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K75S DIY painting (& polished tank) thread

CATZ lights

Sorry for the tardy reply but I don't visit this forum quite as much as I used to (no particular reason, just busy with other things lately).

Yes, I am still quite happy with the CATZ XLO fogs as they serve their intended purpose (conspicuity) very well. I wholeheartedly recommend them!:thumb
 
But how well does the amber light illuminate at night? I'm more interested in night performance and day visibility.

I got the non amber by mistake on EBay and am very impressed with the night time performance. I also ride with the guy who "discovered" these lights and smithduck who both said they were also very noticeable during the day. Kinda a bright light blue color. No, I haven't been pulled over by the cops. Not that blue.:nono
 
Although I ride very little at night I find the yellow CATZ OK but not great for visibilty compared to white aux lights (i.e. Hella FF50s which I also have with my 100w Bosch high beam)---unless you're riding in mist or fog---then they serve you well. In normal nighttime use the strong yellow illumination is a bit disconcerting to my eyes and seems less than ideal for general illumination of the road ahead.

My main concern is day conspicuity so I run the yellow lights all the time with my 90w low beam. (I also have the Eastern Beaver headlight relay set up with my Bosch headlamp which is great).

Hope this helps!

Best regards, Jeff NH7RO
 
Fuel quick disconnects

I have found that adding a set of quick disconnects to the fuel system is well worth the expense, and since your disassembled now is the time to do it. It eliminates any worries about fuel pressure relief and makes getting the tank off in all circumstances a simple and quick task. There have been a few situations on the roadside where I needed to get the tank off, and the quick disconnects made it so simple to get to the electronics underneath. So, for what it's worth, give that a thought.
Is there room on the short rubber hoses for quick disconnects? Any pictures would be appreciated.
 
Quick disconnects

Just noticed your question, Ghyber; Sorry for the delay!


I don't have quick-disconnects installed yeat but they are available from BeemerBoneyard and other sources.

Eventually I will install some but there's too many other priorities for me these days---we're moving from Hawaii to New Mexico in just a few more days and have a lot to do. Once we get settled I may do more work on the bike which has deteriorated a tad being in the damp and cold rain forest almost four years.

At least I'll be able to say "Adios rust and corrosion for good!" now!":whistle
 
Latest upgrades and work done on Berlina

In keeping with my basic idea of posting all the modifications and or upgrades done on my bike since I originally started the renovation about three years ago, here's the latest:

On August 6th the bike became difficult to start which led me to discover loose battery connections. A few days later the battery started to die so I replaced my Hawaiian Wal-Mart el cheapo with a heftier Westco 12v30 25ah job. Then I realized the new battery didn't take care of the ABS flashing lights that I had been experiencing after multiple attempts to reset the system---so I went to Radio Shack and bought an LED (part number 276-011) for $2.59. This little LED immediately told me via 6 brief repeating flashes that my ABS relay was faulty. Thank goodness it wasn't the ABS brain!

I lucked out and bought a used but working relay from Drake (Duck on ADV) in Seattle which was promptly installed while I was doing the work described in the next paragraph (now my ABS system is operating perfectly again and my thanks go out to Ted for the heads-up about the relay available from Drake).

Around the 9th of September I replaced all external fuel lines, fuel pressure regulator vacuum hose, the two fuel injector nipple caps and crankcase breather hose. Also replaced the fuel filter twice within a month after using the same filter installed three years ago due to the chirping noise that cropped up in recent months. This chirping was first noticed about 6-8 months ago in sea-level Hawaii where it is usually hot and humid. The problem returned after moving to Albuquerque this spring and was especially noticeable on hot days while riding in traffic.

As some of you may have read in my other recent threads my tank vent was blocked and causing quite this noisy chirping/screeching sound to emanate from the fuel pump's pressure release mechanism (probable and most likely scenario). After many attempts to clear the vent with different kinds of wire, weed whacker line (great idea from Don) and compressed air, whatever was blocking the vent was dislodged and all is now well again.

Both the crankcase breather (Z-shaped) hose and one of the FI rubber nipple caps were cracked upon close examination and the fuel return hose was not rated for fuel injection systems (EGADS!) to further compound things. All the external hoses were old and suspect hence my decision to replace them with brand new OEM ones.

Good call as now the bike runs better than when I bought it four years ago (October 1st 2008), no kidding!

What a difference the new hoses make as the bike is finally as smooth as it should be; it's a total delight to ride now. It used to be kind of rough and buzzy not unlike my old K100RS until the new hoses and nipples were installed.

I'm looking for any excuse to ride since it's so much more fun now!:dance

Further work needs to be done, though---when I shipped the bike from Hawaii it gotted strapped down too tightly onto the pallet that was forklifted into the big Matson container---and when we opened the container in Albuquerque the first thing I noticed was that the fork seals had leaked fork oil all over the front wheel. The downward presure combined with the nearly continual high heat (container travelled for three weeks across the ocean and southern deserts via rail to El Paso before being trucked to ABQ) is what obviously burst the seals.

I've scheduled replacing the seals as well as new front wheel bearings with a former BMW factory mechanic up in Santa Fe later this month and I'll post another update once that work has been accomplished. Berlina now has 26,687 miles on her and I expect this is a good time to replace the wheel bearings before something bad happens out on the road somewhere.:bolt

The fall weather is here and the road is calling...see ya later! Jeff
 
I have some catching up to do with this thread...so here is my LONG OVERDUE UPDATE:

It's been quite a long time since I posted anything here but as I am preparing to put Berlina up for sale I thought it best to try to tie up any loose ends with regards to additional work done on the bike since then. (I'll be posting her in the Flea Market later today)

In July of 2012 I did take Berlina up to OCD Motors in Santa Fe where they replaced the front fork seals, replaced the front wheel bearings and did some appropriate fluid changes. I believe this was done at 26,929 miles. They also installed some aftermarket fork boots that I purchased from Drake (Duck on ADV) up in Seattle.

