Complete Restoration of BMW R75/5 into Cafe Racer

[balkowitsch]

Josh is very excited about this build, I am essentially his first customer and from the beginning he has wanted to document the complete restoration from his own perspective which is rather cool. So we have www.beemersandbits.com and also www.btinet.net/~sharoncol/bmw.htm and with these two views of the same restoration I think we should have everything covered. Thanks again everyone for getting us over 20,000 clicks so far.

Sincerely,
Shane

[les_garten]

Josh bought a new tool to help with with the build and did some fine detail notes about the process if anyone is interested,

http://beemersandbits.com/2011/12/pu...rs+and+Bits%29

Have a great weekend,
Shane

Thanx! There's a couple good How To's there.

[RINTY]

...he pulled the plug on the story...balkowitsch

Sorry to hear this, Shane.

When you finish the cafe, you'll have to give Vince first dibs on the story, conditional on allowing Cycle World to carry it next...

...the Davida...

This is about the coolest classic helmet around, but the last time I checked, it had neither Snell nor DOT certification. I think the reason is the reduced head coverage.

[balkowitsch]

Sorry to hear this, Shane.

When you finish the cafe, you'll have to give Vince first dibs on the story, conditional on allowing Cycle World to carry it next...



This is about the coolest classic helmet around, but the last time I checked, it had neither Snell nor DOT certification. I think the reason is the reduced head coverage.

Dear Rinty, the Excellence thing is no big deal, my car was featured in four, count them four car magazines, my uncle Tom has been putting hotrods together for decades and he tells me "do you know what guys would do to have their car featured in just one magazine" and I totally agree and feel fortunate to pull of what we did.

As for the helmut, I just love the look but I have 3 kids at home and a wife who hates the idea of this bike so I am going to have to chose more carefully a brain bucket. I think the look of that helmet preceeds the 1970's correct guys? So what style and type of helmet would scream 1970's, would be cool to have a helmet that goes with the era of the bike, never bought a helmst before and would like for it not only to be historically correct but also safe. I took a look at some of the Bell hemets and the bucket types look too much like the chopper crowd? Not sure. I definately want some vintage goggles as well.

Thanks,
Shane

[stanley83]

So what style and type of helmet would scream 1970's, would be cool to have a helmet that goes with the era of the bike....

[balkowitsch]

I think this is period correct,

http://www.davida.co.uk/type.php?id=classic-Jet

Also they have these goggles that are suitable for this type helmet,

http://www.davida.co.uk/type.php?id=climax

Any input would be great,
thanks,
Shane

[balkowitsch]

Perfect, so the Classic Jet which is DOT approved would do the trick correct?

Thanks,
Shane

[balkowitsch]

Perfect, so the Classic Jet which is DOT approved would do the trick correct?

Thanks,
Shane

I wonder if Jack's football helmet us DOT approved? Classic show, one of our most awesome hollywood male actors of all time. All I can say is "One Flew Over the Cookoo's Nest" and the "Shining".

Thanks,
Shane

[RINTY]

...four car magazines...balkowitsch

You did good.

As for helmets, the whole certification thing is complex, and the results depend on which testing parameters the engineers use, and how realistic they are. Here's an article that Dexter Ford wrote in 2005, that cost him his job:

http://teamoregon.orst.edu/to_web/PD...0D.%20Ford.pdf

Good luck in your search. I would just google some of the vintage bike forums and see what those guys are wearing.

...a wife who hates the ideal of this bike...

My wife gets stressed when I ride. But she loves the P-car.

[lmo1131]

I thought I'd pick up a vintage Bell Magnum for riding around town; I had one back in the seventies so they're totally "period correct". The "new" Bell retro Jet R/t comes close.

Vintage 1968 Bell Magnum (the upscale version of the Bell R/T)



New Bell R/T Jet

[balkowitsch]

How are you, the picture you provided is perfect, that is the era for sure, too cool, thanks for the tip. Sorry to have so much of this thread about a helmet but for me it is all part of the build, love the goggles also.

