What Did You Did To Your Motobrick Today ?

[DRxBMW]

Unexpectedly, I find myself enjoying working on the bike again and it has led to two serendipitous encounters. One was with a German engineer who was responsible for the team of production engineers which developed the BMW System Helmet.  His guys took the design concept from the BMW designers as well as input from many other interested parties e.g. safety specialists and worked all the diverse strands into an engineered product to be handed over to the BMW marketing men.  Unsung heroes no less. 

The other was a retired  engineer who lectured at a university in Holland and is a former motorcycle racer. He competed in the 1970s with some of the top riders on the GP racing circuit.  Although I had met him and his wife before, we hadn’t talked bikes previously because neither of us had realised the other was interested.  But when he learned I was working on the bike a connection was made  and later that evening we spent an enjoyable couple of hours chatting over a bottle of wine.  Well they do say motorcyclists are the salt of the earth.

Way Kewl, I too have "hooked up" with interesting folks in the BMW World of DIY wrenching. Ha, one rider is top level military, part of the launch team process for nuke missiles, scary ch!t. 

[frankenduck]

Just for you, Red:

The wheel weights from when I had a tire installed a few weeks ago fell off of my front wheel.  (I was changing the coolant, the bike was stationary and they just fell off onto the ground while I was standing there.  Kind of weird.)

Figured instead of taking the wheel off and having it rebalanced I'd just score a bottle of Ride-On TPS and install that instead.

[C_Mick]

Having removed and serviced the rear brake cylinder of the K75S I decided it was a convenient time to inspect the final drive splines.  Thanks to the masterclass from L Duck Hubbard this proved to be a straightforward operation, but some of the securing bolts securing final drive to swinging arm and the caliper bolts required considerable force to shift them.

Instead of removing the speedo pick-up unit from the final drive casing I separated the connector under the RH side panel and left the unit in place in the final drive. I found that I didn't need to remove the rear mudguard or raise the bike with a block of wood under the center stand.  There was sufficient clearance to remove the rear wheel with the bike on its center stand as normal.  I did however have to remove an extension to the rear mudguard intended to prevent back-spray, which I had fitted many years ago. As a precaution against the swinging arm suddenly dropping down I used a webbing strap to secure it in its normal position.  I used a similar strap between the center stand and front wheel to prevent the bike from rolling forwards off the stand.

The moment of truth concerning the drive splines came shortly after I used a rubber mallet to tap the final drive casing to break the seal with the swinging arm.  On pulling the final drive casing clear I found the condition of the drive splines to be, well....PERFECT!  There was just a fine film of lubricant on the splines and the oil seals were obviously doing the job they were intended to do.  This is very good news considering the bike is 26 years old. 



Tomorrow I will clean and inspect the swinging arm and gearbox casings and if all seems OK I will go on to lube the splines and reassemble the drive train.  As I write this I am considering renewing the 26 year old rear brake line even though it seems to be OK.  I doubt I'm the only one to have observed that motorcycle maintenance sure is addictive.

[billday]

Oil change.

Felt good.

Went for a ride.

[mystic red]

Just for you, Red:

The wheel weights from when I had a tire installed a few weeks ago fell off of my front wheel.  (I was changing the coolant, the bike was stationary and they just fell off onto the ground while I was standing there.  Kind of weird.)

Figured instead of taking the wheel off and having it rebalanced I'd just score a bottle of Ride-On TPS and install that instead.

You been pizzing on your front wheel again?

[C_Mick]

Re. K75S
Cleaned out the old grease and re-lubed the final drive splines.
Removed cleaned, lubed with silicone spray, and replaced the rear suspension unit (still on the original unit after 26 years).
Cleaned rear brake caliper and detached the brake line.
Replaced the final drive unit on the swinging arm.
Began cleaning accumulated crud off underside of bike. I'm a bit concerned about the amount of crud around the clutch actuating lever and the underside of the final drive unit.





To follow:
Replacement of rear wheel
Getting new rear brake line made up (considering steel braided hoses)

[billday]

Mounted the long-coveted "standard" radiator shroud that I unearthed in the parts heap of Richard Honey, standup K-biker and Motobricker and all around good guy.

One winter, everything will get painted the same color. I've always loved the dinged-up blue of my brick, but after looking at the shroud on my sofa for a week, I'm developing a fondness for red.

[C_Mick]

Re. K75S
Finished cleaning the underside of bike
Replaced and torqued down rear wheel
Polished stainless silencer
Decided to keep the OEM rear brake line
Started to remove silencer heat shield for repainting (bodged an Allen screw, damn)
Tried to start bike from car battery - no joy
To follow:
Fault finding the electrics
Waiting for a few parts and a battery

[frankenduck]

heat shield for repainting

Consider ceramic coating it.  Cost me $25 at a local shop.

