A chap called me last week in response to a wanted ad asking if I'd be interested in a 2 former keepers K100. I don't think I've ever met a bloke with less knowledge on motorcycles. He was 70 a year old London Cabbie and he's realised that finishing the bike and passing his motorcycle test wasn't going to happen. His mate bought the bike as a project they could both enjoy together-a really nice gesture I thought.

As for the bike itself,it's showing just 3707 miles on the clock but it's suffered over the years from being left in a damp atmosphere for what must have been years. I know that you should always treat old bikes with ridiculously low mileage with the suspicion that they deserve but when you look round the bike in detail,there are some bits of the bike that are SO clean,it must be a low mileage survivor. The strange thing is,what you would expect to be in decent condition isn't and the parts that should be knackered aren't-who knows!!

The discs and calipers are just like new,even the pins in the calipers are still really bright. Most of the bolts still have the green paint from the factory. All the electrical systems (not like there's much) works OK. Under the cylinder head is also "no bad weather" clean. The tank has a pin hole (just for a change) and it's leaked on to the top of the engine leaving a brown goo everywhere. I'll weld the tank up and repaint.

I don't really know why I bought it-I have enough bikes but now I've had a poke round, I'm going to restore it and keep it. 
I'm just about to try for a start.

Enjoy some images.

What year is it Mike it looks like 83 or early 84

You're right on the money Rick-we're not worthy!
Build date 1/84 and registered 2/4/85. Chassis/engine 4723.

It runs on 4 but only fired on 3,a gentle tap of an injector got the last cylinder firing OK. It was very very smokey for a long while. The smoke seems to have burnt off now. The bike was on it's side stand when I went to look at it and there were drips of oil from the header/silencer joints. I ran it up to temperature and the fan cut in but not for long. The fan is now inop and the blades are very stiff. Not knowing the fan had gone,I could hear a kettling noise and the bike boiled over. I panicked and thought the head gasket was US. I topped the coolant back up and everything is OK. Luckily I have a spare fan.

Now it's cleared it's throat,the bike starts on the button and settles to a nice,smoke free and even tickover.

Probably too late to get that slotted rear disk replaced under recall.

Looks like it will be a nice bike.

Al

Hi Al,
Were they replaced under a recall,what was the problem with them?
I'll get on to the dealer on Wednesday when they open again! 

They cracked and were replaced with solid units.

Swap out all the fuel hoses, they are under pressure and with such extended non use will crack very quickly.....8/13mm BMW pipe is cheap.

Same with the crank case breather just in front of the battery, in the gap at the end of the injector rail.

Plus, in case you haven't discovered, the plastic cover over the injectors dissolves in petrol!!! Protect it well from fuel leaks, like the radiator cover they are not obtainable....

Cable ties should be black.......

Beer glass should be alongside the front wheel.


Edit: Cable ties should be black- Guinness Schwarz.

Thanks for the advice Olaf.
I'm still on clean up duties at the moment. With all the brown Goo on the top of the engine and around the inlets,I didn't want to run it too long in case it burned. It's cleaning up better than I expected.
I've just ordered a set of Michelins for it and will be  getting the other necessary consumables ordered tonight.
I'm aiming to use as is for now and properly restore during the loooong winter we'll no doubt have to endure.

Thanks for the advice Olaf.
I'm still on clean up duties at the moment. With all the brown Goo on the top of the engine and around the inlets,I didn't want to run it too long in case it burned. It's cleaning up better than I expected.
I've just ordered a set of Michelins for it and will be  getting the other necessary consumables ordered tonight.
I'm aiming to use as is for now and properly restore during the loooong winter we'll no doubt have to endure.

That's a heck of a find. What is the brown goo or where did it come from?

A leaky tank of course. I don't know about you but I'd have fallen over if the tank had been OK!
Having poked around further, every nut & bolt is correct and present. Only 1 return fuel hose clip is wrong and I'm thinking that's because it dropped to bits as I found the threaded part on top of the motor.

