"New" BMW R65 owner....

[quackster]

Thanks NC Steve.  I didn't know how few were imported when I picked these up.  I took some pictures yesterday (finally!) and may be able to get them posted tonight.  I'm heading out right now to do some shooting with my Son.  A quick update.... I pulled a few more damaged parts off the white bike yesterday, and determined that the headlight assembly was OK with the exception of the chrome ring on the front.  Can a person find one of those used?  The only sad part was that I was finally able to get the gas cap off and the inside of the tank is rust, rust, and more rust.  Can they be cleaned or is this a "must replace" item?  Also found one bad throttle cable (left side) etc.  More to follow... again thanks for everyones comments so far.

[Justin B.]

If there is no rust-through the tank can usually be cleaned and re-lined.  There are several kits available with probably the POR-15 kit at the top of the preference list.  Although not required by the POR-15 you can usually completely de-rust the inside of the tank with Muriatic acid.

The chrome ring is a relatively scarce item but they do pop up from time-to-time on e-Bay.  Or, you could straighten yours, smooth it with filler, and paint it!

Cables are reletively cheap from sources such as Moto-Bins and Chicago BMW...

[quackster]

Well I read the thread about posting pictures, and I tried to comply but couldn't get the file to attach to this post, so I posted it in the Photo Gallery Section on Coppermine.  Let me know what you think of it.  I'll add a couple of more pictures of "Black Beauty" before I log out.  I'll probably be posting technical questions in the correct part of the forum from now on, so stay tuned......

[Altritter]

From bigduck 1: << I'm in central Virginia, about 1/2 way between Richmond and Charlottesville off I-64.  Any suggestions as to parts and service would be appreciated. Thanks! >>

Welcome! Perhaps I can help with your service question. In Charlottesville there's a guy named Anton Largiader, who is a favorite of many of the Washington area BMW riders, particularly for major work. I've heard a lot of good things about him, though I haven't used him myself. He advertises in the BMWBMW (BMW Bikers of Metropolitan Washington) monthly magazine. (Check bmwbmw.org for a pdf copy of their magazine.)

Anton advertises that he works on "classic twins (1970 and later)", K bikes and oilheads, and offers roadside rescue service.

His contact data: anton@largiader.com. (For security reasons, I suggest you email him and ask him for his phone numbers.)

I'm sure there's a BMW dealer in Richmond, but I don't know who or where. I know there's one  (Morton's), south side of Fredericksburg on Rt. 1. (Closest reference point is I-95 Exit 126.) Don't know if Morton's cares to work on old airheads. Worth a try because their service department has a pretty good reputation. (From Gum Spring, it might be a fun ride taking the diagonal rout over the twisties to Morton's.) Hammersley in Lynchburg does a big internet parts business.

Hope to see you around. I hope to make a run down Rt 15 to, and beyond, Palmyra one of these weekends.

John

[Yikes]

Sorry to report that there is no BMW motorcycle dealer in Richmond.  (They would have mada a lot of money off of me.)  I am still too much of a novice to know any good mechanics to recommend,  but if I were in Gum Spring, I'd be tempted to give Anton a try as he seems to be pretty well regarded and is close to you.

Over the past couople of years I've had my bike, I've had pretty good luck repacing faulty parts with used ones I've snagged on Ebay - starter switch, muffler, left and right heads (to fix a stuck valve), speedo, starter relay, bean can.  Between the Clymer and Haynes manuals, the Airheads site and of course the Disorganized r65 Forum, there's no lack of information to learn what the cause of a problem is and the best way to go about fixing it.

I'll be looking for you on the road! [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[Justin B.]

Anton is a regular poster on IBMWRs digest as well so he is quite helpful even when he ain't makin' a dime...

