1969 Kawasaki H1 (a.k.a MACH III 500)


The Kawasaki H1 was the bike that changed the course of high performance motorcycling. The three-cylinder, 500cc two stroke power plant had an impressive 60 horsepower and became the quickest production motorcycle EVER produced (as of 1969!) as it sped down the quarter mile in an unbelievable 12.8 seconds @ 99.5mph. The H1 retailed for $999.00 it would typify what Kawasaki became known for Innovation and Acceleration! The H1 still creates excitement today.

MACH III 500


Didn’t look like much. It was in pieces and we couldn’t find them all. It took me about 5 years to find replacements for the missing parts – a difficult task in a pre-eBay era.

This is what it looked like straight off the truck in August 1992.


By 1996 I had found the parts I needed to get the H1 running. I painted it Green with “Rattle Can” spray paint. I never put it on the road and it sat for another 11 years. A good friend of mine, the friend that found the bike, reminded me that I had it one day this summer. I mentioned that I would to have an antique car to take to car shows, and he said “Well you have the H1, you should clean it up”.
So in August 2007 I got the H1 out of the shed to clean it up.

This is what it looked like:


I’ve been working on it pretty heavily since then and it has come a long way in a couple of months. Since I figure this bike will never be completely “show quality” I decided to make it look “Period” but still do it like I want (Originally it was “Peacock Grey” with Black stripes and logo).

  • Stick with the drag bars
  • Paint it White with Black stripes and Kawasaki logo.
  • Lose the turn singles, which it didn’t have originally
  • Paint anything that I can’t clean the rust off of!
  • Replace all the rusted chrome bolts and nuts with new ones (thanks to a great website www.allensfasteners.com for a great price on Chrome Bolts!)


    • The tank and sides are at the painter now.

    This is what it looks like in October 2007:


    Here it is now, May 2008. Still a few rusty things that I would like to replace, like the Fork Tubes, Wheels and Spokes, Kick Starter and the a few clamps here and there.


    YouTube video I made about it.