Blizzo's '86 BMW R80 G/S Dakar project

[BLIZZO]

So the last thing i need right now is another project, but this came up for far to good of a deal to pass up on so i jumped on it. Its just parked in my parents shed and will stay like this for a while until i save up some money to throw at it / get other projects out of the way / have spare time. But keen to start hoarding some parts soon anyway.

So as it is, its a 1986 BMW R80 G/S. Shes pretty rough, but runs mint. It was stolen and recovered and has a broken ignition and rattle can paint and has sat outside for a year or two and is pretty tatty. I went to the cop shop and verified the last registered owner and have a letter from him and the cops so hopefully revin shouldn't be too much drama. Does anyone have any experience revinning a modified bike? I love how its a GS as it has spoked wheels which i think is lush, im unsure if this is a genuine Paris Dakar model as they usually had a dirt bike type front guard and a single man seat with extra rack, this does however have a genuine Paris Dakar model 32l tank, under the paint it sill has the original decals which can be seen on the shitty facebook photo from the ad.

anyway here is bike-

At this stage i am totes unsure about which direction to go, at first a thought maybe restore to original adventure spec and do lush rides like this -

but then i thought nahhhhh cos its missing a few original things like the pack racks, ignition, hi rise exhaust and that just does't look so coooool.

At the moment im pretty sold on doing a scrambler build, but still road legal and comfy and complete enough so some awesome touring rides. Id like to keep stock airbox. At the moment im just unsure if ill keep the Paris Dakar tank (which is very large and may be hard to get the whole bike matching it when scrambler spec and actually look lush) or go down to a normal sized R80 tank. Id be pretty keen to keep the dakar colours with the white tank and orange seat.

here is some inspiration anyway, also, please tell me all of the things, i am new to these airhead thingys / never built a bike before

 

 

 

 

[tortron]

aww yeah

 

full round the world kit out plz

[BLIZZO]

so direction changed so this a bit, i have been pining an ADV bike for a while, and after talking to a few barry's about how rare a genuine R80 G/S Paris Dakar is im going to bring this thing back up to its adventure orientated globe trotting glory, with a few modern twists. The Frame will get some HPN spec bracing, the front end will be swapped for a DRZ400 front end, i may go to a repro PD single seat and probably lower the stock footpegs a bit to make it a bit more comfortable to ride standing up, and i plan to take this thing where coffee shop dwelling ADV fag barry's wouldn't usually go.

I have already picked up a nice stainless high exhaust for the bike, it goes up and then sits horizontal and goes back a bit further than what i think would look nice, so its gunna get chopped a bit so the muffler section is on about a 20 degree angle similar to the HPN rallye mufflers.

This is the DRZ parts bike i picked up, the forks are still conventional so have the "classic" look but are 49mm as opposed to the measley 32mm BMW forks, they also have much better springs and valving. They will be shortened by using a 75mm spacer inside, i will use a DRZ / RM wheel with the suzuki brake and caliper, just with an aftermarket bigger 320mm disc. The only problem with this swap is the triple trees have 15mm offset, compared to the massive 32mm of the BMW triples. I am looking out for some RM250/125 triples which have 24.5mm which is about perfect, because they are USD triples they will just need spacers in the fork hole to pack them out so they clamp down on the 49mm stanchions. Apparently it makes them handle soooooo much better, so looking forward to that.

At this stage im still just hoarding parts before i pull it down, need to get escort out of the shed which is going as i have realized its way too fucked an i CBF250 doing anything with it, then ill have some space to rip into this thing. looks like its going to be a fun winter project! cant wait to have it done and then smash out some awesome adventures with Action Waggy!!!!!!

[Threeonthetree]

I saw this pop up for sale and went on a Dakar googling spree. Choice score Jim, looking forward to seeing you chip away at it eh.

[kws]

Mint looking bike, look forward to seeing your progress

[nacnud]

Awesome! Would love an old G/S. Keen to follow this build 

[BLIZZO]

so after almost 4 years of owning this thing and doing nothing but moving it around between 4 different sheds its time I did something.

