Orig. Tank? And TY Paint, Weld-Quality Issues in the Mid-1970's?

[2strokesforever]

Hi all,

I was looking at a gas tank from a 1976 TY175, and to my semi-trained eye (I do a little bodywork, as a hobby) and from a picture, only, this tank looks to have been repainted (see attached pic).  I say that because, unless it's just a digital artifact, it looks like some non-factory masking was done around the filler hole, as the white is visible, unevenly, around the ring of orange paint.

And the orange, itself, appears stunningly-brand new, for a 40 y.o. bike.  (It is said to have been from a very low miles bike.)

Also, not being familiar with the TY color palette, I can't tell if this is supposed to be an orange tank, with cream, or orange with off-white, or if the white is just faded.

What were the colors for 1976, and do these colors look correct?

Also, I wondered if the shape of the tank means it was from a "Majesty"?  Or were the "Majesty's" only available in the 320cc size?

 

Lastly, I wondered if anyone could comment on comments the owner of the tank made, regarding TY-build quality, generally, in the '70's.  He said:

"You see "flaws" because this model had a number of cosmetic issues right out of the crate.  Paint is one and the most glaring issue is the sloppy welds on the frame. They just were not up to standards on that model."

 

Having owned a number of Japanese bikes, I've not found them to suffer from (factory-inflicted) cosmetic issues--but then again, I am "TY-ignorant--but studying hard."  LOL  And I just wanted any input on TY build quality, in the '70's...and again, on whether this tank looks repainted or not.

Thanks in advance.

Edited February 3, 2017 by 2strokesforever
Sloppiness

[eyore]

Cant really help except to say the tank on my 1976 TY 250 is alloy.Any side view of the tank.

[biffsgasgas]

I have four ty175s at the house and Eyore is correct in the 76 being aluminum. One really easy way to tell is see if a fridge magnet sticks to it. If not you have aluminum. If so then you have an extremely clean steel tank. 

Your paint looks good. I have repainted most of my tanks with Chevy Orange engine paint and an off white cream. Mine are not concurs but like yourself i enjoy doing body work. 

--Biff

PS a magnet can also help find any bondo or body filler if present. 

[feetupfun]

As far as whether it has had the tank repainted, a side view usually gives it away more than looking at the filler neck, because the shape of the black line and the location of the YAMAHA letters are very difficult to get exactly right. Yes the orange colour in your photo looks wrong.

It is a standard Ty175 tank and all Yamaha Ty175 tanks were made of steel.

TY175 frame welds were done by MIG process and TY175 frame welding does seem to have a low cosmetic standard. That era was a time of rapid development in production line welding processes and the Japanese manufacturers were early adopters of MIG process while others persisted with flame welding until later. TY175 frames were designed to be cheap to make in large numbers and cosmetic appearance did not seem to be a high priority at the time. Another good reason for people to buy beautiful aftermarket frames made in the UK.

Another weaknesses on the TY175 cosmetic front was the painting of some of the shiny aluminium components with a clear finish that chipped off when the bike was ridden off-road, leading to poor appearance very quickly. They looked great in the brochure and on the showroom floor and could be warehoused for a long time without losing the visual appeal, unlike the uncoated polished Spanish bikes at the time which soon developed a white dusty appearance on the polished aluminium bits if warehoused.

As far as mechanical build quality, the Ty175 was of a very high standard for the time

[feetupfun]

I have kept an orange/white Ty175 tank with (well aged) factory paint if you need photos for comparison of the shape of the graphics

[johnnyboxer]

Portuguese Orange was an official 1976 colour and looks like your tank is that design