1985 K100 new to the party

[Wheezyryder]

Hello everyone! I've owned 15 or so motorcycles over the last 20 years but they've all been from The Land of the Rising Sun. The last one was a KLR650 that I owned for 9 years and put about 70k miles on. Blew up the motor on that one about 2 years ago (right before my son was born) and I'm just now getting around to filling the empty slot in my garage.

Well a few weeks ago I met a guy that is getting ready to retire and move to Florida. He tells me he's got a couple of motorbikes in the garage that have been collecting dust for a few years and he needs to clear out his garage in preparation for moving. Tells me he can make me a good deal on them if I'm interested.

So I'm now the proud owner of my first Bavarian motorbike. It's a 1985 K100 with about 45k miles on it. Also picked up a 1982 Honda CX500 (I know y'all don't care about that). I got a pretty good deal on the K100 and he practically gave me the Honda. The BMW is going to be my new 2 wheel traveler. My wife has decided that she wants to learn how to ride, so it looks like the Honda will be her bike. Both of them started and ran with some effort and a jumper pack, but they both need all the attention a bike deserves after sitting up for a few years.

I started the resurrection of the BMW first so y'all will likely be seeing me over at the wrenching section of the forum. Here's a pic of the bike. Apologies I didn't get a better photo before I pulled it into my little workshop.

[Chaos]

Congrats, and some of us do have a soft spot for Honda's twisted twin.  Always wanted one but never happened.  If you haven't already get new gas in the K, old gas can cause all sorts of issues.  If it runs that's a good sign, though.  Lots of info and help here, good luck!

[daveson]

Welcome from another fan of the brilliant CX design. I Nearly got one for my return to riding a few years ago. Got a brick instead, the pegs and handlebars position probably had something to do with it.

I'm wondering what actually happened to the KLR and why.

[Wheezyryder]

Chaos- Fresh gas was actually the first thing I did when I got home (it ran surprisingly well on the old gas). Vacuumed out all the old gas along with jellied bits of gas and grit. Put in about 2 gallons of fresh ethanol free fuel only to discover that I have a fuel leak at the sending unit penetration (it's a July '84 model with the older fuel sender setup). Replaced the rubber gasket but still have a leak. Will be posting about that in the wrenching section soon.

The CX500 is a cool little bike. A buddy had one years ago and I always liked it. Even though it will technically be my wife's bike, I'll have to take it on frequent inspection rides to make sure it's safe 

[Wheezyryder]

Daveson- The KLR650 lived a hard life. It was my only means of transportation for 6 of the 9 years I owned it. It saw plenty of off-roading and a couple of multi-week trips. Most of that time it lived out in the rain (no garage). It was also the first bike I owned that I did a significant amount of wrenching on, and it often paid the price for my learning curve.

It broke a timing chain at about 85k miles and chewed up the valvetrain pretty bad. This was not the infamous "doohickey" failure where the balancer chain tensioner fails, but just a broken timing chain. The bike was old and tired and I had a baby due in a couple weeks at the time. And I realized I wasn't going to be able to disappear into the sunset on a motorbike for a while. So I sold it for parts. Here's a pic of the old girl before she died.

[Laitch]

Welcome, Wheezy! Thanks for the photo and keep them coming as you resurrect this ride.

[Wheezyryder]

Quick question.... I have some specific questions about how to get my K100 running (fuel leak at the sending unit si the current issue). But after I get that fixed I suspect that I may have some coolant leaking into the oil at the oil/water pump seals. Is it better for me to:

A) Post about each issue separately with very specific titles so as to make the topics easier to find for people searching for info in the future.

or....

B) Post an ongoing post titled something like "Wrenching questions about 1985 K100" so as to keep continuity on my whole restoration project.

Any thoughts on which is better from those of you that've been here a while?

[Laitch]

Either method has been done successfully here. Check Filmcamera's or Flat Six's thread in the Project Classic Motobricks section. They contain plenty of questions that sparked discussion. One thing for certain is that you don't need to put the word "questions" in the title. Everybody has questions; they are expected. Use the Motobrick Workshop whenever you feel like it but don't pose the same question in two different places. Specificity in post titles is more helpful than "Help, please!"; however, somebody who has bothered to learn the principles of effective web searching will have little problem finding your posts regardless of how they're titled.

Be sure to confirm your moto's date of manufacture and model by using a VIN checker, if you haven't already, then put any new information in your Profile along with what's already there.

Good luck with your project.

[Wheezyryder]

Thanks for the advice Laitch. I took some pictures of my current issue today and I'll type up a post tonight.

I'm really looking forward to the first test ride.

[Wheezyryder]

Haha they occasionally give me a lunch break between life saving duties. During which I think about the important things in life... Like why is my motorbike leaking has?!