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New member of BMW MOA resurrecting 85 K100RS

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I got to ride my bike most of the day yesterday running errands and put 250 miles on it. It does smoke when you start it up every time and I have been putting it on the center stand every time. So once again I hope that the valve seals will sell some and cut down on that in the future. It really does not bother me but the girlfriend was following me and said "What's wrong with your bike, cough cough" After a few miles it goes away and the level is staying steady so I am not concerned. I do see a little weeping from the oil pan gasket so I will probably replace that next winter, unless it stops this summer and I will just leave it alone.

I did notice that when I lean into a left turn either the center stand of the side stand scrapes the ground. I am thinking that I need to bend the part I push with my foot up a little. Is this a common problem? I looked at the spare I have and they both look the same.
 
The side stand arm does not seem right. The one on my bike 86 k100, and the spare stand both tuck up to the muffler.
 
Now that I have had a chance to put around 600 miles on my K I have found that I really like it and I don't notice the buzziness much. My bike gets around 41 to 42MPG so I think thats pretty good. It's about the same as the girlfriends GS1000. I am still not able to figure out what's up with the side stand. It seems to be in the right place but hits the ground when I lean a bunch to the left.

One thing I am going to change is the LED's I put in the turn signal slots. They are way to bright when I ride at night and today the right turnsignal paddle on the control broke. I picked up a replacement control but I am hoping that I can just replace the paddle. I really don't want to take my tank off again. Is this something I can do? Any thing I need to watch out for i.e. small springs or delicate wires?

The right turn signal control had started getting intermittent for last 100 miles or so.
 
This is for a PAIR of turn signal buttons:

61 31 9 062 462 SET: REPAIR KIT FLASHER KNOB $6.66

There is a screw underneath that holds each one on. A 30 second job.




:dance:dance:dance
 
That is most excellent. Just ordered a new set, my k is going to look like a new bike when I am done. You wouldn't happen to have the part number for a replacement start switch, turn signal cancel paddle, and high/low beam switch paddle?
 
Unfortunately, those are not available individually. You must purchase the complete bar control assembly for each side (WAY too expensive). Keep an eye out for non-faded assemblies on Ebay.

The 4V bikes use a different connector, but the buttons will interchange ( but you WILL have to be careful of flying springs in disassembly).



:dance:dance:dance
 
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For the oil smoke on startup - there is a trick, especially with the early bricks (which didn't have pinned rings..) When you shut it down, stay on the bike and lean it to the right (starboard) side a bit. This allows any oil on the cylinder walls to drain back into the sump. You can then center or sidestand it. Doing this should reduce the smoking to a rare occurrence, even on an 85 K100.

The sidestand isn't correct somehow. The arm should be tucked up tight to the muffler. Is it retracting all the way? The sidestand is supposed to be self-retracting, with a mechanism tied to the clutch activation lever on the rear of the transmission. Sometimes people pull in the clutch while the bike is sitting on the sidestand, and it can't retract so parts get bent, or the clutch cable is damaged. There is a writeup on the IBMWR K-tech pages on doing the adjustment for it correctly.

BTW - for the charging issue - put a standard bulb back in. The LED likely doesn't have the correct resistance. The alternator rotor is powered through the warning light (why it won't charge without the bulb being in the circuit), and it's designed for the resistance of the standard bulb. Chances are it will start charging better if it has the standard bulb in it.

For the buzziness.. it looks from your photos like you have the original K foot-peg sideplates (the big aluminum plates.) BMW changed the design late in 1985 to ones that mount solidly to the frame and then have an isolating rubber mounting for the exhaust. As yours are - all the vibration from the exhaust goes directly into the left (port) side plate.. making it nice and buzzy. You should be able to find the parts from a wrecker, or someone parting out a bike. The same plate was used for a number of years, but the muffler hanger changed a bit during that time. Some quality time spent with REALOEM.COM looking at year/parts-listings should give you a hint of the parts you're looking for.
 
Ok well I guess I will just have to keep searching Ebay for a better set of other controls. At least the turn signal paddles will look nice and new.

I really don't feel any of the buzziness in the left foot peg. It's more in my butt and handle bars. Its not bad and I will just live with it the way it is. I have installed a volt meter and the bike is charging like it should, even with the LED in the charge position. I just have to rev it to about 2000 rpm's when I first start it.

As for the side stand, I did install the retract mechanism and I adjusted it like the manual said to. I have never tried it though as none of my other bikes has one and I am not in the habit of retracting it that way. The side stand and center stand do interfere with each other. I have to put the side stand down then retract the center stand then the side stand. Perhaps the mount is bent in some way. At least I am getting some use out of the bike and fix this little stuff as I have time.

I usually park the bike on the center stand every time I stop and every time I put it to bed in the garage. It does not smoke after the initial start up of the day, but I will certainly try leaning it to the right next time I go for a ride. Thanks for the tip. How long do I need to lean it?

On another note, I did make it to the Rally a couple of days and there are some really nice K's out there. I didn't see a whole lot of RS's though. It seems most people purchased or made their K's into RT's. I really do need a set of highway bars though. Any one have a set they want to sell?
 
I usually park the bike on the center stand every time I stop and every time I put it to bed in the garage. It does not smoke after the initial start up of the day, but I will certainly try leaning it to the right next time I go for a ride. Thanks for the tip. How long do I need to lean it?
20-30 seconds should do it.
 
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