Licks Cycles: “Parom” BMW R100R Café Racer

For Sale: BMW Café Racer from Earth Bikes…

The BMW R100R appeared in 1992, combining the confirmed chassis and flat-twin boxer engine of the GS with Showa suspension, Brembo brakes with floating discs, an digital diagnostic socket, and different fashionable surprises. Styled as a retro bike, the R100R was truly essentially the most superior boxer within the close to 70-year historical past of the model.

The journal writers had a tough time classifying the bike, with Cycle World calling the R100R a “neo-beemer for the Nineties” and Bike a “future retro” — however they cherished it nonetheless.

“The R100R is likely one of the most well-rounded bikes that I’ve ridden. It’s light-footed sufficient to be ridden for sport, torquey and comfy sufficient for two-up, around-town use, and with the right gear bolted on, is succesful sufficient to function a downsize touring bike. The R100R does all of it…” -Don Canet, Cycle World

Leap forward 30 years, and this ’93 R100R got here into the palms of Ales Tomis of Earth Bikes, the Slovakian workshop that’s thundered onto the {custom} scene with a sequence of extremely executed machines in a modern, immaculate fashion — testaments to design, element, and a perfectionist’s eye. On this case, the temporary referred to as for a slim, basic café racer, which could be a problem with the unwieldy dimensions and configuration of the standard boxer twin.

Ales, nonetheless, was greater than as much as the duty, selecting a slim 9-liter tank to intensify the width and energy of these horizontally-opposed cylinders. This tank, a spotlight level of the construct, is a first-rate instance of the person’s consideration to element:

“The small 9L tank which was minimize open and rebuilt. The perimeters have been rounded with an English wheel and the cheap-looking tank cap and socket was changed with a Triumph / Harley-Davidson socket so we might use a a lot better-looking gasoline cap. Additionally, the ugly weld lip across the tank was fully eliminated.”

That’s not all. The only gasoline faucet, which under-utilizes the capability of an already small tank, was changed with electromagnetic valves so gasoline can come from each side of the tank, and the unit was pressurized after welding to make sure no leakage.

The underside of the tank harbors a LiFePo rectifier, BMW ignition, and new smaller coil, and Ales did his greatest to maintain wiring to a minimal.

“The charging port, a USB port, and three essential fuses are all stacked on one piece of steel sheet welded on the body, so no extra cables hanging from the bike.”

The form of the tank dictated the strains of the brand new subframe and seat, which has the standard café racer bum cease.

“The entire seat subframe is bent from one piece of 25mm tube on either side. The tubing follows the form of the tank from the L and R perspective. Additionally from the highest, the seat corresponds to the form of the entrance of the tank.”

The hubs and new entrance discs have been Cerakote’d black, then relaced with new stainless spokes, and the edges wrapped in Avon Roadmaster II rubber. The 41mm entrance forks have been shortened 7cm and the brand new rear shock is a YSS unit the identical size as the unique (410mm).

The cockpit was a problem, because the Earth Bikes group needed to make use of an inner throttle that necessitated 1-inch bars:

“Because the clip-on handlebars are 1-inch, to make use of the Brembo levers was a giant drawback. So we used Discacciati levers with rectangular reservoirs. We determined for 1-inch bars due to the inner throttle we used. And due to the L-R symmetry, we swapped the wire clutch for a hydraulic one. Now the bike seems virtually symmetrical from the highest view.”

The bike makes use of a full suite of Motogadget merchandise, with a Motogadget Mini sitting in a Insurgent Moto triple tree clamp and the M-unit Blue hiding beneath the tank. Ales is a giant fan of the trick Insurgent Moto switchgear:

“The handlebar buttons are additionally Insurgent Moto and I like them personally. They’ve two unbiased features. The button and the LED management mild; the sunshine doesn’t have to correspond to the operate of the button. For instance, we made this setup. The starter button glows pink when the engine isn’t operating. The pink coloration corresponds to low oil strain, so at nighttime, the rider sees the place the starter button is. After the engine begins the sunshine is gone as a result of the strain is OK.”

The symptoms are Highsider and the headlight is an LED 5.75-inch Daytona, which is hooked up to a CNC aluminum custom-made bracket that covers the higher fork stanchions. The facet stand was initially part of the engine guard they didn’t use, and the entire body was shaved of unused brackets, sandblasted, after which powder-coated.

The footpegs have been relocated barely again and up so the seat place is a bit sportier, and the rear brake cable was changed with a chrome steel rod.

“It was type of a problem to make it work, make the most of the brake swap, and nonetheless look good.”

The exhaust slip-ons are a sort that Ales is aware of to work properly with this type of setup. The carburetors have been totally rebuilt and given Ok&N air filters, and the highest caps powder-coated. Says Ales:

“The highest caps are powder-coated with wrinkle paint as a result of there was chrome plating. This plating was no good and was peeling off and needed to be masked and lined. Due to this fact the wrinkle paint. There isn’t a strategy to eliminate the chrome plating from the aluminum with out damaging the aluminum itself. The chromed carb bowls have been surprisingly OK.”

The carbs, engine, gearbox, swingarm and closing drive have been vapor-blasted.

“These elements have been fully rebuilt and serviced with new seals, gaskets, O-rings, piston rings + 150 elements as at all times… Many of the bolts and nuts are new chrome steel ones. Particular elements are both new or repaired and zinc plated.”

We love how Earth Bikes usually makes use of Slovak phrases or names for his or her builds. On this case, the nickname “Parom” is the Slovak equal of “Perun,” the Slavic god of sky, thunder, justice, and battle — the mightiest god within the Slavic pantheon. We will’t consider a greater identify for this R100R.