[quackster]

Yikes and Justin - thanks for the information on Anton.  I had stumbled on his website when researching the purchase of the two R65s.  I think that for the first check-out on "Black Beauty" I'll run her up to Mortons in Fredericksburg.  After that, I'll probably check out Anton in Charlottesville for the white R65.  Neither one is licensed right now, so I'm using my son's pickup truck as a "ferry" for now.  I'll let you know how "Black Beauty" does on her check-up.  I have an appointment for next week.  Wish me luck!  Check out the pictures in the Photo Gallery.  I'd like some feedback.  Thanks.

[Yikes]

Just looked at your pics and WOW!  Great looking pair of Monos you got there.  They look really clean.  The black one is set up nice with the luggage, crash bars and windshield.  Somehow, the seat on the black bike looks a bit lowered to me.  Maybe it'd just the light in the picture.  Can't really see the fairing on the white one.

Aside from any crash damage, the white bike looks to be in pretty good shape too.  And the black bike probably won't need all that much once you get it cleaned up and tuned.  You are not that far away from having two nice r65's!  One black, one white. Very cool! I'm really beginning to understand that you need two bikes, so you can have one running while you work on the other one.  

Be interested to hear what Morton's has to say.

John M

[Justin B.]

Looks right smart for a "barn-find".  All of my "find" should have been left where I found them...    What's the car?

[quackster]

Thanks Yikes.  The faring on the white one is definitely an "S" faring.  I've already pulled it off the bike which is why you can't see it on the picture and hopefully I'll find one to replace it.  The instruments are both OK so I'll just need the faring and the attached windshield.  I hope there's one out there somewhere....  And yes the seat is a bit low on the black bike.  It was ridden by a fairly short woman - I don't think she was much over 5 feet tall if that!  I think I will eventually give it to my daughter-in-law, but if I keep it and ride it for a while, I may have to replace the seat to bring it up a little.  There weren't any alterations on the frame that I can see, so it's probably just the seat. Maybe I can just swap the seat out with the white one.  The seat on the white R65 is a "Corbin" which I presume is an after market seat, but I haven't looked for any information on them yet.  I will leave the Black R65 at Morton's for a few days and let you know what they say when I get it back.  Did I tell you that they both are only about 50 serial numbers apart on the assembly line?  The white one also has the shorter handle bars and heated grips probably both options or possibly after-market upgrades.

Justin, regarding the car..... it's also a bit of a classic.  It's a 1974 Saab Sonnet III, another "barn find" from a few years ago.  I found it on a farm in Iowa, mechanically in great shape, original interior, with about 35K miles on it.  I have a little work to do on it, the starter needs replacing and I have a leak in the carb, so a rebuild is in order or a replacement (I have a spare).  Saab only made about 10K of this model between 1970 and 1974, this is one of the last ones made (within the last 100 or so), and it will eventually be in a few car shows.  I'll take a picture or two and add them to the photo gallery over the weekend just for fun.

[quackster]

A quick update... the Black R65 is at Morton's in Fredericksburg for a complete service, state inspection, etc.  Hope to hear something about it either tomorrow or Wednesday.  A question on the "S" faring that was on the White R65.... is it specific to the R65 or was this common on other BMWs of that time frame?  The gauges are still good, and I'd like to try to find a used "S" faring for that bike.  Any suggestions?

And by the way, will have a pic on the car posted  for you shortly, Justin.  Sorry for the delay....

[Justin B.]

"S" fairings were factory installed on "S" models of the 900 and 1000 cc bikes such as R90S and R100S.  They are often copied and people have stuck them on just about everything with two wheels!  But, they were never a factory option on any R65 AFAIK.

[quackster]

Thanks, Justin.  Good to know about the "S" farings.  I may just settle for a stock windshield, which it seems is what I have on the Black S.  Nothing new yet from Mortons.  They are doing a full service, and the only thing that they found that might be worrysome is some water in the transmission fluid.  I'm having it drained and replaced, along with replacing a couple of main bearings, which might be over-cautions, but then my daughter-in-law will be riding this bike as well, and it might end up to be hers eventually, and I want it in tip-top shape.  I'm not as concerned about the white R65.  If it's restorable, I'm going to work on it at home in my spare time. Will advise once I pick the black R65 up from Mortons....