Hello everyone
My name is Ken (originally from Glasgow, Scotland now working in Chicago, living in Michigan) and I got the cafe bug in the late seventies. The first thing I used to do when I got a new bike was junk the bars and the silencers and put on some Dunstalls and clip ons. Add a tank bag and I was set up for touring Switzerland, France or wherever, while feeling like Fast Freddie or Kenny Roberts.
Always been into bikes ( although I've rebuilt a few old cars in my time including a barn find Triumph Vitesse ) and when I came to the US had an idea I might get a large noisy v-twin. However, as I lived in San Francisco , there were all sorts of cool retro motorcycle scenes - not to mention all the (in)famous Oakland clubs and somehow the motorcycle I bought was something I never thought I'd do - a BMW
. I saw it on Craigslist and in an impulsive moment I just went and bought it - you guys know the feeling. You rationalize something you really can't rationalize! Anyway, suffice it to say that riding "Barry" down Highway 1 to Carmel is kinda magical. It evokes all sort of viceral feelings that non-motorcyclists will never experience. I never expected to modify Barry - a SWB R75/5 - until I moved to Chicago and experienced my first brutal winter! I had a nice garage and the weather made riding impossible so you know what comes next. It's like a disease. You can't just hunker down for winter in front of the TV eating pizza - you keep sneaking out to the garage and tinkering with this and that. Next thing you know you have a bunch of bits scattered around and wonder what to do next. Decisions, decisions... - rebuild or modify. Not sure how I came to a decision but I had always liked the retro look of the black BMWs and so I found a great painter - Bob Wark - and sent the tank etc to him while I worked on the rest of the bike. Anyway the first picture is the result and I have had great fun riding around Michigan this summer.
Now the reason why I am joining this club - I got the bug again as it is winter and bought another BMW to change into a cafe racer. I have already stipped it down and am now trying to decide the way forward. I guess I'll be checking this forum out a lot during the next few months!
Any recommendations would be great. Questions I will need to answer :
I want shorty exhausts so which ones? Emco? What about rejetting? Which air filters?
Rear sets . It looks like modifying the gear linkage is easy enough but what about the brake side ? Anyone done this themselves ? I stared at it for a good 10 minutes last night and am not sure of the way forward. or do I need to spend $$s and buy Raasks?
Anyway i have tons of ideas and questions and need to get out to my garage as I have a lovely heater in there and need to strip down some 40mm carbs!
look forward to riding with some of you next spring ! I'll post pictures of progress over the next few months.
My name is Ken (originally from Glasgow, Scotland now working in Chicago, living in Michigan) and I got the cafe bug in the late seventies. The first thing I used to do when I got a new bike was junk the bars and the silencers and put on some Dunstalls and clip ons. Add a tank bag and I was set up for touring Switzerland, France or wherever, while feeling like Fast Freddie or Kenny Roberts.
Always been into bikes ( although I've rebuilt a few old cars in my time including a barn find Triumph Vitesse ) and when I came to the US had an idea I might get a large noisy v-twin. However, as I lived in San Francisco , there were all sorts of cool retro motorcycle scenes - not to mention all the (in)famous Oakland clubs and somehow the motorcycle I bought was something I never thought I'd do - a BMW
. I saw it on Craigslist and in an impulsive moment I just went and bought it - you guys know the feeling. You rationalize something you really can't rationalize! Anyway, suffice it to say that riding "Barry" down Highway 1 to Carmel is kinda magical. It evokes all sort of viceral feelings that non-motorcyclists will never experience. I never expected to modify Barry - a SWB R75/5 - until I moved to Chicago and experienced my first brutal winter! I had a nice garage and the weather made riding impossible so you know what comes next. It's like a disease. You can't just hunker down for winter in front of the TV eating pizza - you keep sneaking out to the garage and tinkering with this and that. Next thing you know you have a bunch of bits scattered around and wonder what to do next. Decisions, decisions... - rebuild or modify. Not sure how I came to a decision but I had always liked the retro look of the black BMWs and so I found a great painter - Bob Wark - and sent the tank etc to him while I worked on the rest of the bike. Anyway the first picture is the result and I have had great fun riding around Michigan this summer.Now the reason why I am joining this club - I got the bug again as it is winter and bought another BMW to change into a cafe racer. I have already stipped it down and am now trying to decide the way forward. I guess I'll be checking this forum out a lot during the next few months!
Any recommendations would be great. Questions I will need to answer :
I want shorty exhausts so which ones? Emco? What about rejetting? Which air filters?
Rear sets . It looks like modifying the gear linkage is easy enough but what about the brake side ? Anyone done this themselves ? I stared at it for a good 10 minutes last night and am not sure of the way forward. or do I need to spend $$s and buy Raasks?
Anyway i have tons of ideas and questions and need to get out to my garage as I have a lovely heater in there and need to strip down some 40mm carbs!
look forward to riding with some of you next spring ! I'll post pictures of progress over the next few months.