[vinzrox]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2086/...3327a6fc_o.jpg
(credit to who snapped it)

This one with the separate kick-gear levers looks more like an JAWA import than a yezdi!

#. Is this Tank Original???

#. Can any one Upload the pic of the Showa?? i've heard that it is a Roadking with the Monarch's body (Roadking's tank)..is this true??

[gendarmee]

Originally Posted by vinzrox

#. Is this Tank Original???

Umm..Going by what kuttapan said, i think thats a RK tank but the sticker and color finish gives it an effect of having that shape for knee support making it look different and guess that has a RD 350's forks and jawa shockers in the rear....I could be completely wrong...
I've never come across someone who's got the kick segregated from the gear lever, so thought thats an import.

[Sankar]

No that's not a Roadking tank. RK taks were much more boxier and this one has rounded edges with knee recesses (not sticker) RK tank never had the knee recesses.

Kuttapa which tank is this? Custom made? Or did the oil king have this tank as OE?

[Steeroid]

Interesting thread this. In our times we were glad to have alternatives to the unholy trio of Bullet-Yezdi-Rajdoot (except the RD350) and were thankful for the RX100s, AX100s and the KB100 (NEVER the CD100), all of which provided more usable power, mileage and much more in terms of instrumentation, fit, finish and above all reliability.

Now we have a bunch of kids who seem to be earnestly in love with those old geezers that we were glad to see the backs of...

We had fun with the Yezdis, the Roadkings, the Furys and hell even the Rajdoot 175s with Earls forks, but to be quite fair we did have more fun with the Indo Japs.

Sadly, nearly 20 years down the line the motorcycle scene is still pretty much the same, give or take 15-20 cc and 3 or 4 BHP at the most...which probably explains why some really old bikes like the Roadking are still revered for their 'Power'!

[gendarmee]

Originally Posted by Sankar

No that's not a Roadking tank.
RK taks were much more boxier and this one has rounded edges with knee recesses (not sticker) RK tank never had the knee recesses.

Thanks for confirming!
i thought i was seeing it differently, seeing the knee recesses as an illusion.

[kuttapan]

Originally Posted by Sankar

No that's not a Roadking tank. RK taks were much more boxier and this one has rounded edges with knee recesses (not sticker) RK tank never had the knee recesses.

Kuttapa which tank is this? Custom made? Or did the oil king have this tank as OE?

At first glance, I think it is a modified(shivajinagar) RK tank. So I did an experiment. Thing is RK tank itself had variations, the green one was from an 80's bike which had slightly bigger one. SO not exactly comparable with the one in picture. I think it is a later RK tank modified.

My other guess is that it is a one off tank, Yezdi factory had so many tanks in different sizes and shapes in their R&D wing, maybe this fellow got one from there.

[gendarmee]

The naming of the bike oilking was so on the lines of Jawa, here are some pics of jawa's version of oil pump version, Jawa 362 oilmaster, called the californican otherwise. It even has a CDI.

[TuffRyder]

Originally Posted by kuttapan

No that is an Oilking, the separate kick lever is a local modification. I have seen this modification done on a couple of bikes I know.

Hi:

These levers are actually from the CZs that the factory had with them. They were in the R&D section and was picked up by many when the factory shut down.

By the way, that oilking belongs to a mechanic called Arif. One of the best restored OilKing engine I have come across. The tank is also from the factory, from the R&D section again.

Cheers
-pat-

[RT13]

The most beautiful Oilking I've seen is a 1978 Maroon one that I found Addu Bhai working on recently (I'd previously seen him work on a black one). I'm posting pics of it below. Check out that monster 22L tank! As with most Oilkings that survive, the Oil sump has long since been removed. This one is still a beauty.

[alok_balsekar]

Originally Posted by RT13

The most beautiful Oilking I've seen is a 1978 Maroon one that I found Addu Bhai working on recently (I'd previously seen him work on a black one). I'm posting pics of it below. Check out that monster 22L tank! As with most Oilkings that survive, the Oil sump has long since been removed. This one is still a beauty.

