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Complete Restoration of BMW R75/5 into Cafe Racer

Thanks

Absolutely beautiful 5-min video, filled with REAL people, speaking with open hearts about a passion we all share. I'm sending this along to several fellow lunatics - it deserves to go viral for many reasons.

I'll probably never restore a /2, but I'm ordering the book, just in case -- but the artwork, alone, would make it worth the price, and I'm just guessing that the prose is likely world-class, too.

Shane, THANKS (again) for sharing something special. You and Josh and your project are perfectly illustrating (or illuminating) the golden maxim of restoration: You cannot push the river! The natural pace and progression is a joy to watch - you're making a huge contribution to the cause via your aesthetics, and through your ability and willingness to document this wonderful renewal. There is NO doubt that you guys have inspired more than one of us to undertake a moto-project perhaps not quite this grand, yet no less soul-satisfying. One of those "the sum is greater than the parts (literally!)" truths that must be experienced before being fully grasped.

You are going to have one big smile on your face when that thing roars to life. Can't wait for the movie with soundtrack.

"He started innocently enough with an old Porsche; soon it was old Airheads, and then -- it was too, too late to turn back. . ."

Walking Eagle

Dear Walking Eagle, you are always so kind and eloquent with your words, it is much appreciated. As with the Porsche and as with the BMW, I have always thought it was important to bring them back to the road. Both these vehicles were basket cases and could very easily of ended up in the junkyard. If the Porsche did not have that old chipped emblem on the hood, someone could easily of sent it away for scrap metal, but the heritage of both the car and the bike are immense. They want to find their way back to the road. Even if the purists do not appreciate my renditions of the original car and bike, one thing they must agree on is that the vehicles are in better condition than when we found them. I have a friend at the local Fire Department in Bismarck and they called me up and asked me to bring the car down to the firehouse to show the guys. So me and the kids jumped into the Porsche and headed down there, the look on the guys faces and to be able to share it with them was just cool as hell. The best part is that once we showed them our vehicle, Abby and Greyson my children of 9 and 7 year old got the King's Tour of the firehouse, all access, they got to see everything and were thrilled. Another example of how the vehicles bring people together, it was a wonderful afternoon and very informative.

Thanks everyone for walking along with me on this journey.

Sincerely,
Shane
 
+1 on what Walking Eagle said and thanks Shane for sharing the video link. The book on /2 restoration will be a nice addition to an Airhead library. Also, what a great looking work shop!:brow

Mike Horne
76 R90/6
93 R100R Legend
 
Wow! What a wonderful little video. Oddly enough, two weeks ago, a guy in town wanted to know if I wanted to buy a 1961 BMW. And I thought; what would I do with that! Now, maybe an answer....

Mac
 
Josh did a little write-up about his adventures getting my tank prepared and sealed using POR 15.

http://beemersandbits.com/2012/04/p...paign=Feed:+BeemersAndBits+(Beemers+and+Bits)

Thanks,
Shane

Total agree with Shane, as I have done a number of tanks and after the bad luck with a Cream product Not to say the product is bad, as I may have been the cause), went to POR 15 and excellent results. But remember there is no short cuts in the process and the tank has to be bone dry after you flush out the tank. I have an R75/6 in the shop that I hay give it the treatment this summer. Agree it does stink up the house when drying, so out to the back shed it goes, as its like an oven in summer. Perfect for curing.
 
Polishing Here We Come!

Josh put all the goodies together for the polisher and they will be dropped off this week, they will come back looking brand new with any luck.

Thanks,
Shane
 

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Funny

I tried my goggles, mask and new Davida helmet on this morning, took a silly picture with my iphone to share with everyone, to give you guys a little chuckle. :)

Powder Coating or Liquid Coating as they call it will be done next week. Autos International has not gotten to our custom leather seat yet, he says within a week as well, so we are doing a bunch of waiting right now. So while we wait, we screw around.

Thanks,
Shane
 

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Cool

Made me giggle !!

Good that was the point, thanks, fits really well, I don't think I will really wear the mask much but the goggles give the look I like. I wear leather driving gloves when I drive the Porsche not to only protect the Derrington Wood steering wheel from my wedding ring, but more for the feeling of driving the car with leather gloves on, it is just a different experience entirely. So the helmet is a must just for safety but the goggles are a throwback to an earlier time and I like that, I have a deep appreciation for history and heritage when it comes to my car and now my bike. I may be a goof, but what the heck.

I just love this photograph of Steve, he is the man and I know he was riding the bike on a dirt track, but again what the heck.

Thanks for continuing to follow my antics. By the way, as you can see, Steve looks much better in a helmet and goggles than I ever could and I think most of our female members would agree!

Thanks,
Shane
 

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There are Triumph Bonneville riding folks in my circle, a few of them wear Davida helmets , goggles and one wears a face mask on occasion.

Most of them wear the helmets and stuff at meet ups , shows and our annual gathering in Maggie Valley, NC.

They look cool and we all know the inherent danger associated with them, but for grins and giggles they are hard to beat.

Keep up the good work on your cafe' special, can't wait to see the finished product.
something tells me it's gonna be SWEET !!!
 
Thanks

There are Triumph Bonneville riding folks in my circle, a few of them wear Davida helmets , goggles and one wears a face mask on occasion.

Most of them wear the helmets and stuff at meet ups , shows and our annual gathering in Maggie Valley, NC.

They look cool and we all know the inherent danger associated with them, but for grins and giggles they are hard to beat.

Keep up the good work on your cafe' special, can't wait to see the finished product.
something tells me it's gonna be SWEET !!!

The Davida helmet that I purchased in a DOT approved one, I liked the look of some of the older style helmets but with 3 kids at home and a beautiful wife, I cannot risk safety at all costs. Thanks for the comments this morning, it was fun.

Sincerely,
Shane
 
I was not aware that Davida imported any helmets that are DOT approved.

I may look in to them again, I rarely wear a shorty bowl unless it's a quick run to the corner.
But a nice one painted up with a German flag to go along with my BMW might be cool to wear on the rally grounds or at Barber vintage days.
 
Yeah

I was not aware that Davida imported any helmets that are DOT approved.

I may look in to them again, I rarely wear a shorty bowl unless it's a quick run to the corner.
But a nice one painted up with a German flag to go along with my BMW might be cool to wear on the rally grounds or at Barber vintage days.

Yeah, I had mine shipped directly from U.K., they have styles with DOT and the older looking ones are not DOT approved. I like mine because it fits the 70's era perfectly, Easy Rider timeframe.

Thanks again,
Shane
 
Autos International

Augustine at Autos International, the upholstery shop that specializes in Porsche interiors, I got my car done with them, they have done some work on the bike seat, the padding is done, see photograph. They do a great job and I am very excited about this. The usually do cars but Augustine says they do bike seats all the time for local shops and I wanted the bike seat to mimic the interior of the Porsche and he said "No Problem".

Check out the custom welt they fabricated for the back area of the seat.

Thanks,
Shane
 

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Seat

Josh and Augustin have gone back and forth a couple of times about the cushioning of the seat, Josh knows that I am only 5'7" tall and wants to make sure that it is perfect for me so he is going to have him send the seat to Josh, he will put it on the bike before upholstery. Josh and I are the same size. Once he puts it on the bike and sits on it and tests the foam, it will go back for leather, wish I had more of an update. We did hear from the Liquid Coaters and the bike will be done this week with any luck and we will have some pictures.

Thanks,
Shane
 
Ready for Coating

Josh stopped over at the Liquid Coaters and snapped some pictures, everything is blasted, taped off and ready for coating. Can't wait to see what they look like when they are done.

Thanks,
Shane
 

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