K75S DIY painting (& polished tank) thread

[Zagando]

Hi Lee;

Thanks for your cover suggestion, PM and photo. I was aware of them but didn't know San Jose BMW still made them.

I've always had mixed feelings about them (minor point as I'm not really sure I like the appearance of the cover). However, I will reconsider getting one and trying it on---it could turn out to be a nice touch since Berlina is kind of Darth Vaderish in a way.

I still need to attend to the throttle body springs that are rusting. I got some CLR gel the other day that I will brush on and let sit for a spell, then rinse off and dry. Hope that removes the corrosion, then I could spray some Niox (antioxidant spray made in Australia that works) on them before installing the cover.

Meanwhile, I got some new Cratex wheels for my Dremel, so I'm going after the lettering on the crank cover on my next day off...

Appreciate the suggestions as always.

[patiodadio]

Wow, what a beautiful bike ! I have followed your thread from the start and enjoyed it Thanks !

[Rudyjo]

How about posting side by side, before and after photos, the way the bike was
before you started the project and the way it is now. Great job, there
can't be another like it in the world.

[Zagando]

See page 11 for Before/After pix.

Thanks for the compliment, too.

[toddlamp]

Hey Jeff,

What is the product you used to cover the rear fender (silver/blue)? I like the idea. What to get some for myself.

[Zagando]

Funny you should ask; I just ran across my receipt for it the other day (from exactly one year ago).

It's available here: www.identi-tape.com

I ordered 2" X 15' rolls of red, blue and silver but they have a very large assortment of widths and colors.

Tip: To remove the backing paper more easily than trying to get a fingernail underneath the edge, carefully score a line on the backside with an Exacto knife; lightly so you don't cut all the way through; just enough to easily peel it apart.

I was inspired by this when I first saw it over on ADV:




While it all is a bit on the garrish side it is also a very wise thing to go the hi-viz route in my opinion. I'd rather be "over-visible" that not seen at all. I'm also working on making my tiny black Ruckus hi-viz, too---I installed my old NiteRider 35-40 watt halogen bicycle light and also did this:



The neon-orange duck tape I wrapped on two pieces of PVC pipe is MUCH BRIGHTER than it appears in these pix!

I'm currently working on my saddlebags and top case and will be adding photos of them on the bike once completed.

[Zagando]

Last few days have been pretty nasty weatherwise, with yesterday afternoon being the sole exception. As things dried out and the winds subsided, I managed to get in a nice ride down to Hilo well before the sun started going down.

On the way home it began to get dark so I got my first real chance to road test my auxilliary lights and blue LED cluster's brightness---all of which turned out somewhat better than expected. Boy, those FF50s really throw a beam of light WAY down the highway! And the blue LEDs were absolutely the right choice as far as I'm concerned. Legible but not obtrusive. I would recommend doing a LED conversion to anyone so inclined.

The couple of days previous to this I managed to get a couple more things finished on the bike---putting reflective tape on the saddlebags and top case as well as refinishing the BMW logo on my crank cover (98Lee's excellent suggestion):





Not completely perfect but will polish it a bit further then touch-up the scuffed black paint before hitting it all with a clear coat.

That will (fingers crossed) happen some time next week if the weather is dry...

No photos yet of the saddlebags/case yet but that should also be forthcoming before long.

[Zagando]

After a long spell of rainy days and working extra shifts I finally got a chance to finish up my engine painting.

Yesterday was my first day off from work in a while and as it was completely clear and sunny when I awoke I decided to go ahead and clear coat the engine. The PJ1 Satin Black engine paint turned out more flat than satiny, hence the need for a clear coat to make it closer to stock.

After masking the surrounding areas I touched up some areas that needed it before applying the clear:







By the time I moved the bike out to the front of the carport, scrubbed down the engine with hot water and Simple Green, blew it dry with warm turbine air and masked lots of bolts (pictures taken before I did most of them)---it was clouding up and obviously getting ready to rain---of course!

