{"id":36878,"date":"2019-03-29T12:01:12","date_gmt":"2019-03-29T17:01:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bikeexif.com\/?p=39856"},"modified":"2019-03-29T12:01:12","modified_gmt":"2019-03-29T17:01:12","slug":"the-keeper-gasoline-builds-a-bmw-r-series-for-cam-elkins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/2019\/03\/29\/the-keeper-gasoline-builds-a-bmw-r-series-for-cam-elkins\/","title":{"rendered":"The Keeper: Gasoline builds a BMW R series for Cam Elkins"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"BMW
\nYou may not<\/span> know the name Cam Elkins, but there\u2019s a good chance you\u2019re familiar with his work. He\u2019s the man behind the brilliant short films called Stories of Bike<\/a>, which explore the relationships between custom motorcycles and their owners.<\/p>\n

After several years filming other people\u2019s bikes, Cam decided it was time to get a custom of his own. He selected a 1986 BMW R65<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"BMW
\n\u201cI’ve always loved boxer engines,\u201d he tells us. \u201cI think they’re reminiscent of old WW2 airplanes, which had such a sleek but utilitarian look to them.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cAnd when I first got into the cafe racer<\/a> scene, it was the custom R80s and R65s that tended to catch my eye. So in short, it’s been a dream for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nThe R65 is a wise choice for a custom from the R series. It\u2019s light, the handling is quick, and steering stability is good\u2014thanks to a beefy upper triple clamp. So it\u2019s the perfect airhead for twisty roads, especially if it\u2019s a post-\u201885 model with the monoshock configuration.<\/p>\n

Cam got to know Jason Leppa and technician Sean Taylor<\/a> at Gasoline while filming a promo video<\/a> for their custom Harley Sportster, the A-15. So when he\u2019d saved up enough to buy the R65 and put some money toward customizing, he knew whom to call.<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\n\u201cI knew Gasoline would do a great job, having seen their custom work up close.\u201d So Cam delivered the BMW to Gasoline\u2019s workshop in south Sydney, Australia. And as a style guide, he pointed them towards a super-clean R80<\/a> from the Spanish shop ROA.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe brief was to build a forever bike,\u201d says Gasoline\u2019s Jason Leppa. \u201cOne with timeless style and clean lines, with modern controls and handling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nGasoline have absolutely nailed that brief, and delivered one of the cleanest looking R-series BMWs we\u2019ve seen. There\u2019s not a line out of place, or a sliver of pipewrap\u2014and even the 18-inch cast alloy wheels look good.<\/p>\n

To counter the age of the R65, Gasoline started by dismantling the original engine and gearbox. They vapor blasted and rebuilt the drivetrain with all new bearings, seals and gaskets, and then restored and powder coated the final drive unit.<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nThe carbs were overhauled too, and new jets installed to match the improved breathing: there\u2019s a DNA filter upstream, and a custom-made 2-into-2 stainless exhaust system, with a balance pipe between the cylinders.<\/p>\n

The get the stance right, the front suspension has been lowered 40mm and the rear raised 50mm, with the help of a new shock. <\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nThere\u2019s a new top clamp from Retrofit Collective, which fits neatly with a headlight bowl mount and fork brace from TinWorks.<\/p>\n

Purpose Built Moto supplied the small profile headlight (and control unit) to complete the modern retro aesthetic. <\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nGasoline added clip-on bars, with Beringer hand controls and switch blocks (and brake calipers). Motogadget supplied the speedometer, grips and m.view<\/a> mirrors\u2014which have a polished aluminum rather than glass surface. <\/p>\n

And there\u2019s more German engineering in the shape of discreet Kellermann brake and signal lights.<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nIt\u2019s all hooked up to a new wiring loom and, at Cam\u2019s request, an electromagnetic cruise control device connected to a custom throttle tube. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s one of those almost impossibly clean builds, with paint to match\u2014a deep royal blue and a subtle matte grey, colors with a clear link to BMW\u2019s history. <\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nBut as we all know, simplicity can be deceptive. \u201cThe style looks easy to achieve, but the build process wasn\u2019t!\u201d Jason admits. \u201cNearly all the modern components had to be modified to fit, and took longer than expected to source.\u201d<\/p>\n

The effort was worth it, and reflected in the name of the bike: The Keeper<\/a>. \u201cIt preserves its 1980s history, but will be ridden well into the future,\u201d says Jason.<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nCam Elkins now has a bike that can hold its own against all the beautiful machines that pass in front of his camera. And if you’re lucky enough to be going to the fabulous Machine Show<\/a> in Braidwood, Australia this weekend, you can see it in the metal. <\/p>\n

The rest of us will have to drool over this (very fine) photoset instead.<\/p>\n

Gasoline<\/a> | Facebook<\/a> | Instagram<\/a> | Images by Rob Hamilton<\/a><\/p>\n

\"BMW<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"BMW
\nYou may not<\/span> know the name Cam Elkins, but there’s a good chance you’re familiar with his work. He’s the man behind the brilliant short films called Stories of Bike<\/a>, which explore the relationships between custom motorcycles and their owners.<\/p>\n

After several years filming other people’s bikes, Cam decided it was time to get a custom of his own. He selected a 1986 BMW R65<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"BMW
\n“I’ve always loved boxer engines,” he tells us. “I think they’re reminiscent of old WW2 airplanes, which had such a sleek but utilitarian look to them.” <\/p>\n

“And when I first got into the cafe racer<\/a> scene, it was the custom R80s and R65s that tended to catch my eye. So in short, it’s been a dream for a long time.”<\/p>\n

\"BMW
\nThe R65 is a wise choice for a custom from the R series.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3592,497,509,526,631,3576,2417],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36878"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36878"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36878\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36878"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36878"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wearyrider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36878"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}