Limecreek Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 After 2 months of looking for a suitable '70's-80's era air head restoration candidate, I gave up and went modern. Today, I found a bike that I favored back in the day. (when I was still in my 30's). Mechanically she is sound, at least as far as I could tell from the test ride, but that doesn't mean I won't find problems when I tear into her. Her biggest issues are cosmetic. You see she was dropped on her right side in a hairpin right hander. So here she is bruises and all. She has 57K miles on the clock and cost me $2500—a bit more than I wanted to spend, but I do love the RSLs. Sir Rodney, are you out there? My son and I will spend the next 12 months or so, tearing her down and completing a frame up (or stress member in this case) restoration. It is good to have a boxer in the garage again. Advice on resources and references is welcomed. Cheers! Link to comment
upflying Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Looks nice, even unrestored. Always liked the RT "lite". Link to comment
TEWKS Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Looks like a lot of bike for $2500! This was the bike that drew me to BMW. I bet if I look hard enough I could find the Ad in an old Cycle World mag with Michael Kneebone testing the bike under some extreme conditions. Pat Link to comment
Whip Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 What size tank on that thing?? Mrs Whip would like that passenger seat and pillion position. Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 6.2 Gallons - just about the same capacity as the gas hungry K. Link to comment
Whip Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 6.2 Gallons - just about the same capacity as the gas hungry K. That's great!!! I may have to look a little closer. I found one on ebay with 1650 "original" miles. Link to comment
kmac Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 sounds like the forgot a zero or 2...on that mileage. very nice project bike and will make a nice rider once its freshened up. Link to comment
carolinarider Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 She doesn't look bad at all in the pics..that's a nice find. Have fun! Link to comment
Rideoften Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 http://www.bikersoracle.com/rs/forum/index.php? Check out this RS site. These guys are really into their RS's. I owned one for a few years. It was a great bike. Ride Safe Rideoften Link to comment
hANNAbONE Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 ...pAGING sIRrODNEY...SirRodney to the front desk please.! Link to comment
cali_beemer Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Nice find! It doesnt look like its in bad shape at all....is a restoration really needed? Link to comment
Steve W. Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I had a '96 for several years. Great ride. I would suggest rewiring or replacing the HES assembly asap. Cheers Steve Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Excellent site! Thank you for the link. Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Nice find! It doesn’t look like its in bad shape at all....is a restoration really needed? I took her out for a ride today on 10 year old tires and the original struts. It made for some interesting moments to say the least. The purpose of the ride was to see what else would show up during an extended outing. The good news is, really not much. The engine feels tight; almost too tight, like it hasn’t broken in yet. No ticking, no knocking and no pinging. I expected it to ping a bit, given the early oil head history of carbon build-up on the pistons, but to my pleasure, she didn’t ping at all. She does surge, in the same way my ’02 RT did, but not to the point of bucking—like my ’02 RT did. The clutch is heavy and is out of adjustment. The throttle is a bit sticky. The front brakes work just fine but seem to drag more than they should. There is enough play in the rear wheel to indicate the Paralever bearings need adjustment or replacement. Anyway, this will be a fun year going through the bike from nose to tail; documenting all of the steps and refurbishing as many of the parts as possible vs. purchasing new ones.. Today was her last ride on the road for at least the next year. She goes up on the lift tonight for the start of the teardown. She will not remain black with red saddles and we haven’t decided on a color scheme, so if you all have suggestions, I am all ears and eyes. Cheers! Link to comment
cali_beemer Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 She will not remain black with red saddles and we haven’t decided on a color scheme, so if you all have suggestions, I am all ears and eyes. Too bad, that was my favorite RS color scheme. Link to comment
WestTX RT Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 How about you let him ride it for a year, and then let him restore it? I'm just sayin'. Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 He is a new rider and will be on a smaller bike for the time being. But....you have a point. Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 She will not remain black with red saddles and we haven’t decided on a color scheme, so if you all have suggestions, I am all ears and eyes. Too bad, that was my favorite RS color scheme. What is your second favorite? Link to comment
kmac Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Anything BUT red is my favorite.... Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 Found my first surprise under the right fairing. Looks like someone left her running and walked away at some point in her life. The horn and quite a bit of plastic under the fairing, the right side of the tank and some of the wire harness melted. Surprise! Link to comment
