I could only afford half an E30

[theseeker411]

Hell yeah! Woodcraft makes some quality stuff. Also I love those grips on my Scrambler, best damn upgrade I've ever done.

We still need to do a proper bike photoshoot soon.

[Benwalsh91]

this is soooo good. i would live a vintage BMW bike to go with my e30!

[Zachbox]

Hell yeah! Woodcraft makes some quality stuff. Also I love those grips on my Scrambler, best damn upgrade I've ever done.

We still need to do a proper bike photoshoot soon.

I just got done riding it a little for the first time and those grips are ammmazing. Honestly I thought they were just gonna be a gimmick but I figured whats $20 and I'm super glad I got them.
Come to So Cal Vintage and we can shoot!

this is soooo good. i would live a vintage BMW bike to go with my e30!

Thanks dude! So far I've had a blast with it and would encourage most to get one if the opportunity presents itself!

[Zachbox]

Since I lowered the headlight by cutting the bracket, it hit the middle triple clamp causing it point about 20 degrees up... which I'm sure you can imagine isn't very good for any sort of vehicle, nevertheless a motorcycle.
So like any sensible human being would do, I looked into getting a new headlight!

As I'm sure much of you know, German engineers like to build their products very integrated. Making some modifications more difficult than they should. Well my bike is no different. The fuse panel is located inside the headlight assembly.



And with my zero experience with wiring anything short of an aftermarket radio, I'm in over my head.
Since I'm "starting from scratch" per say in the experience department, I decided to just take the harness out as a whole instead of just cutting off what I don't need. I didn't want to cut or remove anything that I'd end up regretting later.



So now that the harness is completely out I can focus on getting a new headlight on it.
Aftermarket headlights are often a little gaudy for my taste. Especially on a older bike.

After doing some research, I found out that the new BMW R9T's headlight has a roundel insignia inside of it and new that was the one.
I matched that with some matching headlight brackets from Speed Moto Co.








Next, I have to get some sort of smaller bracket made to coverty wrap behind and below the headlight to attach it.
Of course I naturally came across "while I'm here I might as well replace this" multiple times so I have all new hand controls and shorter cables on their way!

[The Norwegian]

i like your head light brackets, looks real slick

[hdlmgargae]

I love this entire thread. Cannot wait to see more of it!

[Zachbox]

So the headlight and rewire gig didn't go exactly as I planned...

To attach the new BMW R9t headlight I was required to buy a different triple clamp that will be expensive and that has no guarantee of working even with modification. So to not further delay getting this thing back on the road I opted on buying a smaller headlight and tackle that project later.

I'll have to work on better headlight bracket spacers but these white ones will work for the time being.



Since I decided to delete a lot of the electronics on this bike I was able to clean up the bars significantly. No turn signal switches, horn buttons, wiring, or choke cable. Just clutch, front brake, and throttle. I also grabbed new fork stem hardware just to clean it up a little bit. As far as the levers, master cylinder, and throttle I went with Magura parts since they also made the OEM parts that were on the bike





I don't have a photo of them but I also grabbed two individual choke cables that sit an inch above each carb.

Looking into the two or three different options when it comes to rewiring an older bike, I decided to go with the MotoGadget M Unit Blue. This little device is basically a mini computer and can all be programmed via blue tooth with my phone. Part of the reason I went this route is due to not having any controls so it was nice to be able to set up certain things to be on with just the power of the ignition. The other part is I can use my phone as the key. The bike won't start unless I'm next to it.

Using a combination of the OEM diagram, a M Unit diagram that Revival Cycles created, and a bunch of YouTube videos to finally got the wiring all squared away. I won't bore you with the 200+ iPhone photos of that whole process due to them being confusing without any context of what you're looking at.






If anybody reading this ever builds a cafe'd BMW airhead, the charge light delete from Boxer Metal is a must. Due to not having an instrument cluster or a "charge" light that needs to remain illuminated at all times, the bikes charging system as a whole can fail due to the lack of resistance. Boxer Metal sells a handy little posi tip connector to keep everything still clean and simple.

