does anyone know  ,  would a carbon fibre k fairing operates in the same way ,  would there be any advantage ?

would be a heap lighter beano

and would lighten your pocket by similar extraordinary amounts

unless you can find a cheapie going round

why? ... what have you seen ?

nothin more the my poor old K with a cracked fairing, an rt screen that boogies around in the wing gusts and a vision of carbon fibre rigidity and weight reduction , it seems  commonplace enough of  a media that one of our esteemed will have worked with it . ive seen thar keoernizeg guy making rims from the stuff,a fairing should be easy

I have made model yacht hulls with it and can say that working with CF is not much different than fiberglass.  You can lay it up in polyester or epoxy.  Where it gets a little interesting is when you start doing engineering things with heat and pressure.  

As usual, the tricky part is making the plug and the molds.  For something like a fairing, that could get a bit complicated with accommodating fastenings.  I would guess that the weight savings would lighten an RT fairing perhaps 4-5kg which is a lot less than what the cloth would lighten your bank account.

hmmmm how about a carbon fibre 35-40L fuel tank

wonder how realistic a project that is for a DIYer. 

maybe use the base of a stock tank, and make the upper from CF....

and then Ill make my self a rallyraid style fron fairing

I am interested in making a contribution as I would like to have a big tank and I have 2 tanks that are good for nothing but the base.
I can get my hands on a R80GSPD tank to make a plug. Not having done glass work I would not know where to start.

Hey floyd, with a bit of extra time on your hands you seem to reviving some old but good posts for re-discussion.

I think a CF tank would be a great idea given that quite a few of the K tanks are crapping out these days and with a 300klm+/- range its certainly something that could be improved upon.
Producing a new tank would also give us the opportunity to install a more modern fuel cap too.
First step would be to come up with a design in 3D.

I have no doubt that many here are talented and clever. However, I imagine working up a fairing or fuel tank from carbon fibre is a big undertaking.  If you want quality work and wish to avoid the no doubt steep learning curve, you may wish to go with an expert and get what you want in a reasonable time.
In the Laverda community there is a guy whose work is both stunning and reasonably priced.  Go here:
http://www.laverdamania.net/Boba_gb.htm
and have a look.  He ships world wide and he is a top fellow to work with. I have no financial interest in his business, I just appreciate his dedication, talent and service to our Laverda riders.  As far as I know, his work to this point has been on Italian machines, but if the classic K bike riders could work up enough orders, perhaps he will rise to the challenge.

wow stunning pieces there brickrider. 

I cant imagine having him design, fabricate the right mold, and manufacture a r80gs style tank to fit a k100, then post it to Australia, would be particularly cheap though....

Worth asking him though I guess. especially if we could get half a dozen orders, like you suggest. 


RickG: im SE QLD based for the foreseeable future. Granted, im currently rather immobile, but at some stage Ill be able to contribute.

Floyd, there are many Laverda riders in Oz that deal with Boba.  I don't know what the freight to your location would be, but a number of riders have been his customers there in Oz. As you say, it doesn't hurt to ask.  I've bought just one bit from him, and can attest to the good service he provides. And his work is museum quality in my opinion.

I could envision a "Kafe" build with the Bimota HB1 tank sitting on the strongback of the frame, instead of the old bulbous BMW thing. It's my pet peeve that all cafe-conversions of the K-bike don't redesign the shape of the major components of the bike, except for the seat and tail (easy-peasy). It might be possible to fabricate such a tank in CF using the Bimota top bonded to a custom bottom to fit over the K-bike frame.

RicK G wrote:I am interested in making a contribution as I would like to have a big tank and I have 2 tanks that are good for nothing but the base.
I can get my hands on a R80GSPD tank to make a plug. Not having done glass work I would not know where to start.

Rick. I've done a bit of fibreglassing. If you're interested let me know, I'd like to give it a go. My tank is not suitable as its got a dingle in the wrong spot but if you have a spare tank, I can make a mould. From there its not too difficult to make an impression. A fibreglass one first to see how it fits together then using CF. Its not tooooo much different... just expensive.

The R80 tank would be a good option but may take a little ingenuity fitting it to a K100 base. Would be an interesting project.

One option I have been thinking about is that I was told by someone and I cant remember now (CRAFT) He told me that if you cut a K tank down the middle from front to back on the top then it will open out a fair bit without much effort and not destroy the base. Then weld some bits in and make a new cap and you have a 28 ltr tank, but I am yet to try it so we shall have to wait a bit.