cali_beemer Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 She will not remain black with red saddles and we haven’t decided on a color scheme, so if you all have suggestions, I am all ears and eyes. Too bad, that was my favorite RS color scheme. What is your second favorite? A pearl white looks nice. Link to comment
BULLman Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Found my first surprise under the right fairing. Looks like someone left her running and walked away at some point in her life. The horn and quite a bit of plastic under the fairing, the right side of the tank and some of the wire harness melted. Surprise! \\ That is why they changed the lowers on the newer RSes. Hopefully that will be your only surprise... other than than that you never realized how much you can enjoy a bike!!! Link to comment
ollka Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I had similar black RSL from end of production 2001. Really nice bike. If black isn´t right one, bright red suits that bike better than well. Link to comment
markgoodrich Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Wait. What's wrong with the original color scheme? If you're going to make a change, make a CHANGE Link to comment
cali_beemer Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Flames! maybe some skulls and topless women airbrushed into the paint scheme. Then you can chrome out the fork legs and swingarm. Link to comment
Sir_Rodney Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Sir Rodney, are you out there? Yes, I'm here, seeing the black RSL brings back memories, looks just like the one I had, even has bungie buddies. Great deal at $2500 Link to comment
Lmar Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 That's a beautiful bike as it sits right now. I wish I had the skills to do what you are about to do. Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 I found this under the right fairing. Yes, someone did the unthinkable and left her on her own with the motor running. The damage to the tank looks bad, but really is superficial. Other damage to a plug terminal strip; portions of the right side wiring harness, along with some melting of the upper dash will require some new parts along with some rewiring. The bike was repaired, if you can call it that—very sloppy repairs, but all can be corrected. The rest of the bike is in good shape so the heat/near fire is limited to the right side. And, again, the engine doesn’t show any signs damage in the slightest. I guess the 259 can take a licking and keep on ticking over. Here is what she looked like this afternoon. I’m going to start a restoration thread in the oil head section, so look over there if you’d like to follow along. Cheers! Oh, paint color--leaning toward a german pearl white with a black engine and swing arm. Leaning to the to the 5 spoke wheels. Link to comment
Lmar Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Getting right to it. Thanks, I will follow the restoration. Link to comment
swmckinley Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Gee I see in the pic you have already the most important tool out and in use, the hammer!! You da man. Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 You should have seen me using in on the rusty header clamp--it was hilarious. By the way it helps if you say bad words when you swing it. I am pretty sure that is a scientific fact. Link to comment
tallman Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 My favorite oilhead, had a '96 black and silver. I may know where a Corbin seat made for that model is located. The seat (I think it is the gunslinger) has a folding backrest for the pillion that gives a monoposte look when riding solo. It is a nice upgrade, IMO. Mine didn't surge unless I kept it in a narrow rpm range which was not where I rode the bike anyway. I vote for black with accent color. Link to comment
markgoodrich Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 My color suggestion, and two hilarious comments heard last night: 1. Pink, not piggy pink, a subtle pink, with copper accents, including the wheels, with copper seat to match. I'm not kidding. 2. Greg, at my house last night, looking at his hands, saying they really hurt. When asked why, explains he pulled the fuel line off without clamping it, gasoline went everywhere, he had a heater going in the garage, disaster narrowly averted. I'm thinking a reputation for being meticulous can, sometimes, be undeserved. 2. An old friend, who doesn't frequent this board, has five bikes, is a BMW maniac, to Greg: "I looked that bike over real carefully, for a parts bike," but he passed....this fellow has a couple restored early BMWs look like they just left the factory. Greg suddenly looked at his burning hands again.... I din't make any of this up. Link to comment
tallman Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Brain freeze the seat I had was the Rumble model. Solid folding backrest. This link shows pics of it folded and open. Link to comment
moshe_levy Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 VERY pretty bike. Congrats. I have an older oilhead, my wife's '96 R850R, and those early models are unique and sweet running machines! -MKL Link to comment
Limecreek Posted January 6, 2011 Author Share Posted January 6, 2011 I moved this to Oilheads. Link to comment
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