That Oilking ha one hell of a mix and match!!!

Y-350 front drum, Old style Jawa rear drum, and two speedometers (neither one looks like a tachometer).

Nice bike though. great collector value

[RT13]

Originally Posted by alok_balsekar

That Oilking ha one hell of a mix and match!!!

Y-350 front drum, Old style Jawa rear drum, and two speedometers (neither one looks like a tachometer).

Nice bike though. great collector value

It is a tachometer though I don't remember exactly where he sourced it. And yes he's modified it a some though rather tastefully in my opinion. He's opened up the bore on this thing and when he started it up it was the most ridiculous howl I've heard outside of a track. It'd probably go like stink. I'd love to see it move on a highway.

Incidentally, what did Oilking drums look like? I would've thought that considering this is a '78, it would share some parts at least with the Jawa (though the Y350 front drum is obvious). Is it not so? Interesting.

[howler]

Originally Posted by alok_balsekar

That Oilking ha one hell of a mix and match!!!

Y-350 front drum, Old style Jawa rear drum, and two speedometers (neither one looks like a tachometer).

Nice bike though. great collector value

thats a tachometer, if you look closer you will see that theres no odometer. the tacho for the older roadies (a model called the MT) was calibrated in X100 rpm, i.e it would read 10, 20 , 30 etc on the dial. I have the same tacho lying with me. Look at the clutch cover and youll see a cable running into it almost vertically, thats the tacho cable.

[voodoochild]

@ alok_balsekar: the rear drum on that Oilking doesnt look like the milling hubs of the old Jawas. It seems more like the front hub of the Y-350. Correct me if i'm wrong here folks.

@howler: did the Oilking originally come with a tach, or is this a local fabrication? i know of another Yezdi mechanic who's tried the same modification on a Roadking crankcase cover.

Did anyone notice the indicator stalks on this bike?

Cheers
Rahul

[RT13]

Originally Posted by voodoochild

@ alok_balsekar: the rear drum on that Oilking doesnt look like the milling hubs of the old Jawas. It seems more like the front hub of the Y-350. Correct me if i'm wrong here folks.

@howler: did the Oilking originally come with a tach, or is this a local fabrication? i know of another Yezdi mechanic who's tried the same modification on a Roadking crankcase cover.

Did anyone notice the indicator stalks on this bike?

Cheers
Rahul

Yup The indicators are the original metal indicators. I asked Addu about it straight off. Its virtually impossible to get these apaprently. The guy who owns the bike is quite a collector. He owns about 15 bikes, among which are an imported Jawa 350 with a Nomad sidecar and a 1950s Jawa with a trailer behind it. I've only seen pictures of those from the Jawa/Yezdi day last year. Beautiful bikes.

As for the tach, it was definitely not originally part of the bike. I specifically asked. That was where the ignition key normally sits. This guy has taken the ignition off and fitted the tach. Now, the bike doesn't even have an ignition. Its only a kickstart with no switch/key. The owner apparently only rides this to rallys and doesn't randonly park it anywhere.

[howler]

Originally Posted by voodoochild

@ alok_balsekar: the rear drum on that Oilking doesnt look like the milling hubs of the old Jawas. It seems more like the front hub of the Y-350. Correct me if i'm wrong here folks.

@howler: did the Oilking originally come with a tach, or is this a local fabrication? i know of another Yezdi mechanic who's tried the same modification on a Roadking crankcase cover.

Did anyone notice the indicator stalks on this bike?

Cheers
Rahul

Yep that looks like the hub from the 350 twin. I dont remember the oilking coming with a tacho. but there were clutch case covers available in the factory that had a provision for the tacho cable. some folks even locally fabricated a hole/provision for the same but it would leak oil if not done properly. AFAIK only a version called the Roadking MT came with a tacho, which was supposedly an export model. Not sure about the claim. the front stalks are from the early 350 version. Btw is that a 22 lt tank? the tank on my 84 roadie looks the same.