R100RT to RS fairing swap

[NMBeemer]

Rebuilt the rear master cylinder this morning. Elegantly simple cylinder design, very inexpensive and easy to rebuild...

...but the mounting setup? Among one of the worst engineering jobs I've ever seen on a bike or car--perhaps rivaled by the Morris Minor's brake master, which is squeezed into the floor between two frame rails (idiotic, given all the room under the bonnet).

All BMW had to do was reverse the stamped steel piece that conceals the cylinder, and it would have been just peachy--but presumably that was the point: aesthetics over serviceability, and I suppose perhaps inducing riders to take their machines to the dealer for a periodic fleecing...

At any rate, I'll bleed it after lunch and will be done with mechanical stuff for another 60K or so, save for the oil pan gasket--easy peasy. The windshield fasteners are sitting in the mail box, so this conversion should be complete this afternoon, and I'll look forward to continuing my regular commuting and grocery runs without the cold blast onto my chest that I've been dealing with the past week or so. Very exciting!

[NMBeemer]

Okee dokie... here are before and after shots (no idea why the thumbnails turn out upside down, while when you click on them, the full-size versions are right side up). Pardon my dusty fingerprints on the seat...

The 'before' pics are during my 1,300-mile return trip from purchasing the bike from the original buyer in '84 in Wisconsin.

Ended up using anodized alloy Allen fasteners for the windscreen, and had to R&R the parking light to reach the back of the front two screws...

Essentially, the conversion is done--but for repainting the side cover (zoom in on the 'before' shot and you can see the brake fluid or battery acid damage from the PO) and a few minor cosmetic jobs. But I'm really happy with how the RT to RS conversion came out.

I'll get her out on the highway at speed this weekend, maybe post a brief video.

[srankin]

Looks good. St.

[NMBeemer]

Thanks, I'm satisfied with the aesethics for the foreseeable future.

Rode about 80 miles today, mostly at highway speeds, and the OEM windshield w/o the edge treatment is perfect for me at 6'2" with 34" inseam. I have read threads about buffeting but didn't experience that. The protection ends almost exactly at the bottom front edge of my helmet--so my neck is in still air, while my helmet is in the wind. Zero pressure on my chest and shoulders. Couldn't be better.

And the stability... wow. Had to pass a semi coming up the hill north on I-25 after dark, about 45 F., and it felt significantly less 'tossed about' during the transition as I approached, overtook, then managed his leading edge blast, than with the RT upper. Yeah, for anyone considering this swap, I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

Finally: the surprisingly inexpensive LED plug-n-play bulb I got turns out to have a very good pattern. I didn't futz with the GoPro--though I'll do that at some point so folks can see how it is. But I skirted ABQ on Tramway Blvd, much of which is unlighted, and then later running up the two-lane twisties through the dark canyon coming home, and it's way superior to the OEM H4...

Oh! And I wiped some oil off the neutral light switch leads (really need to R&R the oil pan gasket--or it could've been left over from whenever the PO replaced the rear engine seal)... and voila. The light works. Really happy about that!

[NMBeemer]

Well... the LED plug-n-play bulb I've been so happy with burned out its high beam.

I've noticed that my bike is charging consistently at 14.8 volts while riding, which Snowbum says is ideal (I think he says no higher than 14.9 at the outside...?). But since I got, like, three voltage regulators in the box 'o parts with the bike, perhaps I should try swapping the VR out to see if perhaps I've got a faulty one...?

Anyone have experience with an LED burning out its high beam due to a 14.8 volts charge? I should add that none of the other bulbs--incandescent running and signal lights, and LED gauge illumination, indicator, and stop lights--have burned out. Perhaps, if no one believes the charging voltage is an issue, I should just install the other bulb--as they came in a set of two (for $40), presumably for autos...?

[srankin]

Measure voltage at the battery. The factory volt meters are not always accurate.

As for the LED burning out, I guess my feeling would be perhaps it is the quality of the unit more than the charging issue.

I personally never looked at swapping bulbs, I just went and ditched the whole indicator light system and purchased a Katdash. So far I haven't had a problem. St.