Galleries

1995 BMW R1100RS:Gallant : A new customers R1100RS @ Affordable Beemer Services LLC for the following work: Install newer transmission, replace clutch, re-route front brake hose, complete service, re-build worn throttle body, etc.

1995 BMW R1100RS:Gallant

A new customers R1100RS @ Affordable Beemer Services LLC for the follo ...

Updated: Nov 20, 2009 10:17am PST

2002 R1150RT:McLaughlin : 2002 R1150RT w/ 49,000 miles on it. First time customer brought the bike in complaining about a poor running condition. We replaced the fuel filter but found that the compression was as follows: Left cylinder = 165 psi / Right cylinder = "0" psi!!! Removed cylinder head to inspect valves and they were as expected... burnt / broken face on one exhaust valve. This is usually caused by excessive carbon in the combustion chamber. A chunk can flake off getting trapped under a closing valve face and break a corner off of the valve face. This is a VERY common occurrence in 16 valve K100's and K1100 engines. In these Oilhead's, it usually only occurs when there is a severe air / vacuum leak (see my gallery on R1200CLC:Norton for an example). This particular R1150RT did have a sloppy right hand throttle body that had an air leak @ the throttle shaft. This is the most likely cause of this bike's failure. To keep the repair costs @ a reasonable level, just one valve & valve seal were replaced but ALL 4 valves were ground (lapped) for a better seal. Re-assembled on 10 & 11 November 2009 @ Affordable Beemer Services LLC in Manchester, NH

2002 R1150RT:McLaughlin

2002 R1150RT w/ 49,000 miles on it. First time customer brought the bi ...

Updated: Nov 10, 2009 12:20pm PST

'00 BMW R1100RT:Leone : A 2000 BMW R1100RT with 43,000 miles on it. The customer purchased it sight unseen from Second Wind BMW who stated the bike was in excellent condition. This gallery will prove otherwise. The bike surges horribly due to the right throttle body being worn out, the front fairing mount is bent, the dash cracked and the right mirror doesn't fit properly. Moving to the rear of the bike... the rear sub-frame is SEVERELY bent!!! It always amazes me when something as obvious as that can elude the attention of a BMW tech or business owner. Did the bike get checked over or did they just claim it was OK? Either way the buyer is the one who suffers most and that just shouldn't be the case. After a bit of work the bike is being brought back into proper condition @ minimal cost. Completed on 10 November 2009

'00 BMW R1100RT:Leone

A 2000 BMW R1100RT with 43,000 miles on it. The customer purchased it ...

Updated: Nov 10, 2009 11:35am PST

1995 Ural Engine : on 12 October 2009 my 1995 Ural Tourist (20,948 km's) developed an odd growling noise and vibration followed by a massive rear main seal leak. I rode it 60+ miles (yes, MILES) home w/ no problems besides numb feet from the vibration. Hey, the closer to home I got before it blew up the easier it would be to get someone to grab my truck and come rescue me. I suspected a broken crankshaft and these engines are relatively inexpensive anyway! But, as usual, the old whore surprised me and made it home, shaking and hammering the whole way back! So the tear-down begins... All in all, NOT TOO BAD!!! Upon disassembly, the problem turned out to be nothing more than a failed rear crankshaft bearing! This engine has had a horrible left rod knock since I bought it @ 10K so I decided to replace the whole crankshaft assembly as these are only $300! Look through this gallery for the details and modifications I have made. A special thanks has to go to my "employee" Rob Nelson for doing the complete re-assembly of the engine while I was busy w/ other business work and the funeral of my mother-in-law. Thanks Rob (aka "Don") :)

1995 Ural Engine

on 12 October 2009 my 1995 Ural Tourist (20,948 km's) developed an odd ...

Updated: Nov 01, 2009 5:10am PST

1988 BMW K75S:Sickler : A 1998 BMW K75S @ Affordable Beemer Services for service & repairs. The rear brake caliper had previously seized and cooked the brake caliper and disc. These were reeplaced w/ used items. The fork seals were weeping and also replaced. The front rim was previously installed in reverse of the proper fitment so the front tire was removed, installed correctly and re-balanced.

1988 BMW K75S:Sickler

A 1998 BMW K75S @ Affordable Beemer Services for service & repairs. Th ...

Updated: Oct 28, 2009 8:23am PST

'02 R1150GS:Salls :

'02 R1150GS:Salls

Updated: Oct 14, 2009 7:45pm PST

1990 BMW K100RS European model : This is a 1990 BMW K100RS 16 valve w/ the special K1100RS up-grade fairing kit. It is a European model FROM & FOR use in Germany. It was brought to the U.S. from Germany by the original German owner and was sold a few years later to its current owner. This model is the same as the 1992 U.S. model K100RSA of which only 400 units were brought into the United States making those one of the rarest of BMW models in the U.S. This particular 26,000 mile bike is in the shop for a routine major service including cleaning & lubrication of the drive splines, replacement of coolant & fuel hoses, filters, fluids, etc.