With the Africa Twin not far away from being completed (not actually starting the G/S until AT is done) it was time to get it home into the shed, so I went and dragged it back from my lockup where it was buried in dust.

Since turning myself into a bit of a adv barry and G/S foamer I have concluded that the only thing to do to this bike is restore it to as close to original as possible, which is made possible by companies like Sibenrock in germany that remake most things for them, like just about everything. This is a gen you whine G/S Paris Dakar, and from what i can figure out there is less than 6 of these in the country, they demand oodles of money overseas, and probably here too but there hasnt been one for sale in the 4 years ive owned this.

There is a few spendy bits to get, but stage 1 will be to get it back to a restored rolling frame, stage 2 will be refresh the engine and stage 3 all the OG bits and pieces to get it back to its former glory.

Gave the dust a quick blast off, seat was removed as the catch is broken and i didnt want it to take off into the stratoshpere.

Quickly whipped the tank off to asses the underside of tank and the frame. the frame is really tidy considering, a blast and powdercoat will make it like new. The tank has more rust on the bottom than id like, was a little flakey. These tanks are worth like 2000 euro alone so I aint getting another. Gave the rust a quick wire wheel and chucked some rust kill on it for now. id rather not have to patch it as these have a factory tank liner and this ones still tidy on the inside, so dont want to spoil that. I might get the exterior of the tank sandblasted when i do the frame, but will ask them to go easy on it.

And thats about it for now, will do a big parts order from the fatherland in the next couple of weeks and that can slow boat its way over here while I make the reigns cum on africa 

[BLIZZO]

So the africa twin got finished, XR250 finished, Z50 finished and its now just about 12 months since I last posted an update on this. 

It has been up hogging the bike stand for that time, which i'm getting sick of, so it's time for some action. Just dropped a couple of grand on parts on sibenrock in germany to get it to a restored rolling frame. some bigger ticket items like new fork stanchions and repro front brake rotor made a smallish purchase seem like a big one. Have already got some stainless spokes on hand and a big box of alloy bits ready to drop at the vapor blasters.

Over the next month i should get the wheels restored and continue to strip, tag and box all the bits down to a bare frame.

Currently having an internal fight in my head as to whether i powdercoat the frame or paint it. would prefer paint from an originality perspective and for touch ups, but nothing i've sprayed or had sprayed before seems to be as good as factory paint finishes. Any recommendations here?

[GregT]

I won't use powder on my frames. BUT I do have a very good outfit in ChCh who can do traditional baked enamel to a high standard.

Ring around the painters and industrial finishers in your area to see if anyone offers baked enamel.

[xsinclairx]

Same as Greg I wouldn’t do powder. It’s just not an original looking finish. 
 

[peteretep]

What’s the objection to powder coating? It’s really robust and looks great IMO

[tortron]

Gives all the edges a thicker rounder look.

[Transom]

Sometimes frames crack but the powdercoat doesn’t til frame failure 

[BLIZZO]

44 minutes ago, peteretep said:

What’s the objection to powder coating? It’s really robust and looks great IMO

A few things, I’ve done it a few times before I wouldn’t want it on this frame 

- it’s only well protective if there is zinc powder primer underneath, this makes it even more thick 

- it hides frame numbers

- on a bike I that’s not as special it would be fine, this thing is very rare and quite valuable now, so for originality paint is best. 

- powder is difficult to remove and any chips can get moisture under them and can’t be touched up as easily 

- powder doesn’t flex well, and these featherbed style frames are notorious for flexing 

- becuase powder is so thick it cracks when you torque nuts against it like cheap spray can paint can. 
 

they are the main points anyway. It’s also

just a bit of a bitch to blank off all the threads and any bits with a tight fit wind up with issues

[BLIZZO]

On 26/01/2022 at 15:38, GregT said:

I won't use powder on my frames. BUT I do have a very good outfit in ChCh who can do traditional baked enamel to a high standard.

Ring around the painters and industrial finishers in your area to see if anyone offers baked enamel.