There is a chap in Serbia, Ludi Boba, well know to Laverda owners, who makes a number of carbon fibre body parts for various laverda's. Excellent quality and price. Don't know if he could be persuaded to make them for Ks also.

Rick G, have you ever looked at whether an R80G/S PD tank can be fitted to a K bike frame?

As I have both in the shed it might be worth me having a look at some time in the future when I complete some of the other more pressing projects around here. I quite enjoy messing around with adapter plates to share bits between my bikes as you saw at Karuah when I had my R80G/S seat mounted on my K75.

Cheers

No I haven't tried that but even if they could fit have you checked out the price on a 36 ltr tank recently. It will make your eyes water and wallet run for it's life.
Still worth checking it out as it would give a wider choice of aftermarket tanks.

My thought was prompted by the posts referring to making replica tanks from fibreglass or carbon fibre. If a PD tank could be shown to fit it could give others further food for thought and I'm guessing than not a lot of K owners have an original 36 litre PD tank to measure up/work with.

Cheers

There was one on fleabay that went for $1300 about 6 weeks ago. I think a 18 carat gold one would be cheaper.
The shape would be good as it is a recognized shape and I reckon it would be fairly easy to adapt to a K base.

robmack wrote: It's my pet peeve that all cafe-conversions of the K-bike don't redesign the shape of the major components of the bike, except for the seat and tail (easy-peasy). It might be possible to fabricate such a tank in CF using the Bimota top bonded to a custom bottom to fit over the K-bike frame.

I think there's something else here too Rob: most people don't realise that you can run the fuel pump and fuel filter in air (Guzzi do it - same pump, different filter). My peeve on the cafe-racer front is the insistence on re-using the brick handlebar switches. You can fit anything you like, as long as you don't mind losing the self-cancelling feature (that's one problem I haven't figured out yet). It also frees you up to use a different front master cylinder too.

Anyway; I agree with everyone else. That's absolutely stunning work. I don't know about the ANZ exchange rate but for the UK/Euro it's an absolute steal. An ally tank would cost you twice the price.

Here we go...K1100 with r80gs tank and solo seat. Got the 19in wheel off the r1100gs. Also has a Parabellum Scout Fairing, in carbon fibre off course. 

Just need to sort out the rear rack and maybe an aux fuel tank down where the battery/ecu live

Anyone care to take a guess-timate on how much it would cost to have an aluminium copy of the r80gspd tank to suit the k100/1100 frame?

Just for some perspective

I would say $1500 to $2000.

You can still get a r80GSPD tank from BMW brand new and primed for $1300USD

Have you thought of the later 1100/1150 gs tank. The tunnel is nice and wide so it might fit over the frame, and more available than the 80/100gs tanks, and is set up for a fuel pump.

On the 100gs tank. I'll try mine on the K100 some time to see if it would fit. The K100 is in bits at the moment, so maybe in a couple of weeks.

Thanks Phil do you know the size of the 1100GS tank. There is a R100GS tank on fleabay ATM but for $1150 I will give it a big miss even if they do fit.

RicK G wrote:Thanks Phil do you know the size of the 1100GS tank. There is a R100GS tank on fleabay ATM but for $1150 I will give it a big miss even if they do fit.

I got excited there for a moment as the 1100/1150 GS tanks are a lot cheaper as Phil pointed out....

However the 1100GS is only 25L and the 1150 is 22L with an optional 30L

The optional 30L would be alright but unsure of price and availability ....

RicK G wrote:Thanks Phil do you know the size of the 1100GS tank. There is a R100GS tank on fleabay ATM but for $1150 I will give it a big miss even if they do fit.

You can get them for a few hundred if you are prepared to wait and watch - I got one for a 1150Gsa a few years ago for $350. Yes you want the 1150GSA tank at ~34 litres. I suppose the big advantage is that they are set up to fit a fuel pump whereas the 100gs isnt.

NB: Apologies, this has become a thread hijack somewhat. But its also relevant  

Check out this amazing work. 

I think i has a reservoir tank under the engine that house the fuel pump....

Also notice how they have left ample clearance up around the headstock to allow the use of larger dia. forks while retaining full steering lock. If you use larger forks with the stock tank, you bar turing range as far as I know.

Forum Post Here

Fabrication, welding, machining....me wish, me wish....