My 1954 R 68 parked next to an old panel car at the vintage train museum. These really are sweet riding motorcycles. The ISDT exhaust system produces quite a bark compared to the stock salami mufflers. |
Yet another spectacular, low mile, original R 68 that turned up in 2008. This one owner bike spent it's enitire life in the Northeast USA. |
Another view of the same R 68 above. Stunning! |
Here's something most people have never seen before. A factory placed safety/security wire placed around the speedometer cable and "verified" with a stamped BMW roundel, documenting that the speedo cable has not been removed and that the mileage is true. This was used up to at least 1957, and in this case is on the R 68 in the two previous photos. |
Since we're on the subject of R 68's. Here's another shot of my bike at the local soda stand. I usually ride with my camera in the tank tool box because you never know what you might find. This dilapidated soda shack provided the perfect back drop for a new photo. |
Most folks have seen the standard Denfeld pillion, or breadloaf saddle. Instead of mounting directly to the fender, this more obscure rack mount version was designed to fasten to the rear parcel rack via four mounting brackets. |
Here, you can see the mounting brackets used for attaching to the parcel rack. I prefer the look of this version which is less bulky than the standard fender mount pillion. |
Here's a pair of original air filters from a 1936 R 17. The owner used these as patterns to manufacture a short run of identical replicas. |
The result is a perfect reproduction of the originals which were nickel plated. |
Here's an incredible 100% original 1928 R42 which resides here in the states. This time capsule was purchased from its original owner back in 1984 and is in excellent working condition. The factory paint is original as are the balloon tires, spark plugs, cables and mufflers. |
How's this for patina? A close up of the R42 fuel tank reveals the correct pin striping widths and spacing which adorned the tanks and fenders of the 20's tubular frame models. |
I purchased this factory R60 / TR500 rig from the original owner several years ago. This was one of the more enjoyable machines I've owned. Unfortunately, I had to part ways with this beauty do to a lack of space. Sidecars require nearly as much room as a compact car. |
Here’s a photo of a recently acquired Steib master cylinder for the sidecar hydraulic brake. These were used on the BMW "Spezial" which was essentially a Steib TR500 built for BMW. |
Now for something different from Germany. Here's a beautifully restored Zundapp KS601 with even more obscure Hoske variation fuel tank. |