YOUR RESTOS
Our updates on our Barn Find of the Year contestants includes the latest on Paul Wilson’s previously-mistreated Beemer
Updates on your Barn Find antics
PAUL WILSON
Paul’s cracking on, trying to right the wrongs vested upon his 1951 BMW R51/3 by simian previous owners.
Here’s how my BMW looks now. It’s not quite a complete bike, but it does have a complete front end – and it’s much shinier.
I’ve completely rebuilt the front of the bike – this took a while, including all new bearings and bushes. Hagon built up the front wheel for me, along with the rear, and I’ve gone for polished aluminium rims. They would have been painted originally, but the bike isn’t going to be completely original and these rims look cooler.
The plungers at the rear end use big shafts down the middle, holding everything together, and mine had been bashed by a hammer. In fact, the bike’s obviously been owned by a ham-fisted monkey at some point, and seen lots of hammering. I found new shafts for £60 in Germany, which isn’t too bad. You can improve the action of these BMW plungers through use of an aftermarket spring, replacing the fairly ineffective rubber bushes; they’re manufactured by a guy in California, and I’m now in possession of a pair.
I’ve also rebuilt the shaft drive and bevel box, which was a pain in the ass. There’s precise shimming involved. You have to get everything bang on, make your own measuring device, then put it all together and take it apart again about 50 times until everything feels right. It takes some ingenuity, but feels good once you get it right.
I know the tank doesn’t leak, so that’s been fitted, along with the headlight, handlebars and seat. I’m not going for any cosmetic update or originality; it’s going together
with the patina it has. I quite like that most of my bikes look like they’ve been pulled out of a barn (they have), given a cursory wipe (occasionally), but are in very good mechanical nick.
Someone replaced the original deep-valance mudguards with funny hinged ones from a Vincent, and they’ve also got a lovely patina. They look sportier, so with the new wheel rims the bike will be reminiscent of a 1930s BMW racer.
Originally, I had thought that I’d get the whole bike done by the end of the summer. The gearbox is ready to refit, which just leaves the electrics and the engine – and the engine is thankfully in good condition. But I’m moving house, so have had to reassemble it for temporary storage. Me and my two kids were pushing each other down the road on it – with no brakes! It rolls so smoothly and silently with its new bearings.
Though the house move has thrown a bit of a curve ball at the project, I’m still now looking at completion by the end of the year. It’s like building Lego – thank goodness for Teutonic engineering.
‘THE BIKE WILL BE REMINISCENT OF A 1930s BMW RACER’