BMW R100 RT Rennsport vintage Racer

In the past I have written many times that "Under every bike there is a cafe racer" just remove the superfluous and leave the essential.
As Michelangleo said, that marble had to be freed from the excess of matter that separated it from becoming a perfect creature, according to the dictates of the Renaissance. In particular, then, as befits a genius of his level, he already had in mind what he wanted to do, or rather, a "creature" was inherent in a certain piece of marble ... the artist's work then it is none other than that of removing the excess and freeing what was a prisoner in the marble.

Inspired by the past and following the same philosophy of the past, Christian Boosen and Alex Ilcewicz worked on this BMW R100RT to achieve the result you see in the photo.

We interviewed them to let us tell their story and that of this project.

Where are you coming from? 

Poland

Who else worked with you?

Partners who took part in this project: Adrian Figura from Scrambler74 – welding 4Drive – custom seat Kamil Gałka – paintjob Bartek Zaranek Photography – photoshoot

How can you describe yourself (or your team)?

"I grew up in Germany close to the Dutch border, where I have spent most of my life surrounded by motorcycles. As a self-taught mechanic, my passion and occasional hobby started from tinkering around several Vespa CIAOs and BRAVOs, and a SIMSON KR51 Schwalbe. During my first bike tour, I have spent half of the time fixing my 1981 Yamaha XT500 on the side of the road. It took a long time and a lot of hurdles but I made it the final destination: Istanbul. I guess that challenge became my defining moment.

When I finally made it home I was inclined to do my first complete rebuild. Shortly afterward I started to restore and sell some of these bikes every year. After 10 years of hard work and commitment, my hobby became my main occupation. I guess the passion for vintage motorcycle design has kept me going ever since.

When it comes to motorcycles, the adage "form follows function" holds for me as a custom builder. Although the aesthetics play a large part in my design process, the essence of every custom motorcycle, no matter how stunning, is that it's meant to be ridden after all! That's why I start every client brief with the intended purpose of the machine. It will take time, we will sit down and talk about ideas, dreams, and wishes, adding safety features and performance upgrades. Intensive talks about the details and how to build the bike are essential to make it special and one of a kind."

Since 2006 we have worked on every model made by the Japanese Big Four: Yamaha, Honda, Kawasaki, and Suzuki, a fair share of BMW bikes, and Italian brands like Moto Guzzi, Moto Morini, Benelli, and Ducati. Most of them 86'ed – found in someone's garage in a pitiful state, worn out and qualified for a total overhaul, hence the name. We are the enthusiasts, who restore them to former glory and transform into pure, elegant racing machines.

We are located in Warsaw, Poland. Although most of the work happens in a small, industrial railway building in the heart of the city, friends we cooperate with daily are what make our workshop thrive throughout all these years. Their creativity, eye for detail, and craftsmanship play a major part in every project we work on.

With only a few potential clients, the market has always been difficult and demanding. Nevertheless, passion for 'something different' is slowly fueling custom motorcycle demand. As vintage-style motorbikes in Warsaw are gaining visibility in the city, the 'best days' of our local custom scene are still ahead.

What inspired you to start building the bike?

Our client got inspired by one of his friends custom R100 but did not have any particular model in mind. With just a few inspirations from the web, he allowed us to get carte blanche with the project.

Where did it come from?

We had to source the bike. The search for the right bike went relatively fast. The base was a very well maintained 1982 BMW R100 RT, which spent its life in Berlin. With less than 80,000 km on the dial and a full-service book provided, this BMW was worth every dime. The RT was a full-house touring version of the R100, so it came with a lot of stock goodies we decided to keep: front forks, alloy snowflake wheels, stock steering damper, Brembo double front disc brake system, and a less common rear brake rotor.

What's the donor bike, make, model, year?

1982 BMW R100 RT

What was your vision/plan?

We were tasked to create a cafe racer that keeps all the significant parts and details of the 2-valve air-cooled boxer motor of that era. A solo seater with a rather sporty stance – a pure but elegant racing machine.

What did you do to the bike?

The fuel tank also remained stock, but to achieve an overall straight line, it was slightly lifted from the back, matching custom made subframe and a seating cowl.

The engine and carbs were taken apart for a thorough inspection. Although it was kept in pristine condition, the motor received a new set of pistons and rings, a new clutch, and a cam chain. The oil cooler was removed. Instead, we upgraded the stock oil pan to an aftermarket, high capacity deep sump oil pan. With more oil flowing in the system, we've provided optimal cooling without compromising the looks. Tuning the carburetors proved to be the biggest challenge – fitting Siebenrock Velocity Stacks required serious skills but thankfully, all the parts required to mount the kit were included in the package, making the process less painful and time-consuming.

The project took 1,5 years.

If you've upgraded parts, what make did you choose and where from?

YSS shocks, Front forks – stock springs replaced with progressive springs.

Siebenrock Velocity Stacks, new engine cover,

bigger, aftermarket oil pan,

Aftermarket mufflers and header calves,

Aftermarket oil temp. indicator,

Motogadget Munit placed under the tank,

Motogadget front indicators

Firestone Deluxe tires

Grimeca front brake master cylinder,

Motogadget controls, speedo, grips, mirrors, indicators and electronic box, Raask rear sets, Aftermarket handlebars, Monza fuel cap

Any interesting challenges, unconfident, or mistakes?

Electric regulator, had to be retrofitted form police bike – low rpm loading as opposed to stock high only charging.

Tuning the carburettors with open-air intakes and modified exhaust was very challenging – the engine was running nice but was getting hot quick.

Seat customization and overall frame design took a lot of time.

Tell us about the finish/logos/design?

Clearly, our customer was into BMW Rennsport vintage colors, and raw metal. The white base coat was the clients' wife's idea. We added the stripes and placed them accordingly to our client's will.

Any unique features?

Café racer seat cowl – custom made. Fabricated from metal, with leather cover and integrated LED stripe for position, brake and indicator light.

How would you describe your bike?

Cafe Racer

How does the bike ride?

The bike performs and handles better. It has more power, weighs less. We've got an extra 5hp increase from 65 hp to 70 hp. There was no compromise in safety in rear shocks configuration.

What will you do next? New projects?

We have another BMW airhead about to be finished in weeks, and a few projects in the works.