Hi all. My name is Nitrogen. I'm 21 and have been riding since I was 16. Since November 2012, I have been riding my father's 1987 BMW K100LT and am on my way to fixing all the problems it's suffering and that's mainly why I have joined this forum. I'm hoping to find repair tips and ideas. Before the K100LT, I had been riding a Kymco CK125 (my first manual bike). Yes, I jumped from a 125cc to a 1000cc but not necessarily by choice. My old man has now given me the K100LT seeing as I am taking care of it more than he ever did.
I'm happy to answer any questions. I'm not much of a forum guy but I am never too far away from a computer. The summer is coming and I'd like to start fixing things, so sorry if I missed something out in this introductory post.

Good intro. Use the google search function on the portal page to find answers to all your technical questions, There's not much about these bikes that isn't known in minute detail. Stay safe/

88

Cheers 88. I will be using the search function when I can.
I suppose I could take this opportunity to explain what's up with the bike. It belonged to my dad for around 6 years and he's just used and abused the thing. Averaging at least 20-30 miles in and out of London every day. It actually got damaged proper in an incident where an uninsured driver crashed straight into him at a junction. It wrote the car off instantly, tore the front wheel from its axle. The bike turned out ok, runs exactly the same, but is missing the right-side fairing (in gold, the bike's colour). Since the accident, it pumps out an insane amount of smoke for a while and then subsides; I figure it's oil leaking into the cylinders when on its side stand (I can't get it on its centre stand ). Since I've had it for a while, I've done so many things to it my dad never did with it.
I bought 2 new tyres (easy £200), all new brake pads (easy £60), new battery (£70), had the centre stand fixed (was snapped before), the machine had it's very first oil change since it's been in the family for 6 years (that's right), new spark plugs and HT leads, replace the windscreen and secure that right wing mirror that thinks I'm interested in watching my own hand instead of the traffic behind me.
Things I'm hoping to do with it include getting a new front wheel (buckled), new rear shock absorber as its has collapsed, fix the speedo/odometer, all new paint job as it's flaking and discolouring, buy new panniers and top box as there are cracks here and there, fix or buy a new seat, and fix the electronics around the bike, strip it down and clean all the parts which won't be easy as I need to use it everyday and don't have the space to do it.
My problem is that this will cost a lot of money over time and I'm not even sure if I want to keep the bike because of it, I could buy a real nice condition model in around £1500 according to sources online.
At the current moment, I'm trying to repair the instrument cluster and I'm pleased to see there's lots of knowledge of the electrical detail going around; being into electronics myself, but a learner at that. Water damage along with the speedo seems to be very common things to go wrong with these clusters.
Sorry for lengthening the 'introduction' but I thought it would be good to share what I intend to achieve by joining the forum.

Hi Nitrogen,

I wrote a nice long post andf then the PC crashed so it got lost.

Not very common age group for a K, but its only time before you discover you have one of the best long distance bikes going. My 24 year old son also has bikes, we do trips together, first time ever he sat up on my K last summer after trying a Fireblade and said 'I could like this'....but it has image issues for him. However he does realise the K is quite nimble after a 220 mile run when he impatiently shot off 'for a fast run' and got to the end thinking he was there half an hour ahead of me only to find a rather familiar LT up ahead of him. You will comfortably do 8 or 900 miles in a weekend on a K. When you replace the east get a good one......Corbin.....

Don't be put off, in fact they are quite easy to maintain, a ready source of good second hand and new parts in the form of www.motorworks.co.uk and www.mototbins.co.uk will keep you mobile at low cost. All the parts you need for your Dad's bike wheels, fairing parts, mainstand [some put on the K1100 mainstand assembly complete], panniers, any number of electrical parts, ECU, relays, service kits, you name it.

If you have not got one a Clymer manual is very useful.

You will get help here from Alaska to Canada to Australia and New Zealand and anywhere in between. I think maybe post a thread for yours and some photos and as you put up each post you will get what you need.

At the home page there is a section on what to do if you have just acquired a K. I have had Japanese bikes and find the K easier to maintain as there are very few engine issues as such. The Ks date from 1983 and fuel injection was very rare at that time, even in cars yet the systems are by and large extrmely reliable and if working right best left alone. Not like an air cooled 4 carb Honda where you needed vacuum gauges and a balance every few thousand miles along with points tappets adjust cam chain etc etc. The bits that scare some are things like the fuel injection but all injectors eventually need cleaning from time to time and K ones are so easy to get at the cost is very reasonable and getting them out can be done as a diy job. Its a lot easier than doing 4 carbs!!!.

The one comment I see is the K does not seem to have recurring faults, more that certin things will happen with certainty at some point and they are well identified so can be prevented or prepared for by recognising warning signs.

Enjoy the K.

Hi Nitrogen. Welcome to the forum.
Don't have many young sprogs on the forum. That's under 50 anyway!
Think I can help you with one of your problems anyway.
Regarding the smoking. 'They all do that, sir.'
Early K's don't have the piston rings pinned to stop them rotating when the engine is running. This means that the oil can seep past the rings at times especially from the rear cylinder where a transmission gear throws up oil. That's the theory anyway.
There's an easy cure.
Allow the bike to tickover for at least 10 seconds before switching off. This allows the oil to drain into the sump instead of the cylinder before you put it on the sidestand.
Look cool, switch off the lights, remove gloves, etc. Then no one knows what you're really doing.
You can then park on the sidestand and no more smoke when you start up.
Simples.

