Welcome Chris. Should be a lot of fun with the boy...

welcome aboard ....have fun chris

Nice project...good luck with it!

Hi Chris welcome to the forum, lots of valuable info here.

BIG D

Welcome aboard Chris - you and your boy will have fun with the project and hopefully learn a lot from the wealth of experience and information available on this forum

Welcome aboard Chris. You'll have a great time getting all the parts together, then working together on the bike.

Hi Chris,
Good on you mate welcome aboard.
Regards,
K-BIKE

My name is Ernie, I just purchased a 86 k-100 RT  with 39k , and discovering how heavy this thing is, maybe I bit off more than I can chew, just 5'9" if I put the mono shock to a lower setting will it lower the seat height?
 




 

Hello Ernie and welcome!

Reducing the preload will allow the bike to sink more when you get on it, but it won't lower the overall height when there's no weight on it. It's possible to buy shocks that are an inch shorter (http://www.realmengineering.com). The other (or an additional) solution is to remove some of the seat padding; if going this route I'd advise taking out that little bit more and then fitting a gel pad to compensate for the reduced thickness.

Hi Chris. WelKome. Hope you and your son enjoy enjoy the rides and amusement at K-world.

Chris, congratulation on the new 86 k-100,  I to just bought an 86 k-100 just a few weeks ago in fact I've now got about 90 miles under my belt, so still green behind the ears too. I live in southern California , been here for 5 1/2 years , came from Gonzales, Louisiana, just near the Amite river, you know where that's at. The only thing here is you can ride almost everyday of the year, cause its true, it never rains in this state. But I do miss the crawfish!!!

Gentlemen, welcome!  I never had the opportunity to live in Louisiana but did get there often enough on business to develop a taste for bugs and beer.  

Chris, if you haven't done it already, you should check out eBay.  The K75 and K100 have a lot of interchangeable parts, and there are a fair number of bike strippers selling on eBay.  Even the K1100's have parts you can use.  Max BMW has online parts fiches for all the K bikes, and with a little practice you can easily confirm what parts you can use on your project.  

What a great project to do with your son.  Good Luck!

Guys, I think we are welcoming Ernie.

Welcome Ernie.

Welcome Ernie AND Chris!

skumdog wrote:My name is Ernie, I just purchased a 86 k-100 RT  with 39k , and discovering how heavy this thing is, maybe I bit off more than I can chew, just 5'9" if I put the mono shock to a lower setting will it lower the seat height?
 

Hi Ernie
Might just take a little getting used to but if you cant get both feet/toes on the ground when stopped, you would need to lower slightly. I would've thought 5'9" wouldn't be a problem tho.
There is a corbin seat which lowers the riding position a bit also.

39k... good find. Got any pics?

WelKome to the forum mate. Enjoy the ride.

Welcome...

a 86 K100 is a Fantastic choice...

Let,s improve it...

Cheers

Kaptain Holister wrote:

skumdog wrote:My name is Ernie, I just purchased a 86 k-100 RT  with 39k , and discovering how heavy this thing is, maybe I bit off more than I can chew, just 5'9" if I put the mono shock to a lower setting will it lower the seat height?
 

Hi Ernie
Might just take a little getting used to but if you cant get both feet/toes on the ground when stopped, you would need to lower slightly. I would've thought 5'9" wouldn't be a problem tho.
There is a corbin seat which lowers the riding position a bit also.

39k... good find. Got any pics?

WelKome to the forum mate. Enjoy the ride.

Welcome too.

I am 5' 8" and on a 1984 K100RT. I manage it ok, but there was a significant difference between this and my 1992 K100LT which I found less manageable.

A few things come up on the forum.
1: Raising fork stanchions slightly. I believe 10-15mm is available on this.
2: Slightly shorter rear shock. I haven't tried this option but its there.
3. Rear tyre is down as 130/90, gives 117mm height. A 140/80 also fits, gives 112mm height. Another 5mm lowering for free.
4: Seat options. There is a low seat kit but at 5' 9" I would not have thought you would need it. Pop a photo of what seat you do have as there is a market for both. BMW low seat option and a Corbin low seat option too. 88KE got his hands on one of those and its something else. If you are doing this you need some accessories with the seat to get it to fit so make sure they come with it.
5: Depending on what seat you have....there is on some bikes what is called a 'Comfort' seat. One on my 92LT and its seriously comfortable and in my opinion one of the best. It doesn't swap over to the 84RT as there is a difference in the seats due to model upgrades. If you have a Comfort seat swapping out to a standard one will make a difference but sadly is reduces the padding just a little.
6: Get some raised soles or foot liners for your boots. I know a few people who have gone that way and if its the difference between a Comfort and a standard seat I would do it.

A few who have tried different seats have described the higher seat and riding position as feeling like you are on a tower block. I did notice this difference, felt the slight difference in height made a much appreciated difference in the handling. I feel I can throw the RT around and enjoy it. The same comment has also been made about swapping to the low seat options.

Enjoy the K too.

A good run down of options Olaf.
I can certainly vouch for the comfort seat. Good value on a long trip, but if I were shorter I would wear high heals before giving up my comfort seat.

Just don't feed the boy grits and it will turn out fine. And yes I have tried them.

BTW Welcome to the Knuthouse

Wasn't very fond of them when I lived in Kentucky...

You gotta try Waffle House grits.  They do them right.  I like them best with over easy eggs.  Get the yolk mixed in with them.  Don't know if the southern boys do it that way, but it works for this wannabe good ole boy.