New here and seeking advice

Well, my wife recently stated that I had to get the shed built in the yard before I could buy a bike. I've been after a bike since before we first met over 10 years ago, but you know, life, career, etc. happens, and there you are...driving a diesel wondering where the fun went...

So, she said shed first - naturally I bought a shed and had it delivered this past Saturday.

After the snowblower, mountain bikes, lawn mower, etc. went in - look what I see - enough space left over for a motocyclette!

Something like this would fit perfectly, and I'd be honored to own one for a while:



Being a fan of BMW's engineering for pretty much ever, and owning German cars (Two VW's now), naturally I gravitate towards the prop when I think bikes.

Now, the real questions I have are of the "OMG, that's really broad - he really is a noob" sort, but here goes.

Like all things in life - you must learn. And to learn, you must have interest and direction...

I have interest; hoping you all can provide direction:

Being this is my first bike in about a decade, does an AH BMW make sense?

Specifically, do they:

- require a lot of maintenance (beyond the basics of oil, filters, valve adjustments, bearings, the odd light bulb, etc.?
- any models that should be avoided, or any more desirable than others?
- are parts (in general) hard to come by for say, a mid-80's R-model? (Not bag mounts and such, things like mechanical bits - items that would preclude running, and thus p1ss me off and impact my riding...?
- I'm assuming they all generally make decent commuters (about 20 kms one way) - obviously newer ones might be more comfortable, but again, I'm drawn to mid-80's rigs for some reason

Anything I should, again, in general, be wary of, look for or otherwise run away from in abject terror?

I'll finish by saying thanks. I realize these questions are very basic, and yeah, I'm a total, complete BMW and airhead newbie, but there you go. Sorry if these questions have been posted multiple times before - I'll happily read other threads if they'll answer my questions directly.

...and I like airheads for 2 reasons:

1 - they look great
2 - my first bike was air cooled, and it never let me down (Suzuki GS500e)

Duane

I'll add this bit:

I'm not afraid to learn new things. In general, being mechanical is doable for me (work on the TDI all the time) and I don't mind rituals, as some older rides with "personality" require (twist throttle twice, stomp on ground, wail aloud, pinch seat cover, slap tank, then start) - no issues with the voodoo side of things at all...

My 2 cents; The /5 series was the end of an era. The last /5, the 1973 1/2 R75/5 is ideal. It has the lengthened swingarm and all of the refinements of the /5 series. Typically the beginning of a series is the least desireable because the bugs have not been worked out. I say that even though I secretly lust over the R90/6 1974 model.

But the old accordian fork gaiters, the solid 4 speed tranny, the instrument in the headlight bucket, the simplicity of the /5 makes me a bit of a Luddite.

The whippersnappers here may differ and urge you into the 80's and even the 90's.

YMMV.

Welcome to the obsession.

Welcome!!

The bike in the photo looks to be about an 84. I have one of those in that same color combination. Great bike.

They do require maintenance. Replace brake fluid every year, lube final drive splines every 30,000 miles. The carbs will require syncronization every once and a while (10,000 mi) and adjustments happen. Wheel bearing are VERY important and a bike this old may require new.

Also bikes of this vintage are known to need valve jobs at about 80,000 miles.

This all being said, they are great bikes. Once dialed in they stay dialed in and run great. They are reliable. Other than the valve job, and perhaps the splines, every maintenance task is doable. (Even the carbs!)

Have fun

See, that type of stuff makes perfects sense to me.

I used to own Jeeps built for offroading, so I'm no stranger to "things needing maintenance". Heck, I even managed to make both Jeeps oil-tight after a few tries...LOL

I don't have a local BMW dealer, but there is a shop that used to be the dealer years ago, so worst case, I'm sure they could manage the big-deal items for me (I bring my own Vaseline, thanks you very much - ).

I guess my next step is to hook up with my local club to see if I can put a leg over one of these things to get a feel for the me-and-it fit. I suspect it'll be fine (6 feet, 30" inseam).

Thanks much gang - very much appreciated.

Duane

I own a very similar airhead and a second airhead. The old bikes are fine and fun to own.

I have owned and rode K, R and F bikes.

Having said that would you buy a 1967 VW bug in pristine condition? I owned one and adjusted the valves, timed the engine and replaced the muffler every two years. Even replaced the engine when the first engine swallowed a valve at 100,00 miles. There was a great deal of satisfaction in doing all this work plus a considerable cost savings.

I remember how the heating system lacked warmth in the winter time. New bugs have solved the problem and added a lot of nice creature comfort and technological advances. The same is true of other brands

The airheads are simple by design and fun to wrench. But the choice sometimes is between wrenching and riding. Hmmmm. An interesting choice.

The new bikes have more power and additional safety features. Try the middle ground. Find a used K75 and you are technology, smoothness and cost savings.

I can hear the chorus of "K Bikes Suck" now from my YB friends.

K vs R? If you want a relatively trouble-free BMW, consider an R1150R (naked oilhead) with standard brakes. Install a smallish handlebar mounted windshield that mimics the S fairing in the photo. Work fine, last loooong time, handles great.

However, the airheads are relatively reliable, easy to work on, and yes, parts are still available. Many BMW dealers will no longer work on "old" airheads, but they can still get parts. And there are dealers such as Max BMW that have online catalogs that include the older machines. Some parts are drying up, but there is a business related to the BMW factory, Mobile Tradition, that is attempting to ensure a steady supply of parts for all BMW machines.

I've found airheads to require much more diddling time than oilheads or K bikes. The K runs fine for many years, then suddenly needs some minor fix that gets to be major when you have to dig down into the complex bits. By comparison, the airheads have niggling little problems, but you can solve them without a lot of effort. And they are now so well known that aftermarket companies have lots of bits and pieces to solve the problems. (bigger charging system for instance)

Yes, there are "major" rebuilding situations such as cam chain replacement or oil pump rebuilding, but "major" on an airhead is laughably simple compared to the same thing on say a K100. With the help of a shop manual, you can do everything yourself, or just remove assemblies and ship off to one of the businesses that advertize in ON.

When I ride my R75, I am amazed at how well it performs, drum brakes and all. I have as much faith in my airheads as in my 1973 K1 to make a cross-country trip and return on its own wheels.

There are some years to be avoided, so check with the airhead folks before parting with your cash. And even those years with say, exhaust valve or transmission problems, can be fixed.

Most importantly, when you own a BMW, you're part of a huge family.

pmdave

I ride a 94 R1100RS, its been my main ride for the past 12 years.

But I still kept my first BMW, my first "love", a 76 R100RS, engine serial #414.

I too am amazed at how well a 32 year old bike can run and perform. Or maybe I'm admitting I'm getting older and a better match for it.

"The older I get the faster I was!"