1973 BMW R75/5 Rebuild: Grover’s First Ride Around the Block

The rebuild is finished and I documented the final assembly process in this write-up.

On the Fourth of July, “Grover” was ready for his first ride since he was stored away seven years ago in my friends barn.

Out of the Barn

Grover On His Way to My New Shop 18 Months Ago

Here is a short video of the first 3 mile “around the block” ride on Grover. You can’t see the s&*$ eating grin on my face, but it’s there 🙂

Here are some photos I took before the ride when I took the bike out of the shop for the first time in 18 months.

Side View

Side View

Front Side

Front View

Rear View

Rear View

 

1973 BMW R75/5 Rebuild: Final Assembly and Project Completion

I completed the rebuild project after 18 months. “Grover” is finally back together again and looking good as new 🙂

I documented the final assembly steps in this write-up.

I will post about the “first ride” around the block separately and include a short video.

Stay tuned.

And yes, it’s a let down to be done, but there is a sense of satisfaction at what I learned along the way and the problems I figured out how to solve. I think that’s the addication in rebuilding these old airheads.

Here are some “glossy” photos of the completed rebuild.

Front Profile

Front Profile

Gas Tank

Gas Tank

Instruments and Steering Damper

Instruments and Steering Damper

Front Wheel Hub Cab

Front Wheel Hub Cab

Left Carburetor

Left Carburetor

Right Carburetor

Right Carburetor

Push Rod Tubes

Push Rod Tubes

Engine Badge

Engine Badge

Sito  Mufflers

Sito Mufflers

Sito Mufflers

Sito Mufflers

Rear

Rear

Reflections in Fairing

Reflections in Fairing

Tool Box, Tools and Tire Pump Installed

Tool Box, Tools and Tire Pump Installed

1973 R75/5 Rebuild: Assembling Windjammer II Fairing

I  did a number of projects on the Windjammer II fairing: disassembled the fairing, repaired cracks, removed the old paint, painted it to match the bike (Monza, or Metallic Blue), and painted pinstripes .You can read about that work in these write-ups.

Now it’s time to assemble the fairing again and mount it on the bike. I wrote-up how I did this work here.

It required installing the headlight assembly, the side reflectors, new chome edge trim, the Vetter name plate, removing old decals and deep scratches from the windscreen and modifying the fairing bracket so it doesn’t gouge the paint on the frame (I hope).

Here are a couple pictures from the write-up.

New Silicon Seal on Headlight Bracket

New Silicon Seal on Headlight Bracket

Attaching Chrome Headlight Retaining Ring

Attaching Chrome Headlight Retaining Ring

Finished Headlight Installation

Finished Headlight Installation

New Windjammer Chrome Edge Trim

New Windjammer Chrome Edge Trim

Heating Chrome Trim with Heat Gun to Form to Tight Radius Curves

Heating Chrome Trim with Heat Gun to Form to Tight Radius Curves

Adjusting Fairing Edge wiht Dremel Tool to Align Chrome Trim

Adjusting Fairing Edge with Dremel Tool to Align Chrome Trim

Taping Chrome Edge Trim While Hotcha Glue Dries

Taping Chrome Edge Trim While Hotcha Glue Dries

Dremel Tool to Trim End of Chrome Trim

Dremel Tool to Trim End of Chrome Trim

Use Razor Blade to Gently Peel Edge

Use Razor Blade to Gently Peel Edge

Lighter Fluid Loosens Glue Along Exposed Edge

Lighter Fluid Loosens Glue Along Exposed Edge

Novus #3 and Rubbing with Lint Free Cloth to Remove Deep Scratches

Novus #3 and Rubbing with Lint Free Cloth to Remove Deep Scratches

Scratches Are Gone :-)

Scratches Are Gone 🙂

Taping Name Plate Down While Silicone Seal Sets

Taping Name Plate Down While Silicone Seal Sets

Windscreen Foam Tape Gaskets Attached

Windscreen Foam Tape Gaskets Attached

Hollow Bolt Inside Faring to Attach Turn Signal Stalk with Wiring

Hollow Bolt Inside Faring to Attach Turn Signal Stalk with Wiring

Turn Signal Installed

Turn Signal Installed

Plastic Edging as Gaskets on Lower Bracket

Plastic Edging as Gaskets on Lower Bracket

Windjammer Fairing & Bracket Mounted on R75/5

Windjammer Fairing & Bracket Mounted on R75/5

1973 R75/5 Rebuild: Painting Pinstripes & Side Cover Stripes

I’m not a professional painter nor have I ever done pinstripes. So, that’s the reason I’ve done all the paint work myself so I can learn how to do it.  Here are two write-ups on how I painted the pinstripes and the side covers.