Thanks,
Shane

[celt]

I have two classic Bucos modernized by Justified Defiance.
They are not DOT 101 standards but good helmets nevertheless with close to DOT protection. Much better than a novelty but not as thick as a modern helmet. It's your brain and you decision.

[lmo1131]

Having thrown all that Magnum stuff up.... the rider of that Wunderbike might be wearing a 3/4 "shorty" with leather ear flaps... ala the Buco "Guardian" another favorite back in the day (sooo tired of that phrase).... kind of hard to see with the deep shadow.




Remember what I wrote about Asian collector helmet market?

check it: http://ap3.aucfan.com/sekaimon/searc...0buco&c=&l=&u=

[mymindsok]

Eurotech Motorsports is going out of business and has everything 25% off so we pulled the trigger on some parts to take advantage of the savings, some new Ikon (the Koni equivalence) shocks to start.

Thanks,
Shane

The 7610 series shocks are for all twin shock bikes with conventional suspension.
Externally adjustable rebound with just a finger touch.
Spring seat adjustable in three positions with a progressive spring and a chrome finished body. 13.1" long with a spring rate of 19/29/42 SNIP!

I just wanted to leave a comment, because I installed a pair of Koni 7610 shocks on my bike last season.

I installed them at the recommendation of Dave Gardner, a well respected Airhead wrench and have been disappointed with them from day one.

Ikon 7610 Shock really is an exact replication of the old Konis', warts and all. One of the nice features is that you can use the included wrench to stiffen the shocks if/when you increase your load. OTOH all that does is compress the springs. If a rider wants/needs to adjust the valving for spirited riding or changed road conditions, you can do so by turning the numbered wheel at the top of the shock's body.

That system works great if all you need to do is compensate for wear but when you hit the twistys and want to wick things up, all that happens as you dial the numbers up, is that the shock's become harsher and harsher. Theres an extreme lack of compliance in the Koni's valving and sometimes you simply have to slow down or take a break. The shocks are that harsh and unpleasant to ride.

The Season before I switched to Koni's, I ran Progressive Shocks for a little while. Thats a very affordable shock but it's also one that notorious for having poor rebound. What it does seem to have is a better spring rate, plus its about 1/2" longer than the stockers, which raises the rear end and improves an Airhead's handling quite a bit. I installed mine a few days before a transcontinental ride to the MOA Nationals and they were completely shot by the time I got back to the West Coast. Yeah, they were a bit fluBby but they rode and handled better that an Ikon/Koni ever will.

What I/you/we really need is a shock that allows you to adjust the spring rate along with the damping and rebound and to get those features, you'll need to look into more modern, higher tech shocks, more expensive.

I would suggest that you guys look into Wilber's, Ohlin's or YSS shocks in about +1/2" Length. If you're really going to ride that bike, you're probably going to want to be able to balance your rear suspension with the relatively soft Airhead front forks and to do that, some modern technology will help a lot!




PS: Those Davida helmets are great for photo ops but I wouldn't trust my life to one. Not in a million years!

[balkowitsch]

We received the sample of the leather from Autos International. Augustine is going to use the same exact leather and white stitching on the seat. It is usually standard on Porsche Speedster seats to have the piping or welts as some call them, I am not a fan and we did not use them on the Porsche and since I want these two vehicles to match in every way, we will not go with it for the seat either. I have certain opportunities to marry the car and the bike and the obvious thing is paint colors and white race stripe, but I think the leather seat is going to be another one of those situations where I can have the bike mimic the car and bring them closer together from a design standpoint. I know it is alot of thought about little details but it is all about the details and I have to be honest, it is the part about the restoration that I enjoy the most, thinking about and debating every last little detail, since I am not getting my hands dirty and am restoring this bike with a pen and a checkbook, the conceptual ideas and thoughts that I have is all I can offer to the party if you know what I mean. So here is a picture of the leather and I previously posted our seat inspiration photograph so that is where we are at right now. Thanks for all the good comments and feedback guys, I definately will not be buying one of those helmets that is not DOT approved, but they do have some that are and I will go with a more 70's look and feel.

Thanks for continuing to follow my antics,
Sincerely,
Shane