Thursday, October 10, 2013

Building a BMW R60/2

After the disastrous attempt to acquire a BMW R69S debacle, I still wanted another BMW /2 so I kept searching for a project.  Of course in the age of the internet, if you seek you will find !  This is not always a good thing, we'll see ?

I found a 1963 BMW R60 project not two hours away from my home so I drove up and took a look at it.  The previous owner had bought it as a complete bike but through the financial hardships most people have endured for the past 10 years, he sold off everything but the matching numbers frame and engine cases.  He had went to the effort to obtain a clear California title in his name and had sent off to BMW in Germany and gotten a certificate of authenticity on the bike.  His price was fair so I bought it.

At the same time a BMW chassis came up for sale in Sacramento that had the Earles forks and rear shock set assemblies that I would need.  I bought it for $580.00 and had it shipped here for $100.00, not too bad.  I took all the parts off the frame I didn't need and have a pretty fair start on a BMW.  I then put the second frame on Craigslist for $500.00 and will sell it to get some of the funds back.  Basically I have a BMW /2 project for about a grand.

To some people this may seem crazy, but I have started this way before and built some cool motorcycles over the years.  I guess the reason it doesn't intimidate me is that I started my motorcycle daze building choppers which are always pieced together one part at a time.  At least I have a totally matching frame, engine and headstock plate to start with.