I had some “adventures” along the way when I tried painting the pinstripes.  I did use a pinstripe brush but opted for “training wheels” and used a pinstripe stencil tape so all I had to do was paint between the lines.  I have a new found respect for the fine art of painting free hand pinstripes.

I also painted the horizontal stripes on the chrome side covers.  I tried the Monza Blue paint from Glausrit but I didn’t like how that looked. So, I tried some Dupli-Color rattle can paint and they look better.  I may try to paint the side covers yet again as I’m not sure to best handle the curved edges. But they look pretty nice.

Here are a couple of pictures from the write-ups.

Rear Fender Pinstripe Measurement

Rear Fender Pinstripe Measurement

Cleaning New Brush with Mineral Spirits

Cleaning Pinstripe Brush with Mineral Spirits

Triming Brush Tip

Triming Brush Tip with Single Edge Razor

Pinstripe "Training Wheels"

Pinstripe Stencil Tape

Use Razor Blade to Separate Stencil from Bracking

Use Razor Blade to Separate Stencil from Bracking

Rear Fender with New Pinstripes

Rear Fender with New Pinstripes

Front Fender Stripes End at Fork Tube Cutout

Front Fender Stripes End at Fork Tube Cutout

Stencil Tape on Front Fender

Stencil Tape on Front Fender

Front Fender Pinstripe 1st Time-Fail :-(

Front Fender Pinstripe 1st Time-Fail 🙁

Fine Line Tape Masking to Fix Pinstripe Smudges

Fine Line Tape Masking to Fix Pinstripe Smudges

Repaired Pinstripes on Nose of Front Fender

Repaired Pinstripes on Nose of Front Fender

Final Pinstriped Gas Tank

Final Pinstriped Gas Tank

Final Masked Side Cover

First Attempt at Masking the Side Cover

First Attempt Painting Side Cover Stripes: Ragged Edges

First Attempt Painting Side Cover Stripes: Ragged Edges and Easy to Peel

Dupli Color Paint Choices

Second Attempt with Dupli-Color Paint: Two Candidates to Choose From

Retaped Cover with 1/4 Inch Pinstripe Tape Over Dividers

Second Maskging with 1/4 Inch Pinstripe Tape Over Dividers

Final Side Cover Stripes

Final Side Cover Stripes

1973 R75/5 Rebuild: Painting Tank, Fenders, Windjammer & Tail Light

I’ve completed painting the tank, fenders, Windjammer fairing and the rear tail light assembly.

Here is the link to the write-up on this work.

I did this starting from setting up the High Volume Low Pressure (HVLP) paint guns I bought through buffing and polishing the clear coat in this write-up. I had problems getting the HVLP gun to apply the primer, but found the answer to getting the gun to atomize properly.  It works different than the older syphon feed style gun I had used before.  I finally found some good videos about how to set up an HVLP gun and spraying techniques. Things went a lot smoother after that.

You can see how bad the second coat of primer was in these pictures.

Very Chunky Front Fender

Very Chunky Primer on Front Fender

Very Chunky 2nd Primer Coat:-(

Chunky Primer on Gas Tank 🙁

And here is the front fender and tank after polishing the clear coat along with a picture of the painted tail light assembly. I’m pleased with the outcome although it took over 2 months to get his part of the project done. I have nothing but admiration for those who make a living painting, particularly if they paint motorcycle parts.

Front Fender Polished

Front Fender Polished

Gas Tank Polished

Gas Tank Polished

Repainted Tail Light Housing

Rattle Can Painted Tail Light Housing After Sanding and Polishing

I still need to sand, buff and polish the clear coat on the fairing and to add the pin stripes. I’ll write-up how I did paint the pin stripes when I get that done.