I'm lookin at this R90S

[Garnet]

I found this 74 R90S about 300 miles from home, asking $5900 OBO. This is the owner's description:

"I am afraid these are all the pictures I have of the bike. The bike
belonged to my brother who passed away and I am left with it. If you are
looking for a bike in "mint" condition this is not the bike for you. I know
that he purchased it for $5,200 and put more than double this amount into
restoring it. I have the receipts for the work done on it. After the
repairs he put on a couple of thousand miles on it and then bought another
bike, a BMW. Then because of his health he could ride bikes and it has been
sitting in the garage for the past 3 years.

As for its present condition, the only thing I can tell you is that there is
a little "ding" on the gas tank as it fell over and hit the handle of the
BMW when taking it out of his truck. Otherwise it is in good mechanical
condition. These are my observations but I am not a biker, so it needs to
be seen to appreciate it."







The pics I have are large so I was able to get a close look at a couple of things. The pinstrips look like tape. The seat is well used but looks like a 75/76. Drilled discs, but 74 swithgear and a kick start trans. The mirrors are straight stem, but I can't remeber if they are supposed to be curved or not.

What other 74 only things do the rivet counters look for?

[Ken in Oklahoma]

Interesting. The guy doesn't know anything about the bike, but he knows how much it's worth and that it's in good condition.

One thing about the '74, it will have a 14mm axle rather than the later 17mm axle. There's a thread going on about this now. I also noticed that the bike is dual plugged--not that there's anything wrong with that. But it does suggest that there may be a lot of things that are not original.

I also found it interesting that the guy only has those pictures, but apparently he was camera savvy enough to post 'em in his ad. Somebody savvy enough to post pics probably is savvy enough to at least get somebody else to take some more pics, if needs be, and post them.

But if it is a genuwine R90S I would be all a' titter at the possibilities of getting it into the garage. And the price looks good to me--if you're mad about R90S bikes. What are excellent ones going for nowadays? $10K?

If it were me I"d waste no time getting my butt over there immediately and see the bike in person. But I wouldn't take much of what the seller has to say on faith.

Editing: Those are interesting latches for the bags. I've never seen any that were slotted like that. I also wonder where the bags are, and if they're period correct, period being 1974. Any bags with seatbelt type latches are going to be approximately correct. I don't know of any that don't have the Krauser shape to them.

More: That paint looks too good and shiney to be original. Plus the black on the silver looks sharply defined. But I haven't really paid much attention as to the characteristic appointments of an original paint job. Nevertheless, I'm betting that the bike has been repainted. I assume the ad said nothing about the miles on the bike. That's one of the first things a lot of people would like to know.

More yet: I believe that the mirror stems should be bent. Also a '74 should have the older style /5 switchgear, not the more "streamlined" and integrated switchgear of the later /6 bikes.

This R90S cannot be "very" original. I wonder what the title says on it. I would go to look at it armed with the serial numbers the R90S bikes had. This could be a look alike.

Still more yet: The bike has to be a "fake" R90S. The R90S has some unique appointments like black painted handlebar clamps with a raised polished rib on it. Also the cylinders should be painted black. The price is looking not so good for a R90S bike that isn't a "real" R90S.

It would still occupy a place of honor in my garage.



Ken

[DanielMc]

I'm slightly biased as I love these old airheads - especially in TT silberrauch.

Shock absorbers aren't original, and the riders' footrest rubbers should be round, not square. You've spotted the seat and the drilled disks as being later, and yes, the '74 bikes usually came with shorter curved mirrors, although this wasn't universally observed. Pinstripes were tape on '74 bikes but hand-painted thereafter. The '74 bikes had a 14mm front wheel spindle which went to 17mm in '75. Kickstart was fitted to all '74 bikes and optional thereafter. Calipers on early bikes had 38mm pistons but were unmarked - the later 40mm calipers had "40" cast into them. Speedo and tacho for '74 had large blocked graduations and white outer rings. This bike should also have enamelled tank and seat roundels.

Bike's been twin-plugged which isn't original but doesn't detract.

Edit - comment on Ken's post which appeared while I was thinking! Yes - the paint does look a little too shiny to be original and there's a fork brace fitted which would also suggest that the previous owner wasn't concerned with keeping the bike original. I agree that the price looks good.

[Garnet]

Sorry I missed this but the original add says 88,000 miles, which would explain the need for a lot of repairs. It also says original paint, but I agree with Ken that it seems pretty shiney, and the pinstripes look like tape.

[DanielMc]

The bike has to be a "fake" R90S. The R90S has some unique appointments like black painted handlebar clamps with a raised polished rib on it. Also the cylinders should be painted black. The price is looking not so good for a R90S bike that isn't a "real" R90S.

Ken - I think the clamps are there and also the cylinders are painted black. Your advice to check the engine numbers holds good though.

[Kurt in S.A.]

Some R90S pictures here, probably mostly original...not may silver smoke or years mentioned. There is one picture from a '74 brochure.

http://www.bmbikes.co.uk/photopages/photosr90s.htm

Kurt in S.A.

[Garnet]

The bike has to be a "fake" R90S. The R90S has some unique appointments like black painted handlebar clamps with a raised polished rib on it. Also the cylinders should be painted black. The price is looking not so good for a R90S bike that isn't a "real" R90S.

Ken - I think the clamps are there and also the cylinders are painted black. Your advice to check the engine numbers holds good though.

I think that Ken is just trying to put me off while he scowers the CL adds within a 300 mile radius of me.

[Ken in Oklahoma]

Ken - I think the clamps are there and also the cylinders are painted black. Your advice to check the engine numbers holds good though.

Yes, I now see that the handlebar clamps are black, and I even see the aluminum "strip" on top.

But, doggone it, that cylinder still looks natural aluminum to me, especially in the second picture. But, having said that, if I were to clone a R90S, one of the things I would do for sure would be to paint the cylinders black.


Ken

[Kurt in S.A.]

Can the handlebars work with that fairing? Looks like in the last picture that any movement to one side or the other and they'll hit the fairing.

BTW...the cylinders look black to me.

Kurt in S.A.

[Ken in Oklahoma]

I think that Ken is just trying to put me off while he scowers the CL adds within a 300 mile radius of me.

Garnet, Garnet, Garnet, how could you even imagine that I might be up to something like that--no matter how fond I am of R90S bikes, even a clone R90S bike.

What's more I can prove my good intentions. Tell me where you live, then when you go to look at the bike ask the owner if anybody named Ken has asked about it.


Ken, pure of heart in OKlahoma