1990 BMW K100RS European model

This is a 1990 BMW K100RS 16 valve w/ the special K1100RS up-grade fai ...

Updated: Oct 07, 2009 1:35pm PST

1988 KLR650 for sale :

1988 KLR650 for sale

Updated: Sep 28, 2009 2:01pm PST

R1100GS:Kirby : 1994 R1100GS towed in w/ a locked rear wheel. The bike could roll about 2 feet front or rear, the engine ran fine but disengaging the clutch stalled the engine. Further dis-assembly revealed a broken front universal joint @ only 42,000 miles!!! Since the driveshaft is $700 and I would suggest replacing the clutch @ this time, this will probably not be an inexpensive repair.

R1100GS:Kirby

1994 R1100GS towed in w/ a locked rear wheel. The bike could roll abou ...

Updated: Sep 24, 2009 12:23pm PST

R1150GS:Chase : An R1150GS Adventure brought in for an oil leak that appeared to be between the 2 halves of the transmission case. Further dis-assembly revealed the transmission had been over-filled by over 400 cc's and the excess gear oil was being pumped out of the transmission vent @ the top of the unit. Clutch & input shaft splines are in excellent condition on this bike w/ 053737 miles! Cleaned and re-lubricated the splines w/ Staburags paste and re-assembled 24 September 2009.

R1150GS:Chase

An R1150GS Adventure brought in for an oil leak that appeared to be be ...

Updated: Sep 24, 2009 11:02am PST

Ural Adventures : Various days of flogging the Russian mail-order bride :) ALSO: Other victims of interest...

Ural Adventures

Various days of flogging the Russian mail-order bride :) ALSO: Other v ...

Updated: Sep 24, 2009 8:00am PST

1974 R90S: Makul - Service Restoration : Customers 1974 R90 S in the shop for a complete service. Bike has been off the road for 19 years! Has approximately 60,000 miles on it.

1974 R90S: Makul - Service Restoration

Customers 1974 R90 S in the shop for a complete service. Bike has been ...

Updated: Sep 24, 2009 7:24am PST

BMW Shaft Failures & other defects from Der Fatherland!!! : A review of various failed, or soon to fail, BMW input shafts and clutch slave cylinders. This is a problem that can cripple ANY hydraulic clutch BMW R or K model as early as 11,000 miles! Also some pictures of failed rear drives and other BMW specific ailments.

BMW Shaft Failures & other defects from Der Fatherland!!!

A review of various failed, or soon to fail, BMW input shafts and clut ...

Updated: Aug 31, 2009 8:45am PST

1992 R100RS:McNamara - Service Restoration : 1992 R100RS in my shop for a thorough service. This bike has been to Second Wind BMW & MAX BMW for electrical and carb problems. The fairing is cracked due to the installation of after-market mirrors which require different mounting holes to be drilled in the fairing. This resulted in improper drilling of the fairing by the installer of the mirrors. Fairing is being sent to Mark Ellis @ TZS Auto Body - located at 462 Isaac Frye Highway, Wilton, NH 03086 (603) 654-7594 - to be repaired & re-painted while service work is being done.

1992 R100RS:McNamara - Service Restoration

1992 R100RS in my shop for a thorough service. This bike has been to S ...

Updated: Aug 05, 2009 3:08pm PST

1984 R100RS "Last Edition": Perkins :

1984 R100RS "Last Edition": Perkins

Updated: Aug 05, 2009 3:02pm PST

1996 K1100LT: :

1996 K1100LT:

Updated: Jul 28, 2009 9:13am PST

Armor: (tanks & things that make noise :) :

Armor: (tanks & things that make noise :)

Updated: Jul 24, 2009 3:53pm PST

1996 BMW K1100RS SE Rear Main Seal Replacement :

1996 BMW K1100RS SE Rear Main Seal Replacement

Updated: Jul 23, 2009 11:14pm PST

1977 R100/7 :

1977 R100/7

Updated: Jun 28, 2009 7:04am PST

1996 Ural Tourist : Service & repairs on a '96 Ural that was left abandoned and is now being made road-worthy. Quite a bit of water was drained from the engine, the exhaust valves were too tight, rear tire was flat, carbs very dirty, etc. Work done in June 2009 by Affordable Beemer Services LLC.

1996 Ural Tourist

Service & repairs on a '96 Ural that was left abandoned and is now bei ...

Updated: Jun 10, 2009 8:41am PST

1981 Suzuki GS450T : Carbs were a bit dirty and the bike is missing the air filter. Overall in fairly good condition for the age of the bike.

