No… The title is not some proclamation of mine declaring that I am off the bourbon from here on out… That would be stupid. What I am referring to is the jack that was propping up my BMW R80’s front-end while I painted the clamps, forks and front wheel assemblies!
After work yesterday I made my way down to the workshop to refit the freshly painted front-end. I began by greasing up the steering stem for installation.
Greasing Up The Steering Stem
After refitting the triple-clamp, I installed the brand new steering-stem top-nut that I’d purchased from MotorWorks. I then made use of some spare motor-oil to lube up the insides of the bottom clamp so that I could pass the fork stanchions through with relative ease.
Once the forks were in place, I made sure everything was square, and replaced the fork top-nuts including their respective washers.
Forks & Triple Clamp Re-Installed
In preparation for the installation of the front wheel, I re-fitted the brake discs to the front wheel hub.
Brake Discs Re-Fitted
I then proceeded to install the front wheel and supporting assemblies.
Front-End Re-Installed
I figured I may as well sit the fuel tank back on the motorcycle to get an idea of the shape of the bike with the cleaned up front and rear.
Front-End Sorted
Rear-End Sorted
Much of the front-end remains unbolted per se, as I am presently replacing all the front-end’s bolts with their stainless-steel counterparts. That said, I’m very pleased with how the wrinkle paint that Ren recommended turned out! It seems to add an element of variety to the black paint laid down thus far.
Front-End Mocked Up
She’s starting to shape up, with both wheels back on the ground.
Back On Two Wheels