1981 R100RT ride height

[welch1116]

I'm a newbie and need information on how to adjust the height of my bike so both of my feet will be flat on the ground.

[Bombayduck]

Two ways really without affecting the ride. 1. Get some good motorcycle boots with a thick heel and thick sole. 2. have the saddle foam scooped out a little or get a custom saddle that's less thick than stock.

[rpeckham136133]

I tried letting air out of my tires, but then it was hard to push it out of the garage....:bolt




;)


I ended up by "customizing" my seat height: it is both narrower and lower, and it made a huge difference in my comfort level when stopped.

[bikerfish1100]

if you have stock shocks, be sure the ramped preload adjusters on the rear shocks are all the way down.

or were you looking for lowering suggestions that take it lower than stock?

[pmdave]

IMHO it's more important to have the right technique than to be able to get both boots down at a stop.

When you stop, you should have your right foot pressing on the rear brake lever, and support the bike with your left foot. That means you need to lean the bike slightly toward the left. And when you lean it a bit, it's less of a reach to the ground.

As you come to a stop, squeeze the clutch, shift the transmission down into first gear, then keep the clutch squeezed. When you start the bike rolling by easing out the clutch, your left foot should go back to the left footpeg as soon as the bike begins to move.

But what holds the bike up? Balance is controlled mostly by what you do with the handlebars, not with your feet. Two-wheelers are balanced by "countersteering." That is, to make the bike lean left, press on the left grip. To lean (and turn) right, press on the right grip. At slow speeds you'll need to press more aggressively. Note that you're steering the front wheel opposite the way you want to lean. If the bike attempts to fall over to the left, press more on the right grip to make it straighten up.

Waggling your boots around or dragging them on the ground to keep the bike upright is not only counterproductive, but potentially injurious. Practice riding very slowly and standing up on the pegs. If the bike starts to fall over it's because you've forgotten to press on the grips.

If this sounds strange to you, may I suggest the book Proficient Motorcycling, second edition? Available from www.amazon.com or directly from Bowtie Press at 888-738-2665.

pmdave

[welch1116]

Thanks for all the good information. I do have an addtional question for Bikerfish 1100. The shocks are koni and the spring looks like it is half-way compressed. The top is spaced apart and the botton is together. How do you adjust this and what tools do you need?

I need to lower about 3 inches.

[bikerfish1100]

if your Koni's are like mine, the springs ride on a ramped collar. it's adjusted with a "hook spanner". be sure that the collar is as low as it can go.

[dduelin]

There are three steps in the ramped collar on a Koni shock and the total change is only a bit more than 1/2". From what you are posting I think you might think the spring has further adjustment because the coils are further apart at the top compared to the bottom. The spring is made like this so it is softer for little bumps and stiffer for larger bumps that make the shock move further. Unfortunately the spring is not part of any adjustment for lowering the bike as much as you need. (3")

Why do you need to touch both feet flat? Many riders learn to deal with touching with toes or balls of feet alone. If the shorter of us had to flat foot we would be restricted to riding only cruiser - type motorcycles with low seat heights. I have an inseam of about 29" and can't flat foot my 1981 R100 either but I find it unnecessary.

[tghsmith]

modify the seat, and shorter shocks, my wife is 5ft has had a 1980r100t as the original owner, the shocks will rake out the front end a little bit but this can actually improve handling, I', 6'2" and have a lower seat to get behind the fairing, I don't even think of keeping up with her in the tight twisties.. the center stand was shortened a bit and the browns side stand was also modified. the only real problems is loaded two up, and you have to remove a muffler to pull the rear axel..

[44006]

"I'm a newbie and need information..........."

More info about you would be helpful if you want serious advice on
how to lower the bike as much as you say you intend.

Does newbie mean new and inexperienced rider in general or just new to BMW?

Male or female?

Aprox weight?

Do you need to carry a passenger and if so Aprox wieght?

Intended style of riding ie fast interstate distance bomber or local rural road sightseeing etc.

There are a lot of options many of which are low cost and effective and
temporary and nondestructive but will make the BMW purists and ultimate
performance safety nuts cringe.

signed
24" inseam 850K+ mi rider of many years of lowered bikes

[welch1116]

I appreciate all the info. What aftermarket shocks do you recommend?

I am a male driver, approx 190 lbs,with 29" inseam, single rider only. I ride for pleasure on rural roads and do some city driving. I'm new to the BMW bike but have ridden Harley and Honda. I have taken the Abate class.

