In memory of Jim Adams - an R60/5 build diary

[krazy]

Great read! Gives me the motivation to restore my R75/5! Subscribed!

[backdrifter]

Thanks for all of the comments! As is typical, I let myself get derailed. You may remember that a local shop was going to order some spokes for me and lace up the freshly powder coated rims and hubs. They estimated this would take 2 weeks. That was in May. I finally picked everything up (unassembled - no change from when I dropped them off!) about a month ago. I just now placed what I am hoping will be my last large-scale parts order. It included spokes, wheel bearings, swingarm pivot nuts (I stripped one of mine), among many other odds and ends.

So no worthwhile updates now, but look for changes and progress in the near future.

[KLRUSERIOUS?]

Originally Posted by backdrifter

Thanks for all of the comments! As is typical, I let myself get derailed. You may remember that a local shop was going to order some spokes for me and lace up the freshly powder coated rims and hubs. They estimated this would take 2 weeks. That was in May. I finally picked everything up (unassembled - no change from when I dropped them off!) about a month ago. I just now placed what I am hoping will be my last large-scale parts order. It included spokes, wheel bearings, swingarm pivot nuts (I stripped one of mine), among many other odds and ends.

So no worthwhile updates now, but look for changes and progress in the near future.

Sweeeeeeet!

[backdrifter]

Hi KLRUSERIOUS? !

Good to hear from you again, friend!

[assquatch20]

Fantastic thread. I just brought a /5 home and hope to do something this thorough someday, with some personal touches.

[chasbmw]

It looks really good.

Just a comment on the final drive, when you finally tighten it down onto the swinging arm, make sure that the rear axel is in place, this makes sure that everything is lined up correctly.

The splines on the drive shaft don't need greasing, the oil in the swinging arm keeps everything lubricated.

Charles

[backdrifter]

Thanks Charles - I'll take all of the advice and suggestions that I can get!

I realized after someone else pointed it out that I was mistakenly thinking the driveshaft splines were the final drive splines. No harm, no foul. I have the right grease now and will lube up the final drive splines when I get to that point.

Thanks again for the help - I learn more every day!

[KLRUSERIOUS?]

Originally Posted by backdrifter

Hi KLRUSERIOUS? !

Good to hear from you again, friend!

You too big guy!

Here is what I have been up to: http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=833761

Can't wait for your update :)

Take it easy

[backdrifter]

Cool experiment, I'll be following it! Any more progress with your RZ350? I love those bikes!

[KLRUSERIOUS?]

Originally Posted by backdrifter

Cool experiment, I'll be following it! Any more progress with your RZ350? I love those bikes!

Hey bud, I have been shipped off to New York with work so I haven't been able to do any work on my LED experiment or my RZ's....BUT.....I am almost done with the one RZ. Got my progressive forks. I just have to paint the fork lowers and then mount them back up. All in all about a 5 hour job including the paint and whatnot but finding time has been hard.

I will post some pics hopefully once I get back. Hope you are well brother!

[backdrifter]

I got what I'm hoping will be the last required package from BMW Hucky yesterday. In it were some shiny stainless spokes. I found myself with a free hour this morning, so I figured I'd try lacing the rims up. Last time I did this was on my KTM 550 project, and for whatever reason, I found it really frustrating. If I remember correctly, there seemed to be more than one lacing pattern possible with the KTM rims, and after I had nearly completed one, I figured out that I had done it wrong.

The BMW, on the other hand, was cake. There was no question - this spoke goes in this hole on the rim, period. It was almost like my 3 year old daughter's "square peg in the square hole" puzzle games, and half an hour later I had loosely laced both wheels. Now that I know how easy this was, it makes me furious that THIS is the step that tripped me up since May! Oh well, time to move forward, not gripe about what I should've done in the past.

I'll still take the wheels to a shop to be trued, and while they're there, I'll focus on rebuilding the forks and getting the frame ready to be a true roller again. Then onto the finishing touches and buttoning up of the engine. I'm hoping things go much more quickly now....

Front:








Rear:

[WhisperTheWind]

Keep it up. You have me hanging on every post now.

WTW.

[KLRUSERIOUS?]

That is hot stuff!!

[53dodgekustom]

Looking good man. Were gonna need to go for a ride when you get it on the road.

[backdrifter]

Thanks for all the kind words!

53dodgekustom - I will definitely be up for a ride when I get this thing on the road again!

I rebuilt the forks today. I had originally planned to wait on this and get the bike up and running first, but later thought better of it and decided to go ahead and do it while the bike was apart. Like so many other things that I almost skipped out of either laziness, or dread of doing the work it A) was much needed and well worth it, and B) was much easier than I had anticipated.

Getting started:





Fork rebuild kit from BMW Hucky:





I think it's funny how much of my time has been spent modifying tools to work with the BMW. Like this 13mm socket that I had to grind flat spots on so I could put a 17mm wrench on in order to remove the bottom nut of the forks (please disregard the girlie bandage - I cut myself pretty good right away, and the only bandages I could find were my 3 year old daughter's!):



Another thing I've spent a lot of time doing is trying to get by without a tool that I don't have, only to give up and go to the store and buy the damn tool that I should've had in the first place. This time it was the snapring pliers that I needed to remove the circlip in the bottom of the fork. I should know better, but I still killed half an hour trying to do it the wrong way before I broke down and bought the tool I needed.





The first thing to drop out was a hardly recognizable rubber bump-stop bushing. Yeah, I'd say it was time to rebuild the forks!



Yes, definitely time:





The damper rod fully disassembled:





Installing new wiper rings reminded me a lot of replacing the piston rings:



New crush ring and rubber bump stop (which can't be seen). I was pretty impressed by how light the aluminum fork bottom is.



New oil seal:



Time for reassembly:



Nasty old parts that I removed:



And DONE!!!



I replaced all the washers, the springs, the rubber bushings, the crush washer on the bottom of the forks, and the fork seals. All in all, it took me about 2 hours, which included running to the store to get the snapring pliers. The first fork took me about an hour as I figured it all out, the second one took me about 25 minutes. A lot of time was spent washing each individual small part in soap and water with a toothbrush, and cleaning out the inside of the tubes. All in all though, pretty easy.

It looks the same as when I started, but I feel MUCH better now!