Finally got pictures of my new(to me) bike in photobucket

Finally got a couple pictures out on photobucket of my new ride. It's a gas but my Maxim is sitll every bit as fun to ride. Except for those long hauls.......

BMW K1200LT 854 lbs wet without sidecar or passengers

2001 with 10, 400 miles now. 7,480 when I bought it.

An even 100 hp with 85 lb ft of torque

12" dual disc 4 piston Brembos in front, single 12" Brembo in back

Power assist and ABS front and rear.

Powered reverse. Great for backing out of parking spots with sidecar attached. Bike + sidecar ~ 1100 lbs.

Electronic fuel injection No enrichment circuit to clean!!!

Automotive cruise control

120 Watt AM/FM with 6 CD changer, 8 speakers with auto volume adjust depending on speed

Electric, adjust-on-the-fly, windscreen (switch on left handlebar)

50 amp alternator

Heated grips, rider/pillion seats and heated pillion back rest

12 V sockets rider/pillion for heated clothing (BMW plugs for sockets $38.95 ea.)!

Hannigan sidecar with quick disconnect disc brake and electric camber adjustment so it tracks straight down the highway. 10 mins to remove or install sidecar

The only issue I have with this bike is it's propensity to lay over and take a nap when it's tired. It is extremely top heavy and will find any excuse to lay itself over when it's not moving forward. If the lean exceeds 10 deg at rest it's going to go over. BMW put "wings" on the frame to keep damage from occurring when it takes a nap. I have had it lay over one time and I was able to pick it back up solo because I had taken the time to watch the technique demo on Youtube.

In the twisties it corners like its on rails. Easiest riding bike I have ever owned. Very solid and very swift in the corners. Still not quite used to quickly negotiating lefty righty lefty righties in a short distance. It seems a little disconcerting to me to move this much mass from right to left to right to left in short order. Still working on my technique. Sweepers are like heaven on earth! Set up the turn, roll on the throttle and enjoy the ride!

By the way. It is my opinion that this website is the best one on the net, bar none! There are more experts on this site dedicated to keeping these great bikes on the road than any other site I've found. The experts genuinely want to help those who need it. The language is civil and the mood supportive. Once in a while Wiz uncorks with one but man, can the guy restore bikes or what? Gotta love the Wiz!

Just learned today how much easier it is to adjust the valves on an XJ over an LT. With the XJ you "simply" rotate the cam until the shim is 180 deg away from the cam lobe and you pop out the shim and replace it with the correct size. The Beemer uses on overhead cam/bucket valve setup also. The difference is that there is no shim. Valve lash is determined by the thickness of the bottom (closed end) of the bucket. Of course, the camshafts have to be removed to replace the bucket. Fun City!!!

Chacal, do you have any Beemer buckets in stock?

 

WOW that side car is huge!
Nice touring ride I'm sure.

 

That is one sweet ride. Replacing the buckets is nuts - that has to be a real pain to do...

 

It's like the Cadillac of motorcycles lol, does it come with a coffee maker as well? lol Maybe a toaster oven or ... or YA! even maybe a BEER FRIDGE!!!?!!11!!one

 

That side car is nuts. If you ever find yourself in the Philly area with that thing I want to go for a ride in it. I'll let you take the new Scrambler for a spin in return. It looks like a spaceship.

very nice

 

bmw power plug ebay # 200115099418

 

Good Lord, if I saw that coming my way I'd turn and run for the hills......

Very nice looking though, it sounds like a real blast to ride.

 

Re: Finally got pictures of my new(to me) bike in photobucke

One more wheel and you'd have an M3! :lol:

Very nice ride! I guess if we ever do a West coast meet it'll have to be at your place, so we can see all your rides. :wink:

 

Re: Finally got pictures of my new(to me) bike in photobucke

Thanks guys.

Mike, the side car is a bit over the top but it was the concession I had to make in order for my wife to ride with me. She had not ridden behind me on a motorcycle since we were juniors in high school but she told me that if I got an LT with a sidecar she would ride with me. She doesn't like to "tip" and the sidecar certainly cuts out the "tip". It was fortunate for me that this was one of only 4 LT's for sale on the left coast when I was ready to buy. She has been a good sport and has actually ridden behind me once without the sidecar on. I kept the "tipping" to a bare minimum and she never squeaked once! Good sign!

