The Club For Classic Japanese Motorcycles

Yamaha CS5E

Never buy a bike in boxes is a maxim many champion and Steve Cooper wonder's why he didn"t follow his own advise! Bought as a completely dismantled project from Sheffeild the bike came with loads of NOS but proved to be a jigsaw of international proportions. The CS5E had a very short sales run in the UK and was marginalised by the RD200. It's estimated there are less than 25 complete CS5Es in the UK and parts are not easy to find. The oil tank was bougfht from a New York Kawasaki dealer and the mudguards came via a UK dealer from Australia in exchange for some Yamaha RD500LC parts. The bike has been built to reflect the 1972 model year sales brochure with the braced rear light and front indicators mounted on the top yoke rather than the more common position on the head lamp brackets. The motor is a little buzz saw and comes on pipe manically at 7000+rpm. Just a like a stroker should!