Annyyy who.

I grabbed a bunch of wiring loom material to group multiple wires together and almost give it a newer OEM look.









Last but not least, the starter button. I routed it right next to one of the holes a stud from the gas tank is secured through. Once the tank is on, the button to start the bike will be completely hidden.

[The Norwegian]

I've bean waiting on an update on this thread to bad about the headlight and triple clamp the wiring looks really good

[Zachbox]

I've bean waiting on an update on this thread to bad about the headlight and triple clamp the wiring looks really good

I'm stoked you've been looking forward to it! It's been a blast working on it and I'm stoked to be able to share it. ha and yeahhh. the triple clamp situation will totally work out at some point I just gotta tackle some other things first before giving that any more attention.

[Zachbox]

So while rewiring the bike I shorted out some parts of my charging system without knowing it. I found out mid ride when it shut off on me.

After doing some research, I removed the charging cover while the battery was still hooked up which is a huge no. Part of the diode board that sits right behind it is easily shorted out and it's almost impossible to remove the charging cover without touching it. So I bought a new diode board and found myself stranded once again. After a mile ride back home sitting on my bike in the back of a 1974 chevy panel van. This time due to the alternator.





EuroMotoElectronics offers a charging system that operates way better than the stock charging system. It also gets rid of the voltage regulator, diode board, and charging light as a whole.







The kit actually uses an alternator and rectifier regulator from a Ducati with an adapter plate to sit exactly where the OEM alternator sat.





The rectifier regulator which takes the place of the diode board (converting ac power to dc power) now needed a spot. Since this kit now removes the voltage regulator from the equation, the rectifier found the voltage regulator's old stomping grounds to the left of the frame.



The wiring for the rectifier to the rest of the bike isn't the prettiest since it is so long. I just wanted to make sure everything worked before trimming things down and making them look more aesthetically pleasing.

I have about 20 miles on the bike which is about 15+ more than I've gotten in the past! At every stop my phone still reads that the bike has 12.5v+ and reaves up to 13.5v+ when I give it gas which is way more than it did before. After I have some more miles on it I'm sure I'll take it back apart and make it look a tad bit better.



fingers crossed I don't have to sit on my bike while sitting in the back of that '74 panel van again...

[Miroteknik]

thank you for not getting one of those ghetto ebay projector retrofit headlights with built in blinkers. your work on the bike is very good. love seeing updates on this

[Zachbox]

So I decided to paint my tank and rear cowl. My paint was definitely old but doable since the rest of the bike is also lookin a little old.
But being the responsible person I am, I decided to go for something like this instead of fixing something logical.

Truth be told have a friend that works in a paint booth and was nice enough to let me spray it myself with his close guidance. So it didn't cost as much as fixing something logical. Well... at least that's what I tell myself.

So I removed the roundels and started sanding it by hand because I have absolutely no idea what I am doing.





Then after showing a couple people they suggested something more logical (that seems to be a reoccurring theme)

A power sander



So in half the time I sanded it all down to bare metal.









So I got a quick chance to lay down a layer of primer as a test to the seat cowl while he helped smooth out some of the imperfections I didn't know the tank possessed.





Next I applied a dark base coat





For the color itself, I had a couple in mind but I knew it had to be OEM. Techno Violet was my original thought and but there was another color I really wanted to find an OEM hue in.






So...

I did lay the color down and I am beyond stoked. Not only to do it myself but with out it turned out. Even under direct super vision haha

I'm going to just leave you with this until I get the chance to get some new roundels and a gas cap I really like.

[Nuts]

Wow, this is such an awesome thread! Love it!!

[Zachbox]

Wow, this is such an awesome thread! Love it!!

Thank you!!

[The Norwegian]

im an panel beater my self an work a lot with paint. that's not bad for a first time try, im pretty impressed with how it looks in the pictures