Bill, the group holds tech sessions for the 12K mile services and this is one of the tasks they cover. Interestingly enough there seems to be a "pool" of buckets that you can get from a forum member or two. Measure, calculate, select the bucket(s)s you need from the sack, drop your oldies into the sack of pool buckets, and forward the whole thing to the next guy. Reused buckets....... hmmmmmmm. No way to know how many miles on a bucket that's in the sack. Probably made out of der kryptonite so probably doesn't matter. BTW I have already started a savings plan to purchase a couple new buckets if needed for my 1st 12K service. If I don't need 'em I'll use the money to put some kid through community college. See costs below.

You have to do your own maintenance on these monsters unless you're a Rockefeller or a Kennedy. An oil change at a dealership is $150-$180 PLUS the price of oil, filters, o-rings, etc. A 12K interval service runs $1,000 - $1800 dollars depending on what they have to do. This is EVERY 12k miles. My first accessory was a 1200 lb. pneumatic lift from Harbor Freight. Figured 3 6000 mile oil changes or one 12K service and I'm money ahead.

KrS, a coffee maker on a motorcycle? Don't be ridiculous! The pop up combination Weber kettle/ satellite dish is sure handy though!! 8O

Fonz, if I am ever fortunate enough to visit Philly with it you can ride the bike and give your kids or SO a ride in the sidecar!

Polack, thanks for the ebay sale info. I actually found them at Cycle Gear and picked up 3 of them at $9.95 ea. They sell them for adapting their heated clothing line to the BMW socket.

Chacal, you had better run fast or in a tight zig zag pattern or it'll catch you sure! As long as the sidecar is on you're safe. If I ride it for an hour around town my arms feel like they belong to Popeye. It really works the top muscle toward your wrist from the elbow hard. On the super slab it's a dream. No pull you just adjust sidecar camber for smooth sailing. It does drop the gas mileage significantly from the mid 40's mpg to the low 30's mpg.

When the day is done it is still a blast to ride the Maxim. It used to feel heavy. Now it feels like a rocket powered skateboard! The tank is sooooo much narrower, the cg is so much lower and it is so much lighter and nimble about town.

Loren

 

WOW those are outrageous prices - you may need a second job

 

now all you need is the optional 50 cal turret and rocket launcher and your ready for whatever the road throws at you !!! nice bike tho I always wondered what it feels like to ride with a side car
Shaun

 

Shaun, on the highway its great. The electric camber adjustment makes it track straight as an arrow with no input from the handlebar. In town it is awful! Run errands for an hour and I feel like I have Popeye arms. Waaaayyyyy too much work to turn. She's a much better 'go straighter' than a 'cornerer'. Plus it draws a lot of attention which means you have to spend time answering questions or be rude. I can't tolerate rudeness in a man so I answer the questions.

One big plus though is that short of a tornado grabbing it up into the air it's not going to fall over with the sidecar attached.

Loren

 

Re: Finally got pictures of my new(to me) bike in photobucke

Are you sure? They probably have under bucket shims like most other (modern) bike motors.

 

Re: Finally got pictures of my new(to me) bike in photobucke

Ptretty sure: Excerpt from thread follows: Buckets are really cam followers. They make them in .05 mm increments. If you have a tight valve that has a 2.95 mm bucket you adjust it by replacing that with a 2.90mm bucket thus "gaining" .05 mm additional clearance (the LT vaves alway wear tight).

Old Valve Buckets...

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If this has been discussed before please show a link for us newbies.

Since I no longer have a local dealer is there any way to create a link or site to show if people in your area have spare buckets available?

I have six buckets that have 20K miles on them. They are all thicker than the buckets in my bike and will now probably sit in my tool box until I get tired of storing them.

Is there any reason why these can not be reused in a different bike?

Not trying to short change dealers just trying to utilize resources. At $14 + each, these things are expensive paper weights.

Maybe bring or send them to tech sessions where valve checks are going to be performed?

NEVER, in all the hundreds of posts re: valve adjustment are valve shims mentioned. Seems like a goofy system. The cams MUST be removed from the engine in order to adjust the valves by replacing the buckets. Hmmm.

BTW the $14 post was from 2005 so the buckets are undoubtedly a lot more money now.