Category Archives: MC Build Projects

Chronicles of my Motorcycle Build Projects

1983 BMW R100RS Rebuild: Pannier Plastic & Latch Repair

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In 1983, the R100RS came with BMW branded panniers, or saddle bags. Mine have a number of cracks and a broken lid hinge. While I’m waiting for some fork parts to come, I started to repair the panniers. My goal was to try and make the crack repairs invisible.  I think I got a B+ this time and learned a lot about how to create the textured surface in the plastic on the outside of the pannier.

I’ve tried a plastic repair product, Plast-aid, before to fix the bulkhead connector on a Windjammer fairing. I’m using it on the panniers. It can be colored using Acrylic paint so the Plast-aid color will match the black panniers.  I also fixed a broken latch assembly and learned about locks and keys and how to figure out what key you need for a lock. Here is the link to the write-up on what I did.

I discovered that two different keys are not enough for all the pannier locks. Some have been replaced so I have four different locks needing four different keys. I posted a note to the Micapeak  Airheads forum about this and learned that the latch locks are no longer available, but, Larry Stonestreet, owner of Stoner’s Beemer Stash [[email protected]; 951-813-1704]  has the keys I need. So all’s good. There is a nice page on Bob Fleischer’s site about the locks and keys BMW has used with part numbers of the various keys.

Here are some pictures from the write-up.

Double Latch Cracks

Double Latch Cracks

Mulitple Corner Cracks

Crushed Corner With Multiple Cracks

Double Latch Crack Final Repair

Double Latch Crack Final Repair

Crushed Corner Final Repair

Crushed Corner Final Repair

Plast-Aid and Black Acrylic Paint for Tinting

Plast-Aid and Black Acrylic Paint for Tinting

Round Dremel Bit for Widening Back of Crack

Round Dremel Bit for Widening Back of Crack

Dremel Engraving Tool #106-A Bit Too Big

Dremel Engraving Tool #106 to Etch Texture Into Plastic-A Bit Too Big, #105 Is Better

JB Weld Applied to Lock Mechanism Hinge Plate

JB Weld Applied to Lock Mechanism Hinge Plate

Pannier #1 Latch Locks Use Key #069

Pannier #1 Latch Locks Use Key #069

Panniers Mounted

Panniers Mounted

Panniers Mounted

Panniers Mounted

Panniers Mounted

Panniers Mounted

1983 BMW R100RS Rebuild: Replace Choke and Throttle Cables

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When I did the inspection of the bike, the throttle and choke cables looked pretty worn with kinks showing in the outer armor. The Bowden connector rubber boots are disintegrating. I’m replacing the cables before riding the bike as I don’t want a stuck throttle or broken cable to happen. I found removing the cables from the Bowden connector required a little technique, but once I figured this out for the choke, the throttle was done pretty quickly.

Here is the procedure I followed:

Here are a couple before and after pictures.

Choke Lever Removed from Housing

Choke Lever Removed from Housing (Note Broken Strand in Choke Cable)

Choke Bowden Connector on Left Side

Choke Bowden Connector on Left Side With Disintegrating Rubber Boot

Choke Cable Part Numbers

Choke Cable Part Numbers

Assembled Choke Bowden Cable

Assembled Choke Bowden Cable

I’m completing a front fork rubber cup replacement and check of the fork alignment. I hope to post that soon. After that, I think the bike is ready for my first ride.

1983 BMW R100RS Rebuild: Bing Type 94 Carburetor & Karcoma Petcock Rebuild/Refinish

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You know, being retired just seems to leave no time to work in the shop. I end up doing all sorts of things and the next thing you know, time for bed.  Anyway, I finally wrote up the Bing carburetor rebuild/refinish work I did on the 1983 R100RS project.

When I rebuilt a 1973 BMW R75/5, I covered the procedure I used to rebuild the Bing type 64 carburetors, which are 32 mm, and the Karcoma petcocks. The R100RS has type 94 carburetors that are 40 mm and the Karcoma petcock outlet is 90 degrees from the inlet instead of directly underneath the inlet as for the R75/5. After 10 years, the designs are essentially the same, but there are some differences which I cover in the procedure write-up.

Here is the link to the R100RS Bing type 94 rebuild/refinish procedures.

