Parts Supplier for Vintage BMW's

[jposig]

I need some gaskets for my '58 R/50 and need a parts supplier referral, hopefully someone I can establish a long term relationship as needed.

Thanks!

Jim

[20774]

Jim -

Before this year, the place to go IMO was Bench Mark Works, but Vech sold his business to Max BMW. Here is the remains of the Bench Mark Works website and store:

http://www.benchmarkworks.com/

Notice at the top is says to contact Max for parts, etc. I liked using Vech's parts list but you can more or less do the same thing at Max. I've used Max to buy things for my older bikes. I used Vech's website then called Max. BTW...I understand the Vech's website might disappear over time.

[jposig]

Jim -

Before this year, the place to go IMO was Bench Mark Works, but Vech sold his business to Max BMW. Here is the remains of the Bench Mark Works website and store:

http://www.benchmarkworks.com/

Notice at the top is says to contact Max for parts, etc. I liked using Vech's parts list but you can more or less do the same thing at Max. I've used Max to buy things for my older bikes. I used Vech's website then called Max. BTW...I understand the Vech's website might disappear over time.

Great, thanks for the referral, I'll contact them. I have the original factory parts manual so I can supply part numbers to maybe save some time.....

[20774]

There are parts suppliers in Europe, too. Names like Ulis, Meyer, and also Salis in the Netherlands. I've use one of these before when I was looking for an external shift lever for my R25/2. I was able to find a very good used part over there.

[jposig]

There are parts suppliers in Europe, too. Names like Ulis, Meyer, and also Salis in the Netherlands. I've use one of these before when I was looking for an external shift lever for my R25/2. I was able to find a very good used part over there.

Max BMW was an excellent referral, Thank You!!! The parts I wanted will be here on Wed and with FREE FREIGHT, unheard of these days...

On another note, I'm trying to find out if my bike is a regular R50 or a R50/S......motor specs are vastly different on both. My chassis number is 558596. I think that means my bike was built in May, 1958, and was the 596th one built in that production run.

Thanks again!

Jim

[20774]

You should get a bag of M&Ms with that order!!

It's safe to say that your bike is an R50. The S models had a limited run for the 1961 and 1962 models? As far as build date, I think that your date is closer to February or March 1958. Over the years, I've captured what owners have provide in terms of VIN, model year, and build date. I haven't updated this in a while but check out this thread in the Vintage forum area:

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread...nd-Build-Dates

I think you can use the email given at the top to contact the BMW archives and with the info you provide them may be able to give you more specifics about your bike. It's typically limited to build date, seat type, and maybe who took possession of the bike.

[jposig]

You should get a bag of M&Ms with that order!!

It's safe to say that your bike is an R50. The S models had a limited run for the 1961 and 1962 models? As far as build date, I think that your date is closer to February or March 1958. Over the years, I've captured what owners have provide in terms of VIN, model year, and build date. I haven't updated this in a while but check out this thread in the Vintage forum area:

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread...nd-Build-Dates

I think you can use the email given at the top to contact the BMW archives and with the info you provide them may be able to give you more specifics about your bike. It's typically limited to build date, seat type, and maybe who took possession of the bike.

Thanks for the info. I got the bike as a gift from the original owner. It has the factory option passenger seat and pegs as well as the optional luggage rack. Also of interest is the rear tag mounting bracket is for a Euro sized tag.

[davidsanders]

Try these folks in Hendersonville, NC: https://www.boxer2valve.com

[jposig]

You should get a bag of M&Ms with that order!!

It's safe to say that your bike is an R50. The S models had a limited run for the 1961 and 1962 models? As far as build date, I think that your date is closer to February or March 1958. Over the years, I've captured what owners have provide in terms of VIN, model year, and build date. I haven't updated this in a while but check out this thread in the Vintage forum area:

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread...nd-Build-Dates

I think you can use the email given at the top to contact the BMW archives and with the info you provide them may be able to give you more specifics about your bike. It's typically limited to build date, seat type, and maybe who took possession of the bike.

OK, now I get it with the Mini M&M's.....Parts arrived, all good there.........

I went to get the build info on my bike. I was hoping to get some sort of a document suitable for framing, but Ingrid responded quickly and was nice enough to include the German to English translation. It was built on Feb 2nd and delivered to the importer in NYC on May 7th. That's all the info that was provided. But I printed up 2 emails, the German one is pretty cool.

What is the difference between a R50 and an R50/2, and how do you tell?

Thanks to all for the help........

[20774]

Pretty much the only way you can tell is by VIN number. BMW made running changes throughout the years in terms of engine internals, frame aspects, etc. I don't recall if there are performance differences, but if there are it's pretty small.