes that sat for decades, and got them to start without rebuilding the carbs. On the other hand, if I let my lawnmower sit over the winter with modern pump gas in it, I'll have to rebuild the carbs in the spring. That is, until I learned my lesson, and started using truck fuel.
Nice find.
You need to check the oil pump output and that there are no air
bubbles in the oil lines caused by a blocked oil tank filter.
I had one seize because of that.
There was at least smoke coming out of the exhausts so that was good.
Nice score Rick..Good for you!
Enjoyed the video and appreciate the beauty of these bikes
Holey moley! First kick! Great bike. My favorite is the green and black. So what if you spent $5k. It's your money, enjoy your life. People spend tons of money on paintings and sculptures and jewelry. You can't take it with you when you die. Happy for you.
Very impressive indeed, also pretty brave of you to ride it with those tires.
Awsm find. Been trying to make a find like that for 20yrs. Lol
That thing is a Little Beast! Man I would leave it as it is.
Thankyou Johnny, I intend to do just that!
IIRC, Tony Nicosia, a 120lb drag racer who could really ride, ran a razor tuned Mach III thru the 1/4 mile in 12.40 seconds@111.6mph.....50 YEARS ago!!!
Wow!I Rode pillion on a red one of these in 1970.It was amazing.
Amazing that the crank seals haven’t given up the ghost.
Nice find , and we thought those finds had long gone :-)
1969 was the fastest year. we had 70's and 71's then I got the 72' 750. Hey guess what. All 3 of us guy's are still alive and never really did get hurt riding them. Lucky I guess. We sure did win alot of races. People didn't even know what hit em when we did.
Bring back 2-strokes! Even the 50cc 2-strokes like the Kawasaki AR50 or Honda MB5 were a total BLAST to ride! 55 MPH on a 5-speed, 50cc bike was magic! I can't imagine how much these 500cc machines pulled hard in their powerband!
Music to my ears! God it will take a fortune to restore it.
Well done my uncle owns nearly all the kh kawasakis, 2 strokes and I was always around them or on the back, so his love for them has rubbed off on me. Keep it original were his words on them, piss about an they give you trouble. Lol 😂
Man I wish my 74 S1 ran that good, mine just immediately revs to 5k rpm or more then stays there.....But at that you could sit back and watch it run all day long tho.
I had one of those back when they were new. Hit that power band and zoooooooom. These bikes will kill youif you don't ride them with respect, drum brakes and poor suspention but what fun. I'm in my mid 60's and still scrape footpegs.
Nutter lol they had short swinging arms too when it dried out boy they would go love the smell and sound
nice sound - remember that sound - I was 10-11 year old.
you got screwed on that one,, im looking at 3 of`em out my back door of my friends Florida junkyard.
I seriously doubt that . . . . They aren't 1969 models . . . .
I’m in Alabama not far from Pensacola, would like to find a nice H1 69
Preferable but will look at others if they are available
@@rickbrett9173 There are 69 models
@@rickbrett9173 Sure hear alotta bull shit, dontcha Rick? You go guy!! That is THE 500 KAW to have. The 1970 model is a classic, too. Anything after 1972 is nice, but the '69 &'70 Mach IIIs are the top dogs. I can't remember the last time I saw a '69 Mach III out running around on the streets.
Loved my ‘71 blue streak. Get up close to the tank, drop the clutch @ 5 grand, when the rear tire grabs HANG ON TIGHT & keep shifting. At about 100 or so the steering shakes...quickly let off the throttle plus make sure you don’t need to stop for anything - drum brakes worthless
I paid $100 for mine( same condition as yours) Ended up at the salvage yard near home before it made it to the crusher. took her home and 3 weeks later I heard it purr for the first time. Even at this point I didn't know what I had this whole time till I watched this very same video. $100 "very well spent"
How long is that supposed to be stood for all the seals would be gone that's been started regularly it's rough but not that unloved
That SOUND! I hope you restored the bike.
hard to believe crank seals not dried up and when started never pop back and blew the seals or started idling high
The rubber was absolutely astonishing! Every single rubber is if it just came out of the bag 😱
very nice i like it very much
is it me or is it quite compact
As kids, these bikes were HUGE . . . Now they are skinny and small . . .
Rick Brett so were we 😄😄😄
Nice bike, love the sound! There was nothing like it in '69. I recently bought a Yamaha YM2 scrambler in pristine condition for $3,750. Being a millionaire, I don't care about the price. I drove a YDS-C in my teens and my friend had an H1. My brother raced an H2 in the '70s and was champ in his class for three years. He still has the racer. A little TLC and you'll have a beautiful bike!
