1978 Yamaha YZ 250 Project Lowbucks: It’s Done!

Dec. 09, 2014 By Rick Sieman

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This was easily the most difficult Project Lowbucks to date. Not only was the bike difficult to clean, but many of the cables and connectors were not stock and had to be rebuilt and/or replaced. Also, many of the plastic parts were filthy beyond belief, or they were simply nonexistent. We finally got our 1978 Yamaha YZ 250

PREVIOUS PROJECT LOWBUCK STORIES
Almost Done: Reinstalling the Motor, Suspension, Etc.

Part 6: Paint, Plastic Restore and More

Part 5: Wheels, Triple Clamp Work

Part 4: Exhaust Pipe, Carburetor Work

So follow along as we finally get this job done.

Basic things had to be addressed first. A simple thing like the front brake lever had to be replaced with something that actually worked.

We also had to replace the clutch lever. The one that came on the bike had the tightening bolts stripped out.

It took quite a while to locate the plastic number plate/side covers. We owe some thanks to Dan Patterson from Utah for his help with this matter. Once we got the plates, they were cleaned off with contact cleaner and ready for painting.

The backsides of the plates were in desperate need of paint too.

After giving both plates a coat of Krylon Sun Yellow, we started to apply some masking tape and paper around the black in the center. We made sure that the yellow had a few days to dry properly so the masking tape would not lift off the yellow.

Then a few coats of gloss black enamel were sprayed on the plates.

Naturally, the backside of the plates got a few good coatings of yellow.

When completed, the plates looked like new.

The airbox assembly was then put into place.

It was here that we found out that the cable to the carburetor was a thrown together piece of crap and had a big leak in the top of the carb cap. It took us a couple of hours to find the right cable and then get things fitting properly.

We made sure that both ends of the cable fit properly.

Because the basis for this article is “Project Lowbucks,” we didn’t buy another front number plate. Instead, we found one laying around the shop and cut it down to fit.