[keelerb]

"BMW purists and ultimate
performance safety nuts...."

a/k/a "Beemer Weenies" :nyah

[tghsmith]

the lower shocks I have are original konis, don't know if ikon is making the shorter shock body, just get the eye to eye spec for the stock shock and find a model shorter, make sure the rear fender is centered over the tire for best clearance.. if your seat is stock the square edged front section can really make thing hard on seat hight issues.. to get my seat where in wanted it I fabricated my own fiberglass seat pan that rest on the frame tubes (even had to trim the top of the tool box) its about as low as you can get without cutting and welding..

[44006]

"male driver, approx 190 lbs,with 29" inseam, single rider only. I ride for pleasure on rural roads and do some city driving. I'm new to the BMW bike but have ridden Harley and Honda. I have taken the Abate class"

You might try the following all or some whatever is easiest

1) Remove front fork preload spacer on top of fork springs if present in this model or use shorter spacer or use someone else's discarded soft original fork springs. This will lower front and as long as solo and not a cowboy probably will not bottom out on potholes.

2) Replace seat till you get comfortable with the bike - use the solo seat for a 3 wheel granny grocery getter
bicycle $30 - $40 has a metal seat pan shaped for an adult bottom and thin carpet pad covered with rubber. Looks
uncomfortable but is not that bad. Wrap tape on frame tubes to protect paint - lay the seat on the frame and bolt
to wooden slat passed under frame - Can't get any lower seat than this.

3) Replace rear shocks with inexpensive shorter shocks from any salvage jap bike which weighs at least 350 lb.
May need to make shock end inserts out of hard rubber or plastic to match original BMW Bolts.

4) You will now probably need to replace the sidestand with Brown type with leg bent shorter than stock or
replace stock sidestand with one that is badly worn and wallowed out at the pivot pin hole otherwise the
bike will not lean over enough to park - after you have lowered the bike suspension the centerstand will
be usless for ordinary parking unless you are a gorilla with a very strong back.

All of this except the seat modification will reduce the ultimate lean angle and overall performance envelope
for this bike but as a relatively inexperienced rider your "gut" will probably not let you try anything close
to what the bike is capable of in any event. Most men are quite secure on a bike with experience if they can
get the balls of their feet on the ground. At 29" inseam that should be possible for you with little
modification. After you have more experience on the airhead a stock seat and shocks should be no problem.

[44006]

Pic of lowered bike

[bikerfish1100]

"male driver, approx 190 lbs,with 29" inseam, single rider only. I ride for pleasure on rural roads and do some city driving. I'm new to the BMW bike but have ridden Harley and Honda. I have taken the Abate class"

You might try the following all or some whatever is easiest

1) Remove front fork preload spacer on top of fork springs if present in this model or use shorter spacer or use someone else's discarded soft original fork springs. This will lower front and as long as solo and not a cowboy probably will not bottom out on potholes.

2) Replace seat till you get comfortable with the bike - use the solo seat for a 3 wheel granny grocery getter
bicycle $30 - $40 has a metal seat pan shaped for an adult bottom and thin carpet pad covered with rubber. Looks
uncomfortable but is not that bad. Wrap tape on frame tubes to protect paint - lay the seat on the frame and bolt
to wooden slat passed under frame - Can't get any lower seat than this.

3) Replace rear shocks with inexpensive shorter shocks from any salvage jap bike which weighs at least 350 lb.
May need to make shock end inserts out of hard rubber or plastic to match original BMW Bolts.

4) You will now probably need to replace the sidestand with Brown type with leg bent shorter than stock or
replace stock sidestand with one that is badly worn and wallowed out at the pivot pin hole otherwise the
bike will not lean over enough to park - after you have lowered the bike suspension the centerstand will
be usless for ordinary parking unless you are a gorilla with a very strong back.

All of this except the seat modification will reduce the ultimate lean angle and overall performance envelope
for this bike but as a relatively inexperienced rider your "gut" will probably not let you try anything close
to what the bike is capable of in any event. Most men are quite secure on a bike with experience if they can
get the balls of their feet on the ground. At 29" inseam that should be possible for you with little
modification. After you have more experience on the airhead a stock seat and shocks should be no problem.

sounds like it works for you, but that whole procedure just makes me crudder (cringe & shudder).

[keelerb]

I can't imagine it. With a 34" inseam, my 84 R100RT is still tall for me - I can't flat foot it (but as others have pointed out, I don't need to). I can't imagine modifying the bike to take it down 3" without causing major upheaval in how the bike performs.

The joke is, I bought mine for my wife (5'5") as a "winter bike." No way she can ride it. What a shame....:D I love this bike! :heart