So I retrieved my heat gun from inside the house and warmed up the engine's surface a little bit before making passes with the clear. Fortunately I had the bike just far enough insdide the carport so at least the engine didn't get wet when the rain started coming down minutes later.

I used almost all of the first can of Duplicolor Ceramic Engine Clear that I had left over from spraying the muffler heat shield and it went on fairly well. One has to be careful with it to avoid runs or the blooming that can occur with heavy wet coats but otherwise the stuff is great.

Here are the results:



Didn't realize I still have a small piece of masking tape underneath the timing chain cover until I uploaded this photo:
The biege plastic device underneath the oil pan is actually a 70-watt Davis "Air Dryr 500"* that I leave on most of the time while the bike is parked---it seems to really keep condensation moisture at bay. Designed to keep closets and boat cabins dry and free from mildew these nifty devices take the chill off and make my bike much easier to start when cold---I hit the starter and it fires up immediately every time now!



While the results are a tad uneven I'm still well-pleased. The engine looks much less dull than before and should also be easier to keep clean.

*If anyone is curious about these air dryers they are available from National Marine Supply in Washington (they seem to have the best price/+actual shipping cost of all the outlets online) and run around $55 or so. We use them inside our old wooden cottage here in the rain forest and swear by them for keeping the mold and mildew away.

Next on my agenda is to order some stainless steel brake lines from Spiegler. I've been putting this off until I had my hands on a Mity Vac or Actron brake bleeder; today I picked up the last Mity Vac 8000 at my local Checker Auto at their old price of $34.99---$4 cheaper than Sears where I'd just stopped in to see if they stocked the sturdier brass Actron---they didn't---so I snagged the deal at Checker. The cleark told me they were now priced at $49.99 but since the old price was on display they had to honor that instead. Yippee!

I also got another (big) bottle of DOT 4, some rubbing alcohol (to help clean out any old fuid remaining in the brake pipes/ABS modulators/resevoirs/etc. before installing the Spieglers) and heavy-duty aluminum foil (to cover the areas of the bike that might get brake fluid on them if I'm not careful enough).

This will be my first attempt at brake bleeding and brake work of any kind so I am proceeding slowly with caution. While I already have another thread here in the K-bikes forum about this, I'll be probably be posting further updates in this renovation thread (instead ) once I have the Spieglers in hand. So, hey, any brake experts out there reading this feel free to stay tuned---I may need some more tips as I go along with this next task.

[98lee]

The engine looks VERY NICE!!!!!!


FI cover from San Jose BMW next?


Are you not going to run the engine spoiler?

[Zagando]

Thanks, Lee; Your suggestion of highlighting the BMW moniker helped inspire me to clear the dull black paint. Glad I proceeded yesterday despite the off and on rain showers.

No plans to get a FI cover for now although that is still a possibility somewhere further along.

I put most of the belly pan back together but still need to repaint the metal screen and install the rubber bits before I would say that it is complete. I will also finish this at some point later on even though I don't plan to reinstall it on the bike.

I like the looks of the engine too much to cover it up with that somewhat awkward-looking belly pan. I can't see where it is really of much benefit, anyway. Plus it is a supreme pain getting it on and off for oil filter changes.

Maybe I'll put it up for sale someday, I don't know...it's sitting on a shelf in our bedroom for now/the foreseeable future.

Lately I'm preoccupied with bleeding the brakes and replacing the 16 year-old lines with new ones as outlined above. I expect to call Spiegler in the morning, now that I have everything else on hand for the job.

Quick question (I was just reading my Mity Vac manual) about depressurizing the ABS system---is this necessary or advisable?---and if I do that (disconnect neg battery lead, then pump the brake lever/pedal 25-40 times, carefully open resevoir/master cylinder...) how do I repressurize the system afterwards?

