1986 BMW R80 Bobber/Tracker Build

[findyourexit]

G'day folks,

I've decided after some deliberation to start a thread of my own here to cover my 1986 BMW R80 Bobber/Tracker build. I know there's a distinct section for "Trackers" and this section is for "Bobbers", but I feel like perhaps my build will fit into both somewhat. That said, I also feel that it will be a little more "bobber" looking than "tracker", hence my posting it here.

Anyway, without ranting too much - I've made a fair bit of progress already and keep a blog of my own to cover the entire build. I'll throw links to each stage into this thread to bring anyone who is interested/reading up to speed. To begin with, here is the donor: http://findyourexit.com/zi-germans-are-coming/

 

[findyourexit]

The removal of the stock fairings:
http://findyourexit.com/plastics-be-gone/

 

[findyourexit]

The comprehensive motor rebuild order from MotorWorks in the UK:
http://findyourexit.com/while-we-wait/

 

[findyourexit]

A funny/random find and a tiny bit of trivia that I discovered during the tear-down:
http://findyourexit.com/treasures-within/

 

[findyourexit]

While waiting for my order to arrive from MotorWorks, I spent a bit of time tidying up other parts of the bike:
http://findyourexit.com/tidied-triple-clamps/

 

[findyourexit]

In an effort to keep the build moving, I prepared a checklist of sorts to keep track of what I needed and what I had already.

I spent a fair bit of time looking into which speedometer/tacho I was going to run:
http://findyourexit.com/the-parts-checklist/

 

[findyourexit]

While I continued to await the arrival of the MotorWorks order, I got to preparing the motor for paint. The first stage of this was to get the motor ready for removal from the frame. More info and photos in my blog post:
http://findyourexit.com/off-with-your-head/

 

[findyourexit]

A bunch more work done to prepare the motor for paint. A load of pics and extra info in the related blog post:
http://findyourexit.com/motor-paint-preparation/

 

[findyourexit]

Motor back from two pack paint - looking a lot nicer than how she was originally! Plenty more pics and info:
http://findyourexit.com/blackened-heart/

 

[findyourexit]

The package from MotorWorks UK arrived! Full rundown of all parts in the order:
http://findyourexit.com/care-package-has-arrived/

 

[findyourexit]

With the parts necessary for the motor rebuild available (thanks to the arrival of my MotorWorks order), I got to rebuilding the clutch and top-end. My process is documented in this blog post:
http://findyourexit.com/airhead-clutch-rebuild/

 

[findyourexit]

The clutch rebuild was out of the way, so the next port of call was the top-end. Here's a rough outline of the process with pics:
http://findyourexit.com/on-with-your-head/

 

[findyourexit]

Clutch sorted and top-end sorted (mostly) - I now had the perfect opportunity to prepare the rear section of the frame. It was easy to chop the necessary tabs and brackets with the drive-shaft out. A better idea of what was chopped can be seen in the pics in this blog post:
http://findyourexit.com/one-up/

 

[findyourexit]

With the rear frame section sorted, I was able to proceed with refitting the drive-shaft, suspension and rear wheel. A quick overview and some pictures that I just posted on my blog:
http://findyourexit.com/unicycle-no-more/

 

[redahtamn]

amazing how that bike went from blah to ahhh just by removing the fairings! Pretty sweet so far. engine looks great

 

[findyourexit]

amazing how that bike went from blah to ahhh just by removing the fairings! Pretty sweet so far. engine looks great

Thanks redahtamn! I'm really happy with how the motor paint turned out 8)

I totally agree about those fairings - they just had to go!

I've made some further progress since my last post, so I'll be writing up a blog post and sharing it here later today most likely!

 

[findyourexit]

A crazy weekend meant I didn't get much time to write up multiple updates, however I did get around to writing up this one. The build is now notoriously close to its first test run since the rebuild! A better idea of where things are up to and more pics on my new post:
http://findyourexit.com/arm-the-torpedoes/

 

[findyourexit]

SHE LIVES!
A complete run-down and more pictures (and video) of the R80 firing up for the first time following the motor top-end and clutch rebuild:
http://findyourexit.com/she-lives/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7qK3mChYO0

 

[findyourexit]

Paint, paint, paint and more paint. I spent the weekend we've just passed painting the wheels and the entire front-end. More pictures and info on the paint/process in the post I just made on my blog:
http://findyourexit.com/paint-it-black/

On a related side note, I've been running a Facebook page for those social butterflies among us to follow the build also:
http://www.facebook.com/findyourexit

Thanks for following the build and loads more to come soon!

 

[2_DONE_THE_TON]

i love your build!kke up the good stuff!