Finished!

Finally, the completed bike! After completing the rebuild, I added a set of Chase Harper saddlebags and some other extra bits. This is a nice studio shot a friend of mine did of the completed project.

Almost Finished?

With the new Corbin seat in place, I'm only waiting for a new headlamp rubber gasket and I'll be able to finally assemble the headlight.

Then, I'll go through the whole bike one more time to recheck torque settings, adjust cables, and make sure there isn't anything I've forgotten.

Work In Progress

Haven't had an overall shot of the work in progress for a while, so here it is. I've got the handlebars and controls mostly back on, and the big task at this point is installing all new cables. I put the tank in place to make sure all the wiring and cables avoid hitting spots they shouldn't.

Also at this point, the carbs are back in place, since I'm done adjusting the top end (except for a teeny problem on the right side I'll discuss later). Back to work!

Restriping Chrome Panels

The black stripes on the chrome battery covers and the fuel tank panels badly needed repainting. I wiped the panels clean, and scraped off any loose bits of old paint. Then, I carefully masked off the areas I didn't want to paint with masking tape, even curving the corners to match the original paint job. I used a large sheet of paper to make a window that covered the remainder of the panel.

I used a matte finish trim black, available at most auto parts stores. It's an aerosol product, and I used four or five coats, letting the paint dry between coats. After I removed the masking, I touched up a few small areas the paint missed by spraying some paint in a jar and brushing it on with a touch-up brush.

Gearbox Reattached

Here's a view of the gearbox back in the frame. Notice that I wrapped parts of the frame with towels to prevent scratching. Even though it's not that difficult to put the gearbox back into the frame, you will scratch it if you're not careful. Also, make sure you put it in from the left side of the motorcycle.

Center Stand Springs 2

The right hand side shackle is smaller and only has the one hole for mounting the right center stand spring.

The most important thing is to make sure the springs attach to the underside of the posts on the center stand, as you can see in the lower left of the photo. If you attach the spring over the top of this post, the spring will not retract properly when the bike is off the stand.

Center Stand Springs 1

Now that I have the engine back in the frame, I've attached the center stand springs. The front engine mount bolt has a shackle on either side separating the engine from the frame. Shown here is the left side shackle, which has holes for both the side stand (below) and center stand springs. My original side stand is shot, so I won't be reinstalling that. However, the shackle gets installed like before since it's also used for holding the center stand spring.

The right hand side shackle is smaller and only has the top hole for the center stand spring.

Engine Back In the Frame

Mounting the front tire back on finally gave the bike more stability again. And since I had done a preliminary cleaning of the engine block, I decided to put the engine back onto the bike at this point. Unless you're really going to tear into the engine, it's just as easy if not easier to get at any necessary parts with the engine in the frame. For now, I just lifted it back into position (sounds easy, huh?) and slipped the two engine mount bolts through the frame.

Front Fork Reinstalled!

Here's the front fork assembly reinstalled into the frame, along with the headlamp bucket. The fork springs are sticking out of the tubes until I place the front tire and fender mount bracket on and am ready to put in the new fork oil.

New parts to note here: polished top fork nut (31 42 1 230 478); rubber front tank support (16 11 1 230 031); upper (31 42 1 230 696) and lower (31 42 2 000 385) rubber headlamp bracket gaskets; chrome turn signal brackets (31 42 1 233 941) and fork boot clamps (07 12 9 952 121). The fork boots themselves were in great shape, just needed a little cleaning.

Steering Head Bearings

Time to reinstall the front fork assembly into the frame. I read a bunch of information regarding this procedure. The important thing (besides the obvious prep cleaning of parts) is to use the proper grease for the top and bottom bearings and the bearing races inside the frame. You need to use a grease that doesn't contain moly, such as Chevron NLG2 Super Duty (this product spec came from Snowbum's article). Personally, I went to my local auto parts store and found their generic brand (Carquest Extreme Pressure Premium Grease), which can be used where any NLG grease is specified. This grease is red in color, just like Chevron's.

With the bearings and races packed with new grease, put the pieces together and you're good to go. Follow your manual for the instructions and torque settings and refer to your disassembly photos if you're not sure where something goes!

Center Stand

After powder coating the frame, the first thing I did was attach the center stand. The old one was in bad shape, so I decided to buy a new /5 stand from Hucky's (46 52 1 230 201). The old bushings did not fit loosely in the holes on the new stand, no doubt because of the powder coating. I used a rounded file to file down the powder coating on the stand and that did the trick. The bushings should be a little loose and not snug in the holes. I added a little moly grease to the bushings as I installed them. I also used a little Blue Loctite on the threads to make sure the nuts won't come loose.

I also replaced the rubber bumper (46 52 1 231 815) with a new one.

Paint and Pinstriping

As the frame and other welded parts were being powder coated, I had sent the remaining metal and fiberglass components to a body shop for painting. Fitzgerald Body Shop (920.337.2222), also in Green Bay, had done some work for Nick's, our local BMW dealer, so they were familiar with these bikes. They handled not only the painting, but also did a beautiful job on the hand pinstriping, as you can see on the fenders.

The parts I had painted included the front and rear fenders, gas tank, headlamp bucket and headlamp bucket brackets. I had the body shop leave the pieces unbuffed for a higher shine.

Powder Coated Frame!

The black powder coated parts look fantastic. The powder coating shop I used is Spence Industries in Green Bay, WI (920.662.0720). If you're in this neck of the woods, I'd highly recommend them. They also topped off the powder coating with a high gloss protective coat. Thanks to Nick's BMW for the tip on Spence Industries. Now the reassembly can begin!

Ready for Powder Coating

After dismantling the bike, I decided to have the frame, sub-frame, swing arm, battery brackets and license plate bracket powder coated. I also had a pair of vintage Comet Craven panniers I wanted to fit on the bike. Since the saddle bag carrier was already black, I included it with the other powder coating candidates.

I Fought the Lock and the Lock Won

The fork lock is one of several items you'll need to remove from the frame before it can be powder coated. This is what mine looked like before I attempted to remove it...pretty harmless, huh? The problem, of course, is that I didn't have the key. If you're in the same boat, do yourself a big favor and read Duane Ausherman's article on fork steering lock removal. I didn't know about this article until it was too late, and I'm too ashamed to post the photos of what the lock looked like two days and three drill bits later. It wasn't pretty.

Electrical Harness Straps

Important to note or photograph during disassembly are all the locations that electrical harnesses (as well as any other cables, etc.) are strapped to the chassis. Remember, there's a reason they're strapped where they are!

Front Stud and Pushrod Seals

Like the rear engine stud, the front stud on my bike also has a dual function. It is the mounting point for two of the crash bar clamps, as you can see in the lower left of the photo.

As I was disassembling the bike, I also noticed another problem...the two leaking pushrod tube seals above. An inspection showed the same problem on the other side. That's what happens with seals that are almost 40 years old!

Rear Engine Mount Stud

There are two engine mount studs holding the engine in the frame. The longer of the two is the rear stud, the end of which is also the mounting point for the driver's footpegs and exhaust clamps.