Have you ever replaced the brake lines on your K75S fleet yourself? MOA member Robsmoto has given me a lot of good advice already so this is hopefully the last question about ABS brakes I will have...

[98lee]

Quick question (I was just reading my Mity Vac manual) about depressurizing the ABS system---is this necessary or advisable?---and if I do that (disconnect neg battery lead, then pump the brake lever/pedal 25-40 times, carefully open resevoir/master cylinder...) how do I repressurize the system afterwards?

Have you ever replaced the brake lines on your K75S fleet yourself?

Don't know about depressurizing ABS. Don't want to know. All my bikes are non-ABS. Replacing the non-ABS lines was a snap.

When you put the screen on the engine spoiler, put some thin (1/16-1/8") rubber weatherstripping between the screen and the plastic where you can't see it from the outside. It will stifle any rattles that the screen would otherwise cause.

With a little practice, putting on or taking off the spoiler becomes NO problem and it keeps you from constantly having to clean between the fins on the block.

But as far as the looks, that is a personal taste thing. It's your bike so it should look like YOU want it to (except within the city limits of Pleasanton, Ca. Then it has to look like I want it to look.)

[Zagando]

Right, Lee, I'll be careful to avoid Pleasanton next time I have the bike on the mainland and am visiting family in Contra Costa County... ...I don't think they even allow non-red or non-yellow K-bikes through your town, do they?

I'll look into the ABS pressurization thing further and see what, if anything, I'll need to be aware of.

Since there are bleed nipples atop both modulators it seems that they ought to be bled. If the depressurizing can be accomplished by pumping the brakes about 50 times while the electrical circuits are disconnected then it should be a no-brainer, too. I'll wear my face mask, gloves and take plenty of precautions nonetheless. Btw, I got the widest roll of aluminum foil I could find.

In other developments I just ordered the Speiglers this morning. They were out of stock of the one color I wanted for the lines---Translucent Blue---so I decided on my close second choice, Smoke (with gold anodized fittings and banjo bolts). I also ordered the top line 1' longer so it won't be such a tight fit to my bar-backed bars.

Will let everyone know when they arrive and I get started. In the meantime, anyone care to comment on bleeding the ABS pots on a K75? I believe I read somewhere that they should be bled before the calipers...

[98lee]

Right, Lee, I'll be careful to avoid Pleasanton next time I have the bike on the mainland and am visiting family in Contra Costa County... ...I don't think they even allow non-red or non-yellow K-bikes through your town, do they?

They only allow K75Ss!!!

But we ARE flexible. They can be Marakesh Red or Dakar Yellow.

Oh yeah, none of that newfangled ABS socialist stuff either!

[toddlamp]

Just purchases my FI cover from San Jose today! Want to cover them to keep all the crap out of it.

[k75s]

Right, Lee, I'll be careful to avoid Pleasanton next time I have the bike on the mainland and am visiting family in Contra Costa County... ...I don't think they even allow non-red or non-yellow K-bikes through your town, do they?

I'll look into the ABS pressurization thing further and see what, if anything, I'll need to be aware of.

Since there are bleed nipples atop both modulators it seems that they ought to be bled. If the depressurizing can be accomplished by pumping the brakes about 50 times while the electrical circuits are disconnected then it should be a no-brainer, too. I'll wear my face mask, gloves and take plenty of precautions nonetheless. Btw, I got the widest roll of aluminum foil I could find.

In other developments I just ordered the Speiglers this morning. They were out of stock of the one color I wanted for the lines---Translucent Blue---so I decided on my close second choice, Smoke (with gold anodized fittings and banjo bolts). I also ordered the top line 1' longer so it won't be such a tight fit to my bar-backed bars.

Will let everyone know when they arrive and I get started. In the meantime, anyone care to comment on bleeding the ABS pots on a K75? I believe I read somewhere that they should be bled before the calipers...

Red does not look so bad. Be careful about getting the front line too short. I think mine could have used another 1/2 inch or more.