3/8/11

Big day yesterday. I got lots of parts and spent the day installing them. Here are the highlights

Installed the new fork caps and signals. I need a new LH signal as my old one was toast. It seems I also had R100GS signal stalks on there already as the R80GS one I had ordered/replaced since owning the bike and to be modified with a dremel to work.






Installed the handlebars, clutch cable, and authority switch. I figured it easier to cut the center nut down to allow the switch to work. Took a bit of time but worked well.





Installed the driveshaft bolts, and the #$%! boot. Also replaced the shock nuts.


Per Beemergurus advice I removed the head plugs and put in a crush plug, ALONG with the red locktite


I wasn't quite done with my cards yet either and had a couple things I wanted to replace. Namely the choke springs as they did not want to return to completely closed before the refresh. As well as the jets and needles.


I eventually got a couple packages one being the Centech panel...NICE PIECE OF HARDWARE, the Barkbuster Storms, rugged SOBs as compared to the Acerbis I had on the KLR and the beautiful tank.



Sidenote: the shock cover gives her class.

3/9/11 update:

Um.....I got my front fender today, and although I like contraversy.....I HATE THE COLOR. ITS NEON YELLOW. I ordered a completely black one instead.



In other news, I found a perfect place to mount my Centeh AP1. Right on top of Ricks Volt regulator. Seems the mounting studs are not actually grounding studs and only need to be ground down a bit. Then a piece of heavy duty toll pass quality velcro attached and securely mounted.

I got my hot grips today. Seems nice....but the rubber is well...rubbery. Not sure how well they will last but I will try them out just the same.

In respect of trying to do a job right....I took a look at the schematic and decided it would be cheaper to order from Eastern Beaver and get the wiring I need. I decided that BMW had it right in using the nice small connectors in thier authority switches, so that's what I'm doing. EB sold these


I hate paying shipping so went ahead and ordered everything I needed included the aux light harness, even if I will probably add the lights later. I can always install the kit, and zip tie the wires.


As an afterthought I wish I had actually gotten the AP2 fuse panel...as my grips will be going into it. Because of this. I'm switching the entire panel. with the AP1 kit and tapping the factory grey wire that runs from the BMW fuses as my switched lead. This wire is the one I believe Tom going to the brake lights.



Because of all the wiring I'm doing, and wishing to do it right and not a bunch of posilock harness tapping moisture inducing hacking I decided to finally invest in a good soldering iron. A $29 Weller 8200 140w. It's a very nice iron that beats the little 25w I have been using for years. It'll also allow me to fix the old harness and pass that along to a willing buyer for a couple bucks

I also went ahead and installed the grips. I know they had mentioned using epoxy on the throttle but it was tight. They also mentioned grinding down the throttle tube to make it fit the grip.....um no.




Once the grips were installed I went and put on the Barkbuster storms.


I went with the barkbuster vacuform plastic to make a cover for the Centech.



Picked this up for the Skidplate modification/creation

What's the shock-sock made from Adam?

Cheers,
John

__________________
Nostradamus Ate My Hamster

John,
Dirtskiz Link
It's a neoprene material with velcro. Seems good quality. Only $20usd. Beats having to pay another $280USD to have the works rebuilt anytime soon

Update on the HotGrips.

I got an email back from Hotgrips and they basically said that if the grips don't simply split apart due to fatigue they will fail within a few months due to the internal wire stress. They cannot be stress fitted on the bars....
They also mentioned that I was very lucky as they have also had the grips basically just split and fall apart upon being forced on beyond hand pressure.

Soooo, back to the shed I go. I ended up spending a good hour with the dremel sander and a sharpy marking and grinding the tube down so I could simply slip it on and epoxy it. Eventually it slipped on, and all was good.

I was a bit scared that the wires had already split so did test resistance and also power them up....all good

All good info if you guys ever think about installing Hotgrips on the BMW

Basically summarizes my experience too:
Internet BMW Riders - Hot Grips Model 401 Installation and Review

No info on their sit as to sizes... Is that an Ohlin's you have it fitted to? What size?

I also noticed those Double Take mirrors come from the US and are a good bit cheaper than this side of the water

Cheers,
John

__________________
Nostradamus Ate My Hamster

John,
It's on a Works shock with a 10.5" diameter and 10" length. I called and had them customize it. They also sell solid colors as well.

Adam

It's been a month since last posting... what's happened?

__________________
Drive Safely,
Albert

My guess is the weather got warmer and he's out for a ride...

Admittedly I'll really like to see the finished product.

__________________
TurboCharger + Francois (our BMW R1200gs) '07
www.riding2up.net, blog.riding2up.net

Between a vacation for a couple weeks and some warmer weather I just stopped posting. In any case. I still have a few issues with starting, carb related.

The bike does look good though, still haven't ridden it as the dirt roads are still quite muddy.




Also got these monsters running

Great post! Really enjoyed your story. What makes it interesting is the really excellent camera work, especially close-ups.

__________________
Tim ('91 R100GSPD)

The only baggage you carry should be in the panniers

That was all the camera...the G12 takes some great shots.

Seems I messed around with my picasa hosting and the photos went up critter creek. Fixed now.

Just a brief update on the G/S.

I eventually got to the point where I could take her for a spin. She ran well higher up, but the lower revs left a lot to be desired. I was also having a bugger of a time starting her. Turns out a few things were happening. My LH cyl had 78lbs compression while my RH had 130. I guessed stuck rings caused by all the warm/freezing cycles ALL winter. A shot of marvels mystery oil quickly addressed that issue . The other issues were carb related on a big scale.
This chart helped a lot..the orange was my issue range;


1. I had flipped AND mixed up which carb the enricher circuits went on...basically making the chokes only mildly operational.

2. My main needle was in position 2 on one carb, 3 on the other. Only realized using a caliper.



3. I had replaced the #40 idle jets and it was idling like crap...replaced with #45..fixed. The 40 must have been a symtom fix to deal with crap orings by the PO

4. Installed 2.68 needle jets over the 2.66 jets to richen it up a bit on mid range

5. Pulled the 150 and installed 142s for main jets.

6. My timing was a bit retarded, fixed. I had initially figured static was fine...nope, dynamic is the place to be.

7. My right carb plate is a tad mis-aligned..not really fixable without some work, and some parts....It causes a slightly high idle...but livable.

8. Float needle still leaks on occasion...hoping it's just some crud that needs worked out..new everything so not much else I can do.

9. A sticky idle...again hoping it will sort itself out.

10. Brakes have been a bit of a headache, Still trying to get all the air out...I can't believe how much is in there Even with air, the feel and grab is better than stock.

11. Blinker went all pear shaped...turned out to be a toasted resistor...put a physically bigger one in and solved the issue.....i think


12. Those lights....didn't last long before I broke them...


Like any airhead though...it is finicky and will always be played with. Not entirely convinced I would be willing to take the bike on a RTW. We do have the KLRs and they run like clockwork. They are also much cheaper to fix and get parts for in a pinch. We are currently updating them with better lights and gear. Taking the best of the KLE500 and the KLR650



Here are a few ride shots