[DRxBMW]

heat shield for repainting

Consider ceramic coating it.  Cost me $25 at a local shop.

I painted my shield white.

Engine enamel paint, then baked in the kitchen oven @375 degrees for 40 minutes.

Held up VERY well, 4 years and counting.

BBQ paint is another option.

Check it out in the below pic.

[mystic red]

Fresh brake fluid and fork oil. Boring.

[motodude]

I built a tail rack that mounts to the stock rack mounting holes and will hold a Reynolds rack back-rest.  Quite strong but as is usual for me, not pretty.   :laugh  After I paint it, I'll mount a 12" x 16" x 1/8" aluminum plate on the rack for holding whatever soft bag I decide to use.

[frankenduck]

Fresh brake fluid and fork oil. Boring.

Not for Idaho.  That's like a state fair or something, isn't it?

[mystic red]

Fresh brake fluid and fork oil. Boring.

Not for Idaho.  That's like a state fair or something, isn't it?

I don't do fairs, carnivals, circuses or parades but I've been on many Idaho double dates. :embarass:

[DRxBMW]

I built a tail rack that mounts to the stock rack mounting holes and will hold a Reynolds rack back-rest.  Quite strong but as is usual for me, not pretty.   :laugh  After I paint it, I'll mount a 12" x 16" x 1/8" aluminum plate on the rack for holding whatever soft bag I decide to use.

Confused of WHY one would ever hack up a perfectly good Reynolds flat rack ?  Possible your flat rack is a different design than mine.

Quick release mounting plate is the way to go. 

Please explain the back rest further. It only mounts via the front holes.

Reynolds flat racks are ANIMALS for strength due to the underneath strut support engineering.   

Ha, watermelons, cases of bier,HUGE CRT computer monitor,etc., have been transported.   

[DRxBMW]

Confused of WHY one would ever hack up a perfectly good Reynolds flat rack ?  Possible your flat rack is a different design than mine.

My bad, you fabricated a DIY flat rack. Good job, as I was under the impression it was a Reynolds with the curvature. Sorry about the misunderstanding.

The 4 OEM mount holes are for a bracket that fits to a BMW topcase.  Did you already have the holes or DIY  drill ?

I whipped up a custom "shelf type" luggage rack for the GS. 

IMHO, BIGGER is always better for flat racks.  EASY to covert back to the standard top case/tour box arrangement using shorter bolts, as the top case mounts with side flanges instead of underneath latch points. 

[motodude]

Confused of WHY one would ever hack up a perfectly good Reynolds flat rack ?  Possible your flat rack is a different design than mine.

My bad, you fabricated a DIY flat rack. Good job, as I was under the impression it was a Reynolds with the curvature. Sorry about the misunderstanding.

The 4 OEM mount holes are for a bracket that fits to a BMW topcase.  Did you already have the holes or DIY  drill ?

I whipped up a custom "shelf type" luggage rack for the GS. 

IMHO, BIGGER is always better for flat racks.  EASY to covert back to the standard top case/tour box arrangement using shorter bolts, as the top case mounts with side flanges instead of underneath latch points. 

This is not a cut-up Reynolds rack.  I have one of those too (still in one piece).  It will mount the Reynolds _back-rest_, which was a design requirement for this rack. 

I used the holes from the factory rack as mounting points.  I can mount this rack to either of my K-bikes or any other K-bike I purchase in the future (assuming it has the factory rack).

As I indicated I will mount a piece of aluminum plate to it.  In theory, I could mount any size aluminum plate I want.  12x16 should be about right.

I had several reasons for doing this.
1) The Reynolds rack is large, heavy, a pain in the ass to mount/dismount and you're left with the holes to cover/fill.

2) The factory rack is not flat.  That has always irritated me.  The rack on my Triumph Tiger was flat, I just mounted an aluminum plate to that, no problem (I also built mounts for the Reynolds back-rest that I could attach to that setup too).

3) I thought I could build a rack, using the factory mounting holes where the load would be carried slightly forward and lower than a load on the Reynolds rack.  The rack would be lighter than the Reynolds rack.  And, since I'm using the factory holes, I'm not left with something to cover/fill.

4) It seemed like a fun project, where I would end up with something useful.  IOW, it seemed like a good idea at the time.  Building stuff beats the hell outa watching TV. 

My youngest son and I are planning a  (~4700 mile) moto-camping trip to CO this summer and the "back-rest" on the 22 liter case leaves a bit to be desired.  Not to mention that the 22 liter case just isn't big enough for two-up camping.  So I was going to either have to mount the Reynolds rack or build something else.