Comberjohn wrote:Hi Nitrogen. Welcome to the forum.
Don't have many young sprogs on the forum. That's under 50 anyway!

Thanks for the compliment CJ. Welcome to the forum Nitro and good luck with the bike.

GMcQ

Welcome aboard nitrogen - good to have you with us

Thank you 92KK, and sorry about rewriting your post. Yeah, I'm one of the very few riders who has a full licence at my age, I threw in for a "big bike" test just before the laws changed in January. My 125 suffered a crash (which wasn't entirely my fault) and then it needed an MOT renewal and I didn't have time to get the frame straightened, it wouldn't pass the MOT so I needed something else and my dad's bike was the only option and I've been riding it ever since.
I love the K100. Aside from the obvious things like it's 1000cc, power when you need it, etc. (first big bike for me so it's all relatively new) I have noticed it's a very well behaved machine and I have to agree, it's easy to maintain. There have been some hiccups with its reliability but that's due to being neglected for so long by my dad.
I am aware of MotoBins, they seem great but are missing some small bits I require, but I check them all the time for other parts. Motorworks is a new one to me and I'll go and check it out now, so thank you for the links. In fact, a quick browse shows the small bits I'm actually after.

Comberjohn, thank you for the welcome. I understand there aren't many young people here, they all tend to run off with all the "cool" bikes. Most of the people I knew who had bikes were all learners anyway.

Comberjohn wrote:Allow the bike to tickover for at least 10 seconds before switching off. This allows the oil to drain into the sump instead of the cylinder before you put it on the sidestand. Look cool, switch off the lights, remove gloves, etc. Then no one knows what you're really doing. You can then park on the sidestand and no more smoke when you start up. Simples.

Very interesting, and makes sense. I don't believe it used to throw so much smoke out before, I always attributed it to the fact that it could have damaged the block when it had the incident, along with the bottom half of the block constantly being covered in a thin coat of leaky oil and all (yet oil level stays the same). I'll try what you said for sure. It does seem like a 50/50 chance with it smoking the way it does. Some times it's just ridiculous and embarrassing to start it up because it lingers around for a while, all the passing motorists look at me and I'm like .
Thank you gmcq and krambo!
I'm having an electronic engineer friend check out the instrument cluster today (Saturday) and hoping he can help with the burnt bits, replace components, otherwise I will buy the bits I require from Motorworks (in the basket already). It's still very weird driving around without a screen and cluster, hah. I'm thinking about fixing the gear display LCD screen with an LED display, might be a bit easier for me, even if I mess up, I haven't lost anything.
Thank you all for your kind words.
Nitrogen.

Very unlikely you could have damaged the block in the accident. These things are bulletproof.
The symptoms you describe are textbook, early K.
Consider this the 1st piece of K bike folklore that you have learned, grasshopper.

On the subject of cool. A girl in her twenties on her Jap bike, recently told me that my K was 'retro cool'.

Motorworks are probably the best for new and second hand parts.
Another one to keep in mind is James Sherlock in Devon. They do a good range of spares, new and old.
Sometimes worth comparing prices between the two can shave a few quid of the cost of parts.
Our colonial cousins are really jealous of our access to K spares. Their local dealers should wear masks.

Welcome aboard nitrogen you will find all the answers here
Pat

Hi Nitrogen, good to hear you're into K bikes. I've been servicing mine today ready for MOT test. If you're into tuning have a look at the BSK Speedworks website. They're based in Leighton Buzzard and have some real cool parts for K's. Ride safe.

Hi Nitrogen, If you ever feel like an adventure across the Irish sea do let us know. I can think fo some ncie routes across to Fishguard, across to Rosslare and up through Wexford [88KE country] Wicklow Kilkenny Carlow ending up at Larne in Comberjohn's magnificent home patch, I am sure a few of us would love to meet up. Then a nice trip from Stranraer around Scotland and down through Wales back to London....

Anyway as for the K its probably best to approach it as preventative maintenance so that things are sorted easily and cheaply. Dont even think of going at the engine for the smoking, its esaxtly as Comberjohn put it. That is not normally an issue on most engines when the cylinder head is indeed on top. Engines go on forever. If it acts funny first off make sure the plugs are good. They are cheap but seems they can go wrong. I thought the worst of mine at one stage and it was a duff plug. Halfords best for €5 sorted it.

Do stay on the forum.

92KK

Hi Nitrogen, Fantastic you got the old mans sickle, go for it, my dad, also a Londoner, sold his MSS Velo just after I was in undies so that was a bummer. You'll get the hang of it, knowing when to back off is the key to long life, not that I'm that old or that bold, but two up on a K at full speed is hard to beat, especially when blitting past a disorientated machine of dubious intentions half the Ks age. You'll learn more than owning a B50 mainly about soldering has been my experience thus far. Have fun and get one for your dad when you are older, keep his / yours. Rick