The collection grows-as they do.

I found a hose clip on top of my motor last year when I had the air box off in France. I didn't drop it there but it was clear enough that its completely inaccessible if you were to drop one while taking off the tank.

A very important detail if you end up with tank off when you are travelling and drop the darn clip. Carry a spare.

And carry a spare headlight bulb retaining clip too. The darn thing fits between the reflector and back of the headlight if you drop it changing a bulb. At the side of the road on a dark night that's a disaster as it is quite inaccessible. Again carry a spare......

The hose clip is complete again!
I found the screw and clip in a box. LOL.

I've just been into another box and found the old tax disc. I'm assuming that this is the last time it saw tarmac under it's tyres....this is ridiculous!

Was it on SORN or have you to pay 23 years back tax?

I think that's about the only thing that's been carried out properly.
It was sorned.

Looks like a good find and I detect you are enjoying it now.

Seems to me that you need to have that K properly inspected over here.

You need to take it up the Sally Gap and down the Furry Glen. I am sure we will find a few Eccentrics for the occasion.......

Are Sally Gap and Furry Glen euphemisms?

Yes I'm really enjoying bringing a neglected Brick back to life. The tyres should be here tomorrow along with oil,filters,brake pads and plugs.

I think I've got F.B.D-Flying Brick Disorder.

Have a look at these photos....half an hour from Dublin ferry port.

http://www.tripadvisor.ie/ShowUserReviews-g186646-d3750353-r295977357-Sally_Gap-Wicklow_County_Wicklow.html#photos

Very nice and very green. I guess it rains a lot?

Well, if you ask Born Again Eccentric and Indian036 they have seen it as photographed. So have most of us over here.

TacKler figures its cold and wet.

Coming from your side of the woods it will be fine but it does take rain to get the green.

It lives!


The K flew through it's MoT test this morning.



I did have an issue on the way to get the bike MoT'd.
It started making an intermittent creaking noise from around the petrol tank area. I though it was the tank rubbing on something,thought nothing of it and went for a 30 mile thrash. I saw 125mph on the clock so it goes like a good un.




When I got home I decided to investigate and after looking around the tank,the noise seemed to be the fuel pump. I whipped the pump out and saw a heap of crap under the pump. I cleaned the tank out and fitted a replacement pump on started the bike.....same noise!
I got hold of the pump but couldn't feel any vibration so I pulled and tugged but no difference,the creaking noise was still there,time for a coffee and a think. I started it again and kinked the pipe out of the pump and the noise stopped, I did the same to the return pipe back into the tank,noise stopped again. I pushed a smaller pipe into the return put it into the tank and started it up and all was quiet again.
It turns out that the non return valve at the front of the tank was making a resonating noise under pressure so I took it apart and the spring was very weak due to corrosion so I put the valve back in minus it's guts and it's OK now. I'll find another spring and rebuild it another time.

Has anyone else had a noisy return valve?

I have one the same year , good bike , watch the clocks , mine filled with water on run back from wales in feb , it was raining hard

Mike, those valves always made a noise and the general cure was to get rid of the ball and spring altogether. It's only there to prevent fuel spillage when pulling the fuel hose off.

In the early days I had a rubber cap which I quickly fitted over the fuel pipe as soon as I had removed the hose, but these days I have 'quick connectors' in the fuel lines which is a far better solution. 

Paul.

Hi Paul,
Yeah I know what the valve's for,I just didn't want to be without it on a bike so young. I know that sound really anal but that's how it is. I now have a spring to rebuild it with-there I go again!
I have a pair of QD dry couplings on my Cobas Flying Brick and they're great for constant removal of the tank but I can't look at them on my Basic,it just wouldn't look right.

Anyway,I've gone and bought another brick variant-a '93 K1100LT. Just 2 owners from new. Another recommission project!!