Any restoration plans?!
nope, ride as is 😎
What is the ownership history of it? Why did it sit so long without runnning?
The bike actually broke down many years ago and it was just put away, there are signs that a lot of effort was put into fixing it but failed, turns out there was a broken terminal on the coil - once reconnected it find right up :)
@@rickbrett9173 Hey Rick-I experienced the same exact thing on a 1971 Norton Commando. I paid $2,200 for it in 1996. It didn't run, but looked like new. In fact, it won 1st place in a bike show. Musta pushed it inside to show it!!! Anyway, had 2,900 miles on it, and hadn't run since 1972!! Guy bought it in Fall, 1971, put it away in late Spring, 1972, when he joined the Air Force. Life got in the way for many years after, and it sat in his parents garage from then on. His dad told me he came home on leave in '72 or '73, took it for a ride, and the bike stranded him. Got it home and they couldn't get a spark, and was still that way when I bought it. The key was down on the left (as you sit on the seat) side cover. When I reached down to turn on the key, I saw a spark where there shouldn't be one, at the switch where it plugged into the main wiring harness. One lousy wire was about 3/8".too short. Lengthened it, and presto-The Norton was snortin'! Had to go thru the carbs first, then put it up for sale. Guy came from 6 states away. Ironically, I sold it for 5 grand, too. But this was 23 years ago. Always thought maybe I shoulda asked $7,500. But hey, that's life........
I wouldn't change a thing I didn't have to. looks awesome
Wow an original Widowmaker and still runs after all those years
One way to knacker an old engine, or had it been serviced?
Wow, what a find. Love it.
Awesome video!
mental machines, i was recovering from a big off when a mate brought the 500 h2, i ended owning a s2 350,then the hi and h2, and i survived lol
Nice find!
Back in 1996 i rescued an old rd 200 dx from a rubbish tip, probably left outside for years, but minimal fettling , and it exploded back to life, in a huge cloud of blue smoke
Sounds like a bag of nails, but they did :>) I had a 1971 H1-B. Now I have seen yours, I miss it. How did the restoration go as it is now 5 years later?
It crop dusts just fine... Started without taking carbs apart for cleaning? That's very hard to believe but...possible I guess
Any engine I have that sits for a while gets a good dose of Marvel Mystery oil . I run one full tank with that and another one (second tank with the first one empty or very near ) with Berryman's ( pour in ) carb and injector cleaner and it does wonders . In 41 years of muscle cars , motorcycles and erasing the damage of crap fuels , those two have proved to be worth their weight in gold for breathing life into old engines and maintaining new ones . PK
WOW!!! Lucky guy!! "MONEY WELL SPENT!!" That is a great Bike.. Not " A PIECE OF JUNK" Hang on to it.
Blimey ! What a barn, all my barns are empty.
Bill Bright Thats because . . . . I'm filling mine UP 👍
+Rick Brett good on ya mate! Love it keep the good work Sir!
Wahoww !!! Hope you intend to restore this wonderful bikee :-D
Those motorcycles are quick and fast
What 2-cycle oil are you using in this?
That bike sounded good.
That's a belter Rick,,
blackhat400 yes it is! one of my favourite bikes 😎
What? I live and was raised in Minnesota lol jeezy crazy to hear u say ur friend from mn
Its Very cool like the 69s stuff in all makes!
I dont see any rust? i see a beauty.
Steve and Rick?? It's Wayne. Good to see you last year at the Vintagefest!! Lana and I will be in Y19 this year in the upper swap meet at Barbers. Be sure to come see us!
please tell me you're gonna keep it like this!
+max ter Denge Yes, Sir, No intention to clean or restore it :)
Absolutely fantastic
My Brother had that exact bike back in '69. He paid $500.00 for it. He laid it over going around a turn and it was never the same after that crash.. He promptly sold it.
Sounds like the crank seals are still workin,, rite on
How did you not lose you hat? Good on you!
Hearing a Blue 1971 h1 changed my life course
wow, what a find!!!
A real survivor, amazing. Don't have to touch the engine, is OK
The early Mach 3 had CDI ignition which was excellent for 2-strokes cos there was no misfiring at high revs like you get with the horrible points ignition. Kawasaki switched to points ignition around 1971 to save money and the engine always misfired when the points had more than a thousand miles on them. -The carburetors should be disassembled and the jets properly cleaned. Also change the oil in the transmission. This bike deserves proper restoration.
Actually, the switched to points because the CDI ignition caused disturbances in radio at the time...