Hey mate, so ive not had much luck up here finding anyone that does baked enamel, what is the name of the outfit you use in chch? 

[BLIZZO]

Well she's been a few years between haircuts with this old jigger. Finally decided a few months ago to get stuck into it so rolled the bike out of storage and up on to my motorcycle hoist. I figured the easiest thing to do would be break the restoration down into stages for a few reasons, first being getting the costs past the minister of war and finance but also to not burden myself with too much at once. I figured if i can work on "stage 1" which is get the bike back to a restored rolling frame wont take too much money and wont wind up with the thing in a million bits for ages and losing bits and pieces. 

 

I started stripping the bike down and making a list of things to order which quickly started adding up. Had a shopping spree on Siebenrock and got new fork stanchions, brake rotor, brake pads, spokes, headings, rubber driveshaft boot, fork seals and a few other bits and bobs, pretty much everything to get it back to a rolling frame. I'm currently tidying up the rims and have a big ole box of bits to drop to the vapor blasters.

Im pretty glad to be sorting this thing now as the frame is certainly pretty crusty, its all surface rust but wouldn't take much more to turn to a pitted mess. I'm still pretty sure that I wont powder coat the frame and will do a bit of research to see if i can find an outfit that does baked enamel, if not just a normal enamel out of a gun will probably be the go.

 

Engine out and on the bench, spot the missing bits here, i havn't removed anything other than the front cover. Bike ran fine but certainly wasn't going to have any working lights!

 

Wee bonus I found when pulling it apart, a cool old metal tyre pump inside the frame tube. Does anyone know if this is a genuine BMW pump or just some old bump someone has poked in there back in the day?

 

next task is to keep stripping the frame down, make any repairs needed, then blast and paint.

 

Engine will sit on the bench until the frame is back together then that will get pulled apart, blasted, some minor engine work and go back together. thanks stage 2 i guess.

 

Stage 3 will be the spendy part, paint, decals, seat recover, instrument repair, new rear shock, find a new ignition switch (didn't have one as it was stolen and recovered) and probably put a wedgetail electronic ignition kit in it. At least i have started now!

[tortron]

Pump part number 

Vehicle Manufacturer: BMW
Application: BMW Airhead, F Bike, G Bike Models
Make/Model: BMW F650, G650, R45, R50, R60, R65, R75, R80, R90, R100
Model Years: 1969 - 2015
Manufacturer #: 71 11 1 234 860

[GregT]

Only just seen your request for a baked enameller sorry. I use Industrial Painters 80 Buchan St Sydenham ChCh. Can reccommend. Powdercoaters have the ovens for baked enamel. Ask around the powdercoaters local to you to see if any will do it on the side.

My main reason for not using powder is that even with ISO9000 standard prep and prime, if you get water uderneath as can happen from a stone bruise etc, the steel will rust under the powder. Several times I've had a frame for repair and found a lot of powder flaking off rusted parts. Also as most of my frames are race bikes, ease of repair is a factor. If welding is required on a damaged powdercoated frame it's a case of strip it all off as you can't do spot repairs. Paint is easy powder ain't.

[BLIZZO]

Was yarning to a few old school homies about this at swapmeat. Ive had a bit of a poorly detailed with some loose photo spec build threat going on the advrider forum so ill do a bit of a copy and pastearoo to keep those 2 wheeled included folks on here in the loop.

 I was getting mucked around royally with a local vapor blasters so gave up on them and will be getting the lot done at Kapiti Vapour blasters. Michael Dobson from 2 cats garage in Raumati leant me the blanking plugs. Was meant to have it all done by now but my crash  slowed me down. I'm able to potter around with spanners now so back into the resto of this so i don't go stir crazy.

Disassembled the engine on the weekend and pretty happy that everything looks really good. Was burning a fair bit of oil on the RH cyl so a refresh is certainly required. I just need to get MD to pop the main bearing carrier off and i can pull the crank out, then plug everything up and drop it to the blasters.

