Not very long after selling my previous restored Suzuki T500M, I began to regret selling it, so it was understandable that, when looking for another ‘Classic Jap’, T500s were seriously considered once again.
Initially, I had actually wanted a green T350J, just like one that fellow schoolboy Phil Skinner had owned, back in the early 1970s. (His had been fitted with ‘Ace’ bars; fashionable at the time, and easier to fit than ‘proper’ clip-ons!)
However, I had only ever seen one of these for sale (and at over £4000!) but even that had now been sold. Nevertheless, T500s of all ages were relatively common, and judging by the ever-rising prices, they were a sensible investment too. Having already owned two previously, I also knew that they fitted my requirements, and they had been very reliable, so now I just had to decide on which variant to go for…..
As the bike would be used rarely, it was important to keep day-to-day costs down, so that meant a pre-1973 bike, to qualify for ‘road tax-free’ status in the UK.
I wasn’t keen on the very early chrome-tanked ‘Cobra’ models from 1968/9, so the options were narrowing. Eventually, I found a suitable contender for sale in Wales, via Ebay.
It was not yet UK-registered, having been imported from Holland (not the more usual USA!) but I had been through the registration process twice with my Yamaha Enduros and I knew that the process was relatively straightforward. The bike was being auctioned with a sensible starting bid, and a quick check of ‘previous listings’ revealed that the price had now been reduced, since attracting no bids last time. As I was in no great rush to buy something, I simply put in an automated ‘snipe’ bid at the starting price, and waited for the auction to close in a couple of days time.
The next night, most unusually for me, I found it hard to sleep, so eventually got up again and started trawling through bikes for sale on Ebay at 4am – as you do! Having then seen all of them, I moved to the ‘completed listings’ section where, tucked away in a month-old advert, I discovered this bike!
Despite it being such a rare bike and advertised at a (reasonable) Buy-It-Now price, Ebay said the sale had ‘ended’, although without actually saying ‘sold’. Further checking revealed no sign of any relevant feedback for the seller, so I emailed him (at 5am!) to see if the bike was indeed still for sale. Despite the early hour, he replied promptly, to say it had not sold and although he wasn’t planning on advertising it again, he would consider a very close offer! Once I had established that I had definite ‘first refusal’, I cancelled my forthcoming bid on the Dutch bike and made plans to inspect this one instead, some 80 miles away in Ascot, Berkshire, to the west of London.
Well, it was well worth the long trip from Poole, and the bike did not disappoint me! The seller was clearly an accomplished mechanic and had done some excellent work on the bike before getting it registered the previous year. The crankshaft had been replaced, along with the kick-start shaft, and the troublesome gear oil problem had been fixed by the addition of the after-market ‘oil dam’. A new seat cover and foam had also been fitted, along with new TT100-style tyres, fork springs, brake shoes, Hagon shocks, MotionPro cables and a chain/sprocket kit.
A quick test showed the bike started easily and ran superbly with no sign of the ‘surging’ that had driven me mad on my previous T500. Frame and engine numbers matched exactly and the host of early, rare features showed that the bike had not been restored or molested very much, despite being 45 years old! Despite me not being overly keen on the (non-original) gold paintwork, this was clearly a very rare bike in great condition, so I snapped it up at the asking price, collecting it a week later.
Once properly insured, I took the bike out for a couple of runs around my usual test route. It ran perfectly, and seemed crisper and more powerful than my previous bike; quite possible, as Suzuki gradually ‘softened’ the T500 spec over the years. The only modification I made (as on my earlier bike) was to lower the front sprocket by one tooth (using a slightly narrower T250 part), as acceleration was more useful to me than top end.
As a Conservation graduate myself, I was very well aware of the value of the bike’s patina, and so was pleased to not be tempted to ‘restore’ it to a shiny new condition. However, the paintwork was not original anyway, so I felt justified in getting that re-sprayed properly. Local Poole company ‘Wicked Coatings’ managed to source the original ‘Colorado Gold’ paint and did an absolutely stunning job, including the black stripes. That made the whole bike look so much better, and I was very pleased that I had had that done.
The previous owner had told me that the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club were not aware of another model like this in the UK, and some research proved this was also a very early frame/engine number (209**), from an already rare short production run of only 3,500 worldwide by Suzuki for this T500 II model. This should ensure that the bike gets plenty of interest (and will be a sure-fire investment) for years to come!
Now I just need to get out and use it…..and resist re-painting the slightly rusty bits!
Here it is, on the first ride out…to Woolbridge, Dorset UK
PS: Massive thanks also go to my friend Tom Cousins for his invaluable help, putting all of these pages online; also thanks to my partner Linda O’Connell for help with some of the photographs.
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