1981 Suzuki GS450T

Carbs were a bit dirty and the bike is missing the air filter. Overall ...

Updated: Jun 03, 2009 1:44pm PST

1984 R100RT : 1984 R100RT in for service 28 May 2009.

1984 R100RT

1984 R100RT in for service 28 May 2009.

Updated: May 29, 2009 12:46pm PST

1995 K1100LT:Lindahl : 1995 K1100LT that has sat unattended for 5+ years. Bike would not start. Replaced spark plugs and re-oiled the cylinder walls, replaced fuel filter and found the fuel pump was seized. Installed a used pump to save the customer money -and- to get the bike running the day it came to the shop. The bike now runs well but will need a thorough service, replacement of the front brake master cylinder and tires (due to age) and a thorough cleaning of the fuel tank and replacement of the fuel level float assembly. This bike is being sold by the customer for a very reasonable $4500 and has only 22,000 miles on it.

1995 K1100LT:Lindahl

1995 K1100LT that has sat unattended for 5+ years. Bike would not star ...

Updated: May 26, 2009 5:58am PST

R1200CLC valve failure : R1200CLC that was run while the right intake tract boot was seperated from the intake creating a large vacuum leak. This resulted in one of the 2 exhaust valves failing.

R1200CLC valve failure

R1200CLC that was run while the right intake tract boot was seperated ...

Updated: May 06, 2009 4:49pm PST

1989 Kawasaki Voyager : 1989 Kawasaki Voyager for sale. 71,736 miles, last serviced w/ new tires last year @ 69,608 miles. Ridden every year and been serviced here since 2006.

1989 Kawasaki Voyager

1989 Kawasaki Voyager for sale. 71,736 miles, last serviced w/ new tir ...

Updated: May 03, 2009 10:13am PST

1984 Dodge D350 Crew Cab : 1984 Dodge D350 1-Ton Crew Cab Dually. Bought via E Bay in 2007 for the 4 door cab to replace the 2 door cab of my diesel. This truck ran too good on the way from Pennsylvania to New Hampshire that I decided not to tear it apart & scrap it just to get the cab. After 2 years reality set in and I didn't see me having any time in the next several years to tackle this conversion anyway so, it was sold in April 2009. 360 cu. in. V-8 engine (re-built 8 months prior to me buying the truck), 4 Speed manual transmission, factory air conditioning (doesn't work - recharge?), it got 16 mpg according to my GPS from Pa. to NH (!!!) @ 70 mph, starts & runs great but has home-made exhaust w/ glass-pack mufflers so it was a bit LOUD!!! Interior is a bit beat but it is a work truck - NOT a show truck. Sold w/ bed cap and 5th wheel hitch mounted in the bed. Truck was originally blue but was painted black (not a great job) by the previous owner. The only body-filler on the whole truck is from a dent on the rear left of the bed by the tail light! It goes down the road straight, shifts well, clutch works perfectly and handles good for such a HUGE truck.

1984 Dodge D350 Crew Cab

1984 Dodge D350 1-Ton Crew Cab Dually. Bought via E Bay in 2007 for t ...

Updated: Apr 30, 2009 8:06pm PST

1984 Kawasaki GPZ550 : Norma's 1984 Kawasaki GPZ550: Replacing tires, battery, clutch friction discs and springs, mirrors, changing the fluids and rebuilding fuel petcock. 21 & 22 April 2009 15,337 miles

1984 Kawasaki GPZ550

Norma's 1984 Kawasaki GPZ550: Replacing tires, battery, clutch frictio ...

Updated: Apr 22, 2009 8:23am PST

R1200C:Lamper : R1200C in for service at Affordable Beemer Services LLC in Manchester, New Hampshire in April 2009: Brake fluid was very dark and the front brake had air in the system resulting in a spongy lever. Engine oil was dark and the incorrect spark plugs (BKR7EKC) were removed and replaced w/ proper Bosch FR6DC+ plugs. Tire pressures corrected to F = 34 / R = 36 psi. Valve clearances were slightly snug probably due to the 1 feeler guage @ a time method of adjustment during a previous service.

R1200C:Lamper

R1200C in for service at Affordable Beemer Services LLC in Manchester, ...

Updated: Apr 21, 2009 2:27pm PST

1983 R80ST:Taylor : A customer purchased this bike through E Bay in April 2009. The battery was junk, the rear tire was bald, the front tire was flat and... SURPRISE - some moron OILED the rear brake shoes!!! Were they squeaking before ???!!! No evidence at all of a rear drive seal leak. Just soggy, wet, oiled brake shoes! Just when I thought I had seen every type of BMW service incompetence... :>(

1983 R80ST:Taylor

A customer purchased this bike through E Bay in April 2009. The batter ...

