Desert D-NGO
Desert D-NGO
1975 Yamaha RD250 aka “Desert D-NGO” (That’s Dingo, with an Eastern Bloc twist!)
We knew the first obvious choice to chuck in the van for the Carol Nah show in London was BGM’s signature build the - KHI z400 .. But what about the other??
Sometimes situations like this force your hand and motivate you to crack on with a project that has been waiting for an opportunity like this. So, we dragged a box of engine parts out of the cupboard and some previously powdercoated components and thought, “Let’s do this”!..
The bike was a 1975 Yamaha RD250 and the concept was a desert scrambler with a twist.. Twin headlights with a tool-roll holder mount on the front end. Motocross knobblies front and rear, two extra-large red UNI air filters protruding from the side and a couple of beautiful Giannelli Pipes to make her sing!. This build was not going to look like your normal RD250 Resto.
This was going to be a fun “let her rip” style of bike and sure to get a few varied comments. We cracked on with the engine rebuild, which had a few ups & downs due to random engine parts in the wrong box, with the wrong labels?. But the end product was a slick, clean & tuned up stinger of an engine. He also sorted out the forks and rear shocks and insisted on the old skool chrome handlebars which look mint! The final resting place of the two beautiful Giannelli pipes was always going to be an issue. But once we tucked them under the frame and had the stingers firing out the back, we knew we had cracked it. The tank design was a big question mark tho. It had to represent 60s / 70s Baja Desert racing style. So, we took the standard Yamaha speed blocks and added a retro twist with vintage white and dusty red to finish her off in style. Update: The Dingo has made it into issue 24 of Built Magazine. Boom!!
Gary Margerum took a few tasty pics before we rolled her into the MCN Carol Nash show and now she’s featured in a 2-page spread!.. Thanks fellas!