I've had a great big box of parts delivered from siebenrock so keen as mustard to get stuck right into the old girl now.

there has been a fair bit of time and money chucked at the G/S Restoration Lately. I stripped most of the engine down then cropped the block, gearbox and final drive off at MD's at Two Cats Garage. Michael stripped everything completely apart for me and leant me his set of blanking plugs to use getting everything vapour blasted.
Once stripped i took it home and plugged it all up.

Now it the block was bunged up more than me after 3 weeks on morphine I dropped everything off to Nick Sparrow at Kapiti Vapour blasting. I didnt know there is so much that goes into vapour blasting but to do it right there is a lot, and Nick knows his stuff! he even blasted the plastic fenders back to bare plastic, it leaves a perfect finish for painting.

First thing I did after getting everything back was shuck the already stripped carbs into the ultrasonic cleaner then rebuild them with all new internals. I had the steel re zinc plated, this part of restorations is so satisfying.

With all the bits back from vapour blasting, the next thing on the to do list was to paint the black engine accents. A process i've used a few times before, I opted to use Gloss Black Cerakote H series. I will Cerakote the brake caliper, fork legs, engine accent, swing arm / torque tube, handle bars and a few other bits and pieces. I used the gloss black color. It takes a fair bit more prep and a big enough oven to bake it in, but it really is good stuff, harder the powdercoat but thinner than paint, the best of both worlds.

Here are the fork lowers and engine bits:

Brake Caliper being rebuilt:

 

Forks rebuild with new stanchions, seals and bushes inside. I have some new progressive springs for these also.

After stripping all the frame and doing some repair work on the centre stand, engine guards and rear rack it was off to the sand blaster

Then home soon after for a coat of 2k epoxy primer

Restoring the rims was something i had put off for a while. I got on aliexpress and brought a series of sanding buffs for the bench grinder which made things easier, but i ended up rubbing both of my thumbs to bleeding states with wet and dry sand paper anyway. That and a butt tonne of time on the polishing wheels and polish dremel and they were looking alright. Photo below here is when the rear was done with the rough cut, and the front has been sanded very roughly.

I got the rims all sorted and then dropped them off to Craig at Hamco Industries, a local wheel wright here in Rongotea. It ended up costing a bit even with supplying the spokes as he found the front rim was pretty tweaked from some excessive lever use in the past and it wasn't evident until he started truing it, he got that all repaired for me and the rear took a bit of work as he had to make a wee jig to hold the rear riff in his truing stand. I've used Craig a few times now and he's great, i dont have to get angry at spokes. Here is the wheels after ii mounted some new TKC80s (using a rubber mallet) and put the new front brake disc on.

  

 

next on the list while i wait for the painter for the frame is to prep the fenders and the fuel tank. Luckily the tank is in pretty good condition, one tiny dent and a few rust patches that were forming under the crappy part of the paint. This bike was stolen and recovered. The theifs must have taken to half the tank with a sander before spray painting it, this resulted in a lot of surface rust under the matte black paint. A good sand back, rust treatment and epoxy primer will sort that.
The "Good side":

After a few rounds of paint stripping, a bit more to go yet, mostly on the seams:

I'm thinking for the plastic fenders ill spray them with some plastic primer first them biff some epoxy primer on that. possibly some high build after than to get a nice surface and then the 2k top coat.

[BLIZZO]

 

Got the tank all fully stripped for this, the DA sanded. Its in surprisingly good condition, had one tiny little dent and a couple of potted rust spots underneath. These tanks had a rubber red liner product on the inside from new which is still all intact so the inside is mint. I popped it in a bead blasting cabinet and blasted the couple of rust spots underneath and then brushed them with a deoxidiser. 

I then painted my plastic fenders with a plastic primer then hit them and the tank with some expoxy primer. I bogged the one tiny wee dent and the couple of rust pits then hit it with some more expoxy primer followed by a healthy dose of primer filler.

Followed that up with some guide coat so when well dry i can do the messy job of blocking it out all nicely before ill get @EmmyWest to hit it with some 2k alpinewiess white.