Tom

[motodude]

I whipped up a custom "shelf type" luggage rack for the GS. 

Where did you get the "shelf" for the rack in this picture?  Did you make it? 

I like the lip on the trailing edge.  It looks nice and I'm guessing helps hold a soft bag in place while tying it down.

Tom

[DRxBMW]

This is not a cut-up Reynolds rack.  I have one of those too (still in one piece).  It will mount the Reynolds _back-rest_, which was a design requirement for this rack. 

I used the holes from the factory rack as mounting points.  I can mount this rack to either of my K-bikes or any other K-bike I purchase in the future (assuming it has the factory rack).

As I indicated I will mount a piece of aluminum plate to it.  In theory, I could mount any size aluminum plate I want.  12x16 should be about right.

I had several reasons for doing this.
1) The Reynolds rack is large, heavy, a pain in the ass to mount/dismount and you're left with the holes to cover/fill.

2) The factory rack is not flat.  That has always irritated me.  The rack on my Triumph Tiger was flat, I just mounted an aluminum plate to that, no problem (I also built mounts for the Reynolds back-rest that I could attach to that setup too).

3) I thought I could build a rack, using the factory mounting holes where the load would be carried slightly forward and lower than a load on the Reynolds rack.  The rack would be lighter than the Reynolds rack.  And, since I'm using the factory holes, I'm not left with something to cover/fill.

Tom

  my opine:

*once a Reynolds flat rack is mounted, it staying there permanently. YES, it is a royal pain in the ass to install.

* confused about it's NOT flat terminology, mine is, various brands of top cases, all with the same quick release mount on the bottom, have been outfitted over the years.   

* far stronger using the OEM one piece struts.

* trailing edge flat rack for the GS was hand fabricated, versatile, works well. 

Did you spot the motobricK bling on the rack ?  (K 75 spark plug cover)

[motodude]

  my opine:

*once a Reynolds flat rack is mounted, it staying there permanently. YES, it is a royal pain in the ass to install.

* confused about it's NOT flat terminology, mine is, various brands of top cases, all with the same quick release mount on the bottom, have been outfitted over the years.   

* far stronger using the OEM one piece struts.

* trailing edge flat rack for the GS was hand fabricated, versatile, works well. 

Did you spot the motobricK bling on the rack ?  (K 75 spark plug cover)

Yeah, my K75 had the Reynolds rack "permanently" mounted for many years.

The factory (K-bike) rack is not "level" may be a more accurate description.  That has always irritated me.

Over the years I've found that I prefer soft luggage on the rear.  It can expand and contract and is, in general, a more flexible device.  So, I'm not looking for a place to attach a hard  bag.  I'm looking for a platform for tying down a duffle or some such (I have the mid-sized moto-fizz bag from Rider Wearhouse for example).  Something very similar to the rack in the picture on the back of the F650GS is what I want.

I'm not sure what you mean by, "far stronger using the OEM one piece struts".  Strength was a concern for me, especially using the tail section to carry the load (the Reynolds rack does not but they were selling a commercial product and I'm not).  I've run the 22 liter case full of water bottles and it managed w/o any issues.  I'll keep an eye on it for a while, going on shorter trips w/ less weight to start.

No, sorry, I missed the K75 spark-plug cover in the picture.  Is it the "handle" on the top of the side-case?

As an aside, another design I considered was to take an aluminum (or a thinner piece of steel) plate and cut and bend the edges front and rear such that they fit into the slots in the factory rack.  I abandoned the idea (which I still think would be a good (light weight) way to go) because I had the requirement of mounting the Reynolds back-rest and I could not see a "good" way to do that.  The back-rest has to be mounted sturdily enough to rest ones back on.

Tom

[DRxBMW]

  my opine:

*once a Reynolds flat rack is mounted, it staying there permanently. YES, it is a royal pain in the ass to install.

* confused about it's NOT flat terminology, mine is, various brands of top cases, all with the same quick release mount on the bottom, have been outfitted over the years.   

* far stronger using the OEM one piece struts.

* trailing edge flat rack for the GS was hand fabricated, versatile, works well. 

Did you spot the motobricK bling on the rack ?  (K 75 spark plug cover)

Yeah, my K75 had the Reynolds rack "permanently" mounted for many years.

The factory (K-bike) rack is not "level" may be a more accurate description.  That has always irritated me.

Over the years I've found that I prefer soft luggage on the rear.  It can expand and contract and is, in general, a more flexible device.  So, I'm not looking for a place to attach a hard  bag.  I'm looking for a platform for tying down a duffle or some such (I have the mid-sized moto-fizz bag from Rider Wearhouse for example).  Something very similar to the rack in the picture on the back of the F650GS is what I want.

