Two things:

Finished saving up for my first can of DeoxIT. Very impressed and now ready for a proper go through of my undertank connections etc as I can see it will do a much job than the ordinary Earthling contact cleaner I previously used. That said, and I don’t pretend to know what underlies the manufacturing costs, it is silly money. Does anything else come close but sensibly priced?

Second thing. I wouldn’t contemplate selling my RT as we have become very close over the last few months. However I have only managed a couple of thousand miles or so over Winter due to the amount of preventative maintenance I have had to take it off the road for (35 years old, 60k miles, unused and uncovered for 10 years). I have done everything on the ‘so you bought a K’ list (and more) with the exception of the monkey nuts and timing chain, but do wonder if its ever going to be properly reliable.

I have been thinking about buying a similar vintage bike that I could just work on as a project then hook up my sidecar bits when finished.
But I have also been wondering about maybe going for something a bit newer but where I could still leverage what I’ve learned and love about the K.

So the question is, how modern can I go while still seeing an architecture I recognise from an ‘85 100?
Cheers, Stu

The K1100LT is very similar and was made into the late 90's. 

Keep at your 100, remember it has been idle for a lot longer than most bikes, and had a lot of issues that you are steadily working through.  You will eventually get to a reliable point, probably sooner than later.  That you are working through all this stuff rather than ignoring it will pay off in the long run.

You shouldn’t need to mess with monkey nutz or timing chain at only 60K.
 
For how much bike you get K1100LTs are stupid cheap these days. (At least in the US.)

The common wisdom is that bikes that sit idle for long periods are a big challenge as far as returning them to service is concerned.  I believe that is a generalization that should be weighed carefully against the bike in question and the conditions of storage.  My 1996 K1100LT hasn't been a problem at all.  I've experienced non of the electrical problems some contend with and the ABS hasn't given a bit of trouble. 
I was obliged to replace the tires, fork seals and the brake pads (front), but other maintenance done was "voluntary." The radio is an open question....  

brickrider2 wrote:The common wisdom is that bikes that sit idle for long periods are a big challenge as far as returning them to service is concerned.

I think that the common wisdom is motos that are neglected are more likely to be a challenge to get running well.

tinyspuds wrote:but do wonder if its ever going to be properly reliable.

It will be. I had similar troubles when I first got LFB - it had been lying around for nine years before I got it. I did everything to it except an engineoptomy (??!!!) and proceeded to put 76,000 miles on it with just preventative maintenance, a new clutch and a major crash. At 106,000 miles it started to develop a number of minor niggles and as I didn't like the original silver, I stripped it for a deep inspection, new wiring loom and a change of clothes (!). It'll be Alaska Blue next time you see it.

Dai wrote:
 It'll be Alaska Blue next time you see it.

Which, unbelievably, might be next year’s Dragon! Thought that was out of my system but I’ve done so much work on the bike and made some major changes to the sidecar set up, that I think the outfit needs another crack at it. Will probably take a few more days for the journey this time tho’.

I've brought quite a few of them back from the dead and never had any electrical problems - aside from those caused by prior owners by sloppily adding stuff which I simply removed.

Even if they've been neglected somebody usually took good care of them while they were in use.

The fuel system and leaky tanks are what I worry about when buying one that hasn't run in a while.

tinyspuds wrote:Which, unbelievably, might be next year’s Dragon! Thought that was out of my system but I’ve done so much work on the bike and made some major changes to the sidecar set up, that I think the outfit needs another crack at it. Will probably take a few more days for the journey this time tho’.

In 1982 our bike club rally sec asked me if I wanted to 'do the Dragon Rally' next year. All innocent-like I said 'okay' but wasn't too happy with the idea of a winter rally in North Wales. 37 years later...

Thanks for the feedback guys. It really got me thinking.
I don’t actually need a shiny bike and what I have, with your help, is a bloody well sorted outfit that always makes me grin like a kid.
Inevitably its age will throw out the occasional problem, but I think, maybe, there’s an outside chance, it’s just... finished.

  Time to stop Tinkering 

A brick is not a brick when it isn't a flat inline four or three. so they be not a brick if a vertical inline four or an opposed twin or a vertical twin or single. Flat Four Single Inline Zylinders.

Or after several beers it becomes FFS IZ