"OIl Injection" decal for '67 GTR

[Kenneth Pagel]

Want to confirm that the "Oil Injection" decal for the GTR is 5-1/4 inches? Also, is just one decal used on the oil tank? I've seen photos were  there is also one on the toolbox, below the "350 GTR" emblem. Thanks in advance!

[Old BS Guy]

Kenneth; So the answer to the best of my knowledge is yes, and yes. The decals are indeed 5 1/4". Both of my GTR's have decals both sides. Placement even varies below the badge on the LH tin. One is lower than the other slightly. There's been occasional debate about pictures surfacing with and without decals on that side. Having both seems to be the most prevalent.

[Kenneth Pagel]

Thanks for the info, Old BS Guy!

Ken

[moonpup]

I always try to refer to factory brochures/publications when trying to pin down originality.  The only pic I've found so far on this issue is apparently from a very early production GTR and it shows only the decal on the battery cover.... no metal emblem yet.

[BRT-GTR]

        I know we have discussed these decals before. I have a feeling (and that's all it is) that US GTRs had a sticker on both sides. I am 99% sure that my original UK supplied GTR had a sticker on the oil tank only. Only 33 GTRs came to the UK so it's not a big issue.
       In the mid 60s, Villiers in the UK had been churning out reliable two strokes for years, so we in the UK didn't have an issue with buying these new Japanese 2S buzz boxes.
       I noticed that in US, Japanese manufacturers adverts went to great lengths to emphasise their arrangements to reliably lubricate the crankshafts on their 2S machines with 'forced lubrication', 'Posi lube' etc and diagrams showing how the oil reached the crank bearings. Including Bridgestone with the infamous crank seals !
   Was there strong market resistance to high performance 2Ss in the US at that time?  Maybe that's why you got two 'oil injection' stickers  and we only got one !!

[BS Mechanic]

My guess, based on what I remember of the GTR I purchased new is that there was an oil injection sticker on both the oil tank and the tool cover on at least some US 350's  I still have the bike, but it has since been repainted twice, so I'm only about 90% sure.  After over 50 years, I really can't say for certain, and haven't been able to find any old pictures of my bike showing the tool cover.

I do remember that forced injection was a big selling point for two strokes at that time, in the US as well.  My personal opinion is that the infamous crank seals were added at the insistence of the marketing department, not the engineers.  I am convinced that the primary purpose of the crank seals was to make the buyer feel better, not to make the engine more reliable.  They look like an afterthought, not an integral part of the design.

[Kenneth Pagel]

More fuel to the fire: I scanned a few photos from my copy of the 1968 "Cycle Guide" road test of the GTR. If one looks very closely at photos 1 & 2, you'll see the "Oil Injection" sticker very close
(maybe 1/4 inch?) under the "350 GTR" emblem on the tool box lid. Photos 3 & 4 show the injection sticker on the oil tank, slightly above center. I've also included a scan from the cover of the August, 1967 issue of "Cycle" magazine, show-casing the GTR. Note the lack of either the "Oil Injection" sticker and the " GTR 350" emblem. The article inside also shows a B&W photo of the oil tank, again without the injection sticker (photo not included here). Perhaps this machine was a press "test mule" directly form Japan, and not fitted with said stickers or emblem; pure speculation on my part.

[OldSwartout]

This mine when it was "new" unmodified, registered as a 1968, S/N in the 4000's. No oil injection label on the left side, just the emblem, no photos of the right side.

I have oil injection stickers on both sides now.

[BS Mechanic]

I did some digging and found a picture from 1969, when my 350 was about 1 year old, in original condition.  It definitely had the oil injection label on the tool cover.  I believe it's a '67 which i bought new in '68. It's S/N 21T02281. 

It looks like BOTH configurations existed.  Probably varied by date, availability of the labels, or the whim of the guy installing the labels! 

Interesting how small details can be so hard to track down, especially when they aren't the same for all bikes!

[BRT-GTR]

   Ken,   Well, I think we have answered your original question. Both sticker arrangements are correct !!

 But I wanted to thank you for Photos 1 & 2 (will save those) which clearly show the original arrangement of the cables at the bars for anyone rebuilding a GTR/GTO.
 
   The clutch and front brake cables sit high above and in front of the clocks (to avoid obscuring the clocks). The choke and throttle cables are routed under the clocks, above the headlamp mount arms. I see all sorts of cable runs on bikes that come onto the market and it bugs me !! I think I have now optimised the cable runs, which doesn't always agree with previously published guides,and will post definitive? photos when I have completed rebuilding my burned out GTO.