Romeo80 Update

Its all coming together now, polishing and powdercoat are all back in the workshop.  Quick visit to Cycleworks today to check on the paint; its looking good and will be ready next week.

ROMEO 80 - Break Down for Paint

Its been a long time coming but my 1982 R80 is now ready for breakdown for Paint, Powder, Polishing and Cleaning.  I suspect this will take about a month and then another month to put it back together again - so hopefully on the road by the end of August 2012.

1982 BMW R80 Bike no. 8

Been way to busy these last six months on other stuff to spend anytime on this bike -which has been going very slowly for sometime now, but hey summer is coming and it needs to get on the road.  So it will be leaving P&D with all its metal work done at the end of this month. The tank is looking really good, its been cut down and slimmed but still looks BMW.  There will be a new combined tail piece and electrical box, and a mini front mudguard.  We are keeping the original exhausts, but double walling them to give them some bulk and finishing off with polished 10" Supertrapp Race Mufflers.

The bike then comes back to Kent where it will be put back together using as much of the old R80 controls and bits as possible to keep costs down and keep it real - hopefully this will be about 2 months max - then off to paint and on the road for early June.

Design - I am going to have it painted Red but a darker shade than the orignal and it will be named ROMEO80  - this covers my Shakespeare theme and is the phonetic word for R -I am getting a design done for this by my friend, fellow rider and design guy Paul Leeson - here are some early drafts.

Romeo's Beemer VIII

2012 - another year  - another bike.  I am only doing this one bike this year, which is my 1982 BMW R80 which has been hanging around in bits for a year now.  The bike is currently at P&D in Horsham where we are sorting the frame and metal work out.  Details are gradually coming together, and its going to be a sporty looking bike although it wont be sporty in the context of modern sports bikes - still if I go fast no one can see me!

• Donor bike a 1982 refurbished BMW R80 bought on Ebay
• 23" wheels in BMX snowflake design using Avon rubber, hand built by Taylor Made Wheels
• Front forks and front brake from a Harley FXD as they were free and in my garage - rear is the existing shaft/drum.
• New hardtail frame built by Dave Batchelar at P&D
• Existing tank cut down to reduce bulk.
• New small front mudguard and an integral cafe racer style rear fender, which a custom seat to connect.
• The bars shown are for demonstration, but its going to have flatter drag style bars.
• Exhaust will be 1.5" stainless and a 2 into 1 finishing in a Supertrapp muffler on the left side
• Paint, lights and other details ....havent got a clue yet

BMW R80 Wheels

My new wheels are finished from Taylor Made wheels - they are 23" diameter and have been CNC'd to match the original spoke pattern of the original 1982 BMW Cast wheels - they are looking pretty damn sweet!
Now they can be added to my forks, the original engine and a hardtail frame built around them....

BMW Custom Bike No. 7 - the rear wheel

I know its not that exciting, but my rear wheel is nearly ready from Steve Taylor - and then I can really start to get the bike planned.

23"front wheel - front fender with number plate - HD FXD forks raked out to 35 degrees - hardtail frame - stretched R80 tank - drag bars - R80 Boxer twin engine with colour coded parts - sprung seat - 23" rear wheel - rear fender with leather tool box.

It will be cool.

BMW Custom Bike No. 7 - update

The BMW R80 is the big project for 2011 - not sure whether its going to be bike No.7 - or I might move it back to Bike No. 8 as my other project is a lot simpler!
Anyway the reason for the delay on this is that I have commissioned some new BMW spoke pattern 23" wheels from Taylormade Wheels, which have proved to be not so easy - particularly the rear which will have the original hub and brake mechanism.  Anyway the front is now done and here is a picture:

Romeo's Beemer - Bike No. 7 - update

Well we just pulled apart the marvellous 1982 BMW R80 and I am left with this very impressive chassis and engine - and a whole load of bits, which will end up on Ebay one day. The first decision I have made is to run this new bike with 23" Wheels front and back, with a 4.25" wide rear wheel and a 3.75" wide front wheel. I am going to get them CNC'd up by Taylor made wheels replicating the existing pattern from the BMW wheels, and keeping the large rear hub for the brake and shaft drive. Not sure about the forks yet - I have two sets sitting in my garage a 2" under set of springers and a a stock set from a new Harley. To keep the bike simple it will be a hardtail frame and I will be sketching away for a few weeks to get the lines how I want. Thats enough to be getting on with - except - I am running the working title of "Fortunes Fool"  - BMW Blue frame and white / grey paint.

BMW Custom Bike No. 7

One of the problems and delights about running a modest custom bike business, is that you always have to have an eye to the next project.  I have been after an old BMW for sometime now, and I was recently able to buy a 1982 R80 RT that has been completely refurbished on eBay.
It looks like this:

This is all because I bought this book called "The Art of the BMW" and I want it to have styling cues which will make it look more like this:

Or like this 1977 R100 which has been turned into a scrambler (thanks to Bike EXIF)   and of course the superb CAD bike 33 by Mark van der Kwaak. Needless to say I have my own ideas about this and  a real intention to use a whole load of bits and pieces clogging up my garage.