Written by Tim Huber.
While it?s not his first custom two-wheeler, Jake Shellito?s entire bike building career had been leading up to this candy red Yamaha project. The result of a mild fascination and curiosity that later became a near-obsession, this two-stroke build can be traced back to Jake?s first-ever build ? more specifically; an RD tank. 
?I first learned about Yamaha?s RD line after I bought a ?75 RD250 gas tank with an awesome paint scheme at a salvage yard. While researching that paint scheme, I started learning about the RD350 ? or ?Giant Killer? ? and I just had to have one. And about a year later in 2015, I found one,? explains the Colorado-based builder.

By this point, Jake had long ago finished his virgin build, and had moved on to other projects that he?d also since completed, all the while collecting parts for the RD build that he hoped would eventually come to fruition. Even after picking up the 350 oil-burner ? a 1974 example ? the component stockpiling continued. By 2018, he now had the donor and the lion?s share of the desired parts needed, though he?d still require one last ounce of motivation to push him over the edge before fully committing. 
?In the fall of that year I?d just ordered some JL expansion chambers, just more puzzle pieces, and around that same time Old Bike Barn opened submissions for the 2019 Greasy Dozen, which looks for small two-man shops or garage builders with stalled or dormant projects. I literally sent a photo of a roll...