Terri's 1971 BMW R60/5 Log

Terri & "Louise," her prized 1971 R60/5, in April 2005

November 11, 2007 - 90,833 miles: The bike gets some fresh fluids to get ready for winter season.

November 27, 2006 - 90,200 miles: The bike gets some fresh fluids to get ready for winter season.

June 24, 2006 -90,183 miles: The bike had developed an idle which oscillated ever so slightly. We suspected the beginnings of an air leak in the intake system, or worn advance springs. Today we replaced all the gaskets on the intake side between the carbs, heads, and sleeves, as well as the advance springs. Also, we installed some "Quieting Buttons" in the cylinder heads to help quell the reverberating racket from the cooling fins. I first read about these in a Matt Parkhouse column in BMW-ON December 2004. True to the article, the buttons worked wonders! It takes 24 buttons to dampen the ringing of a running airhead.

June 17, 2006 -90,015 miles: We gave the bike some fresh fluids, new plugs, and a new gas cap gasket. The original gas cap gasket was installed with a pin, which over time had become virtually welded to the cap, and was a real bear to remove. Rather than use a pin this time, we opted to drill and tap the gas cap, and use a more commonly available stainless steel phillips-head screw to hold the new gasket in place. This modification will make future gasket replacements a snap! See picture below for details.

June 1, 2006 - 89,985 miles: The needles in the respective slide carbs were move up a notch, to richen up the mixture in order to combat pinging. The change seemed to do the trick once and for all!

May 29, 2006 - 89,940 miles: The R60/5 made it through the Vermont Tour with no problems. The bike pinged a little under load, so we retarded the timing ~2 degrees and that cured most of it. We will play with the carbs at a later date to see if I can tune the rest of the pinging out. The bike drank what was left of its oil, so 1.5 quarts of BMW 20W/50 motor oil were added at Classic Airheads before the final leg of the trip.

May 26, 2006 - 88,720 miles: With the original clutch at the end of its travel and no adjustment left, we decided a replacement was in order. We took the bike in to Classic Airheads for the replacement. Obviously, the splines were lubed while the tranny was out of the way - the splines still look OK! A worn speedo bushing was replaced as well.

The bike's all set for our tour of Vermont coming up this weekend!

May 1, 2006 - 88,276 miles: The points on the R60/5 had closed up, leading to rough running and stalling. We regapped them using the Paul Tavenier Tool, which was invaluable in making the job much easier than it otherwise would have been with the Mechanical Advance Unit in the way. While the Mechanical Advance Unit was out for the points gapping, it was cleaned up and lubricated. The Unit already had the Heavy Duty Springs installed by the previous owner in 2003, according to the old service records which came with the bike. The fly weights still "snap back" nicely per the Duane Ausherman Mechanical Advance Unit test, so all is well with that component. With the Tavenier Tool, the entire job took less than 10 minutes, and now the R60/5 runs like a dream again! As an added bonus, we added some generic fuel filters to the gas lines.

October 22, 2005 - 87,319 miles: We took the R60/5 in to Classic Airheads in Phillipsburg, NJ for installation of Motorrad Elektrik's "Omega" Charging system to prep the bike for winter riding. The new Omega system produces 400W with charging starting at 2,000 rpm, a quantum improvement over the stock system's 180W starting at ~4,000 rpm. Terri's new Gerbing's heated gear can now be used without stressing out the charging system. To facilitate installation, a vented Front Motor Cover from a /6 model was installed, as well as a Stator Housing from a /6 model. Both parts were bought used from Airhead Salvage. The bike received a general checkout and pronounced ready for the upcoming winter season!

October 14, 2005: Corbin leather Gunfighter and Lady seat for /5 SWB model installed. The Corbin seat provides added comfort for longer trips and a more luxurious seating surface.

September 10, 2005 - 86,680 miles: Pennsylvania Tech Day! The handlebars were swapped out for the "US High Bars" from my R75/5, and some other odds and ends were performed. The Airhead gurus at Tech Day also did a "sticktion test" on the forks and pronounced them OK.

September 9, 2005: National Cycle Street Shield EX Windshield installed. This 17" high shield will help reduce fatigue on longer trips, and is quickly removable when not required.

August 17, 2005 - 85,860 miles: The bike gets some fresh fluids to get ready for winter season.

April 2005: Terri picked up this White 1971 BMW R60/5 with 85,203 original miles from an ad in Airmail magazine. The story of the bike is that it was bought new by a female professor in Pennsylvania, who kept it for 20 years and rode it across country twice. The bike then changed hands to its second owner, another Professor and Airhead fanatic who rode it and maintained it regularly. The bike was in great condition for an original machine of this age, and the previous owner had equipped it with many worthwhile upgrades, including the H4 headlight conversion, a fused wiring harness, and more. Front splines were lubed ~74k miles, and rear at ~81k miles.