Inge K. wrote:The wire is non OEM, ...the way it's connected, it's 12V+ unswitched and unfused.
Remove it.

Thanks,
I didn't think I pulled it off anything as have been very careful through the build process and couldn't figure out where it might have come from.

Don't know about making the coolant tank a feature with it hanging out there , looks like a cup holder , I'd think again , find a place to hide it

just my 2 cents worth

John Re

Melbourne Australia

Hi guys,
Slowly getting there with what I can do with the bike, in mid-February / early March I am having the bike picked up and having a few special bits done such as upgrading the rear shock, fitting progressive springs, having an exhaust made, getting painted & powder coated etc.
After giving up on the home made seat, I ordered a new one and im really pleased with the look of it, I think its squareness suits the bike really well.



As the bike is going for painting soon, ive been having a bit of a play with ideas again. Im going for a light colour with dark red detailing. Im trying to decide if I paint the frame, what do you think, whats peoples favourite  / suggestions?
Cheers

Yes I think the coloured frame does appeal, but I cant decide between the two options both have an appeal. I've seen a multitude of black frames so any change would appeal.
Maybe having the frame the same colour as the trim? I do like the base colour frame tank combo, but the change to match the red trim,?? seems to keep getting my attention.

it's very subjective but for me the cream frame/forks combo works best

I managed to get a day on the bike this weekend just gone and got a couple more bits done.

Ive made a splash / mudguard out of the old one, it's nice and subtle and should hopefully be pretty effective. Ive also found a nice place to put the rear indicators and brake light, again pretty subtle but nice and bright when they are on.
Also fitted a much slimmer and discreet horn and added in some details to the tyres with a white pen.
Ive also ordered myself a retro style helmet in cream, should look pretty good with the finished bike.

Ive just loaded a whole bunch of items from my 1984 BMW K100RS onto ebay so if you need to get yourself some fairings, handlebars, indicators, mirrors, seats etc then take a look.

Cheers

Click here to see the various items available

Hi guys,
Its been a few weeks since ive updated and have managed to get a few additional bits and pieces done. Im waiting for the K bike specialist to come and pick up the bike for painting fitting progressive springs, MOT and a few other bits and pieces. Once the bike has been picked up, I think the only thing left will be to fit a cushion for the seat.

One thing I would really like sorting out is to have some idiot lights such as neutral and maybe fuel warnings. I can see there are a few posts on this, does anyone on here make or sell a little kit that can plug in to easily show some of these?

So since I last updated, ive done a few jobs such as:
Modified the Raask Rear-Sets, these are nicely made but pretty long. As im planning on fitting a custom exhaust in front of the rear tyre, I dont need all the extra metal on the raask rear-sets to support the weight & mounting of the exhaust. I also  want to emphasise the single sided swing arm and the rear-sets at the moment stick out a long way covering the profile of the rear wheel.
These rear-sets are quite expensive so you have to take a bit of a brave pill before you take an angle grinder to them. With a bit of care and filing I think the shape and look of them is really good and im happy with the end result.




Second update has been Polishing Engine Casings.
Again with a little time and care, these have come up looking really good.




I decided to treat myself to a new jacket to go with the Cafe Racer style bike, my raching leathers and touring jacket wouldn't really look the part. I was out on a ride with some friends and ended up at a place that sells cafe racer syle clothing. I tried on and fell in love with a Roland Sands Clash Jacket in Oxblood Red, its such a nice well made comfortable jacket & with the Biltwell Gringo Helmet it will all go together perfectly with the red and cream on the bike.


I also purchased some new Biltwell Grips to go on the bike. Again, these should go really nicely with the overall colour scheme of the bike and have a really nice feel.


And the last little bit I did was to paint the Fuse Cover to smarten it up a bit. Just used a bit of black nail varnish but looks really fresh and discreet on the bike.


I think that's about it since last time I posted, it feels like it starting to get close to the end. Im really looking forward to getting it painted and finished up then riding it over the summer.

Cheers

you might have to rotate the collector clockwise a little ...at least one pipe worth (90*) don't think ive seen a muffler that wil come back in from the angle that is there at the moment

good work progressing along nicely
keep at it

cheers

Heya guys,
So the bike has now been sent off for its final work which includes suspension changes, bespoke exhaust fabrication, painting and a whole load of additional bits and pieces.
The mechanical work shouldn't take too long but the sprayers is likely going to take a few months as they are rammed at the moment. 
If there are any updates or pictures, ill let you know.


