OT. Vintage bike question, bike sitting 20 years.

1100s nut · 05:07 AM

As the title states. I just purchased my dream bike. 1966 R60/2. It looks like it was just uncrated, however, it's been sitting for 20 years after engine overhaul. Are there any precautions to take before starting? My concern is dry crank,rod and valve train.

BTW. My 2005 1100s Boxercup is doing great...just passed the 24,000 miles mark last week. Going on 15 years of ownership and zero repairs. I don't do trips on it, just local rides.

TIA
Lane

Marke123 · 06-02-2019, 11:20 PM

A friend if mine had a bike in storage and decided to send it to a bike shop for them to check it out before they started it.
The paper air filter had rotted and would have been sucked in if started.
So check the air filter.
I'm sure there will be plenty of suggestions.
Mark.

duckbubbles · 06-03-2019, 05:15 AM

At minimum fresh fluids all around. Check to see that the engine turns without too much drag to be sure it hasn't seized. You might crank the engine without sparkplugs until you get oil flow to the top end. A guy in the recent MOA magazine dropped the oil pan and cleaned out the gunk lying in the bottom of a 15 year non-runner. Checked the tightness of the oil pickup tube.

Good luck,
Frank

Trundlebike · 06-03-2019, 07:47 AM

The roller crank is lubricated by a pair of "slingers" on each end. These can fill up with crud and eventually starve the bearings for oil. Drop the pan, clean out the crud, and consider a magnet in the bottom of the pan to get the ferrous stuff. Bench Mark works for parts and CycleWorks for tools.

Alfa145V6 · 06-03-2019, 01:16 PM

I’m sure we’ve all seen the tv car programs where they start an engine that hasn’t turned over in 40 years. I wince whenever I see that type of attitude to an engine. If it was my new/old bike I would drop the top and bottom covers as a minimum. Make an assessment on the oil. Get some fresh oil to the important parts and hand crank it at first. If it’s easy to get to the oil pump then make sure that’s not bunged up. Or, get a fresh batter and crank away! What can go wrong? (Joke).
Any photos to make us jealous?

tomvv11 · tomvv11's Garage

It's kickstart only, so too fast cranking won't be a problem.
A '66 R60/2 was my second BMW twin in a line of 7 that ends with my 11S. Restored it down to the crank in 1980. +1 on cleaning out the slingers. Take the carbs apart and clean everything and with fresh oils it might just start right up for you. Crank without gas a bunch of times first to get oil distributed somewhat.

BikerMiker · BikerMiker's Garage

You mentioned this was a fresh rebuild. I've been warned to not pre-lube the cylinder walls in any way. Not speaking from my own experience, but from what I was told, that can lead to the lubricant burning to rings and they will never seal.

I also assume that this was stored with no gas in the carbs / tank. I've seen what happens to airheads with the gas left in the ON position and left sitting for years. It's not pretty.

1100s nut · 06-09-2019, 07:12 PM

Alfa, sorry, I'm on a tablet....I can't get pics up. I didn't make this abundantly clear...the engine was professional overhauled, I have all receipts. It was ridden for a short time and parked. 23 years later it's mine. It cleaned it up and looks like new. It appears tank and carbs were drained. The petcock leaks like mad. I've one in the way. I dropped the oil pan and cleaned a little crud.

I did make a oil spray tube to blow oil up into the engine under air pressure. It worked pretty well. I'll report back when I give it another try.

surfdad1060 · 06-15-2019, 04:38 PM

I have a 69 r60, Craig Vecorich at Benchmark is the last word on those bikes. Call him and he will tell you what’s up happily. Also the nicest guy and has everything for that bike. Rings would be the biggest concern,everything else should be ok if the tank and float bowls were drained. Newer /6 petcocks fit those bikes, much less likely to leak.