A few weeks later I also had new Bosch spark plugs installed and the valves adjusted at Sandia BMW, Albuquerque's BMW motorcycle dealership. The odometer read 27,004 miles and I remember seeing it turn over as I was making a big sweeping turn at the Big I Interstate 40/25 interchange overpass on my way to Sandia.

While I could have had this additional work done up at OCD (who were absolutely great, btw) it was merely more convenient for me at the time as I was living only a few miles away in Albuquerque. They replaced three of the valve adjustment shims and the bike became smoother running than ever before.

I don't quite recall whether it was just prior to or after I had the above work done that I did a lot of other work on Berlina while living in Albuquerque that summer;

I had been having an intermittent screeching noise that often occurred at slow speeds and/or when it was hot outside. The noise seemed to be coming from under the tank somewhere and I incorrectly guessed that it coming from the fuel pressure regulator.

Long story short; I ended up replacing the fuel pressure regulator, all external fuel lines, fuel filter, crankcase breather (Z) hose, fuel injector nipple caps, vacuum hose and cover spring, radiator fan motor, air filter and air filter housing during the summer of 2012. I also replaced the original rusty front axle with one in mint condition; something I'd thought about doing for years. Some of these were done to fix the screeching noise and others were done since I had the bike apart and it seemed wise to take advantage of this as it would be simpler to do so at that opportunity.

The screeching noise turned out to be coming from the center of the radiator fan's front as it was "helicoptering" into the back of the radiator and occasionally scraping it---creating a squeal that was driving me nuts. Since I had already ordered and received the new Bosch fan motor by the time I discovered this root cause I went ahead and replaced the motor as it wouldn't hurt to upgrade things. Ditto for the new fuel pressure regulator and assorted bits.

After all this was done the bike ran better than ever as noted above and only one other repair was done later that summer---a new Westco 25 or 30AH battery was installed as well as a new (used but mint condition) ABS relay was installed after my old battery went south in early August.

Other than these few glitches the bike was a great joy to ride around New Mexico the 10 or 11 moths we lived there. In January of 2013 my wife and I decided to move to a warmer climate (Gulf Coast) so I rode Berlina down to Las Cruces and put her in a storage unit in advance of our big move later that month. The weather was turning very cold so I thought it wise to get the bike closer to our destination while the days were still bearable on two wheels.

By February we relocated to Rockport, Texas (where Berlina is now) and in early March I flew back up to Las Cruces and rode her back to Rockport. I took Highway 90 most of the way through the Trans Pecos (Van Horn, Valentine, Marfa, Alpine, Marathon, Sanderson and Langtry) and had a thoroughly wonderful 856-mile ride home.

Now that I am here on the Gulf Coast I have found that I seldom ride anymore; it is usually windy here and all the roads are straight, flat and filled with big pickup trucks and RVs. Not my idea of moto-fun so I am putting my beloved BMW up for sale---something I never thought I'd do. I'm getting old, too and my wife is always worried about me when I ride---so it's time I retire from riding the highways on two wheels.

There might be a few other details I will think of and when I do I will add them here; I just spent the last couple of weeks doing a mini-renovation as the year of being back in a humid, salty environment again was beginning to dull the shine on my trusty steed. I may post some recent photos, too, so stay tuned if interested.
 
Unable to post anything in the Flea Market

I was going to post my bike for sale in the Flea Market but I could not get it to work. If anyone is interested in the details please send me a PM and I'll try to respond ASAP. Meanwhile I'm heading over to ADV and IBMWR where it'll be a cinch.
 
Berlina has been sold.

I just received payment yesterday for Berlina and am waiting to hear from the new owner/shipping company who will be transporting her to her new home in another state.

It was a lot of fun to ride, renovate and ride some more over the last six years. Hey, Lee; I still have no regrets over getting rid of that awful Dakar Yellow!

I will regret parting with my trusty Berlina, though---such a smooth and powerful machine.

Perhaps if I had had a garage to store her in and if South Texas wasn't such a lousy place to ride (flat, straight roads dominated by huge pickup trucks, tacky Harleys and slow RVs and gusty winds blowing almost all the time) I might have resisted my wife's efforts to convince me it was time to part with the bike. As it was she was parked outside under a tarp and not getting ridden much, the salt air was quickly attacking the shiny aluminum faster than I imagined. I am glad to see she is going to a new home with a big empty garage owned by someone who will keep her in fine shape.

I've been told by the new owner that she will be going to the MOA Rally in Minneapolis next month, too---probably her first MOA function ever. That's cool, isn't it?

Life moves on...
 
Berlina leaves Monday

Berlina is going to Bay City, Michigan; maybe the new owner will change her name to Bayerlina...

Just noticed your question today as the new owner just called to let me know when the truck is coming to pick her up (boo-hoo...) and that reminded me of this forum and all the time spent here.

It's been fun, Lee.

Maybe if I should ever win a lottery I'll be back here with another K someday. If not, I still have my little Honda Ruckus (which strangely seems to go faster now) to enjoy around town.

Aufwedersehen,

Jeff :german
 
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