I thought id also show you a cheeky new purchase I made, a 2003 Aprilia RSV which im planning on using on some track days in the summer.


And all three beasts together, all quite different.

Is that 2003 Mille R?, it is rare here in US.

Do you have the picture how you hide the battery and the computer? thanks.

sj2000 wrote:Is that 2003 Mille R?, it is rare here in US.

Hi, no its not the R so doesn't have the ohlins suspension. 
However its unbelievably good value at £2500. Its a fun bit of kit

sj2000 wrote:Do you have the picture how you hide the battery and the computer? thanks.

Hi,
Im getting a high powered, high output but lightweight lithium battery which will go under the hump of the rear seat as its hollow. The guys at the garage are going to be making a mount for this & the ecu. Ill take some pictures in high detail once its a ll done.
I mocked up how it might all fit together with duct tape and cardboard within a small box made and mounted to the frame

Hi, awesome work! The tank looks really nice without the paint, I suppose that if I do the same the aluminum wont oxidate, will it? Can you upload a photo of the clip ons? I'm planning to buy it but don't know how many degrees I need...cause I will do a 6.000km trip in September and don't want to buy the wrong ones...
Any info you can give me will be great!

Cheers!

dark_gap wrote:Hi, awesome work! The tank looks really nice without the paint, I suppose that if I do the same the aluminum wont oxidate, will it? Can you upload a photo of the clip ons? I'm planning to buy it but don't know how many degrees I need...cause I will do a 6.000km trip in September and don't want to buy the wrong ones...
Any info you can give me will be great!

Cheers!

Thanks man,
Getting the paint off the tank was a big job and polishing it up took an age. Im going to be painting mine so just wanted to get all the paint off. You can get a really nice shine on it if you kept going. I think most people will get clearcoat sprayed on to protect the tank from oxidisation and to keep it looking fresh.

These are the clip-ons I purchased for the bike, they are really nice quality and completely solid but they are also really good value. I think you will like them as they are adjustable so you can make them as comfortable as you like for your journey.
http://caferacerseats.co.uk/products/104-adjustable-clip-on-handlebar

Hi Guys,
So its been several weeks since my last update.
The bike was picked up in May for some final fabrication and painting. 

It was picked up by the guys at Black Shuck Kustom for paintwork a couple of weeks ago and the base paint is starting to get applied. 
If any one you in the UK know their work then you will be as excited as me to see the finished article. They do all the paintwork for Old Empire Motorcycles which I have had the privilege of seeing up close and personal.
http://blackshuckkustom.co.uk/gallery/

As soon as I have more photographs of progress ill let you all see them.

Hi Guys,
I heard from the painters and they have sent me a couple more photographs of progress.
The cream base layer is on and here we can see the masking tape ready for pinstripes.
Once the pinstriping has been done, they will add some red & airbrushing effects to really make it all stand out. Ill post some more pictures once I get any more progress.




The frame is now back from Powdercoating too and is starting to get put back together along with the rest of the bike. All slowly starting to come together now. Hopefully ill have the bike finished and on the road next month.

Hi Guys,
So a little more progress on the bike paint job yesterday and today and its all starting to come together.
The paintwork is nearly completed, just the BMW Logo's which they are painting on & then loads of clearcoat and its ready to go.
They have been sending me some teaser photographs and I haven't seen all the parts together yet. I think they want to wait until I see them in person.

I have had the headlight, tank, seat & front mudguard painted up.

This is the knee indent area getting roughed up for a textured effect.


This is the really nice detail on the pin stripe around the headlight, I absolutely love this with the bevel / shadow effect. 


And this is the tank as it is at the moment. Really happy with the textured effect on here, looks deep and rich.


Cant wait to see it all covered in a really shiny gloss finish,
will keep you all updated when I get more details.

Evening all,
A good bit of progress on the paint. The parts have all been finished, clear coated and polished. Ive not seen them in person yet but I was sent a couple of videos of the paintwork which I cant upload here.
Greg at Black Shuck Kustoms who did the work for me has done an absolutely fantastic job, the quality looks amazing and I cant wait to get some more detailed photographs up.

That's looking really good. Makes me itch to get my airbrush out again... only I no longer have a workshop with any fume extraction facilities...

