Zack, i've had a '94 K1100RS since 2003 (2nd owner). It's my 4th BMW and i think it's the best ride. Did a 1,000 mile in 24 hrs and a 1,500 mile in 36 hrs on it when i was in my 50's. i'm 71 now. If you commute in all kinds of weather (dry & wet) and at highway speeds, i recommend the Aeroflow windscreen. Great protection from weather and wind buffeting and easy to remove & re-attach. Congrats on your beemer!
Thanks Robert, I'm really liking this bike. I did the figuring today and I've put 3000 miles on it in just under 6 months. How often do the valves need to be adjusted? I'm noticing that mine seems to be getting a little noisy (relatively) on the top end.
Hi Zack. i'm probably not the best judge of valve adjustment needs. In the 31,000 miles i've put on this bike, i've only had valves adjusted once. They don't seem to need it. I have had a noise on the left side (head side) that i THOUGHT might be valves but turned out to be header bolts on the exhaust that needed to be tightened. I have since obtained a good torque wrench which i use on those as well as on any other bolt or spark plug that needs tightening or replacing.
As a math nerd I really enjoyed this explanation, Zack. I've heard of cases here in South Africa where bikers traveling long distances with strong crosswinds would develop the same type of wear you're describing though the rear tyre would show similar wear to the front.
Yeah this whole thing scratched a bit of a math nerd itch for me as well if you couldn't tell :) That's interesting about the crosswind thing, it would make perfect sense. Does the wind blow a lot there?
Zack Of All Trades ironically, I happen to live in Pretoria, which is one of the least windy places on the planet. The anecdote is from someone who traveled through the Kalahari desert into Namibia. Some of the roads are dead straight for hundreds of km, there.
I have the same bike. The guy I bought if from even mentioned that it was easier to turn in one direction rather than the other. I've had cupping issues with tires in the past and didn't think much of it as I had planned to replace the tires anyway. Come to find out I had a caliper hanging up which set off a series of events that required replacing all brake lines with steel braided, rebuilding the calipers and replacing pistons and flushing the old gunky brake fluid from the bike completely as it had plugged up many of the small holes needed for the brakes to function properly. Not sure if you have the same problem but I highly suggest getting rid of the old rubber hoses and putting on the steel lines. Make that video for all to see please.
i think you should also take tire pressure into consideration , which in your case apears to be on the low side . also people turn slower to the right than left since the right turn is a sharper turn . BTW that is a gorgeous bike , love the colour too !
Zack, even as a non bike rider I found this interesting and I saw your protractor and I know it has a myriad of uses. I have a similar one but only use it to about 10% of its capability. How about a video on all the different uses of this type of protractor, there are loads on the speed square but I have never seen one on this style of angle measure. Have a very good thanksgiving weekend although coming from over the pond we find it a bit of a mystery as to its meaning.
Hey Tony, you're doing better than me if you use 10% of it's function. I always feel a little embarrassed whenever I use it because of my base knowledge of how to use it. I feel like I'm using a Stradivarius to play Three Blind Mice. If I were to speak intelligibly of it's use it'd have to be after I do some learning myself.....hey that's not a bad idea
Your are very close my friend but I'm afraid it has a lot to do with the reverse chain camber tensioner . There's a very good video on TH-cam that explains this in greater detail. THE TURBO ENCABULATOR. I had the same issue with my 91 K100RS. I went with a Metzler Laser Tech front tire and no more uneven tire wear. Nice looking bike!
Be sure to lube the splines on these K bikes. If you do, your drive line will be good for as long as you will ride it, but if not the splines will be destroyed. It's not really difficult to do, but it will take some time. You have to study up on the procedure and get all the torques right, and perhaps a few tools you might not have. Beemer Boneyard sells some good spline lube, and if you really want to improve on that, I would recommend adding some Tungsten Disulfide powder from Lower Friction. Check out Chris Harris' video's on you tube. He has enough to give you about all you will need to know. Just write down everything you do, as there will be a lot of disassembly going on. These bikes are nice at higher speeds. They seem to like the highway.
Free tickets to Disneyland!?!?!? Free 7-Eleven Slurpee on July 11th? I'm just kidding, I remember chatting with you about it but can't recall the outcome, will you refresh me?