I'm not sure what you mean by, "far stronger using the OEM one piece struts".  Strength was a concern for me, especially using the tail section to carry the load (the Reynolds rack does not but they were selling a commercial product and I'm not).  I've run the 22 liter case full of water bottles and it managed w/o any issues.  I'll keep an eye on it for a while, going on shorter trips w/ less weight to start.

No, sorry, I missed the K75 spark-plug cover in the picture.  Is it the "handle" on the top of the side-case?

As an aside, another design I considered was to take an aluminum (or a thinner piece of steel) plate and cut and bend the edges front and rear such that they fit into the slots in the factory rack.  I abandoned the idea (which I still think would be a good (light weight) way to go) because I had the requirement of mounting the Reynolds back-rest and I could not see a "good" way to do that.  The back-rest has to be mounted sturdily enough to rest ones back on.

Tom

Newbie who just arrived here, has the un-flat Reynolds on his K 75 pictured below. Take it, yours is the same deal ?



I'll snap some pics of the mounting struts on my Reynolds for clarification and report back this evening. 

Seem to remember my Reynolds was the deluxe touring model.

I agree about top/touring/boxes/cases. Soft luggage is the only way too moto lashed on a flat rack.

[motodude]

  my opine:

*once a Reynolds flat rack is mounted, it staying there permanently. YES, it is a royal pain in the ass to install.

* confused about it's NOT flat terminology, mine is, various brands of top cases, all with the same quick release mount on the bottom, have been outfitted over the years.   

* far stronger using the OEM one piece struts.

* trailing edge flat rack for the GS was hand fabricated, versatile, works well. 

Did you spot the motobricK bling on the rack ?  (K 75 spark plug cover)

Yeah, my K75 had the Reynolds rack "permanently" mounted for many years.

The factory (K-bike) rack is not "level" may be a more accurate description.  That has always irritated me.

Over the years I've found that I prefer soft luggage on the rear.  It can expand and contract and is, in general, a more flexible device.  So, I'm not looking for a place to attach a hard  bag.  I'm looking for a platform for tying down a duffle or some such (I have the mid-sized moto-fizz bag from Rider Wearhouse for example).  Something very similar to the rack in the picture on the back of the F650GS is what I want.

I'm not sure what you mean by, "far stronger using the OEM one piece struts".  Strength was a concern for me, especially using the tail section to carry the load (the Reynolds rack does not but they were selling a commercial product and I'm not).  I've run the 22 liter case full of water bottles and it managed w/o any issues.  I'll keep an eye on it for a while, going on shorter trips w/ less weight to start.

No, sorry, I missed the K75 spark-plug cover in the picture.  Is it the "handle" on the top of the side-case?

As an aside, another design I considered was to take an aluminum (or a thinner piece of steel) plate and cut and bend the edges front and rear such that they fit into the slots in the factory rack.  I abandoned the idea (which I still think would be a good (light weight) way to go) because I had the requirement of mounting the Reynolds back-rest and I could not see a "good" way to do that.  The back-rest has to be mounted sturdily enough to rest ones back on.

Tom

Newbie who just arrived here, has the un-flat Reynolds on his K 75 pictured below. Take it, yours is the same deal ?



I'll snap some pics of the mounting struts on my Reynolds for clarification and report back this evening. 

Seem to remember my Reynolds was the deluxe touring model.

I agree about top/touring/boxes/cases. Soft luggage is the only way too moto lashed on a flat rack.

No, I was referring to the factory "rack".  And, "level" is probably a better description than "flat".

The Reynolds rack I have looks like this one:



They made at least two models of rack that I'm aware of, maybe more.

Tom

[billday]

Took off my front wheel, took off the brake disks, and scrubbed the wheel.

Gunk for the first layer of crap and grime, then a bunch of doses of Armor All, with Scotch Brite.

Wow. Never mind how much better it looks.... now I can pick it up without giving my hands a coat of black sludge.

Guess now I'll have to do the back wheel too.

[Chaos]

Scored a brand spankin new Aeroflow for $65 on Ebay.  Nobody else bid! Could be they had it listed as a K755 instead of a K75s.  Now i just gotta paint the rest of the parts and bolt everything together and my S will LOOK like an S again :clap:

[pallum]

New muffler gasket:


A bit of frame repainting:


Tapped out the threads from the original center stand bolt:

Original issue here: http://www.motobrick.com/index.php/topic,905.msg3559.html#msg3559

Injectors reconditioned, valve cover gaskets, new throttle cable, better (from spare alternator that came with bike) voltage regulator, replaced transmission input shaft, new clutch, full spline lube, oil change, refreshed assorted rusty/stripped bolts, some other general maintenance and tweaking. Glad to be back on the road.