1972 R60/5 Too Tall

[hubigpie]

Hey y'all,

Just got a 72 R60/5 and I am barely on my tippy toes when I get on it. I've read the posts about shaving the seat, lowering the bike, etc but my question is this an all at once thing or shave the seat and if it doesn't work shocks then forks. I would like to keep the original handling as much as possible plus the shocks are brand new Ikon repros that look like the originals so I would hate to get rid of them.

If it helps, I am 5'6" with a 29ish inseam.

Thanks

 

[Omega Man]

Some have increased the thickness of the soles of their riding shoes/boots.
OM

 

[hubigpie]

Some have increased the thickness of the soles of their riding shoes/boots.
OM

That's a lot of rubber.

 

[gregfeeler]

Hey y'all,

Just got a 72 R60/5 and I am barely on my tippy toes when I get on it. I've read the posts about shaving the seat, lowering the bike, etc but my question is this an all at once thing or shave the seat and if it doesn't work shocks then forks. I would like to keep the original handling as much as possible plus the shocks are brand new Ikon repros that look like the originals so I would hate to get rid of them.

If it helps, I am 5'6" with a 29ish inseam.

Thanks

How much lower would be the minimum you think you would need?

 

[hubigpie]

Probably 3-4 inches. I am really hoping that I can just narrow and lower the seat.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[20774]

What tires and size are you running?

 

[jagarra]

I have the same height as the OP, I changed the seat on my R90/6 and I can almost flat foot it. I fitted a Harley 48 solo after market Le Pera seat, had to make the mounts. Easiest would be to shave the existing seat down and narrow the upper portion so your legs are not spread apart so far. My bike also has the Ikon shocks, stock length.

 

[barryg]

Get some good motorcycle boots. Have a cobbler add 1” sole addition. U may have to do several small fixes to get the bike to where U can reach ground safely. One example raise fork stancions maybe 1/2 to 1” in triple tree. U make some major changes and ur center/side are outa whack. It’s just agitation. What U find is that BMW’s are exactly built. All the little things U take for granted on a stock bike can become problems with those changes. Good look with Ur project.

 

[hubigpie]

What tires and size are you running?

Metzeller 3.25 19 and 4.00 18

 

[hubigpie]

I have the same height as the OP, I changed the seat on my R90/6 and I can almost flat foot it. I fitted a Harley 48 solo after market Le Pera seat, had to make the mounts. Easiest would be to shave the existing seat down and narrow the upper portion so your legs are not spread apart so far. My bike also has the Ikon shocks, stock length.

Hopefully I can just shave the seat and not have to worry about changing it. Thanks for the tips.

 

[hubigpie]

Get some good motorcycle boots. Have a cobbler add 1” sole addition. U may have to do several small fixes to get the bike to where U can reach ground safely. One example raise fork stancions maybe 1/2 to 1” in triple tree. U make some major changes and ur center/side are outa whack. It’s just agitation. What U find is that BMW’s are exactly built. All the little things U take for granted on a stock bike can become problems with those changes. Good look with Ur project.

Thanks for the reply. I am going to start off with the seat and then see about fork raising etc. before I start adding soles to boots. At the point, I would just sell the bike.

 

[gregfeeler]

Don't make fork position changes to a /5 - especially a SWB model

Thanks for the reply. I am going to start off with the seat and then see about fork raising etc. before I start adding soles to boots. At the point, I would just sell the bike.

I would warn against making any fork height changes to a /5, especially a short wheel-base (SWB) version. You said your R60/5 was a 1972, so it's probable it is a SWB model. The SWB /5 has a reputation for being unstable under some conditions due to the design of the front forks. I have a SWB R75/5 I bought new and I worked in a BMW dealership during the /5 era, and from my experience, IF correctly set up, the SWB bikes are no more prone to handling problems than any other bike of that era. However, the key is that the forks are set up correctly: which means they are aligned and adjusted after any work, including R&R of the front wheel, to remove any stiction, and that they are *always* set up to the original geometry (rake and trail). Changing fork height or shock length may induce front fork instability under some conditions.

 

[1074]

What Greg said with the addition that on a /5, the process of raising the forks is way too complicated!

 

[20774]

While I usually council against it, changing to metric tires could result in as much as 0.5" of lowering. It has it's downside, foremost in that it could affect handling but that's for the rider to judge. Additionally, lowering the bike frame like that reduces the effectiveness of the side stand and makes it harder to get up on the center stand. It might be worth the investment to see if that provides any help towards the goal...could always reverse it by putting the original tires back on.

 

[hubigpie]

I would warn against making any fork height changes to a /5, especially a short wheel-base (SWB) version. You said your R60/5 was a 1972, so it's probable it is a SWB model. The SWB /5 has a reputation for being unstable under some conditions due to the design of the front forks. I have a SWB R75/5 I bought new and I worked in a BMW dealership during the /5 era, and from my experience, IF correctly set up, the SWB bikes are no more prone to handling problems than any other bike of that era. However, the key is that the forks are set up correctly: which means they are aligned and adjusted after any work, including R&R of the front wheel, to remove any stiction, and that they are *always* set up to the original geometry (rake and trail). Changing fork height or shock length may induce front fork instability under some conditions.

What Greg said with the addition that on a /5, the process of raising the forks is way too complicated!

While I usually council against it, changing to metric tires could result in as much as 0.5" of lowering. It has it's downside, foremost in that it could affect handling but that's for the rider to judge. Additionally, lowering the bike frame like that reduces the effectiveness of the side stand and makes it harder to get up on the center stand. It might be worth the investment to see if that provides any help towards the goal...could always reverse it by putting the original tires back on.

This is why I asked the question because of this advice. I really didn't want to start modding the bike. My buddy restores antiques and knows how to work foam and reupholster. We should be able to get my feet back on the ground.

Thanks