Yeah.... I'm going to go ahead and disagree with you..... I just typed out a bunch refuting your math, but I think more important than any of the math is riding style. I've ridden for a lot of years and we all know people that are more comfortable turning one way and not the other. I'm assuming that since you said you just got that bike, you didn't wear those tires. Who knows what the previous owner's riding style was. Also, I had a hard time with your drawings because motorcycle tires aren't round. They are shaped so that there is actually more rubber on the road when you lean the bike over. I made a conscious effort when I had my sport bike to take it up into the mountains on the weekend to round the tires from all the highway driving I did during the week. I never noticed uneven wear, so I don't feel it's universal. MORE IMPORTANT THAN ALL OF THAT.... YOU'RE 3 SUBS AWAY FROM 1000!!!!!!
1000 SUBSCRIBERS!! WAAAHOOOO!!! Grassy I'm deeply grateful for your multi-faceted support of the channel from its inception. From ideas to encouragement to input on several levels, you've been instrumental. While your successor is certainly supportive, well, tolerant, your enthusiasm stands out as unique :)As to the tire wear, I hadn't thought about the non-round cross section of the tire. Also I wonder how big a role differing rubber composition plays, surely some softer tires are more prone or at least show differently the result of differing riding styles or comfort levels or turn distances. It was interesting to me though to be able to quantify (roughly) the difference in distance travelled between Left and Right turns.
Realize that this is an old video, but could not leave "economy" feature of riding bike vs car. Not valid. That is an expensive bike. Monthly payments on such a bike will likely exceed savings. That you like to ride is valid enough reason. Economy is a rationalization.
Well Doc, this WAS an expensive bike back in 1995 when it was new. I purchased it as a 21 year old motorcycle and enjoyed the benefit of the associated depreciation. All that said; I have no monthly payment. Additionally, even if I considered the whole purchase price AND the money I've spent on maintenance, tires, etc. In the 27 months I've owned it, the fuel savings have more than paid for it. Valid, my old bike just looks new.
Zack, i've had a '94 K1100RS since 2003 (2nd owner). It's my 4th BMW and i think it's the best ride. Did a 1,000 mile in 24 hrs and a 1,500 mile in 36 hrs on it when i was in my 50's. i'm 71 now. If you commute in all kinds of weather (dry & wet) and at highway speeds, i recommend the Aeroflow windscreen. Great protection from weather and wind buffeting and easy to remove & re-attach. Congrats on your beemer!
Thanks Robert, I'm really liking this bike. I did the figuring today and I've put 3000 miles on it in just under 6 months. How often do the valves need to be adjusted? I'm noticing that mine seems to be getting a little noisy (relatively) on the top end.
Hi Zack. i'm probably not the best judge of valve adjustment needs. In the 31,000 miles i've put on this bike, i've only had valves adjusted once. They don't seem to need it. I have had a noise on the left side (head side) that i THOUGHT might be valves but turned out to be header bolts on the exhaust that needed to be tightened. I have since obtained a good torque wrench which i use on those as well as on any other bolt or spark plug that needs tightening or replacing.
Ok cool, I'll take a look there as well. Thank you Robert
As a math nerd I really enjoyed this explanation, Zack. I've heard of cases here in South Africa where bikers traveling long distances with strong crosswinds would develop the same type of wear you're describing though the rear tyre would show similar wear to the front.
Yeah this whole thing scratched a bit of a math nerd itch for me as well if you couldn't tell :) That's interesting about the crosswind thing, it would make perfect sense. Does the wind blow a lot there?
Zack Of All Trades ironically, I happen to live in Pretoria, which is one of the least windy places on the planet. The anecdote is from someone who traveled through the Kalahari desert into Namibia. Some of the roads are dead straight for hundreds of km, there.
I have the same bike. The guy I bought if from even mentioned that it was easier to turn in one direction rather than the other. I've had cupping issues with tires in the past and didn't think much of it as I had planned to replace the tires anyway. Come to find out I had a caliper hanging up which set off a series of events that required replacing all brake lines with steel braided, rebuilding the calipers and replacing pistons and flushing the old gunky brake fluid from the bike completely as it had plugged up many of the small holes needed for the brakes to function properly. Not sure if you have the same problem but I highly suggest getting rid of the old rubber hoses and putting on the steel lines. Make that video for all to see please.
i think you should also take tire pressure into consideration , which in your case apears to be on the low side .
also people turn slower to the right than left since the right turn is a sharper turn .