Updated: Apr 16, 2009 10:38am PST

R1150RT Spline Lube: Shiel : A 2004 R1150RT in the shop for a 36,000 miles service, tires and spline lube. The transmission input shaft splines are in excellent condition. The clutch hub splines, however, are ready to fail!

R1150RT Spline Lube: Shiel

A 2004 R1150RT in the shop for a 36,000 miles service, tires and splin ...

Updated: Apr 15, 2009 8:57am PST

R1150R:Green :

R1150R:Green

Updated: Apr 06, 2009 3:52pm PST

R100CS:Hopf : A customers R100CS in for service. The valves were very tight but no damage was done, luckily!

R100CS:Hopf

A customers R100CS in for service. The valves were very tight but no d ...

Updated: Apr 06, 2009 3:40pm PST

1974 R90/6: Ross - Service Restoration : A customers 1974 R90/6 w/ 13,034 original miles. In the shop for major service after nearly 30 years of inactivity.

1974 R90/6: Ross - Service Restoration

A customers 1974 R90/6 w/ 13,034 original miles. In the shop for major ...

Updated: Apr 06, 2009 3:35pm PST

1997 R1100RT: Smith - Spline Lube :

1997 R1100RT: Smith - Spline Lube

Updated: Feb 19, 2009 2:29pm PST

Winters :( :

Winters :(

Updated: Feb 12, 2009 4:55pm PST

My journey to the dark side... of Soviet Iron :) : So I ended up buying a 1995 Russian Ural Tourist...

My journey to the dark side... of Soviet Iron :)

So I ended up buying a 1995 Russian Ural Tourist...

Updated: Dec 29, 2008 10:54am PST

1996 F650ST:Helrich - Service :

1996 F650ST:Helrich - Service

Updated: Jul 29, 2008 9:40pm PST

K1200RS: Agyare - Rear drive failure : Customer called me regarding a leak @ the rear drive. Suspecting the worst I removed the rear drive and installed one of my spares so he could continue to ride while the original rear drive is re-built and re-shimmed properly. The following is a picture story of one of the major weak links in BMW's drivetrains. This one failed at 41,000 miles. Just long enough to be out of warranty. Thanks BMW

K1200RS: Agyare - Rear drive failure

Customer called me regarding a leak @ the rear drive. Suspecting the w ...

Updated: Jul 29, 2008 6:56pm PST

1986 K100:Sawyer - Service : Service documentation

1986 K100:Sawyer - Service

Service documentation

Updated: Jul 29, 2008 6:08pm PST

1996 K1100LT : Bouley - Valve Failure : Service Documentation of a repair for a customer who wasn't interested in having the job done right! ALL 16 valve K bikes (K1, 1992 K100RS, 1993+ K1100RS & K1100LT along with, at least, early (1998+) K1200RS & all K1200LT models) are susceptible to this type of failure. It is caused by excess carbon build-up eventually breaking free and chunks of this getting trapped under a closing valve. The PROPER way to repair this type of failure is to replace ALL 8 of the exhaust valves ($150.00 each as of 2008) and all 16 valve seals after thoroughly stripping & hot-tanking the cylinder head and having the head magna-fluxed to check for cracks and warpage. This particular customer was too cheap to have the job done properly and this failure will happen again very quickly to this machine. VIN # WB1053609V0302577 Manufactured 05/1996 - Beware of purchasing this motorcycle. Mileage @ time of repair was 059668 on 11 July 2008

1996 K1100LT : Bouley - Valve Failure

Service Documentation of a repair for a customer who wasn't interested ...

Updated: Jul 28, 2008 6:49pm PST

My smugmug: Who the hell is that??? :

My smugmug: Who the hell is that???

Updated: Jul 28, 2008 2:50pm PST

Canada 29.06-03.07 2008 : George Morrison & I, being World War I aviation nuts, decided to take a trip to Canada. The purpose was to see the only German Fokker D VII in North America still in its original fabric (located in Lac Brome, Quebec) and to see the only German Junkers J I ground-attack plane left in the world (located in Ottawa @ the Canadian Aviation Museum). While this trip was done on our motorcycles I have to look at bikes all day, virtually every day, so there aren't any interesting motorcycle pictures :) Just lots of World War I & World War II aircraft & armor. Enjoy!

Canada 29.06-03.07 2008

George Morrison & I, being World War I aviation nuts, decided to take ...

Updated: Jul 28, 2008 5:45am PST

Your Bio

I work & work & work... the BMW problems never cease! (see http://www.advrider.com and search for posts from "BOUNTY HUNTER" for technical opinions via me). But sometimes I get to ride too! Please browse the galleries and share the pain, misery & comedy of my daily existence. I hope you enjoy the tour & please visit often. Ride Far, Ride Fast & Ride Often :)