Johan Engqvist Well I wouldn't have given a crap about someone else's car radio at the time lol. Riding a modified Triumph Street Triple R for the last 5 years; what a fun bike! My 1971 Mach 3 was the first bike I ever owned that power wheelied in first gear and a 100+ mph quarter mile was very fast back in the day. High speed bumpy corners were scary though even with the hydraulic steering damper.
2stroke or 4stroke..?
how much?
Oil injection working? Or are you running premix?
CrazyBear65 It's the original oil injection . . . and still the original 35 year old oil 🙄 I'll refill it with mineral oil next season
Nothing sounds like a kawasaki triple.
+Burt Hulbert True, in my day nothing went like them either. Just the thing for a luny like me those days. Denco`d up with pipes the H2 blew everyone and everything off !!!!. Goodbye Z1, See you a lot later Honda 750 slugger. The problem was fuel consumption. No good for a long run unless you were "on the pipe " then you were going far too fast. The H1 certainly was very quick too. It had two power bands I remember. Oh! Those far off halcyon days. I gave my son my old RG500 Gamma which was a great stroker as well. I later on had 4 strokes as well, Commando, Suzy GS 1000. Borrrinnnnnggggg. But practical. I`m old now (74) Anyone got an H2 I can borrow to scare myself shitless?. No problem to do that on those strokers.
Crobular I in 1972 I was 17 with a new s2 350 triple. It came on like a rocket at 6/7 grand on the tach. At 55/60 mph it maxed at 28 mpg. There was hardly a day I didn't bust 100 mph. It sounded like a screaming formula one car. Two neighbors had Honda CB 450s. My bike ate them in corners and acceleration.
For sure and right on man. In their day nothing went like a Denco H2 either
Just bet it did !.
Burt Hulbert I had two 350 triples. A friend crashed one and I was left with one. I'd love to have another one.
WOW that's funny! I've probably forgotten FAR more than you will ever know about these engines 😜
+Rick Brett You would know more than I do about these but I did ride a lot of these in my youth ,I worked in a few motorcycle dealerships when they were new, remember the first one I rode I hit 4.000 rpm and it lifted the front wheel, shit brakes horrible in corners but fast, they managed to kill at lot of young boys...
+Rick Brett I believe it Rick.
+brian critchley Denco`d up with pipes the H2 was a bloody rocketship!!!!!!!!.
Crobular I They sure were fast, if you learnt how to ride them...
Interesting comment Brian, I am sure that a LOT of riders came unstuck on the bikes, lets face it there was bugger all back then that you could buy at a dealership that would perform to this degree - It was the start of the turning point from commuter bikes to performance bikes!
you didn't seriously just ride it like that straight away without warming it up?
I had one of those bikes when i was 16 years old it was my first bike i used to race this bike so fast then one day the motor blew up because i had it in the red too long the piston exploded in the cylinder.
Cabbager, to have one of these at 16 yrs old, you're lucky you didn't end up as sauerkraut!!!!
beautiful machine
discharged from the military, summer of 1969,,,two weeks home and i bought one!! Fun every mile,,,never a bad day,,,never a fall. As i remember it,,,at 6000 rpms, the beast was let loose. Nearly 30 mpg if you were careful,,,,20mpg if you were having fun!! So,,,with the limited tank,,about 4 gal,,,you had to be careful how far the next gas station was! Annnd,,keep that right hand side oil tank filled!!
that's desrbed it to a T 👍
My god! . . . someone that talks sense! :)
Brakes leave a lot to be desired...LOL Understatement for early H1s
Brakes? Who ever tried to slow down on this rocket. I thought that the entire idea was to keep in on the rear wheel at all times to save wear and tear on the front suspension.
5k is nothing these days and on a beautiful old kwacka i would have spent also. people are very short sighted when it comes to classic collectors. my favorite is the yam rd 400 what a lil champ.
Was it worth the $5,000 you paid for it?
Nice knees!
very nice bike 'I bought a 1974 Honda cb 360t just a few months it sat in the garage for 35 years 'was froze up bad I took the side casing off and got hold of the flywheel 'but first I filled the cylinders full of mystery oil left it over night next day to connected a 4 ft bar to the flywheel started rocking back and forth just a little when the engine started to move I 'put the casing back on 'connected a car battery to it hit the button and it started to spin after it spun a few times 'I checked the carbs they needed a little cleaning 'then I filled it with fresh gas turned on the ignition hit the switch' and it started right up 'now it runs like new for such a little bike it has a lot of power 'I just cant seem ti find parts for it 'lights ECT.ECT.