BTW that is a gorgeous bike , love the colour too !
Zack, even as a non bike rider I found this interesting and I saw your protractor and I know it has a myriad of uses. I have a similar one but only use it to about 10% of its capability. How about a video on all the different uses of this type of protractor, there are loads on the speed square but I have never seen one on this style of angle measure. Have a very good thanksgiving weekend although coming from over the pond we find it a bit of a mystery as to its meaning.
Hey Tony, you're doing better than me if you use 10% of it's function. I always feel a little embarrassed whenever I use it because of my base knowledge of how to use it. I feel like I'm using a Stradivarius to play Three Blind Mice. If I were to speak intelligibly of it's use it'd have to be after I do some learning myself.....hey that's not a bad idea
Do a burn out and even it up! That is crazy how far are you commuting?
Your are very close my friend but I'm afraid it has a lot to do with the reverse chain camber tensioner . There's a very good video on TH-cam that explains this in greater detail. THE TURBO ENCABULATOR. I had the same issue with my 91 K100RS. I went with a Metzler Laser Tech front tire and no more uneven tire wear. Nice looking bike!
Be sure to lube the splines on these K bikes. If you do, your drive line will be good for as long as you will ride it, but if not the splines will be destroyed. It's not really difficult to do, but it will take some time. You have to study up on the procedure and get all the torques right, and perhaps a few tools you might not have. Beemer Boneyard sells some good spline lube, and if you really want to improve on that, I would recommend adding some Tungsten Disulfide powder from Lower Friction. Check out Chris Harris' video's on you tube. He has enough to give you about all you will need to know. Just write down everything you do, as there will be a lot of disassembly going on. These bikes are nice at higher speeds. They seem to like the highway.
These bikes have asymmetric wheel offset tracking.
Nice video just found it because srk cycles is selling a 95 for $2900 in pa
Palmettogrün, beautiful!
Thanks mate.
Thanks for watching!
Maybe the last owner did a track day at Daytona
Oww my head hurts. LOL thanks.
lol mine did as well by the end of filming that!
1000! You know what that means!
Free tickets to Disneyland!?!?!? Free 7-Eleven Slurpee on July 11th? I'm just kidding, I remember chatting with you about it but can't recall the outcome, will you refresh me?
Lol! If you looked at my comment on your blowing up stuff vid for 1000, I made you a play button.
Low tire pressure
Yeah.... I'm going to go ahead and disagree with you.....
I just typed out a bunch refuting your math, but I think more important than any of the math is riding style. I've ridden for a lot of years and we all know people that are more comfortable turning one way and not the other. I'm assuming that since you said you just got that bike, you didn't wear those tires. Who knows what the previous owner's riding style was.
Also, I had a hard time with your drawings because motorcycle tires aren't round. They are shaped so that there is actually more rubber on the road when you lean the bike over. I made a conscious effort when I had my sport bike to take it up into the mountains on the weekend to round the tires from all the highway driving I did during the week. I never noticed uneven wear, so I don't feel it's universal.
MORE IMPORTANT THAN ALL OF THAT.... YOU'RE 3 SUBS AWAY FROM 1000!!!!!!
1000 SUBSCRIBERS!! WAAAHOOOO!!! Grassy I'm deeply grateful for your multi-faceted support of the channel from its inception. From ideas to encouragement to input on several levels, you've been instrumental. While your successor is certainly supportive, well, tolerant, your enthusiasm stands out as unique :)As to the tire wear, I hadn't thought about the non-round cross section of the tire. Also I wonder how big a role differing rubber composition plays, surely some softer tires are more prone or at least show differently the result of differing riding styles or comfort levels or turn distances. It was interesting to me though to be able to quantify (roughly) the difference in distance travelled between Left and Right turns.
Realize that this is an old video, but could not leave "economy" feature of riding bike vs car. Not valid. That is an expensive bike. Monthly payments on such a bike will likely exceed savings. That you like to ride is valid enough reason. Economy is a rationalization.
Well Doc, this WAS an expensive bike back in 1995 when it was new. I purchased it as a 21 year old motorcycle and enjoyed the benefit of the associated depreciation. All that said; I have no monthly payment. Additionally, even if I considered the whole purchase price AND the money I've spent on maintenance, tires, etc. In the 27 months I've owned it, the fuel savings have more than paid for it. Valid, my old bike just looks new.