Evening all,
I checked on progress with the bike a few days ago and its looking absolutely amazing, its so close to completion now. They just need to make an exhaust, give it a tune, put it through an MOT and then its good to go.

Someone a little while ago asked me about the battery tray and how the ECU would be mounted so I took a picture of the tray when I visited.
The battery will sit on rubber in the space in the lower tray. There is a slight gap between the tray bottom and the frame to allow for cooling. The battery sits so tight that the ECU should be weatherproof.   


So close to finishing 

sj2000 wrote:Do you have the picture how you hide the battery and the computer? thanks.

just posted mate

Are you sure the magic smoke won't fall out? It might not like being fitted upside down.

Dai wrote:Are you sure the magic smoke won't fall out? It might not like being fitted upside down.

Hi Dai, were fitting a high powered, high cranking lithium-ion battery so it can be mounted in any direction.

Dachwaton wrote:

Dai wrote:Are you sure the magic smoke won't fall out? It might not like being fitted upside down.

Hi Dai, were fitting a high powered, high cranking lithium-ion battery so it can be mounted in any direction.

I have one of those lithiums on my Ducati, but the engineer in me would not allow me to mount it any other way than with the terminals at the top!

Hi guys,
Does anyone know if putting a more free-flowing exhaust on the bike & a pod filter onto the air mass sensor will require much tuning or can you get away with just putting it all together?

Will it create any flat spots through the rev range?

Any hints, tips, advice would be appreciated (apart from 'you should have left it as it was') ha ha 

Cheers

Hi guys,
So here it is, in all its glory after a total of 14 months in the making!
I'm very happy with the bike, it sounds and feels fantastic & its fueling really nicely with the pod and exhaust setup.
Im pleased I upgraded the suspension front and rear as it now feels nice & tight and was totally worth the additional cost.
The bike is getting loads of positive attention, everywhere I go people are asking me about it or giving nods which is quite nice.
Let me know what you think?

Quite tasty.  And I am a purist!  

I like the way that the white frame enhances the overall appeal of the bike by highlighting the frame once the battery area/ECU/tool tray is removed.  It diverts your attention from what is otherwise blandness around the centre of an unfaired K bike. 

A TacKler tick of approval.  

Congratulations on achieving a fine looking finished product!  You must be well chuffed getting out and about on it, well done! 

robmack wrote:Shame to tear into a pristine example of an 84 RS like that.

Yup... 'cos once they're gone, they're gone

'Kin brilliant!!!!!!

Even if I am not a fanatic of custom bikes, I have to admit that the result is very nice.

Best looking mudslinger yet! The registration plate holder is the bomb!

Great build!

Love the way you've managed to get the lines from the tank to flow into the seat.

Very interesting to follow your Project and thoughts as I'm in the beginning of my own cafe racer project.

I was thinking of exactly the same air-intake as you had in the beginning. What made you change it? Looks or something else?

Best regards
/Jonas

Jonas Bodin wrote:Great build!

Love the way you've managed to get the lines from the tank to flow into the seat.

Very interesting to follow your Project and thoughts as I'm in the beginning of my own cafe racer project.

I was thinking of exactly the same air-intake as you had in the beginning. What made you change it? Looks or something else?

Best regards
/Jonas

Thanks Jonas,
Yeah its been a great project to work on, looking forward to doing another bike maybe later this year.
The air intake / filter is exactly the same its just been mounted in a slightly different way, it was close to the bottom edge of the tank and I was thinking it would rub when moving so I just decided to have it rotated a little more.

Dachwaton wrote:

Jonas Bodin wrote:Great build!

Love the way you've managed to get the lines from the tank to flow into the seat.

Very interesting to follow your Project and thoughts as I'm in the beginning of my own cafe racer project.

I was thinking of exactly the same air-intake as you had in the beginning. What made you change it? Looks or something else?

Best regards
/Jonas

Thanks Jonas,
Yeah its been a great project to work on, looking forward to doing another bike maybe later this year.
The air intake / filter is exactly the same its just been mounted in a slightly different way, it was close to the bottom edge of the tank and I was thinking it would rub when moving so I just decided to have it rotated a little more.

Thank's for the answer!

I tore down My bike today -inkluding the aircleaner! Have some ideas on how to solve the new intake, one of them being the same sollution as you went with.

how did you attach the filter to the maf?? and what filter is that? 
cheers