It has taken some time, but I finally finished writing up the work I did on the transmission, and you can find it here.
- 23 BMW 1977 R100RS Remove, Disassemble and Inspect Transmission
- 23 BMW 1977 R100RS Transmission Refresh and Assembly
I included several short videos that show how the transmission gears and the shift cam assembly work, and several that cover other details of the work.
Here is a play list of all the YouTube transmission videos I made.
This is the most critical, precise piece of work I’ve taken on. Before doing this project, I did a lot of research. I had access to special tools, a shop press and advice from two local airhead mechanics. Without those resources, and spending a couple months trying to learn what I needed to know about this work, I wouldn’t have attempted to do it.
Despite all that, I managed to overlook a new, but wrong size, $2.95 circlip that holds the cam roller on it’s pin. It separated company from the pin about 2000 miles after I finished rebuilding the bike. I was in Indiana at the time on my way to the 40th RS rally in Pennsylvania. Mr. Cutter, who was attending the rally, stepped in and devoted a Sunday to save my bacon. Watching him do the work in a day I had labored over for weeks reinforced the value you get from someone who has spent 45 years making mistakes and learning from them so you don’t have to 🙂
So, in retrospect, I should say I relied on three airhead mechanics to do this work 😉