The R100RS write-up contains links to the R75/5 procedures for the Bing type 64 carburetor and notes any differences or changes in how I did the work on the R100RS carburetors. Here is the link to the R75/5 type 64 carburetor rebuild/refinish procedures.

The combination of these two write-ups covers the type 64, 32 mm (64/32/10, right side and 64/32/9, left side) and the R100RS type 94, 40 mm (94/40/114, right and 94/40/113, left) carburetors.

I hope this material makes it straight forward for folks to rebuild these carburetors who may have been afraid to tackle a carburetor rebuild. Here are some before and after pictures of the carburetors.

Before Rebuild/Refinish

Before-Left Carburetor

Before-R100RS Type 94 Left Carburetor

Rusty Screws and Cap on Dome

Engine Side of Carburetor

Grunge and Fuel Stains

Float Bowl Removed

Float Bowl Removed, Missing Paint on Emblem

After Rebuild/Refinish

Engine Side of Restored / Rebuilt Carburetor

Engine Side of Restored / Rebuilt Carburetor

Top Side of Restored / Rebuilt Carburetor

Top Side of Restored / Rebuilt Carburetor

Outlet Side of of Restored / Rebuilt Carburetor

Outlet Side of of Restored / Rebuilt Carburetor

Carburetor Mounted - Clean

After-R100RS Type 94 Rebuilt and Refinished Carburetor

1983 BMW R100RS Rebuild: Project Start

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In January, I found my next project bike, a 1983 R100RS with 83,382 miles on the odometer. The bike was build on February 9, 1983 and delivered to RPM Motorcycles in Ventura, CA on March 1, 1983.

1983 R100RS Project Bike

1983 R100RS Project Bike

Original Dealer Prep Date, March 1, 1983 (European Date Form)

Original Dealer Prep Date, March 1, 1983 (European Date Form)

I created a project index page where I’ll post links to the procedure write-ups as I work on the project. I’ll also post short introductory blogs for each phase of the work as I did for the 1973 R75/5 restoration project I completed on July 4, 2014.

This is the link to my initial inspection and extensive “before” photos I took.

Based on the inspection, I plan to do a major service, carburetor and petcock rebuild, and any other essential maintenance. Then I will ride the bike for a couple hundred miles so I have a baseline for how the bike runs and handles before I dive into the rebuild.

Blog Metrics and Plans for 2015

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Blog Metrics So Far

So, I’ve been pretty inactive in this blog since July of 2014 when I finished the rebuild of “Grover”, a 1973 BMW R75/5 that I worked on over an 18 month period.  But, you haven’t. As the picture below shows, monthly visits to this site have gone way up since I started posting my progress on that project starting in December of 2012 and continued to stay high after the project completed on July 4, 2014.  The material I’ve posted is averaging 5,500 to 6,000 visits a month.

BlogStats_2015-06#2

I never expected that much interest, but it shows the power of the internet as a low cost way to find information anywhere in the world.  In looking at statistics about where people come from and sites that have linked to this content, folks in Australia, Brazil, England, Finland, France, Germany, New Zealand, Russia, Scotland, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden, and Switzerland have visited.

The top 11 most popular write-ups with their [number of visits] are:

The carburetor rebuild work is actually represented twice; the highest hit rate was for the work write-up and the other was for the blog post announcing the availability of that write-up.

Plans for 2015

I’ve had a list of bikes for my next project and have been cruising Craig’s List, BMW MOA, and Google searches for one of the following bikes.

  • R69S
  • R90S
  • R80/7
  • R80RT
  • R80ST
  • R100RS
  • K75S

This week, I’m finalizing the purchase of a 1983 R100RS with 83,000 miles. My plan is to rebuild this bike and document my work as I did for the R75/5 project.  So, there will be more blogs and write-ups coming soon. 🙂

I’ve become pretty active in the Airheads Beemers Club in Colorado (ABC-CO). I helped start a Down to Meet site to promote all things Airhead. If you live in the state, or are passing through, please join one of our “Parking Lot Universities (PLU)”, “Ride-to-Eat (RtE)” and our annual Tech Day which is held in April.

One idea I have is to create some PLU activities using my garage (so more of a BGU) so Airheads who want to learn more about the R100RS can participate, grab a wrench, or just hang out as I work on this project. It should be fun.