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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: Speedo work
« Last post by Tiedie on September 07, 2026, 01:48:04 PM »
Ok so I sent Speedometer out for repair they got it on a Friday Augest 28 and was repaired on Tuesday the Sept. 1st. Got it on Sept. 5th.
While I waited on it I did some/lot of  research about the bouncy Tachometer. Since most of our bikes are older and they recieve a dirty or unstable electrical signal form the ignition coil.
So I started with the black ground wire at the coil that goes to the Tach and cut and spliced in with solder and shrink wrap one 10k Ohm resister in that. IF the bounce is reduced we will see, if not then I'll be replacing that 10k ohm with a 47k ohm resitsor.
Then I pulled the ICU module off and cleaned the contacts, while that was off I separated it from its mounting bracket and cleaned with alcohol wipes and reapplied new Heat Sink to it and reinstalled everything.
Then I replaced the OEM (I think) plug wires and caps with new 5k Ohm resistor plug caps. Coil was black and no cracks.
Relocated the Battery Negative cable with a 21 inch 4 Gauge from Battery cables usa one end with a 6m lug and the other end 12m lug and ran it to the right side motor mount /header hanger bolt. Nice and neat with a solid ground.
While I was there removing the negative cable from the transmission breather bolt I replaced the Speedometer cable and put in another washer onto the breather to act as a battery cable lug. I took it on a 4 mile trip and things looked good. Tomorrow I ride to work and see how everythig does.
Ride safe!
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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: center stand
« Last post by Happy Eeyore on September 07, 2026, 11:00:41 AM »
I have the stand off and the stops show no real wear.  It is not a problem of being too far over center.  It is that the stand seems to me to be too tall and that makes it possible to use only if I almost pick up the back of the bike clear of the ground and I do not do that kind of max dead lift anymore.  I can get it there but the back does not like it.  I am thinking of cutting the stand   at the beginning of the curve just below the cross member support and cutting out an inch and rewelding the curve back on . Has anyone done something like this before? 
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Totally Off-Topic Discussions, Rants, Tire & Oil Threads, Etc. / Re: Flying pests!
« Last post by dogshome on September 05, 2026, 12:48:12 PM »
Not as dangerous, but thousands of them. White fly I think. I've been in the depths of darkest Lincolnshire. Wainfleet all Saints. Sea monsters and pirate treasure if you go any further. Oh, and a huge windfarm and a funny fat bloke with wellies as the local mascot in Skegness.
 
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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: Dashboard pinout R65 (20kw) 1991
« Last post by Bob_Roller on September 04, 2026, 05:23:43 PM »
Check the wiring for the oil pressure and transmission neutral light, left side of the engine . All of my R65's had brittle wiring, missing wire insulation .
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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: Dashboard pinout R65 (20kw) 1991
« Last post by UpstateRelic on September 04, 2026, 05:04:43 PM »
Well, now I got around to mount the dash, only the OIL warning is not working now. It's not coming on with the key in running position.

To answer your question, the actual indicator lights were the issue.
Oil, turn, and generator.

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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: Dashboard pinout R65 (20kw) 1991
« Last post by Bob_Roller on September 04, 2026, 01:12:30 PM »
What lights did you have issues with in the indicators ?
Internal lighting or the actual indicator warning advisory lights ??
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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Dashboard pinout R65 (20kw) 1991
« Last post by UpstateRelic on September 04, 2026, 06:26:10 AM »
Hi all,

Just working merrily on putting my R65 back in the road, and today's subject is: dashboard connections.
I'll leave my findings here, in case someone will need this further down the line.

The main issue, lights not working in the dash.
Type: The 1991 R65 is part of the 1985 - 1993 line of BMW motorcycles. My dash loos like this:


Lights, from top to bottom: Turn Signal (3w), Oil (1,2W - 2W), Gen (3w), Neutral (1,2W - 2W) and High Beam - Fernlicht (1,2W - 2W)

Here is the schematics, viewed from the back of the instrument panel, not numbered, as I don't want to wrongfully inform anyone...
Will add more info as needed...

The bottom line, after a lot of scrubbing with emery cloth (or fine sandpaper) and cleaning the contacts, plus changing a couple of bulbs, it works! (on the work bench :) )
 


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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: center stand
« Last post by Barry on September 03, 2026, 10:02:21 AM »
In my garage I have a 1" thick piece of wood on the floor.  With the front wheel rolled on to that it makes the stand real easy to deploy.  Of course that's not available elsewhere but when I used the bike every day it was welcome when I got home from work.

The stand tubes will eventually wear holes through the bottom curved section. To pre-empt that, while the tips were been welded up thin strips of stainless steel were bent to shape and welded onto the wearing section. After dressing the welds to blend in you can't tell they are there.

This is an example of a badly worn stand that goes way over centre compared the the other pic above.


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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: center stand
« Last post by dogshome on September 03, 2026, 08:53:37 AM »
The ground being level is a must. I have a sloped drive with a bit of a hump near the garage door. No way I can deploy it there. I find pulling the nose up and applying the brake, then a bit of a bounce and haul on the handle helps.

My stand has little wear on it and doesn't go way over centre. Getting it on the centre stand is not 'effortless', not even 'easy' though. I do have a heavy RT fairing. Getting it off the stand is easy though.

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BMW Technical Q&A, Primarily R65 / Re: center stand
« Last post by Barry on September 03, 2026, 02:09:17 AM »
Yours may be different if you have non standard tyre sizes or lower suspension but the common problem with the centre stand is that due to wear on the contact faces with the frame stops, the stand goes too far over centre.  Building up the tips of the stand with weld will transform the ease of use in deploying the stand. 

To illustrate the problem you need to fill this gap between the stand tips and the frame stops and while your at it thicken the tips at the same time to widen the contact area. when your done the angle the stand should be nearer vertical than it was before. 3rd pic shows the built up and thickened tips.  Best thing I ever did to my airhead but be prepared for some trial and error to get it right and a lot of work with an angle grinder.  If the stand is too vertical then you lose stability, if it goes too far over centre then it's extremely stable but a pig to deploy. In my opinion BMW went a bit too far towards stability even when new. Then as the stand tips are simply flattened tube the they wear rapidly. Do it right and you will have a stand better than how it left the factory.

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